All posts tagged Gun Cleaning Kits

One up for Otis gun cleaning systems

I have been a long time user of the Hoppes boresnakes and I an not going to bash them in any way.   My first bad experience with gun cleaning was when I bent a 3 piece cleaning rod trying to clean a 22 magnum rifle.  I learned that the one piece cleaning rods were worth the money, but it was always annoying trying to find a place in my tool room to put the thing.   I found out about boresnakes when one of my gun shops started stocking them and I really loved how fast it was to clean a rifle.  When i started shooting AR15s it was really, really nice to have them laying around.   One time I took 6 of my .223 guns to the range and when I got back, I just lined them all up and cleaning the barrels in about 10 minutes.   Boresnakes really do save you time, but there was one drawback.

I have a 30 caliber bore snake that I used on several of my rifles, but i have a  lot of problems with cleaning my FAL.   For some reason the DSA FAL I have does not like to swallow a boresnake and I have a lot of trouble trying to get the little brass end to drop down the barrel and pull it through.   I have ended up having to use an Otis gun cleaning kit for the .308 rifle because it feeds and fits properly.   My FAL is hands down the easiest semi-auto gun to break down and clean and I can honestly clean most of it with a rag, but getting inside the chamber or muzzle needs a traditional cleaning.   Not all of the Otis gun cleaning systems are caliber specific, but it’s nice to have a cleaning kit that gets everything done on my DSA Arms SA58.

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Some guns were not designed to be cleaned very well

My first semi-auto was a Russian SKS which was when they were going for under $100.   The Russian SKS is a very well thought out semi-auto because in my opinion, I like the operation and disassemble more than the M1 Garand.   I think the Garand is  a fine rifle and far more accurate than an SKS, but the stripper clips and lighter ammuntion is better suited for WWII combat although it was not introduced that early.   The AK ended the short adventure of the SKS much in the same way the M16 shortened the life of the M14.   They were all very well designed and reliable firearms, but they were not modern enough for combat.   One gun I have found that I still enjoy shooting and operating with is the FAL.   The triggers on these guns are a little hard to drop in weight, and the mounts on them really need to be locked in place with something other than just a screwdriver.   The .308 caliber will do a number on scope mounts especially exposing any operator failures to properly “lock it down”.

One thing that made me a fan of the DSA FAL I own is that it was designed to be easy to operate and maintain.   I’ve heard many firearm instructors that I respect say that the M16 does not need to be cleaned as much as people think and lubrication is more important than scrubbing every spec of carbon off the firearm.  I still enjoy cleaning some of my firearms just because I like inspecting the geniousness of the designs.   I literally can clean and FAL with gun cleaning supplies like the Hoppes bores snakes.  The Otis gun cleaning kits aren’t necessary on one of these guns and more appropriate for more complicated designs.  The FAL is hands down the simplest battle rifle to clean.

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Boresnake life span, are they worth it?

Are they worth it?  Do they hold up to heavy use?   I have the same 22 caliber bore snake and it has been used in 22LR rifles, AR15 rifles, M4 Carbines, AK74 and Mini 14s.   The same bore snake is approximately 6yrs old and probable gets used about  50 times a year.   I usually run the snake through the gun about 2 times.   I may only need to do it once, but i’m use to using cleaning rods and just get in the habit.   I almost only use Break Free CLP on my firearms, and the occasional grease application, and gun cleaning is now simple.

Cleaning revolvers is probable easier than some semi-autos because there is nothing you really need to disassemble.   I have been using the Hoppes boresnakes for rifle the majority of the time because handguns just don’t seem to be that much of a hassle and I’m really not that worried about how clean the barrels are for any particular accuracy reason.    When it comes to cleaning out a bolt action rifle like a Winchester M70,  It sure does make a difference in cleaning time when you do a one, two, and then just wipe the gun down and put it away.   If you clean the guns often, from my experience there is very little worry about hard to clean areas.

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Advanced gun cleaning for the obvious idiots

I don’t read gun boards very much anymore.  I have had good experiences with some of them and I know some people just like to bash the BS that they see, but not talk about the good.   I have met many people from the forums  in the Northeastern United States and found the vast majority to be above average in intelligence and responsibility.   I say this because I just read some of the dumbest stuff about gun cleaning and think that it may be time for some of these people to turn in their firearms due to showing since of being on the lower level of human evolution.

