Professional Gun Cleaning?

[TNP'R]

People who do not have the ability to take their weapons completely apart for cleanings should take them to a professional to have that done periodically. If you possess the ability to, great. If not, is it worth possible breaking your weapon?

If a person cant take apart their gun should they really be firing it in the first place? Shouldn't everyone know their firearm before they go and shoot it. Seems like the prudent thing to do is at-least know how it works first.

[Javi]

If a person cant take apart their gun should they really be firing it in the first place? Shouldn't everyone know their firearm before they go and shoot it. Seems like the prudent thing to do is at-least know how it works first.

I'm guessing he means doing a detail strip of the thing. I haven't detail stripped any of my 3 because I don't know how but I know how they work for the most part and can shoot them decently

[dieselpower]

Not exactly. I do take my competition guns in to gunsmith every year and have him tear apart, check all parts, springs, and do a thorough cleaning. If anything is wrong he replaces and hopefully gun is good to go.

You do understand your comp gun loses accuracy and becomes an unknown performer every time that happens right?

You need copper in a bore for accuracy and every time a part is changed the other parts need to work that part in by removing burs and honing surfaces. Then that part becomes settled with the rest. New parts have a higher failure rate than older parts, (on an upturned horseshoe bell curve,) and every time you disassemble something you run the risk of altering the exact position everything was settled into, and all the working parts have to re-work themselves together.

If its not broke, don't fix it. Couple of patches down the bore, a proper standard cleaning and a few rounds down the pipe before real use is all a rifle needs until it breaks down.

All comp guns or duty guns need to have a maintenance schedule so you know when a part is at the end of its lifespan.

[berg]

If a person cant take apart their gun should they really be firing it in the first place? Shouldn't everyone know their firearm before they go and shoot it. Seems like the prudent thing to do is at-least know how it works first.

If a person doesn't have the desire or skill to change the oil in their car, should they be allowed to own one?

[fighterpilot562]

nope

[Kodemonkey]

Believe it or not, I am seeing classes being offered on gun cleaning.

If you are interested in learning, you could take an armorers course. However, I have found almost everything I needed to know on youtube. There is a ton of information out there and taking down and HK shouldn't require anything more than a drift punch set for about $30.

However, I've got an HK with about 5K rounds through it. It's almost always in dusty conditions, but it's been fired in the rain too. I have YET to detail strip it.

Where do you live? Maybe some helpful calgunner can give you a hand in making sure it is in good working order.

[CHS]

I don't clean my guns.

[Plisk]

By completely do you mean further then the manual says? Like removing the extractor, and disassembling the trigger assembly?

Yes, I mean down to every single possible part.

If a person cant take apart their gun should they really be firing it in the first place? Shouldn't everyone know their firearm before they go and shoot it. Seems like the prudent thing to do is at-least know how it works first.

I do not mean if they cannot perform user level maintenance, IE: field strip. I mean if they are unable to perform armorer level maintenance as in taking the weapon down to every single possible part for inspection and maintenance. It seems narrow minded to judge someones allowance to shoot based on how mechanically inclined they are. It doesn't matter to me if they can field strip their guns or not, that can be taught. When it comes to actually firing their weapon, the first thing they need to know is their safety rules. If they can follow those, I could care less if they can take their weapon apart, that comes later.

[TNP'R]

Yes, I mean down to every single possible part.



I do not mean if they cannot perform user level maintenance, IE: field strip. I mean if they are unable to perform armorer level maintenance as in taking the weapon down to every single possible part for inspection and maintenance. It seems narrow minded to judge someones allowance to shoot based on how mechanically inclined they are. It doesn't matter to me if they can field strip their guns or not, that can be taught. When it comes to actually firing their weapon, the first thing they need to know is their safety rules. If they can follow those, I could care less if they can take their weapon apart, that comes later.

If its narrow minded so what? I think people should learn their firearms. Plus not learning their firearm is asking for trouble anyway I mean if something goes wrong instead of diagnosing the problem themselves they would need someone else to help them. And having a professional clean their gun every time they shoot? Really? That would get expensive if they shoot a lot or what they wait till it malfunctions to get it cleaned? It would be a lot easier to learn how to take down a firearm then having someone clean it for them for a fee and then the added cost if something breaks due to poor maintenance.

[elsolo]

I wouldn't expect a racecar driver to be the crew chief, a shooter doesn't need to be a gunsmith.
However, taking guns to a smith for routine cleaning is like taking your car to the dealer to get it washed.

[shooperman]

No. Learn how to clean your guns and spend your money on bullets.

+10

[CHS]

However, taking guns to a smith for routine cleaning is like taking your car to the dealer to get it washed.

^^ This.

[wubzy]

Believe it or not, I am seeing classes being offered on gun cleaning.

If you are interested in learning, you could take an armorers course. However, I have found almost everything I needed to know on youtube. There is a ton of information out there and taking down and HK shouldn't require anything more than a drift punch set for about $30.

However, I've got an HK with about 5K rounds through it. It's almost always in dusty conditions, but it's been fired in the rain too. I have YET to detail strip it.

Where do you live? Maybe some helpful calgunner can give you a hand in making sure it is in good working order.

Thanks, I'm just east of Sacramento. I'm fairly positive it's in good working condition. It has about 3k rounds through it (without a malfunction). Part of the reason i'm hesitating about professional cleaning is 1. it might be a waste of money, and 2. i tend to agree with the 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' sentiment. That said, i don't want to defer necessary maintenance.

[Plisk]

If its narrow minded so what? I think people should learn their firearms. Plus not learning their firearm is asking for trouble anyway I mean if something goes wrong instead of diagnosing the problem themselves they would need someone else to help them. And having a professional clean their gun every time they shoot? Really? That would get expensive if they shoot a lot or what they wait till it malfunctions to get it cleaned? It would be a lot easier to learn how to take down a firearm then having someone clean it for them for a fee and then the added cost if something breaks due to poor maintenance.

You're missing my point completely. I never stated anywhere they need to have it professional cleaning done every time they shoot, re-read my post it never states that. My point was that for their periodic deep clean, as in every 3,000 rounds or once a year type of schedule, it should be brought to a professional for that level of maintenance if the owner is unable to. I also went on to say, that your assertion that people who are unable to maintenance their weapons should not be allowed to shoot is BS. Proper maintenance should come with OWNERSHIP. The shooters mechanical ability does not affect his ability to safety shoot a firearm. If they can follow their safety rules, they can shoot. As I stated, maintenance can be taught easily the important part of shooting is SAFETY. If you shoot, you be safe. If you own, you must perform maintenance.

[wubzy]

How much is the gunsmith wanting to charge?

I don't, and after a couple of Youtube videos on various techniques and tricks, I've become pretty proficient in cleaning my guns. Have you done a detail strip of the gun to inspect the parts yourself? I did it when I got my gun just to see how everything worked.

Good question; i emailed a couple of gunsmiths yesterday...no reply yet.

Thanks for the youtube idea (everyone)...can't believe i didn't think of that! I'll check out the videos and see if i learn any new tricks.