H&K Cleaning Question

[Enigmasix]

Hello,

I just bought a new handgun for the first time and I've put maybe 300 rounds through it and tonight I decided to give it a good cleaning. I purchased a cleaning kit and watched a few YouTube videos so I wouldn't do anything catastrophic and I think I may have messed my barrel up.

I have the VP9 with the black slide and the tan frame and when I was cleaning the barrel I decided to use my wire brush because I noticed the black coming off leaving an almost dull greenish color underneath so I continued thinking the black was maybe carbon buildup and now I'm worried I took the finish off. Anyone have a y insight?

Thanks!

[olstyn]

It would probably be helpful in terms of getting useful responses if you could post a picture of what you're talking about.

[Guinnessman]

What type of wire brush did you use?

[Enigmasix]

I will take some pictures when I get home from work.

And I was using a brass one that came in the cleaning kit.

[GOTURBACK]

I believe what you are seeing is brass residue, the brass residue should just wipe off with whatever cleaning product/solvent that you use.

[rjohnson4405]

As a side note, a brush is not needed at 300 rounds. While it is tempting to keep a gun spotless, it really isn't necessary and can often wear out the barrel faster than shooting it.

See all the 2,000 round challenge threads on the forum to help you understand that, mostly, what is needed is some lubrication. If the gun isn't dry it will run.

Other than that, run a cleaning rope through the barrel and wipe the slide/frame insides down occasionally.

[JodyH]

As a side note, a brush is not needed at 300 rounds. While it is tempting to keep a gun spotless, it really isn't necessary and can often wear out the barrel faster than shooting it.

See all the 2,000 round challenge threads on the forum to help you understand that, mostly, what is needed is some lubrication. If the gun isn't dry it will run.

Other than that, run a cleaning rope through the barrel and wipe the slide/frame insides down occasionally.
A brass/copper/steel brush is never needed to clean a H&K barrel unless you're a seriously high volume soft lead bullet shooter.

Drag a Bore-Snake through the barrel every once in a while, maybe scrub the serious crusties off with a nylon toothbrush occasionally, wipe it down and add lube.

[Enigmasix]

Ok that's good to know. I actually just bought a bore rope so that will make the process much easier now.

So the black on the outside of the barrel was just residue you think? I know it's hard without pictures, I just don't want to find out I took a coat off the metal or removed the bluing.

[jwperry]

Ok that's good to know. I actually just bought a bore rope so that will make the process much easier now.

So the black on the outside of the barrel was just residue you think? I know it's hard without pictures, I just don't want to find out I took a coat off the metal or removed the bluing.

What type of cleaner are you using?

It sounds like the cleaner you're using is reacting with the copper jacketed residue and leaving the green color. Nothing to be alarmed about.

[GJM]

A brass/copper/steel brush is never needed to clean a H&K barrel unless you're a seriously high volume soft lead bullet shooter.

Drag a Bore-Snake through the barrel every once in a while, maybe scrub the serious crusties off with a nylon toothbrush occasionally, wipe it down and add lube.

This is exactly what I do with Glock and HK pistols. Metal CZ pistols require more detailed cleaning in the frame around the trigger.

[JonInWA]

Ok, I'm admittedly old school when it comes to cleaning firearms. I'll normally apply some solvent to the inside of the barrel (either by spraying or applying via a wetted patch), and then use a bronze cleaning brush with solvent applied, then clean patch, and then a light lube patch, followed finally with a dry patch.

Is the bronze brush stage necessary? Dunno, perhaps not. But grunge does come out when it's used-more so than when it's not, and normally I only run it through the barrel 5-7 times. With the touted qualities of the ordinance/cannon-quality steel used by HK, I seriously doubt that any bronze brush, or even a steel brush is gonna cause any harm whatsoever (but for the norm, I'll only use a bronze brush, and I only shoot jacketed ammunition, so a steel brush is unnecessary).

I agree that lubrication is more important than cleaning per se, but I always do both. Belt and suspenders? Maybe. But my guns are noted for their flawless performances, and a routine cleaning and lubrication protocol is ingrained into my gun operation genes and muscle memory from my Army days.....

I will suggest that if you defer cleaning to lubrication, still pay some attention to the barrel feed ramp, as GSR can accumulate there and I assume a sufficient build-up might eventually have a deleterious effect on chambering.

Best, Jon

[Enigmasix]

What type of cleaner are you using?

It sounds like the cleaner you're using is reacting with the copper jacketed residue and leaving the green color. Nothing to be alarmed about.

I bought the Hoppe's cleaning kit so just the standard cleaner that they make.

