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Old February 17, 2013, 07:42 PM   #51
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I've always cleaned my weapons after shooting them. Just the way I was raised and taught. My CCW instructor suggested that we clean our carry weapons after shooting them, just on the outside rare chance that we could be near but uninvolved in a shooting and have LE ask to smell your carry gun. Said it might save a good piece of time at the least.
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Old February 17, 2013, 07:53 PM   #52
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My dad cleaned his guns every time he shot it, and I got it honest. I field strip and clean all pistols after every time shooting, and strip the slide of my carry pistol (a Glock) a couple of times a year. I feel I can reach everything in the frames sufficiently for good function without a detail strip; I strip the slide to be sure that the firing pin channel doesn't foul.
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Old February 17, 2013, 08:33 PM   #53
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Why all the bickering? It seems everyone agrees with me.

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Originally Posted by Sport45
I clean mine whenever I want to.
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Old February 17, 2013, 08:36 PM   #54
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My CCW instructor suggested that we clean our carry weapons after shooting them, just on the outside rare chance that we could be near but uninvolved in a shooting and have LE ask to smell your carry gun.
I have no problem with cleaning. But that is one of the oddest reasons I've ever heard.
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Old February 17, 2013, 11:16 PM   #55
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In the USMC, we were taught that if there was a single miniscule speck of dirt or carbon on the flash suppressor or buttstock, then our weapon would not work when we wanted it to, and as a result we would have a commie stick us in the throat with his AK-47 bayonet. I understand this was the extreme, and we were actually being taught attention to detail instead of actually keeping our weapons functional. I have heard on more than one occasion, that because the USMC is so anal about weapons cleaning, that many weapons issued by rear echelon units that are not actually used very often have been known to get worn out simply by excessive cleaning.

What I do with my weapons today, is I usually give them a once over general cleaning after every trip to the range, then after several hundred rounds I will give a detailed cleaning. This is also about inspecting the gun for servicibility and functionality as much as it is about cleaning it.
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Old February 17, 2013, 11:56 PM   #56
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revolvers.....brush clean barrel and cylinders after each shooting session. complete cleaning every 500 rounds.
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Old February 18, 2013, 01:40 PM   #57
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I clean my firearm (revolver or semi-auto pistol) after every trip to the range. I usually shoot 2 boxes of ammo through the weapon on every trip. I keep the weapon as clean as possible. This has been my practice since 1970.
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Old February 18, 2013, 02:11 PM   #58
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The damage from the neglect will still be there? A serious question for you: what damage is prevented by frequent cleaning? Please be specific. You may be right, but it's going to take more than "saying so" to convince some of us.
Had a cheap double barrel 12ga that I used to hunt ducks with. Loved that gun better than most of the more expensive models/brands. Cleaned it rather "infrequently" over about a 15 year period. It never failed to shoot; I never had a problem with it. When I quit hunting, I placed it in the closet for a few more years - gun still looked reasonably well. One day I decided that maybe I'd take it out of the closet and fondle it again and even clean and lube it. Much to my dismay, I found that the bore (both barrels) had some pitting. Wish I'd have cleaned it more frequently - like after at least after every couple of outings.
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Old February 18, 2013, 04:19 PM   #59
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Wish I'd have cleaned it more frequently - like after at least after every couple of outings.
The pitting probably came about from being stored and never having the bore wiped, rather than infrequent cleaning when you were using it.
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Old February 18, 2013, 04:48 PM   #60
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I may be way off base here but it seems to me that constant use of a dirty gun could cause a "lapping" effect causing mating surfaces to wear. Also as mentioned above lack of oil can cause pitting & rust. When taking a gun afield I ride an ATV which gets guns filled with dust, sand, etc. Leaving all that in/on the gun can't be good.
I've been a mechanic most of my life and haven't found a machine yet that didn't benefit from a little maintainence. I'm not saying that if you put you gun up dirty it will crumble into junk. In the long term I believe that a lack of care will degrade the function and appearence. ( long term being decades) Slight surface rust doesn't affect function in most cases but it sure drops the value to me. If the slide on your favorite 1911 gets a tiny bit looser will it really hurt the function? I doubt it but that doesn't mean I will willingly let it happen.
I'm no expert by any stretch of imagination, just my 2 cents.
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Old February 18, 2013, 07:47 PM   #61
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I clean mine after every range trip.

