What is your favorite cleaner?

[hanshi]

I use to use nothing BUT 3 in 1 oil and never had a problem. But that's just my experience and may differ from others.

 

[Dphar]

3-in-1 oil is forever on my poop list.
Use a good gun oil or grease for rust prevention/lubrication.
mhb - Mike

:shocked2: :shake:

My, my Mike, where did you have trouble with "3-in_1 Oil"? I have and will continue to use it interchangeably with any good quality oil - they are the same thing. I have been using it on my firearms since the 1950s and was taught the use of it for guns, light machinery and tools by my Father and Grandfather, both of whom had many years of firearms and machinery experience. As a matter of fact, my Mother used it on her motorized Singer Sewing Machine that she inherited from her Grandmother in 1949 and it came with a can of "3-in-1 Oil" and Mom always used it, did until the day she died last September. Mom may be gone, but the sewing machine still looks near brand new due to 100+ years of extremely good care using "3-in-1 Oil".

Do what you will with WD-40 but I think Kanawha Ranger and I (as well as many others) will discount your "poop list" and keep using "3-in-1 Oil" for as long as it is available.

Sewing machines are an excellent use for 3in1. But sewing machines are not firearms. I doubt your mother used it at -20 or even at +10.

3 in 1 was what Dad used. I don't and won't use it.
Its especially good at making dark petroleum oil streaks in walnut (but many oils will also). Dad's 63 Winchester is a poster child for this. It would also gum up and have to be removed with solvent.
It likely works OK as far as it goes. But there are FAR better products on the market.
I have used G-66/G-96, for example, for over 40 years in Iowa, Alaska, SE-Asia (Jet Aer sent it to me free) and the mountain west. When the neighbor told me about it and I tried it in my mid-teens I stopped using Outers Gun Oil (which I liked better than 3 in 1). I have never had a reason to cuss it.
I cannot say the same for wd-40,
WD-40 would not stop rust on carbon steel overnight in SE Asia even when it wasn't raining and there was a roof. Its supposedly been changed and the chlorine removed, it used to be labeled "chlorinated solvents" on the ingredient list.

CLP which I thought was great till I pulled the side plates off my 1873 Win and saw the build up. Good for long term in a clean bore but too gooey for daily use or in the mechanism.

I like to use something that will stay fluid to at LEAST -20. A "click" with no "bang" is discouraging when trying to kill something a client has blown a leg off of because the goo keeps parts from working properly. This was my mothers 1894, I have no idea what she was using but it could have been 3 in 1. Weather was in the 40s not even cold but the stuff had gummed up. Firing pin extension did not retract in the locking lug due to goo and would not let the hammer hit it hard enough to fire a second shot.
G-96 is good to something like -60.
I also use synthetic motor oil very sparingly on lock work for lube where I don't use an EP grease. 0w30 Amsoil, for example has a very low "pour point"and I have not had it gum up in the cold.
Its free since I save the dregs from the bottles when I change oil. One oil change will give me enough for a year or 2.
Using 3 in 1 above all others is like assuming that a 2012 Corvette will work OK with SAE 30 non-detergent motor oil since "all motor oil is the same".
There are some very good synthetic gun oils on the market that I use for some things as well. Mpro7 lube keeps carbon of AR bolts very well for example and seems to be a good lube as well. There is another in aerosol that the local counter guy at the gun store likes a lot. He is a hard core shooter of modern stuff.
There have been improvements in lubricants and rust preventatives in the last 60 years or so. I know its hard to believe, but its true.
Dan

 

[smo]

windshield washer fluid & Ballistol

 

[Lorne Johnson]

There's a lot of methods here that all work, especially after you get the bugs worked out.

Personally, I use warm tap water with a drop of New Dawn (cause it's right there at the kitchen sink). Then I follow up with Ballistol on a patch (which I keep under the ktichen sink).