If I did remove the bluing it would just turn silver correct?

[jwperry]

I bought the Hoppe's cleaning kit so just the standard cleaner that they make.

If I did remove the bluing it would just turn silver correct?

You'd have to work really, really hard to remove the Hostile Environment coating (I think that's what HK called their finish) and it would be a matte metal color underneath. Not a shiny silver/nickel, but think a brushed or bead blasted color.

I too have used the Hoppe's kit (bought at either Bass Pro or Wal Mart) and know the green residue you're describing. If memory serves me right it is from the brush and the copper dissolving cleaner eating your brush. I switched to nylon brushes.

[JTQ]

Schuemann Barrel's perspective on barrel cleaning

http://www.schuemann.com/Portals/0/Documentation/Webfile_Barrel_Cleaning.pdf



My Personal Practice has become to never clean the bore of my barrels. I do use a brass rod to scrape the deposits out of the chamber. But, I've learned to leave the bore alone and it very slowly becomes shinier and cleaner all by itself. Years ago I occasionally scrubbed the bore with a brass bore brush. But, doing so always seemed to cause the bore to revert to a dirtier look with more shooting, so I eventually stopped ever putting anything down the bore except bullets...

[JonInWA]

Schuemann Barrel's perspective on barrel cleaning

http://www.schuemann.com/Portals/0/Documentation/Webfile_Barrel_Cleaning.pdf

Interesting, but how relevant? I get the distinct impression he's specifically discussing ultra high precision rifles more than everyday duty sidearms.

HK themselves, who presumably know a thing or two about weapons, weapons maintenance and the quality of their components recommend pretty much my technique, specify using a bronze bore brush in the process.

Best, Jon

[jeep45238]

I really can’t see a brush made of soft metal that can reduce it’s OD, applied with hand force, damaging a barrel period. A barrel withsands a solid projectile oversized to the bore under great rotational forces and shoved down the barrel at thousands of times the pressure a human hand can exert at thousands of the possible velocity a human hand can induce.

No worries.

[ChaseN]

I really can’t see a brush made of soft metal that can reduce it’s OD, applied with hand force, damaging a barrel period. A barrel withsands a solid projectile oversized to the bore under great rotational forces and shoved down the barrel at thousands of times the pressure a human hand can exert at thousands of the possible velocity a human hand can induce.

No worries.

Well when you put it like that....

[JTQ]

Interesting, but how relevant? I get the distinct impression he's specifically discussing ultra high precision rifles more than everyday duty sidearms.
Pistol barrels, as that's what they make for a living. Admittedly, he's talking about 416 Stainless, which may not be what HK barrels are made of.


When we use our IPSC pistols like sub-guns, as we often do, we apparently can raise the bore surface temperature up to the annealing range, based on the color I have seen on some barrel bore surfaces. Therefore, the bore surface of our barrels likely has been preferentially annealed, and could be quite a bit softer than the barrel outer surface would test. Even the brass/bronze brushes, which have bristles which are as hard as mild steel, or the lead removers, which use a hard brass mesh to scape the lead from the bore, may well be able to scatch the bore surface of a stainless steel barrel. Any scratching of the bore surface will naturally lead to increased bore surface wear, leading, and coppering. My recommendation would be to never use any kind of a bore brush to clean a 416 stainless steel pistol barrel, especially if it has been exposed to strings of rapid fire.


I'm not trying to convince anybody to stop scrubbing their pistols. Do whatever you want, we're all big boys/girls. I'm just posting a different theory, admittedly from somebody that makes barrels for a living, for a new guy who has cleaning questions, to consider.

[JodyH]

Do what you want but I guarantee more handguns have been damaged by overzealous cleaning than have been damaged by lackadaisical cleaning practices.

[cardguy]

This works: Use a dollar spray bottle and fill it with mineral spirits. Spray the bore and the frame with the ms. Spray a patch with ms and run it several times through the bore with a properly fitted plastic jag. Follow that with a bronze brush a few times. Use a clean patch and push the fouling out the barrel. Use Q Tips to get most of the powder fouling out of the frame. Use a patch to get the remainder out. Wipe it and the interior and exterior of the barrel dry. Lubricate the lube areas HK recommends with a good oil like Weapon Shield. This should take about 10 minutes to accomplish all the cleaning. You can soak the magazines in a cheap meat loaf pan full of ms. Wipe and dry.

[HCM]

Do what you want but I guarantee more handguns have been damaged by overzealous cleaning than have been damaged by lackadaisical cleaning practices.

This ^^^