Critique my Cleaning Routine!

[atto]

I bought a used Ruger 10/22, and the first thing I did to it was give it a really deep cleaning (contrary to popular belief, I did not swap out all of the stock parts!!).

First of all, I broke it down into parts and started with the trigger assembly. There was gunk, dirt, and even small particles of sand all over the place! I couldn't belief how nasty it was in there. So, I got some brake cleaner and (using the straw that comes with the spray) removed everything inside, including the grease, and left it bone dry. I then removed every single part inside and greased it up with white lithium grease. Replaced all of the parts and moved onto the bolt.

The bolt was also pretty nasty, but I chose to use a citrus based cleaner instead (I was out of brake cleaner). I used a brass bristle brush to remove the caked up crud, and then let it dry.

I then sprayed the same citrus cleaner on the receiver. I let the cleaner dislodge the crud for a few minutes, and then got to work with a brass brush. I rinsed it out with hot water and let it dry. Then I lubed the rails with some more lithium grease (a thin film).

I cleaned the barrel by soaking a cotton square with Remington 40-X Bore cleaner, and pushing it down with a bore cleaning rod. I then got a .22 cal brass brush and passed it through about ten times. I ran dry cotton patches until it came out clean. I saturated another cotton patch in Hoppe's gun oil and ran it down the bore, and then passed a few more cotton patches through to remove any excess oil.

Any suggestions? This was my first time cleaning a rifle in my life, and I just want to make sure I did it right.

[Seesm]

White lithium grease attracts dirt and gunk as well..

But cleaning it first is a ok idea...

I would have shot a few through it prior to cleaning it I think.

Congrats on the new rifle.

[audihenry]

There is no right and wrong: clean it, dry it, oil it, shoot it. Repeat.

[oaklander]

[damndave]

you cleaned it fine.

congrats on the new rifle

[Mickey D]

No lithium grease IMO. Like mentioned above, attracks and holds dirt and powder particles. A good gun gun oil or CLP is what I use.

Congrats on the new rifle.

[Tumerboy]

LOL Oaklander! I was just going to ask if there was any reason NOT to run all the metal parts through the dishwasher. Seems like it would be easy, and do a good job. (or at least a first pass)

[bruceflinch]

You're doing great. I'm on my way to let you clean some of mine!

[Experimentalist]

Sounds like you did a fine job of cleaning your rifle- with one reservation stated below.

Generally you do not want to indiscriminately spray cleaner into an assembled action, because that will of course strip away all lubrication. The correct way is the way you did it, complete detail strip, scrub, lubricate, and reassemble.

If you watch the armor videos produced by the American Gunsmithing Institute you will likely see guns completely broken down and cleaned using Simple Green dilluted with water. Cheap and relatively easy to do.

The only concern I have over your technique is over the barrel cleaning. One set of cleaning with the cleaner and brush is almost never sufficient. Considering how filthy the rest of the gun was, I'm betting your bore is still pretty dirty. A careful inspection of the bore will likely reveal whatever dirt remains there.

I just cleaned my sporting clays shotgun last night, and I did four sets of the following: Run cleaner soaked patches down both barrels, let it sit to let the cleaner work, scrub each barrel 10 times each, then run a couple of cleaner soaked patches through each barrel, then a dry patch.

I've found that running the brush through a barrel will frequently loosen up dirt that was not lifted by patches alone.

Considering it's a .22 you might also examine the bore for lead build-up. If you can see that, you may want to invest in a lead removal kit.

Just my $0.02, everyone has their own cleaning technique. I'd give Oaklander's a try, but the wife would not be happy....

[atto]

Glad to hear I did it right!

The reason I decided to use lithium grease was because of this page. Do you guys recommend buying a "dry" lube (such as Remington DriLube) for the receiver/bolt so as to not to attract dirt?

I think that there's too much hype surrounding products specifically marketed towards firearms, leading the buyer to assume that it's the best product for the job and spending more money than they really need to. I've heard of old timers using motor oil to lubricate a gun, and friends in Mexico routinely use cooking oil! Of course, I could be wrong.. maybe this is a case of good-better-best..

But, I will give the bore another cleaning. Give me a break, I was tired after two whole days of scrubbing!

I regret not taking pictures though... you don't see twenty years of lead/crud buildup every day

[mastadonn]

On using the dishwasher as a cleaning method.

#1 Don't tell your significant other.

#2 Turn off the heat dry cycle or you parts will come out with a new "rust" blue finish (don't ask how I know this).

3. Remove parts promptly. Dry and immediately oil them (see #2)

Dishwasher can also be used to get grease out of old military stocks (but may result in cracks)

[RandyD]

If you watch the armor videos produced by the American Gunsmithing Institute you will likely see guns completely broken down and cleaned using Simple Green dilluted with water. Cheap and relatively easy to do.

I purchased an AGI video where they used Simple Green so I tried it too. It is cheap, effective and I'll continue to use it.

As far as your techinque, if your rifle came out clean, then your technique is a good one. The AGI video I purchased, demonstrated the cleaning of a rifle by using Simple Green. The rifle was dissassembled, liberally sprayed with Simple Green, let it sit overnight, scrub the parts with a toothbrush, rinse with water and dry. I add an additional step of blowing out the parts with break cleaner after the drying stage to insure all water is removed.