Free For All Friday 7-18-2014: Keep it clean!
Oddly enough, I got a lot of interest on last week’s Warhammer question. I might have to start imposing the same restrictions on Warhammer that I do on Doctor Who lest this blog stray too far from its given subject: helping new gun owners. That being said, let’s help!
“Cleaning Kits and supplies. Maybe we spoke of this in the past, but I can’t find it. Can you please break it down by rifle/shotgun and pistol? I have both. I have found kits, sprays, bore snakes and all type of brushes. What do I need at a min and what do I really need? I have the basis “gun cleaning kit” for $20 or so. Yes, it works, but I get the feeling I need something else. Especially sprays or oil. As always, thanks for your help!” -Skylar R.
For the most part, a $20 kit will cover 99% of the cleaning needs of 99% of shooters out there. They’re especially nice if you have a variety of guns because those kits cover a variety of guns. That’s not to say there aren’t some improvements you can make in some places.
The first thing that comes to mind is the cleaner. Typically, the solvents that come with those kits is sometimes…lacking…for lack of a better term. Hoppe’s 9 is alright, though I’m personally fond of it. I know a lot of people consider Frog Lube to be the alpha and omega cleaner. I’ve yet to bother with it. I personally prefer the CLP style of products over the solvent only style of cleaners. CLP itself stands for “cleaner, lubricant, protectant” which means it does what it stands for: cleans the gun, lubricates it and, of course, protects it. As far as CLP choices go, my first suggestion is Ballistol. My love of Ballistol is legendary so I won’t dedicate too much time to it here. There are quite a few others out there. It goes a long way so, in my opinion, spend a bit more to get some good stuff if at all possible.
I also love Boresnakes. I use them immediately after shooting and put them through at least 3 times whenever I use them. This will polish that barrel up nicely. I’ll still use the rod and cleaning patch, mind you, but the snake cuts through and loosens up most of the grime which saves me a lot of patches.
Keep in mind, my cleaning style is to make the gun shinier and cleaner than the day I brought it home from the store. It needs to look like a show piece. To say that’s overkill is a vast understatement. Usually a quick wipe down is all you need but, then again, most people aren’t running a blog where they might need to photograph their guns at any given moment.
Thanks for the question!
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