Caring For Your Gun

Take good care of your gun and it will take care of you.  Regular cleaning, lubrication and rust prevention, you will get many enjoyable years from your firearm. If you prepare your gun correctly for any type of field condition and clean it at the end of each day you use it, you will be rewarded with smooth operation and excellent accuracy.

The three biggest enemies of your gun are fowling from powder and metal, moisture and simple neglect. 

Powder and metal buildup:

            If your gun isn’t cleaned properly powder deposits eventually build up and will affect the accuracy of the weapon.   It can also attract moisture, which will lead to rust!

Metal Fouling:

            Metal fouling occurs mostly in handguns and rifles that use copper jacketed high velocity loads. The copper leaves tiny fragments behind in the barrel, which create rough spots, which can cause further fragmentation on each shot.   These deposits will build up and will eventually affect accuracy.

Moisture….The biggest problem for your gun!

            Moisture can seriously cut into the life span of your gun .  Sometimes the problem doesn’t present itself until it’s too late.  Moisture can damage a gun to the point that it becomes useless. Any type of condensation or moisture , whether it’s from moist air, rain, snow, fog, water, etc. will start the rusting process within 24 hours. If any of these conditions are experienced it is important that you dry your gun immediately.

Simple Neglect:

            One misconception most gun owners have is that if a gun is cleaned and lubricated correctly before being stored it can stay in storage indefinitely without any further maintenance.  This is simply not true.  Even if you’ve taken all the proper precautions before storing your gun you will still need to strip the gun down periodically and clean it thoroughly.           

A Simple cleaning takes only a few minutes:

            First, make sure the firearm is not loaded!  This is the 1st rule of safety. Be sure the safety is engaged and trigger lock is locked. Inspect the barrel and chamber to make sure they are cleared of shells.

Next, stand the gun on end with the barrel pointing down and away from you.  This will allow the cleaning rod  to be run through from the breech end, so and metal fragments of deposits come out of the muzzle and have no chance of getting pushed back into the action. Next, soak a patch or cleaning swab in your favorite cleaning solvent and attach it to the cleaning rod, and run it through the barrel once or twice, taking care to work from the breech end toward the muzzle. Discard the dirty patch and run a clean dry patch through.  Repeat this procedure until there is no more discoloration on the patch. This will remove any lead and powder deposits.  If you have been shooting copper jacketed bullets there are special cleaning solvents for this also.  They cut copper as well as any other buildup in the barrel.  This may be your best choice of cleaning solvent. When you have finished cleaning the bore, apply a small amount of lubricating oil of gun oil to a clean patch and run it in once then out.  Your barrel is no cleaned and lubricated, ready for use.

Clean and lubricate any moving parts:

            Moving parts like the action and trigger mechanism can be wetted with solvent then scrubbed with a brush. Any types of gun cleaning solvents can be used.  After you have scrubbed the parts with the brush, wipe them clean and apply a light coating of oil.  If some parts of the action can’t be reached .  To clean these areas use an spray gun cleaning solvent to cut any residue and carry it out.  Wipe all surfaces clean and apply a few drops of oil and work the mechanism a few times so the oil can penetrate.

Clean the outer metal surfaces:

            All exposed surfaces should be cleaned last to remove any fingerprints or solvents that may have gotten on the metal.  Apply some cleaning solvent to a clean patch or cloth and wipe all the exposed metal surfaces clean. Wipe again with a clean patch to make sure all of the solvent has been removed.  Apply a thin coat of oil with another clean patch. 

Don’t forget the stock:

            You can keep the stock in good condition by regularly applying a light coat of gun oil . The oil will bring out the natural grain in the wood.

This cleaning should be good enough for most normal usage.  Especially if you use your firearm regularly and clean it often.

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