As much as most of us try, we can’t avoid cleaning our guns forever. They just get so filthy! If left uncleaned for long enough, it can start to cause reliability problems, as well as other, more annoying issues. It is amazing how dirty they can get after only a few hundred rounds through them. So when we finally get around to cleaning them, some of us start to wonder what clean actually is.
So how clean should your gun be after cleaning? Ideally, a freshly cleaned gun should be clean enough that it has no visual or tactile carbon, dirt or buildup in or on it—either by hand touch or with a clean rag or patch. That may mean completing the cleaning process one or more times to get all the junk out of the gun. Practically speaking, a gun should be clean enough that an overwhelming majority of the junk and debris should be removed.
Let’s look more closely at what we mean by “ideally” and “practically” when it comes to cleaning. There are obviously several reasons guns need to be cleaned in general to ensure they work properly; we’ll consult the manuals on how clean guns should be after cleaning them.
Detailed Explanation
When cleaning a gun the most important question is, when is the job done? Or how do I know I’ve cleaned it enough? In order to answer these questions, we will describe how clean a gun should be from two different perspectives. One from an ideal perspective and one from a practical perspective.
When speaking ideally, we are talking about how clean the gun would be in a perfect world. It’s as though you could snap your fingers and the gun would be perfectly clean. It’s the type of cleaning that, if touched by white gloves, nothing would transfer from the gun to the gloves. We would all love for this to always be the case after cleaning, but is rarely done in real life. The only people that do this kind of cleaning are the gun cleaning fanatics. The ones that seem to get more pleasure out of cleaning their guns than actually shooting their guns.
The other perspective is cleaning guns to a practical level of cleanliness. You’ve probably already guessed what this level of clean is. It means getting the majority of the buildup out of your gun. You aren’t worried about getting every last bit from every single crevice. It really means getting your gun to the point where 95% or more of all the junk in your gun is removed.
The practical level of gun cleaning is the level we advocate for. It’s the type that doesn’t make you want to bash your head in because it takes so long. It’s also the most useful and realistic when it comes to making sure you clean your gun regularly enough.
There are a few reasons that guns should be cleaned whether you choose to clean them to the ideal level or the practical level. We’ll note three specific reasons guns need to be cleaned.
- Maintain proper function and reliability
- Prevent any rust or corrosion
- Avoid dangerous situations
Why to clean your guns
The most important thing when cleaning guns is to get all the junk off and out of them. If that is done, then a gun will do what it is designed to do; function. It’s pretty much as simple as that. If the gun has all functioning parts, and nothing is getting in the way of those parts doing what they should do, then everything should work smoothly together.
Some of the things that need to be removed from the gun are carbon fouling, copper fouling, lead fouling, dirt, sand and anything else that surely will get in the gun. Some of these things are harder to remove than others but they are the number one reason things start to go bad on a gun. Let’s take a look at what removing this junk from the gun can do for you in the long run.
Maintain proper function and reliability
As many gun owner’s manuals state, guns are precision instruments that need to be cleaned and maintained in order to continue functioning properly. That’s not to say that they need to be cleaned after every single use. We have a fantastic article on how often guns need to be cleaned that you can read here! But when it comes to making sure your gun is clean, one of the most compelling reasons to follow through is that it gives you the best chances of proper function and reliability.
The some of the main reasons guns don’t work is when the parts break or when there is junk in them that prevents the parts from doing what they’re supposed to do. So field stripping your guns and cleaning all that out is a sure way to eliminate one of those two frustrating problems. We’ll cover the other below.
Prevent rust and corrosion
Guns are made of metal; and metal has the tendency to rust and corrode over time. What makes it worse is our fingers have natural oils on them that cause them to rust faster. These days, most guns are coated with various anti-corrosive substances that reduce the chances of running into this problem significantly. That doesn’t mean, though, that they are completely safe from it. And what about older guns that don’t have these coatings to protect them? That’s where cleaning and oiling becomes important.
The other huge reason to clean your guns is when using corrosive ammo. So not only do guns rust and corrode over time, there is ammo that significantly speeds this process up if you don’t clean your guns quickly after shooting. We’ll dive deeper into that in a bit.
Avoid dangerous situations
This is a two-part section. The first part is that by cleaning your guns you avoid going too long without having taken your gun apart and seen all the inner pieces. It provides you with a great opportunity not only to clean the parts off, but to inspect them and look for abnormalities and excessive wear. Without breaking the gun down and cleaning it, you likely wouldn’t notice those things as quickly—or at all. Then when you go to shoot your gun, it could be unsafe and cause catastrophic malfunctions. This obviously doesn’t happen often, but it could happen.
