Now that you have purchased your own gun cleaning kit after doing some research on different kits, what exactly do you need to do? You have your gun, and your gun cleaning kit right beside you. You also have an oil and a solvent to start the cleaning process. What’s the next thing you need to do now? You might be wondering how to use gun cleaning kit.
Few Top Gun Cleaning Kits For You
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Is Cleaning Gun Difficult?
There’s nothing to worry about now since the gun cleaning process is quite easier. All you had to do is to get the best gun cleaning kit for your dirty gun staying without being used and you have done it. However, if you can implement some tricks, you can make the gun cleaning process even simpler.
First off, you might want to go through the manual provided by the gun’s manufacturer as well to get information about cleaning the gun. Here’s what you need to care about! If you do a little mistake with your brand new gun cleaning kit, then your gun which is already dirty might turn out to be useless. So, if you are looking for the perfect way to use your gun cleaning kit without damaging your gun, you need to dive deeper into this guide.
However, if you don’t already have a gun cleaning kit or you just bought your gun cleaning kit without getting sufficient information regarding gun cleaning kits, you have to know some basics before getting started with the gun cleaning guide.
What is a Gun Cleaning Kit?
Gun cleaning kit refers to a collection of different equipment that can help you in the prevention of rusting, corrosion, and metal fouling of your gun. An ideal gun cleaning kit, when used properly, can help you in all these things to keep your gun in its original condition for many years to come. You need to use your gun cleaning kit to clean your gun properly in a different time period to keep it in the same original condition without any signs of getting damaged.
With the help of a gun cleaning kit, you can get the following advantages for your gun:
- Gun cleaning kit helps to increase the lifespan of your gun.
- Gun cleaning kit helps to prevent different sorts of harmful effects that can arise in your gun such as rusting, corrosion, fouling of metals, etc.
- With the use of a gun cleaning kit from time-to-time, you will be able to use your gun for many years to come.
- You will also be able to know the working technique of your gun while performing the gun cleaning process with the gun cleaning kit.
The following list includes all the major components available in an ideal gun cleaning kit:
- Gun Cleaning Solvent
- Double-end Brushes
Gun Oil- Cleaning Patches
- Cleaning Jag
- Cleaning Swab
- Cleaning Rods
- Cotton Swabs
- Bore Snake
- Slotted Patch Holder
- Bronze Brush
- Nylon Cleaning Brush
- Flashlight
Gun OilThere are many gun owners who purchase gun cleaning kits containing cheap plastic kits or the incompatible gauge for their guns. Due to this, they face several difficulties while fitting all the pieces of their kits together. Sometimes the brushes available in the gun cleaning kit also tend to get bent or destroyed during the gun cleaning process. Taking this in mind, we have performed a research on several gun cleaning kits available out there to find out the best gun cleaning kits which can totally prevent these problems and help you in increasing the durability of your gun.
Major Types of Gun Cleaning Kits
Commercially, there are two general types of gun cleaning kits you can purchase in the market depending on the usability. One of them is Universal Gun Cleaning Kit, which can be used for any types of gun and the other is Gun-specific Cleaning Kit, which is specific for every type of guns. You need to prefer the type of gun cleaning kit that performs the best for your gun.
Universal Gun Cleaning Kit
If you own several types of guns and don’t want to purchase different gun-specific cleaning kits for every gun, then Universal Gun Cleaning Kit becomes the most preferred option for you. There are many Universal Gun Cleaning Kits which can help you in cleaning different types of guns with the same collection of equipment. With the use of Universal Gun Cleaning Kit, you won’t have to purchase another cleaning kit again for your other guns since all the major types of equipment needed to clean different kinds of guns are included in the kit.
If you are willing to spend less money in gun cleaning kit for all of your guns, you might want to get this kind of gun cleaning kit. You will also be able to use different types of equipment without having to construct them yourself. Getting a Universal Gun Cleaning Kit can turn out to be the best cost-effective solution for everyone who has a large collection of guns and wants an effective solution for maintaining their guns. However, if you own a single type of gun, this type of gun cleaning kits can be useless since you won’t be needing every equipment available in the kit for the maintenance of your firearm.
Gun-specific Cleaning Kit
A Gun-specific Cleaning Kit is different for every gun. If you own long firearms such as shotgun and rifles, you might need extra cleaning appliances to clean the barrel. You might also require a flashlight which will let you see the interior part of the gun helping you to clean the dust particles inside the gun.
If you own normal firearms like a pistol or a handgun, you might prefer Universal Gun Cleaning Kit since you won’t need any extra accessories as mentioned above. If you have a single type of gun, then getting a cleaning kit specified for that certain type of gun would be a better option rather than spending your money in Universal Gun Cleaning Kit which mightn’t contain all the necessary pieces of equipment for your long firearm. Getting a Gun-specific Cleaning Kit for your gun is highly recommended for you if you are willing to build your own customized cleaning kit.
How To Use Gun Cleaning Kit
Now, you know the basics of a gun cleaning kit and general types of gun cleaning kits. Probably you have already purchased your gun cleaning kit as well, which means you are ready to start the gun cleaning process. Cleaning a gun isn’t that difficult as it is while choosing the best gun cleaning kit. However, if you have some experience with the usage of gun cleaning kits as well as know some techniques regarding the gun cleaning process, you can perform the process even faster. You might want to go through your gun’s manual as well as the manual available with your gun cleaning kit before getting started with the cleaning process. You also need to make sure you have a specific gun cleaning kit containing all the necessary pieces of equipment in case you are using a long firearm like a shotgun.
During your entire period of going through the guide below, we will be providing you step-by-step guidance regarding the gun cleaning process with your brand new gun cleaning kit that you have recently bought. We believe you’d be able to turn your dirty firearm into a new-looking firearm that can stay with you for many years to come with the help of the guide you will be presented below.
