Cleaning Kits?

[CTS]

Sorry...not really grumpy just watched five AR cleaning videos in which somehow 8 completely contradictory pieces of advice were given.

Heh, no kidding. Particularly when it comes to lubrication I've seen everything from "just a drop" (which I'm closer to agreeing with so far) to some guy practically dipping the whole damn gun in a 40 gallon drum.

 

[JoP]

Heh, no kidding. Particularly when it comes to lubrication I've seen everything from "just a drop" (which I'm closer to agreeing with so far) to some guy practically dipping the whole damn gun in a 40 gallon drum.

Don't forget everything from the consistency of Rem Oil up to RIG up to bearing grease. It racks my mind to reconcile the differences in what is being used and that it all tends to work out okay (depending on environment I guess?).

 

[CTS]

Ended up just getting some Hoppes solvent and oil. Seems to be doing a great job at 1/3 the price of the otis kit.

 

[BillyB]

I use Simple Green to clean my guns. I learned about it watching an American Gunsmithing Institute video. It is cheap, smells nice and really cuts through crud. You do have to make sure everything is dry before reassembly. Otherwise all you need is an inexpensive rod, a brass ore brush, an old toothbrush and some raags and lint free patches.

 

[Cerberus]

I've tried about everything. When it all comes down to it, you basicly need a general purpose brush, something to either drag thru or push or pull thru the barrel, and some oil. I use surplus brushes cause I have 'em, boresnakes cause I like 'em, and CLP cause I have about a quart of the stuff. A GI rod goes with me too the range but I rarely use it for cleaning, it's there in case something gets stuck, and most people use the rod incorrectly in the first place. The rods I do use are not steel, or even metalic.

Still haven't quite figured out exactly why bore solvent is needed.

 

[JoP]

Just bought a bore snake and used it once so far. I really like it.

I shoved a saturated patch with solvent through the barrel, let it sit, shoved the bore snake through, shoved a saturated patch with CLP through and shoved the bore snake through again.

How do you bore snake guys use yours? I don't really like to run things through the barrel without some kind of liquid in there, am I being paranoid?

 

[JetGirl]

How do you bore snake guys use yours?

Solvent on the bristle area and a few light drops of oil on the looped tail.

Boresnakes are woven and all the crud you pulled out on your pass-through is now on (and in) the snake, even though you can't see it because the snake is colored instead of white (like cleaning patches).
Clean the snake before using it again, or all you're doing is pulling fouling and crap right through the next bore.
That's my anyhow. YMMV

 

[JetGirl]

I shoved a saturated patch with solvent through the barrel, let it sit, shoved the bore snake through, shoved a saturated patch with CLP through and shoved the bore snake through again.

P.S. how are you "shoving the bore snake through" ??
It's a pull-through system...

 

[JoP]

(Now you sound like my wife...quit shoving that in there). Okay, so I suck at English...definitely pulling...although I guess if I let enough junk build up on the snake I could shove it through...

 

[Cerberus]

I've used them dry, but normally put some oil on the area before and behind the brush. You should wash them every so often, but it takes a while to get them too crudded up to where they don't clean.

 

[Archer46176]

I love my OTIS kit and have had it since I first saw them back around 1999 or 2000. I also keep rods in my home boxe and a set in my vehicle. The cables don't always do the job but I still love the compactness of the OTIS kit. I have been thinking about getting the bore snakes in different calibers as well. Whne they first came out I thought they were just another new fad do dad but I keep hearing great things about them. While checking out at Bradis today a guy bought 2 of them. The sales guy, with a beard just a tad longer than mine, reinforced the fact that I need to get the bore snakes by saying he thought they were great and he uses themon his own firearms.