 

[Tumblernotch]

3-in-1 oil is forever on my poop list.
Use a good gun oil or grease for rust prevention/lubrication.
mhb - Mike

:shocked2: :shake:

My, my Mike, where did you have trouble with "3-in_1 Oil"? I have and will continue to use it interchangeably with any good quality oil - they are the same thing. I have been using it on my firearms since the 1950s and was taught the use of it for guns, light machinery and tools by my Father and Grandfather, both of whom had many years of firearms and machinery experience. As a matter of fact, my Mother used it on her motorized Singer Sewing Machine that she inherited from her Grandmother in 1949 and it came with a can of "3-in-1 Oil" and Mom always used it, did until the day she died last September. Mom may be gone, but the sewing machine still looks near brand new due to 100+ years of extremely good care using "3-in-1 Oil".

Do what you will with WD-40 but I think Kanawha Ranger and I (as well as many others) will discount your "poop list" and keep using "3-in-1 Oil" for as long as it is available.

I suppose, Virginia, that some have never learned the proper use of 3 in 1. I'm sure that you're like me and don't "slather" it on. I've used it on firearms for 45 years and on muzzleloaders for nearly 40. The only thing you have to watch out for is using too much in the bore and standing the gun up. You can have a build-up in the breech, but heck, all oils can do that. And as you know, you never want to over-do it in the lock, but again, you can with any oil. Some of these fellers just ain't figgered it out yet. I've even renewed oil finished stocks with it.

Hey, have you ever used the old 3 in 1 sewing machine oil? I used to have some but haven't seen any lately anywhere. It is the perfect lock oil.
:thumbsup:

 

[Dphar]

3-in-1 oil is forever on my poop list.
Use a good gun oil or grease for rust prevention/lubrication.
mhb - Mike

:shocked2: :shake:

My, my Mike, where did you have trouble with "3-in_1 Oil"? I have and will continue to use it interchangeably with any good quality oil - they are the same thing. I have been using it on my firearms since the 1950s and was taught the use of it for guns, light machinery and tools by my Father and Grandfather, both of whom had many years of firearms and machinery experience. As a matter of fact, my Mother used it on her motorized Singer Sewing Machine that she inherited from her Grandmother in 1949 and it came with a can of "3-in-1 Oil" and Mom always used it, did until the day she died last September. Mom may be gone, but the sewing machine still looks near brand new due to 100+ years of extremely good care using "3-in-1 Oil".

Do what you will with WD-40 but I think Kanawha Ranger and I (as well as many others) will discount your "poop list" and keep using "3-in-1 Oil" for as long as it is available.

I suppose, Virginia, that some have never learned the proper use of 3 in 1. I'm sure that you're like me and don't "slather" it on. I've used it on firearms for 45 years and on muzzleloaders for nearly 40. The only thing you have to watch out for is using too much in the bore and standing the gun up. You can have a build-up in the breech, but heck, all oils can do that. And as you know, you never want to over-do it in the lock, but again, you can with any oil. Some of these fellers just ain't figgered it out yet. I've even renewed oil finished stocks with it.

Hey, have you ever used the old 3 in 1 sewing machine oil? I used to have some but haven't seen any lately anywhere. It is the perfect lock oil.
:thumbsup:

Its impossible to "renew" an oil finish with petroleum

Dan

 

[Billnpatti]

The best cleaner has always been, and may well always be, hot water and soap. Cheap and extremely effective. My personal opinion of the best corrosion protection is provided by Barricade.

 

[Adui]

Favorite commercially available cleaner will always be Ole Thunder (Also known as Blue Thunder I believe but could be wrong). Favorite home brew is a little Simple green and water.

Favorite lubricant / rust inhibitor: Simple old Rem Oil by Remington. Been using it for years, and even after my guns sitting for months in the humid environment of NW Oregon while my dad stored em in his RV NO RUST.