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Old February 18, 2013, 08:22 PM   #62
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My CCW instructor suggested that we clean our carry weapons after shooting them, just on the outside rare chance that we could be near but uninvolved in a shooting and have LE ask to smell your carry gun.
If a LEO walks up to me and asks to smell my gun, he will be shoving a loaded gun up his nose because I'm not going to give it up to him without an argument & I'm definitely not going to unload it just so he can sniff it!!! I refuse to touch my gun around police officers. I don't want to give them any reason what-so-ever to think that I might be "going for my gun", even if they ask me to hand it to them. It isn't going to happen.
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Old February 18, 2013, 08:47 PM   #63
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Call me OCD too, but I clean mine after every range trip...meticulously! Usually clean the magazines too. I like for my guns/pistols to look like "new" for as long as possible; also helps me keep up with functioning and any possibble issues; makes me a little more familiar with the weapon.
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Old February 19, 2013, 12:49 AM   #64
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ET.
I don't want to give them any reason what-so-ever to think that I might be "going for my gun", even if they ask me to hand it to them. It isn't going to happen.
So what are you going to do if a LEO asks to see your weapon, run?
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Old February 19, 2013, 12:58 AM   #65
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Within a day or two of shooting.


Improperly maintained equipment or weapon is one of the Fatal Errors.
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Old February 19, 2013, 08:05 AM   #66
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I always clean my pistols after shooting, and sometimes if I have nothing else to do I will clean one or more of them. I love looking at them and they do not age, unlike the wife and I. She gets more beautiful after 51 years together, but I just get uglier.
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Old February 19, 2013, 10:05 AM   #67
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"It smelled like it had been fired"

""How long ago did it smell like it had been fired?""

"It smelled like it had been fired within 45 minutes"

""Guilty!""


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Old February 19, 2013, 12:06 PM   #68
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Clean it when you buy it. Clean it after shooting it and wipe it down every couple months even if you don't shoot it.
Pretty much sums it up for me, although I probably wipe them down more frequently.
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Old February 19, 2013, 01:24 PM   #69
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How often do you clean your pistol?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Sport45 View Post
So what are you going to do if a LEO asks to see your weapon, run?
It's the Internet, opinions don't have to logically apply in real life.

I wondered the same thing. Ask the officer to get it from your person if you prefer, but if he demands you hand it over, hand the darn thing over.
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Old February 19, 2013, 01:32 PM   #70
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If I have time when Im done shooting Ill clean them. If not, oh well. I dont get concerned or worried. Plus the ammo I fire is mostly my reloads and I use very clean burning powder and primers. Keeping them lubed is a higher priority to me than keeping them clean.
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Old February 19, 2013, 01:34 PM   #71
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Re: How often do you clean your pistol?

I clean mine everytime I shoot them,regardless of the amount of lead thrown down range. They're expensive investments and although they look good dirty, they're that much more beautiful clean.

When I drive my Corvette, I was it after a day of use. I use my toys but I like them clean. I guess its personal preference but youre gonna find more people leaning toward the clean side than the dirty.
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Old February 19, 2013, 02:44 PM   #72
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Every time I get back from the range or on days I am bored, like today when the the snow is blowing. (be sure it's unloaded)
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Old February 19, 2013, 02:57 PM   #73
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Usually after every trip or two, it depends.
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Old February 21, 2013, 05:12 PM   #74
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With a new gun, I field strip it, looking for manuf. debris etc. I clean everything I can get to without a detail strip. At that point I re-lube and head to the range.

I clean pretty much anytime I''ve fired any gun, situation permitting. IE..in a deer camp, I pull a bore snake through the bore but do not clean the barrel....unless it's been raining etc.

That said, I don't have a handgun that will not fire at least 100 rounds without cleaning...it's a matter of reliability for me...if they can go 100 rounds without maintenance, and with no malfunctions, they're good to go for CCW.

Best Regards, Rod
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Old February 21, 2013, 05:18 PM   #75
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That said, I don't have a handgun that will not fire at least 100 rounds without cleaning...it's a matter of reliability for me...if they can go 100 rounds without maintenance, and with no malfunctions, they're good to go for CCW.
Pretty low, imo.

I'd say 1 malfunction that isn't related to a non-funtion variable (ie: limp wrist, bad primer etc.) in 700-1,000 rounds.
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