I think I STILL get nightmares…
When I was in the Army, the very FIRST thing we had to do when we got back from the range was sit around in a circle and clean our weapons.
And I mean like SPOTLESS!
Just when I thought I had it “white glove ready”, I’d bring it up to the armorer for inspection (You know who you are Coop! 🙂 )… he’d grab one of those square cotton patches and shove that thing so far down into the weapon’s barrel or receiver, you’d think it was a proctology exam!
And if he came out with so much as a SPECK of carbon, dust, grease, whatever… well, it was back to the “cleaning circle” with me!
It could literally go on for an hour or so – just for ONE weapon!
(Didn’t he know I had BEERS to slam with my buddies?!)
NOW you can see why shooting 3 or more of my weapons at the range would really suck, eh?
Shooting Guns Rocks! Cleaning Them Sucks! That Was Until…
This One Gunsmith’s Tip Made My Gun-Cleaning Faster, Easier, And Even More Effective…
I have to admit that there have been a few times (ok, maybe more than a few times?) when I skipped cleaning my guns because today’s firearms are so damn reliable and I didn’t think it was really “necessary”.
But I also know that’s pretty damn stupid.
I mean, I DO my expect it to go *BANG* *BANG* *BANG* if I ever have to pull it out in a real attack, so I get it… keeping your gun clean and lubed IS a “life-saving task”.
Sorry… cleaning guns still sucks! 🙂
Anyhoo… I got this tip in from one of our readers (Rick from Hamlet, NC) who’s also a gunsmith and it makes cleaning your gun SUPER easy and still makes sure it’s ready for action if you’re ambushed in a parking lot.
Here’s his tip…
I actually remember one of my firearms instructors telling me about this years ago and I had totally forgotten.
After Rick sent me this tip, I bought a case of 12 cans of brake cleaner off of Amazon for only about a buck per can.
Using Brake Cleaner Was A Complete Game-Changer For Leaving The Range With A Sparkling Clean Gun, But…
I Have One Big Warning For You About What To Do After Your Gun Is Clean…
I know most shooters use traditional “CLP oil” for cleaning and lubing their guns – but I stopped using it a long time ago.
You see, store-bought CLP gun cleaners “look” like the military version – but they’re not.
They use harsh chemical solvents that are so bad, CLP can actually ATTRACT gunk to your gun which can gum up its operation.
I saw this first hand in the military when fellow soldiers would try to lube up their weapons after cleaning them – the result was more gunk… and more weapon jams!
So, if you’re still using CLP oil to keep your firearms working, I highly suggest you ditch it.
Today there are more advanced “synthetic” versions that work way better.
(Actually, what I use now isn’t even actually an “oil” or a “lubricant” – it’s a new compound that creates a dry “nano-layer of carbon molecules” that’s a million times thinner than a human hair… but 200 times stronger than steel! You can check it out here if you’re interested…)
The fact is, if you’re gun isn’t clean and “frictionless”, you’re just gambling with your own life when it’s “go time”.
Anyway, thanks for the tip Rick!
I took my LTC class from Eric @ 4ward Defense. Bought his gun lube too. Great stuff!
Have you ever tried “Microlon”, found it at the gun show at the fairgrounds. I think it has a lot of the same properties as what you are using. Maybe not but would be curious for a comparison. Interesting background story on it. Now it is also used in heavy machinery and aircraft engines as well.
Haven’t heard of it Russel and haven’t noticed it at any of the gun shows I’ve been to lately.
Will keep an eye out for it though, thanks!
Years ago when I first started teaching in a junior marksman program, the shooting range used and sold Brakleen for cleaning guns. When they also became a gun store, they quit selling it and sold ‘official gun cleaners’.
Damn! You mean I’ve been using UNofficial gun cleaners this whole time! hahahaha
There is new lock cleaner that is designed to clean dirt and corrosion. It is citrus oil based. I recently bought an old 22 revolver that had some stiffness. It wouldn’t hold the hammer back when cocked. It is pre-transfer bar and I couldn’t find the disassembly reassembly instructions. A quick spray got it fully functional. (Houdini).
Thanks Sam! Do you happen to remember the name of the cleaner?
And have you found it to be “as good” (or dare I say “better”?) than brake cleaner?
I’d love to compare these.
I stumbled upon a cleaning trick quite accidentally when changing a scope mounting bolt recently, to get the old locktite off of the threads I squirted NAPA “macs #4710 ” Electronics cleaner on the bolts and some ran down into the BCG and then ran out of the magwell carrying lots of carbon sludge out with it, so when I finished getting the threads clean, I simply stood the weapon on it’s nose and squirted down through the chamber and bore with a rag under the compensator and Viola then pushed a bore mop through with my copper fouling cleaner and she was done, as a test I pushed a couple clean patches through To check and they came out clean, I then lubed the bcg and buffer with revolver grease and put it away, spray cleaned the bolt as well before the grease when I wiped it down after, the rags came away clean, It does leave a white residue on the anodizing but handling it to lube and reassemble took care of that, its almost as good as the Carbon Tetrachloride we used back in the day and is Not nearly as toxic
For those who may be newer to the firearms world, BCG is short hand for “Bolt Carrier Group” the mechanical grouping of subparts that allow semi-automatic or fully automatic firearms to load, fire, extract, and reload (i.e. cycle) rounds of ammunition.
This is probably doing the same thing as brake cleaner Richard… but I can’t find the specific ingredients to the “Mac’s Electronic Cleaner to compare them.
I bought a case of Brakleen (brake cleaner) off of Amazon that will likely do what you’ve discovered and be less expensive.
But again… without looking at the actual solvents used, I can’t say for certain that one is better than the other.
Thanks for sharing!
Although part number MAC 4710 is no longer sold at NAPA, here’s link to the Safety Data Sheet https://media.napaonline.com/is/content/GenuinePartsCompany/3210582pdf
Appears that Solvent Naptha and Toluene (also found in Brakleen) contents were the primary cleaning agents.
None of these types of chemicals are trivial – all should be used with full safety protocols – please be sure and carefully review SDS (Safety Data Sheet) for any cleaning products you might employ BEFORE use. Retailers are required by law to provide access to this information and of course you can always find SDS (used to be called Material Safety Data Sheets – MSDS) on the internet!
p.s. I’m a big fan of KROIL – much less hazardous than other cleaners for breaking gunk loose. I’ve also had good experience with Frog Lube products.