As others have said, clean em good, dry em good then oil it. I however do not store mine muzzle down. I rather like the oil puddle in the breech, prevents any breech plug corrosion. I just dry it out good before dumping powder down the muzzle. (Actually that might not even be true since I only fire two or three caps then load and shoot)

 

[S.Kenton]

Dry bore with patches followed by hair dryer followed by WD40.

I may have to try the ol' Hair dryer technique..does it work well???

 

[kaintuck]

thanks fella's!
I do have a small 'patch' that i have cleaned out....but it did pit just some... :shake:
but i will use a dose of rem oil, and next order of TOTW i will get some balistol
thanks! :hatsoff:

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Both WD-40 and 3-in-1 oil, if over-generously applied and allowed to age for a while will inevitably oxidize into a nearly indestructible varnish/glue. Not hearsay, but hard experience.

... I've spent way too many many hours cleaning gunk from firearms ..., Police revolvers were among the worst specimens: I've often dealt with those in which the lockwork was so gummed they would barely function, and some which were absolutely siezed-up..., firearms of other types which had to be scraped-out to restore proper function. And the 'varnish' was often so hard it had to be soaked in solvent for days before it could be removed at all ..., Perhaps the root cause of the trouble is simply over-use without occasional inspection and removal of any buildup before it becomes goo.

This has been my EXACT experience as well, when speaking of those products with long term storage of firearms. In fact one detective special revolver I encountered had been stored for several years, after being treated with 3-in-1 oil..., and the stuff had shellac'd so badly the grips had to be removed, and the handgun submerged in solvent for 24 hours just to get it open to continue cleaning. The senior gunsmith where I was working part time said to me, as I scraped brown plastic like stuff from the working parts, "Ah, another three-in-one victim".

Another case a fellow going overseas for one year had a large collection of O/U shotguns cleaned and oiled for storage, and WD-40 was used on the internal working parts as the oil and rust preventative. The guns didn't rust, but upon his return he found they didn't work..., the WD-40 had turned to goo similar to the clear goo used to stick labels on disposable aluminum bread pans at the supermarket.

So I know there are some fans of both products, but I have found they are not a universally applicable solution to a rust problem, especially when storage of more than 1 year is involved.

LD

 

[Rat Trapper]

A rep for Knight gave me several bottles of Knight oil. It is a thin oil and works great. For cleaning warm water and a little soap then flush with clean water and dry barrel and add oil.

I've clean muzzle loaders with black powder solvents, but in the end, found that water works the best in a traditional rifle.

 

[Va.Manuf.06]

Sewing machines are an excellent use for 3in1. But sewing machines are not firearms. I doubt your mother used it at -20 or even at +10.

Well, no, certainly not. As far as sewing machines not being firearms? Well, I apologize for using the example in this discussion but firearms are not as finely machined or anywhere near as complex as sewing machines either. Mom's machine has been maintained using 3-in-1 for at least 80 years and has suffered no ill effects from it, it still function extremely well, well beyond the ability of many modern machines. This machine started life as a treadle operated machine
and was modernized in the 1930s by the addition of an electric motor with no further modernization since then. If she or my great grandmother had tried to use it at -10, maybe it would not have done that well, who knows. An occasional good cleaning and other proper maintenance over the years has kept it running and functioning well.

I have never had the problem of 3-in-1 turning into varnish on anything but maybe I am just lucky? I recently examined my Remington Semi-Automatic 20 ga. that has been properly stored since I last fired it in 1972. The 3-in-1 that was put on it then and occasionally wiped on it in storage over the years is fine and the shotgun will function just fine, I have no doubt - none whatsoever. The last time it was broken down for complete cleaning was 1970 when I received it as a high school graduation gift so it is about due now. Maybe I'll find a problem? :hmm: No, I doubt it but will let everyone know if I do. It cycles beautifully and smoothly and shows no varnish on outside surfaces.

