Gun Cleaning Thread

[Cubo de Sangre]

I've got questions on cleaning some newly received guns and thought having a thread dedicated to the subject in general wouldn't be so bad.

I inherited a number of long guns and don't know any of their history. I want to give each one a thorough cleaning. Normally it's a matter of putting some Slip 2000 on a Boresnake and running it through 3-5 times. I previously used Break-Free but a kind soul on this board informed me it was a health hazard (due to Teflon or something). I've got some Hoppe's and Sweet's but don't really use them. Most of my guns are bought new and not shot extensively enough to worry about long term build-up. It occurs to me I don't really know what I'm doing when it comes to bore maintenance.

Of course there's more than one way to skin a cat here and it would be great to hear everyone's thoughts on what they consider sufficient for deep cleaning as well as just regular post-range practices. Thanks.

 

[Protectandserve]

I use MPro 7. I like how it works.

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

I use MPro 7. I like how it works.

Inside the bore and on the metal surfaces?

 

[Protectandserve]

They have formulas for both.

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

So nothing special to remove lead vs. copper or whatever?

 

[RerouteToRemain]

I've used Hoppe's stuff , M-pro7, shooters choice. M-pro7 seems to be good and not as harsh so I have been using it lately. I have also used gunslick foam bore cleaners that seem to work quite well. Every couple k rounds I will do a deeper clean, use the Hoppe's over the M-pro7.

Teflon thing I think was me.
Teflon in the barrel is not good from what I've read. It breaks down at like 550 degrees, you can get hot spots (gummy Teflon sludge) and if hot enough the fumes aren't good. I use breakfree clp as a gentle cleaner on everything but the bore/barrel though. So exterior and non barrel related shit Rem oil and clp is fine.

Quote from a website I've read this stuff from.

"At around 1000 degrees F (easily reachable inside a gun barrel during firing), Teflon/PTFE breaks down into a mixture of fluorinated acids and olephins, about 20% of which (I think) is trifluoroacetic acid (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trifluoroacetic_acid), which is highly corrosive. There isn't a huge amount of PTFE in Rem Oil and such, but the breakdown products are still something you wouldn't want in your gun barrel."

FN tells people not to use Teflon as well.

A gun oil I'm interested in and read interesting things about is Royal Purple gun oil. It has this ion bond type technology that not only protects but will actually smooth out/polish surfaces over time similarly to what their motor oil does. It's been out a while but I keep forgetting to give it a try.

 

[RerouteToRemain]

So nothing special to remove lead vs. copper or whatever?

Their "gun cleaner" gets most stuff like carbon, fouling and even some cooper but they have a hardcore one for copper. It's great to use as a regular cleaning but every couple thousand rounds (less with a bolt gun) I prefer to use something stronger(usually Hoppe's) as a "deep clean". Be careful with copper stuff from any brand. I believe there is very specific instructions.

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

God forbid I look in the barrels and see some rust. Then what?

 

[RerouteToRemain]

God forbid I look in the barrels and see some rust. Then what?

Depends on how fucked it is.

http://www.brownells.com/gun-cleani...g-paste/j-b-bore-compound-kroil-prod1159.aspx

If there is just a light frosting you can probably take Kroil/JB and just douche it thoroughly with bronze brushes and swabs. Inspect and finish with a healthy amount of oil for the time being.

I've read about people corking their barrel and pouring Kroil down the barrel and waiting a few days and dumbing it.

I've also read about mild rust removers. Just keep working the spot gently. Follow up with simple green to remove the rust cleaner. Have really hot water ready to clean out the rust cleaner/simple green and then quickly follow with multiple drenched swabs/patchs of a good oil. Not sure about this method. I would definitely try the top first.

If there is heavy pitting maybe use the top method, inspect and go to a gunsmith from there for options. Actually shoot it first. If the pitting only makes it a couple extra tic tacs off at 100 yards that's really not that big of a deal for general use imo.

Rebore the barrel for a larger caliber or get a new barrel.

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

I just gave the Browning A5 12 gauge a decent cleaning. I wasn't up to taking out screws to remove the stock, trigger assembly, and bolt. I got the rest of it pretty good with the Slip 2000 EWL in the barrel and Break-Free everywhere else. Lots of gunk and a couple spots that might have been a very light rust in a few crevices. The bore looks shiny enough but I feel I half-assed the cleaning by not busting out the screwdrivers for a more thorough disassembly.

Interesting design with the magazine spring and those friction rings. My shotgun experience is limited to a Mossy 500 and a Saiga 12. I'm looking forward to shooting this one. I tried to date it via the Browning site but matching up any markings on the gun with their serial number chart was unsuccessful. An email was subsequently sent to Browning for clarification.


EDIT: This magazine cut-off I had to look up to see what the point was.

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

I'm now intimately familiar with the Browning A5 12 gauge.

