cleaning necessary out the box?

[TheHeckler]

Im kind of new to the shotgun world but i recently picked up a mossberg 590. my question is do i need to clean it before i take it out for the first time at the range? i was told 2 different things from 2 different shotgun owners... one says its already lubed up and good to go out the box and the other says to disassemble and clean and re-oil because the factory oil/grease is for storage purposes... so which one is correct??

It wouldnt be such a big deal to me and would rather clean it before i take it out just to be safe about it but the thing is my buddies want to go to the range this weekend and i have yet to get a cleaning kit for my 590 since i got it recently. If its safe to use out the box and wont damage my firearm in doing so it would save me a lot of hassle of making 2 trips to the gunstore, 1 trip to get a cleaning kit and go back home to clean my weapon and another trip to go back to the range with my buddies. i would rather take it out and shoot it and come home THEN clean it...

Also, what cleaning kit would you guys recommend? i dont want to break the bank on a cleaning kit so any opinions for best bang for the buck kit thatll get the job done?

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

[Wired 24/7]

I was wondering the same thing, and I have heard about using Break Free for just about every part of the shotgun.

Would this get the job done or would you recommend more/different products?

[UBFRAGD]

I always clean the barrel of a new shotgun with a bore mop soaked in degreaser followed by dry patches. I like using isopropyl (sp?) alcohol 90% and getting it all out. Barrel should be shiny-looking and polished. Before I fire the first shell out a new barrel I use a flashlight and inspection mirror so I know what the new barrel looks like so then I know whether my cleaning is effective and what kind of wear is occuring as the shells and years roll by. (I'm amazed how much abuse a shotgun barrel can take).

I disagree that a barrel of any gun needs to be fired lubricated. With an oiled shotgun barrel, if you only fire a few rounds, no problem cleaning the barrel. But if you're like me and go through cases of shells because it's so much fun, that oil mates with melted plastic, heat and cool cycles, and makes a gack that will completely fill a bronze bore brush on the first pass. Without lubrication, teflon, moly, etc it seems fouling takes longer and is easier to clean. If I'm out shooting a bunch I would never think of cleaning a shotgun barrel until my shoulder was a puddle of pulverized tissue and broken bones...... My 2 pennies.

The barrel is oiled for storage not shooting, right?

Congrats on new shotgun let us know how it shoots.......

[Maton]

Well for handguns its a good idea to disassemble and clean, because it's shipped from the factory in its packing grease. But for god sakes it's a shotgun, take that thing out and treat it like the pig that it is. Dont worry about it you'll be fine, as far as a cleaning kit. Grab some break free or CLP, it's good stuff and does dual purpose as a cleaner and degreaser. As far as rubbing alcohol on your barrel....Hmmm I wouldn't do it. COME ON UBFRAGD!!! A mirror and polish?!? Come on brother what are you doing taking this thing out on a date??? I understand knowing what kind of wear you're putting on it, but again, a shotgun is a a dirty lil girl-take it out and beat it up, and wear it out. Happy shooting!!! shotty's can take an enormous amount of abuse, trust me I've seen it. Happy shooting!

[recshooter]

Definitely inspect first (duh), and cleaning certainly would not hurt.

For what it's worth, I recently took my new moss 500 to the range without cleaning, shot some slugs and #6 at some threatening trash items, and had no issues at all...

Better to be overly cautions, but as Maton suggested above, it is a Shotgun.

[Dilinger23]

I recomend on inspecting it too.. A shotgun is not just some silly toy. It can seriously hurt or even kill.. Mosberg can take alot of beating and it would work fine... Its a good practice to inspect your new gun just before shooting it for the first time. Then when you know the gun well enough...you can manipulate it anyway you want... have fun and be safe...

[BlackDrop50]

It's a pump. Spray barrel with break-free, run boresnake or wet patch/mop then dry one. Shoot.

[tombinghamthegreat]

One nice choice in shotgun, i got the same one and its great for HD. It would be a good idea to inspect the shotgun, learn how to disassemble the gun, and clean it before firing. A normal cleaning kit would work.

[SFFRONTMAN]

Clean it first, shoot it a lot. Repeat as necessary.

[TheHeckler]

good info fellas! thanks... disassembly i already know how to do and yes i took the barrel out and inspected it couple days after i picked it up ... its the cleaning before firing i was more worried about because it totally slipped my mind to get supplies when i picked it up and now it might get some range time sooner than expected and on short notice... maybe ill just get a cleaning kit the day of and patch the barrel down at the range just to be safe...

[aplinker]

ha ha

I haven't cleaned my Benelli in months. Many months.

Every once in a while is all a shotgun needs. I shoot enough that they "talk to me" about when they need to be cleaned.

[Baron]

I clean my shotguns about once a month...
I took my wifes mossberg 500 out for some trap, right out of the box, didn't have anyproblems. But I did inspect it first just to make sure...

Aren't Shotguns great?...

[AJAX22]

It really depends on the gun

I usually modify the heck out of guns before I ever get them to the range (just my personality I guess) so they typically get cleaned up in the process.

On the Chinese knock off guns It helps a LOT if you take them appart and knock the sharp edges off and polish the machine tool marks a bit.

[Wired 24/7]

ha ha

I haven't cleaned my Benelli in months. Many months.

Every once in a while is all a shotgun needs. I shoot enough that they "talk to me" about when they need to be cleaned.

I guess you can tell a true gun freak when the guns talk to him

In any case, are you currently attending UCLA, or an alum? I'm a grad student there.

[maxicon]

I always strip and clean a new or used gun before taking it out the first time. It only makes sense to me, and I've found all sorts of issues when I do this. At least, you need to run a swab down the barrel to make sure it's clean - this is a basic safety precaution.

After that, I shoot most guns until they start acting up, then clean them. The main exceptions are my primary defense guns, which get a quick clean after each range trip.