I think I am overcleaning...

[Odin Bravo One]

Granted it isn't perfect but you can be reasonably sure that the gun will work.

And I can be reasonably sure my gun will work when it worked yesterday. Just like I can be reasonably sure my car will drive when it drove yesterday. Neither needed to be taken apart and cleaned in order to make that determination. And it didn't require checking to make sure it was put back together correctly.

If cleaning guns makes you happy.......go nuts. I know more than one person who has an affinity for Hoppes # 9 smell. I'll even admit that once in awhile I get all nostalgic for it myself. But cleaning guns under the pretense it is somehow necessary to "ensure proper function of life saving equipment" is not a theory I will ever subscribe to.

[JMorse]

I see you've been going to the 1911guy Skool of English Riting.

If I'm being honest I'll admit it's a PEBKAC issue. I'm finding getting older is highly overrated.

[David Armstrong]

Range/practice guns get cleaned when they start having problems. Carry guns get cleaned soon after shooting so I don't get gunky stuff on my clothes or wherever. Safe queens get cleaned annually, mostly as a preservation method.

[PPGMD]

And I can be reasonably sure my gun will work when it worked yesterday. Just like I can be reasonably sure my car will drive when it drove yesterday. Neither needed to be taken apart and cleaned in order to make that determination. And it didn't require checking to make sure it was put back together correctly.

Strange I wasn't advocating that you should be cleaning it, simply that if it needs cleaning afterward you can function check it when you can't or won't test fire it before the next use.

[John Hearne]

A general function test and "pencil test" will take care of a lot of concerns post-cleaning.

[Kobalt60]

While I don't understand people's apparent preference for dirty guns... I must say that I cleaned them a lot more when I shot them a lot less.

[Odin Bravo One]

Strange I wasn't advocating that you should be cleaning it, simply that if it needs cleaning afterward you can function check it when you can't or won't test fire it before the next use.

Indeed.

And I was simply pointing out that if you don't take it apart, and the gun worked yesterday, you don't need a function test.

[BoppaBear]

I used to clean every time I shot. The old "take care of your gear and it will take care of you" mantra.

I've changed over the years. Now, my not regularly shot guns will get cleaned before putting them away after shooting them (which is not often), but only wiped down every now and again. Sometimes a couple drops of lube.

For my carry guns, I shoot them, and just wipe them down afterwards. I'll field strip and de-gunk every couple thousand rounds, then immediately go out and shoot them...the cycle continues with the exception of adding lube when looking parched.

I will field strip and clean my 14.5" middy when it's going to be more than a month between shooting, but other than that, I just make sure it has the right amount of lube and rock on.

A little self-deprecation.....I learned the hard way this past weekend, that ARs don't need much lube. That was embarrassing, and more than annoying...but a learning experience.


NOTE: Edited posts brought to you by autocorrect and Tapatalk

[JBP55]

Believe what you want Todd, we have covered this pistol and round count before and I have no reason to mislead you or anyone else. I came to this forum to gain knowledge from experienced shooters, not to lie to anyone. My pistols that are not fired on a regular basis are stored in a climate controlled clean environment but they get a quick wipe down and lubrication occasionally.
I suppose some of this comes from many years of making a living doing precision mechanical work.

[JHC]

Edit: I prefer a gun that's been test fired after last disassembly and cleaning to just dry function tests.
Rest of original post had all been said on a page I'd missed.