Adverse Effects of Using Commercial Dusters for Gun Cleaning?

[RJ]

I recently bought a commercial multi-purpose duster with a view to use for gun cleaning.

The thought I had was that it would enable me to blow out any dust (well, duh) as well as cleaning nooks and crannies not easily or readily accessible (e.g. striker channel).

And then my OCD disorder kicked in, and I thought, woah, what is this stuff actually doing for me? So I went online and found the MSDS for the product:

http://ultraduster.com/msds.html

Apparently what I thought was just compressed air (80 N, 20 O2) was actually Difluoroethane, R152a, C2H4F2.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1,1-Difluoroethane

In other words, automotive refrigerant. I was, erm, whiskey tango foxtrot, to say the least.

Ok, so I am no chemist (managed B- in ChemE), so short and sweet: Is this stuff gtg on guns or not so much?

If this stuff is not gtg, can I assume regular old compressed air is ok to use?

[Chuck Haggard]

Do not use a regular old air hose like many people do. You can blow crap into a gun just as easily as out of a guns, and I have seen a few guns permanently jacked up from doing so.

[SAWBONES]

Commercial compressed gas "electronics dusters" work fine for brief blasts to clean dust out of barrels or off of external surfaces of guns.
As far as I can tell, there's no danger at all to the integrity of gun materials, and I've used these canned gasses on electronics and handguns occasionally for years.

They're no substitute at all for proper cleaning of internal components, though.

[RJ]

Thank you sirs, got it.

Interestingly, a random scan of MSDSs for several other 'compressed air' dusters showed they all, pretty much, were 60-95% Diflouroethane.

Copy good cleaning; I upgraded from Toadguts to Fireclean recently; the FC seems to work pretty well.

Thanks again.

Rich

[NotAnExpert]

I'd be comfortable using it. It's a very stable/non-reactive compound other than being very flammable.

[LittleLebowski]

Use non chlorinated brake cleaner outside every 1k rounds or so. Relube, shoot.

[JDM]

I use "canned air" regularly to blow lint and other nonsense off my sights and exterior of my carry gun.

[theJanitor]

I've used RC nitro cleaner alot. Nitro cars get pretty nasty. It's safe for electronics, paint, doesn't ruin o-rings/rubber, and is pretty good at blasting off oily gunk.

[5pins]

I have used “canned air” on my reloading equipment for years with no problems. I don’t find it as useful with guns because it lacks the pressure needed to blow crap off.

[LSP972]

Do not use a regular old air hose like many people do. You can blow crap into a gun just as easily as out of a guns, and I have seen a few guns permanently jacked up from doing so.

Not to mention good old water. If one does not have a painter's condensation trap on the hose somewhere, one is blowing water vapor into his piece.

That said... I have been using "canned air" to dust off my carry iron for years now. Every so often, a bit of that ethel-methyl-terrible-bad-shit will deposit itself on either the HK45C or the J frame. Both are still fine, so...

.