I didn't go so far as to take down the bolt and trigger assemblies. It was enough work (four hours worth maybe) just to clean every other nook & cranny. I wire-brushed the shit out of the internal parts. Cleaned out the magazine tube. I discovered it had a wood block that neuters it by two shells. Good riddance. Overall I think it was a success but that won't be certain until some live fire testing is conducted.

I did have some setbacks. Like a dummy a removed a screw by the stock screws that I shouldn't have but didn't know it until well into reassembly. It made the stock very difficult to remove and posed a real problem while re-inserting the trigger assembly. Eventually I figured it out, put the screw back in, then the trigger, and then the stock went back on without a problem. There was also the pin that holds the bolt (or slide?) assembly in place. What a bear. I bent three punches between removal and re-insertion. One of my brass punches know looks like Arianny Celeste's pinky.

Mad props to Brownells for creating this video. God bless Youtube and John Moses Browning.

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

I pulled apart the two Winchester Model 12's, all the way down to the firing pin. This video helped out. Nothing amazing, but the information was there.





It looked something like this.

The bolt assembly was particularly atrocious in one of them. Counter-intuitively it was the one built in 1959 rather than the 1926 edition.

I decided it was time to try out a little of the Hoppe's #9 Bench Rest. After a few minute soak the parts came out like this.

Both guns cleaned up nicely and were much easier to work with than the Browning A5. One screw and the trigger group comes out. Pressing a pin in the magazine tube, twisting the tube, then rotating the barrel 90 degrees breaks the shotgun down to two pieces. I'm sure one being a pump and the other being semi-auto creates a gap in simplicity. These also had magazine neutering dowels. Must have been some capacity limit for hunting in my dad's state. Or he didn't give a shit about reloading all the time.

Ps. It's amazing how much debris can attach itself to a magazine spring.

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

Since I was on a roll today this Weatherby Mark XXII got the same treatment as the Winchesters. Pretty easy to take down. There's a pin to remove and then the barrel slides out. The rest came out after removing two screws. Easy-peazy. No Youtube video necessary. Just a look at the (2 page) owners manual.

I don't think it had ever been cleaned. Ever.

The magazine looked worse than both of those but it got cleaned without being photographed.

I didn't take down the trigger pack any further so it took some work with a pick to get most of the crud out. Of course there was plenty of wire-brushing to be done. This one had some rust that all came off but it left a few marks on the outside of the barrel. Overall it looks damn good. The wood is in nice shape and the internals now look respectable. The bluing has faded a bit around the trigger though. Looks like a low serial number so I'm curious about the date of manufacture.

I need some more magazines. I wonder how big they go. This one looks like a 10-rounder. I'm hoping for at least double that.

 

[Chesten_Hesten]

I've used a number of different bore cleaning solutions, but always seem to come back to: Hoppes #9 and Sweet's for copper.

Here's a link for Champion's Choice Bronze bore brushes:

http://www.champchoice.com/store/main.aspx?p=categoryBody&c=CLCRRB

Scroll down a bit for the stuff marked CC.

They a good place for bore guides
http://www.champchoice.com/store/Main.aspx?p=CategoryBody&c=CLCRRO

patches
http://www.champchoice.com/store/Main.aspx?p=CategoryItemListBody&c=CLCL

Rods
http://www.champchoice.com/store/Main.aspx?p=CategoryBody&c=CLCRCL

One .177 rod will likely do you for everything.


Adapters
http://www.champchoice.com/store/Main.aspx?p=CategoryBody&c=CLCRAD

Jags
http://www.champchoice.com/store/Main.aspx?p=CategoryBody&c=CLCRJP

mops
http://www.champchoice.com/store/Main.aspx?p=CategoryBody&c=CLCRMP


Another good place for cleaning / reloading / etc

http://www.sinclairintl.com/gun-cleaning/index.htm

https://www.championshooters.com/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&view=virtuemart&Itemid=111

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

The 10 gauge Boresnake arrived so the Armas "Gib" 3200/C got some attention. There's precious little info out there on these. Taking it down was easy enough. But that's as far as it got since one of the screws to take the action out wasn't budging and (not having a correctly fitting tip) I didn't want to strip it out. The barrel wore me out. It's fairly clean, but either there's a little more to get or that's some type of minor pitting in there. If I'm reading the proof codes correctly it appears to have been made in 1971. I wonder how beneficial a more intensive breakdown/cleaning would be.

 

[RerouteToRemain]

I need to buy some latex gloves for cleaning. I spend like 20 minutes washing the shit off my hands after cleaning. Then I touch shit like door handles and whatnot. Plus all those can't be good to touch.

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

I worry about exposure a little, but not enough to put on gloves.

 

[RerouteToRemain]

I worry about exposure a little, but not enough to put on gloves.

It's more to minimize the mess.

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

For me lathering up dish soap (without any water) on my hands and then a thorough rinse removes the cleaners pretty good. After that I don't see any transfer really. Learning gunsmithing from Youtube means my computer is lubed and up though.

 

[SMEAC]

simple green has a good hand cleaner and the simple green degreases well