The other half of this section would be that cleaning your gun helps you avoid being in dangerous situations thinking your gun is going to function, and it doesn’t. This point probably could fit under “remain proper function and reliability” but we thought we’d mention it here anyway. There is no guarantee that your gun will function every time without a doubt. But you can make sure that you have done everything in your power to give it the best chance of functioning when it needs to. And that should be the most compelling reason of them all.
Evidence from gun manuals
We looked into many gun manuals to try to find evidence that explains how clean a gun should be after cleaning it. Here’s what we found.
Handgun Manuals
Glock owner’s manual, M&P owner’s manual, Sig P320 owner’s manual and many more
After looking at several owner’s manuals they all basically come to the same conclusion. Guns need to be cleaned well so that heavy deposits are removed from places like the slide, frame, guide rod and recoil spring. They mention not to forget these because the carbon and other deposits can build up over time and cause problems.
The one thing most of the manuals did mention as a specific concern is the barrels of each of these guns. When cleaning thom, they should send patches with cleaner on them through the barrels until the patches come out clean—in other words, until all the junk has been removed. None of them mention doing this for the other parts of the guns.
So, from a practicality standpoint, the only part of the gun that needs to be “white glove ready” is the barrel; though, I’ll bet most people don’t put patches through the gun until they are white. They get about 95% of the way there and call it good. That’s just the reality of it. So really, they probably stop when the patch has a very light grey look that is trending toward white.
Rifle Manuals
Remington 700 manual, Savage rifle models, Ruger 10-22 and more
One thing most of the rifle manuals mentioned, which was similar to the handguns, is the importance of cleaning the barrel thoroughly. Doing this will ensure there is nothing obstructing the proper function of these guns. In the worst scenarios, obstructions in the barrel can lead to catastrophic malfunctions (though not usually from carbon and other debris).
These types of guns are often used in applications where accuracy is very important. Whether it is for hunting, competition shooting or just for fun, making sure they are the most accurate that they can be is important. Dirty barrels can cause them to be less accurate. So cleaning them thoroughly, while not necessarily vital, can maintain the top-notch accuracy that is desired.
Most of the manuals supported our conclusion that guns need to be cleaned to a practical standard. Some mentioned that patches should be run through the barrel of the gun until they no longer come out dirty. While others merely mentioned that a specific step should be “repeated several times”. What they were referring to was to run patches through the barrel. Running several patches through the barrel with cleaners on them, as well as using a bore brush, is enough to get the vast majority of the buildup out of the barrel. Whether or not the gun is white-glove ready isn’t really a factor.
The last thing to mention in these manuals is that it seems like they take far less time and energy explaining how to clean the rest of the gun. They are thorough with the barrels and adequate with everything else. That’s not to say they don’t explain enough, but they also just aren’t as exhaustive or detailed. You can draw your own conclusions from that,
AR-15 manuals
Daniel Defense DDM V7 manual, M&P 15 manual, Aero Precision AC 15M and more
After looking at quite a few AR-15 manuals, we drew similar conclusions to the conclusions we drew for the other types of guns. Barrels should be as clean as reasonably possible. Some mentioned that patches should be passed through the barrels until the exited clean of any impurities. Others didn’t mention as much detail, and instead, directed to pass patches a few times through the barrels.
These manuals seemed to have even less mention of cleaning other parts of the guns. Obviously, they didn’t forego mentioning that the other parts of the guns should be cleaned, but there was just less emphasis placed on how to clean these parts. The statements on how to clean them were much more broad and vague. They were usually included in a long list of other parts that need to be cleaned off and wiped down.
Again, what we can learn from these owners manuals is that guns should be cleaned to a practical level. The most care should be taken with the barrels; but, after that, they should be cleaned to a reasonable level. You should be confident that the vast majority of the dirt is out of your gun and that it is clean. You aren’t worried as much that every spec is out of the gun, but that is clean enough that it won’t suffer any negative side effects.
Shotgun manuals
Mossberg shotguns (including model 500), Remington shotguns (including model 870) and others
As you probably guessed, we had very similar findings to the previous gun types when looking at the manuals for shotguns. The barrel was given the most attention—that it should be cleaned with bore brushes and patches. Again they mentioned that patches either should be passed through the barrel until they 1) come out clean or 2) have passed several patches through the gun. This is to ensure there is nothing obstructing the barrel and to maintain reliability when using these guns.
In similar fashion, most of the manuals were vague on cleaning other surfaces. They mentioned that other parts of the guns should be cleaned, scrubbed and wiped down. That all buildup and debris should be removed. None of them went into anywhere near the detail as they did with the barrels.