When you are choosing the cleaning tools for your rifle, make sure you match the cleaning brushes and cleaning patches to the caliber you are using.  If you are using a 22 caliber firearm like an AR15, do yourself a favor and use 22 caliber bore snakes.   I know that may not be common knowledge, but there are idiots out there that  may try and jam or pull a 30 caliber bore snake through the barrel, and guess what, it won’t fit.   You can mess a barrel by doing something as stupid like this, but it happens.  I’ve had pistol cleaning patches get stuck, but I was smart enough to dump a bunch of CLP into the barrel to loosen it up and then back it out, there’s your advanced gun cleaning tip of the day.

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Old School vs. New school cleaning

otis gun cleaning kitsotis gun cleaning kitsI have the original bottle of Hoppes gun cleaner that my first 22lr cleaning kit, I’ve kept it as a time capsule as to how long ago it was that I first got into shooting.   I remember the first time I got a cleaning patch stuck in the barrel and when I bent the 3 piece rod and ended up going out and picking up a larger and stronger cleaning rod.    We learn most of our wisdom from trial and error and putting large cleaning patches down the barrel of a 22 caliber rifle is a learning experience.   I’ve only ruined one cleaning rod to date, but I really don’t use them very much anymore.

Bore snakes were really the thing that did in the  use of me using cleaning rods.  Ever since I picked up an my first AR15, which was a Bushmaster XM15E2 with a heavy barrel, I was happy to eliminate a considerable amount of time in gun cleaning.  I was well aware that the direct impingement guns were dirty, but considering how many cleaning patches I went through on just the chamber, I was glad to have a boresnake.  Another step to my collection of gun cleaning supplies were the Otis gun cleaning kits were another step forward for  me because I got the same compactness that the Hoppes bore snake gave me with even more cleaning tools in a tiny case.   I have a cleaning rod for rifles and one that is specific for handguns, but I’m using them less and less in comparison to Otis and boresnakes.

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Thorough cleaning of firearms

Otis gun cleaning kitThis past weekend I got to test out an Otis gun cleaning kit.     I was issued the LEO deluxe cleaning kit and was amazed at how much stuff this thing had in it.    I’ve been using bore snakes for several years now and I have been pretty happy with how much time they have relieved me of when it comes to cleaning.    I have a few rifles that I spend more time with when it comes to cleaning the barrels with and every once in awhile I still dig out my rifle cleaning rod to clean them.    I was listening to a discussion with a LEO that was the PD sharp shooter and he mentioned some issues with using bore snakes.    I was a little sketical when I first heard him talk about it because I was always very happy with my previous cleaning methods.

The Hoppes bore snake is much faster to  use than a cleaning rod, brush and patch system, but If you need to do some serious chamber cleaning, especially on an AR15, you’re still going to have to use something else.   The Otis gun cleaning systems best advantage is that it is small and compact and basically does everything that a cleaning kit should do and will fit in your pocket.    There are always advantages and disadvantages to various cleaning methods, but gun maintenance is important for those are deployed.   Bore snakes can be hard to repackage once they get lubed up and you’ll have to do your own research on how to pack one up and bring it with you.   The Otis gun cleaning kit is already organized and compact, and depending on the cleaning system you use, you may be able to clean pistols, rifles and shotguns with the Deluxe Law Enforcement cleaning system.   I say again, the real benefit of the Otis gun cleaning kit is it can be as thorough as a traditional kit, but far more compact and mobile.

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Cleaning revolvers is easier with a boresnake

I remember the first firearm I ever cleaned was a Marlin bolt action 22LR rifle.  To clean the gun, all you had to do was pull the bolt out the back by depressing a button and pulling it back.   You could look down the chamber and see all of the fouling and know how dirty it was.   Using Hoppes cleaning solvent on a wet patch would produce a dark black gun patch on the other end when pushed through with a cleaning rod.   After you did that a few times, I’d run a cleaning brush a few times and then run a dry patch until it ran clean.