3 in 1 was what Dad used. I don't and won't use it.
Its especially good at making dark petroleum oil streaks in walnut (but many oils will also). Dad's 63 Winchester is a poster child for this. It would also gum up and have to be removed with solvent.
It likely works OK as far as it goes. But there are FAR better products on the market.

Dan, I feel confident that the examples that everyone is making so much over are caused by a lack of proper care with attempts to make things better by over-application and a lack of cleaning before applying copious amounts of oil. In other words, the "more is better" approach. Mix dirt, dust and oil (of any kind!) together and you will have problems, like it or not. Get oil on a wooden stock, you will get streaking - even using the vaunted synthetics which I won't touch with a 10 foot pole, but that's just me, I'll remain the happy idiot. :wink:

 

[Tumblernotch]

Ssshhh! Don't say that too loud. My guns might hear you. :wink:

 

[roundball]

Interesting to see the different experiences.
Wonder of different parts of the country weather conditions / temp & humidity...enter into it.

In South Carolina, Georgia, and North Carolina I've used WD40 on all modern CF guns since the 60's, never had problems like a couple posted above.
Ruger + S&W revolver / auto internals, a full line of Remington shotgun gauges trigger mechanisms for trap & skeet shooting for years, and switched to WD40 for all muzzleloader locks & bores about 10 years ago.

WD-40 HOME PAGE http://www.wd40.com/

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS http://www.wd40.com/faqs/#a96

You'd think in about 45 years with many firearms that I'd have experienced the horror stories above so there has to be another element to the situation.
Maybe the difference is in degree of cleanliness, or storage conditions, or regional weather as mentioned...dunno...but I order WD40 aerosol cans by the case, a dozen cans at a time...been great stuff for me

 

[Rokon]

The more natural the better. Cool water and a bit of soap or Ballistol--not Simple Green or peroxide mixtures.

Dry with alcohol followed by WD-40.

If you're going to be shooting the rifle in the next week or two, WD-40 is sufficient to prevent rust.

Whatever the rust preventive used, clean the bore with alcohol before shooting it.

The finest lock lubricant is ultra-refined Nyoil, available from Brownells and possibley Midway.

 

[BigDogg]

I use luke warm soapy water to clean. And Barricade for rust prevention.

 

[Stumpkiller]

Its impossible to "renew" an oil finish with petroleum

Dan

Ssshhh! Don't say that too loud. My guns might hear you. :wink:

The only way I can figure 3:1 Oil could "renew" a Tung or Linseed Oil finished stock is by dissolving some of the surrounding stock oil and, with enough rags and rubbing, you eventually remove the petroleum oil and even out the remaining vegetable oils. :idunno:

That or it's a poly finish and not an oil finish to begin with and the oil is just polishing it up without soaking into the wood. You'd never get a 3:1 Oil soaked wood stock to dry out or have the pores plugged. You'll know when some of that oil seeps under a poly finish. The usual name for that effect is "ruined".

 

[Va.Manuf.06]

An oil finish on wood is not petroleum based. Never put petroleum oil on wood - n-e-v-e-r - finished or unfinished. Apply petroleum products to metal sparingly and only as needed, do not over apply when using on metal - excess will migrate to the wood and ruin the finish as Dan says. I always thought everyone knew that, it is basic knowledge of gun care.

 

[lonehorseman]

All good advice so far. I use an equal parts mixture of alcohol, peroxide and Murphy's oil soap. This must be stored in the brown bottle for long-term use. My shooting buddy uses Diet Coke and swears by it.

I do agree with one bit of advice; never use WD-40 on a firearm. As a retired Police Officer and Range Supervisor, I can say with certainty that WD-40 will turn into glue, especially when stored in a hot environment. It is the only thing I have ever seen that would lock-up a duty shotgun. One old Detective had been using it on his 870 shotgun, stored in the trunk of his car. The slide totally locked. When we finally got it apart all the WD-40 had solidified. It was a bear to get out. No rust though!