1. Initiation of the Process in a Safe and Well-ventilated Area
Before getting started with the cleaning process, you need to place the necessary pieces of equipment and your gun in a safe and well-ventilated place. Solvent fumes consist of toxins which can result in harmful health effects when inhaled. Taking this in mind, you shouldn’t let any youngsters or pets enter the cleaning area. You also need to make sure you don’t inhale the solvent fumes while performing the cleaning process since the toxins present in the fumes can really affect your health. These fumes also have a foul smell, which is why you need to perform the process in an open and well-ventilated area.
If you are going to perform the process in a piece of furniture like a desk, you need to place plastic bags, unnecessary towels or papers in its surface. Now that you are ready to start the cleaning process, you should make sure that you can easily find all the necessary equipment properly by staying in a well-lit area.
2. Disassembling the Gun
Before disassembling the gun, you need to make sure the ammo is out of reach to prevent any sorts of disastrous activities. You also need to go through the gun’s manual provided by the manufacturer to understand the disassembling process before cleaning. Disassembling every possible part of the firearm can be helpful to clean all of its interior and exterior parts.
Here are the two major forms of firearm disassembling process that you might want to perform:
- Field Stripping: Field stripping refers to an easier process of disassembling your firearm. You can perform the field stripping process quickly without the use of any extra tools. Performing the field stripping process lets you clean every general part of your gun easily. You can also clean the gun as much as you need with this process. What this process does is that it isolates the receiver action from the firearm by removing the slide of the firearm. Doing this process makes the fire control group visible, however, it doesn’t need to be further disassembled out of the firearm.
- Complete Disassembly: Performing the complete disassembly process is highly recommended if you are looking to clean the overall parts of your firearm. With the complete disassembly process being completed, every exterior and interior parts of your firearm will be accessible to start cleaning. You might need to use screwdrivers and other tools to do disassemble your firearm completely. However, if you are new to the gun cleaning process, you might want to perform just the field stripping of your firearm. Before disassembling your firearm completely, you need to make sure you have the gun’s manual with you so that you can find out the complete way to re-assemble the parts after cleaning. You might want to perform a complete disassembly of your firearm around twice a year and perform field stripping every time when cleaning is necessary.
3. Cleaning the Barrel
When you have disassembled your firearm, it is now time to start the general cleaning process. You might want to get started with the cleaning of your firearm’s barrel, which is available in the interior structure of your firearm. All the dust and powder from the bullet will remain inside the gun, which is present in the barrel. To clean the barrel, you need to use a bore brush of compatible size.
You can start cleaning the barrel by first attaching the bore brush with the cleaning rod. Now, you need to dip the brush into the solvent and start cleaning the barrel. You may move the brush all over the barrel to remove all the dust and powder efficiently. You can also perform this process repeatedly to ensure that the barrel is totally free of any sorts of debris.
4. Further Cleaning of the Barrel
To ensure that the barrel is totally clean, you might want to perform the following processes to get to the next step:
- Using a Patch to Clean the Barrel: You can join a cotton patch with the cleaning rod to throw out all the debris present in the barrel. With the use of a gun cleaning solvent, several parts might have been broken down, which you can accumulate with the help of a cleaning patch.
- Lubricating the Barrel: You might want to use the gun oil present in the gun cleaning kit to help in making your firearm perform like a new firearm. What you need to do here is to apply oil on the cleaning patch which you have to pass inside the barrel. The lubricating agent will help in the protection of your firearm from getting corroded or turning into rust.
Cleaning a Revolver
Do you own a revolver? If so, you might have to perform this further cleaning process as well. Generally, a revolver includes several chambers along with a long barrel which you can find in other types of firearms as well. To clean your revolver, you might need to clean the chambers included in it as well.
The process is easy and very similar to the barrel cleaning method. You can use the cleaning patches along with the solvent to start cleaning all parts of your revolver. Doing this will help you in removing all the debris present inside the firearm. With the use of cleaning patches, you will be able to reduce the chances of having solvents and other dirt particles remain inside the chambers.
You may also want to clean the exterior part of your revolver. To make your firearm look totally new, you can apply some gun oil on the exterior area with the help of cleaning patches. With this extra step, you will be able to wipe out all the dirt particles from both the interior and exterior parts of your firearm.
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Precautions While Using Gun Cleaning Kit
There are several safety precautions you need to take in mind while using the gun cleaning kit. Some of the essential precautions are listed below:
- You need to make sure you are performing the cleaning process in an open, well-lit and well-ventilated area free from any youngsters or pets. Cleaning a firearm needs to be performed with maximum attention, which is why you might need to tell other people at your home not to disturb you for a while.
- You need to ensure that you are performing the process in an area which is free from any ammunition store. You also need to keep the firearm unloaded.
- It is highly recommended to wear eye protection while using different solvents and gun oils. If a single drop of these liquids reaches your eye, you might have to stay blind all your life.
- While performing the cleaning process, you shouldn’t point your firearm towards any properties which you really need. It is better to check several times that your firearm is unloaded before performing the cleaning process.
- You shouldn’t be listening or watching anything while performing the cleaning process. As we have mentioned above, you really need to put your complete focus on your firearm during the entire period. If you put your attention towards something else, who knows you could shot yourself with the gun.
Final Words
We have mentioned the overall steps of how to use gun cleaning kit to clean your gun in this guide above. It is highly recommended that you take the above precautions in mind before getting started with the gun cleaning process. You really need to focus on the safety of yourself and any valuable items nearby during the entire period. If you have any issues regarding the gun cleaning kit you need to get, you can write down in the comments mentioning about your firearm. We will get back to you right away.