Revolvers and some semi-auto guns like the M1 Garand or the M14 and Mini 14 can be tricky and need to be cleaned from the muzzle if you are using a cleaning rod, well a few decades ago a new innovative way of cleaning these firearms was invented.   The Hoppes boresnakes are the simplist way to speed up the process and to put dangerous wear on your barrel by using a cleaning rod.   The Hoppes Boresnake is caliber specific so you may want to pick up a few for various calibers.  There are also rifle and pistol versions.

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gun cleaning on the road

I’m fortunate enough to have the opportunity to travel and witness some hard core firearms training events.   I think it should be part of everyones training to know approximately how long people should go before doing gun maintenance because the reality hits you that you may be wasting your time if you are cleaning it too much.   There are many times when an instructor will just say that it’s time to lubricate your firearm, but not break it down.   I’ve heard from many of my fellow instructors that 80% of gun cleaning is unnecessary.   According to some posts I’ve read, some say that it can actually cause more wear and damge than not cleaning.

If you are shooting a precision rifle, cleaning the barrel is of the utmost importance, but we have to realize that even though our AR15 rifles or handguns may be accurate, if we are taking real defensive or tactical training, we gotta treat them like the combat weapons that they are meant to be.   That way we have a good idea how long they can go so we can gain their trust.  When we are choosing gun cleaning supplies we should also look into the portability of the items we are brining and if we are just risking ruining our range bag because the bottles are not meant to be carried around.   Otis gun cleaning kits are probable your only real option in this category of gun cleaning unless you assemble your own.

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Cleaning more than one rifle at a time…

Hoppes bore snakesCleaning more than one rifle at a time can be a really pain in the neck.   Depending on the number of calibers you are using, you’ll have to change each brush you use, each punch, and each cleaning patch to properly clean your rifle or pistols.   I never really felt the need to change from a traditonal rifle rod to any fancy gun cleaning kits for a long time.   Some of these gun cleaning kits look very nice, but the reality is there are several cleaning kits out there that have made traditional gun cleaning obsolete.   Granted, I will have to say that I do have a few friends that sweat that they still need to use their cleaning rods to clean bolt action sub-moa rifles, because Otis gun cleaning kits and bore snakes aren’t 100%.   I’ll have to leave that up to personal choice, but I don’t see it.

The first time I took more than 4 rifles to the range and had to take the time to clean each one of them, I must have spent over 2hrs between cleaning brush changes and constantly running patches through the barrels.  I finally decided to run out and pick up a 22 Cal bore snake and see what they were all about.   I realised immediately that this Hoppes bore snake was really worth the money after I cleaned 3 of my AR15s and 1 Mini 14 rifle in less than half an hour.   The only time I used cleaning patches was to wipe down the bolt carriers.   I still think there is the need to use chamber brushes on the AR15 style rifles, but that isn’t something I would say needs to be done after every firing.   Rogue Elite is selling most of the Hoppes Bore Snakes for under $20 and I promise you’ll eliminate 50% of your cleaning time with them.

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Gun cleaning should be easier

hoppes boresnake I realize there is still a place for using cleaning rods to clean out the barrels of a rifle or pistol, and that running a white cleaning patch through a firearms and having it come out just as white is something that tells us our job is done.   Gun cleaning has gotten easier over the years.   If you are cleaning your firearms after each use, there is no need to be sitting there for hours and soaking your rifles in this cleaner and that cleaner and they running through the routine 2x’s.   Gun lubrication  has taken long strides in practically eliminating the need for having to use more than 2 gun cleaning liquids.   The really issue I see is in having a lubrication that also has preservatives to help protect metal from rust.   I have some friends that use Mobil 1 for all of there AR15 lubrication, but Mobil 1 doesn’t protect a firearm as well as BreakFree CLP does.

I’ve been talking to some of my friends about the issue of gun cleaning equipment.  One of them told me that he only owned a few rifles and there wasn’t a need for getting any fancy gun cleaning kits.   I asked  him how he cleaned his lever action rifles and he said it was a pain to clean because he had to clean it from the muzzle end unlike his bolt action.   I explained to him that Hoppes boresnakes cost less than $20 and he could run it through his lever action in seconds and not have to worry about cleaning patches ect.  I clean my hunting rifles even if I don’t fire them.  Ever since the time I brought a couple guns with me on a hunting trip, didn’t get anything, came home and put them back in the safe and then took them out 3 months later and found rust all over them, I’ve paid close attention to the gun cleaning equipment I use.

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