We believe these manuals further prove our assertion that guns need to be cleaned to a practical level and nothing more. Could there be tiny bits and pieces of carbon somewhere in the receiver of a gun? Yes, but as long as it’s not obstructing the barrel and causing dangerous situations, it’s not a big deal. Is it better to get it all? Yes, but in most scenarios it’s not practical or needed.
Depends on how often you clean your guns
There are all kinds of opinions on how clean guns should be after cleaning. Some people are obsessed with cleaning their guns. They go to the range and shoot a few rounds and then decide it’s time to clean. I’m not sure if these people just can’t sleep at night knowing their gun is a little dirty. Maybe for them it’s like the feeling you get when you haven’t brushed your teeth in far too long. They just start to feel gross. Whatever it is, the rest of us clean our guns fairly regularly. The other group out there is full of people that believe guns don’t need to be cleaned…ever.
So before we can accurately answer how clean a gun should be after cleaning it, we need to establish how often the gun is going to be cleaned. If you are someone that wants to clean your gun constantly, then making sure your gun is spotless really isn’t all that essential. If you are going to shoot 50 rounds at the range and then rush home and clean your gun, then 1) there won’t be much to clean and 2) the junk in the gun won’t likely cause any problems.
By the way, most of the criticisms I have for people that clean their guns constantly are mostly playful. I don’t think it’s bad to clean your guns this much. I just think it’s excessive. In some ways, I admire these people because they have more discipline in this area than I do. So, good for them!
For those of you that don’t clean your guns as often (meaning you wait hundreds or thousands of rounds between cleanings), it may be a different story. Guns that have gone this long probably have significantly more junk that has built up. It has had time to sit there and find a way to “stick” to your guns. So cleaning them will be more difficult and there will be more to clean. That’s okay though, it’ll only take you a few minutes longer.
Those that don’t clean their guns as often should probably be more careful to make sure they are closer to the “ideal” type of cleaning than those that clean their guns often. And that’s simply because it may be a while before you clean your gun again. The more often you clean your gun, the more chances you have to restore them to their original luster. The less often you clean, the fewer chances you’ll have to get the junk out and make sure the guns function. Similarly, the cleaner the guns are when you do clean them, the longer you’ll be able to wait before you have to clean them again.
Depends on ammo used
Not all ammunition is created equally. Some types of ammo are just better than other types. Although, what good ammo is, is somewhat subjective. Some shooters are looking for something completely different than others. Some people just want the cheapest stuff out there so they can shoot as much as possible. While others want the ultimate, most accurate ammo that money can buy. Depending on which ammo you choose will determine how clean your guns should be—or even how quickly you should clean your guns after shooting.
Regardless of desired ammo type, most shooters would agree that some ammo is in fact inferior than other ammo. Corrosive ammo, for example, not only fits this description, but is also the kind of ammo that throws up a red flag when discussing cleaning. It’s perfectly fine ammo to shoot, but it can cause problems in your gun if you aren’t careful. The idea with corrosive ammo is that the primers used (berdan primers instead of boxer primers) cause corrosive salts to disperse throughout the gun. If they aren’t removed, they can start the corrosion process and eventually ruin your guns.
While these types of ammo are perfectly fine to shoot, it also means you need to clean your guns more often and more thoroughly. You want to make sure to clean your guns right after shooting so that the corrosive process is stopped fairly quickly. You also want to be thorough because you want to make sure all the corrosive elements have been removed. You don’t want to miss something and regret it later.
If you are shooting non-corrosive ammo (which is most types of ammo these days) this isn’t something you need to worry about. Your guns will be able to handle the carbon and other fouling just fine.
Related Questions
How often should I clean a gun in storage? A gun in storage really doesn’t need to be cleaned more than one time every year or two. The main reasons a gun needs to be cleaned in the first place are to maintain reliability, prevent rust and corrosion and prevent dangerous situations. The only one that applies for a gun that isn’t being shot is rust and corrosion. So, getting the gun out once a year to lightly clean it and apply anti-rust oils to it will do the job perfectly well.
How often should I clean my 9mm pistol? The frequency that any gun should be cleaned is directly related to how much it is used and what it is used for. If it isn’t used at all, it should be cleaned and oiled every 1-2 years. Guns that are being shot should be cleaned at least every 500 rounds or so. They can go longer than that, but might suffer reliability problems if too many rounds are shot without cleaning. Guns should also be cleaned immediately after shooting corrosive ammunition or if it has been exposed to extreme conditions like sand, dirt, rain, snow, hail, or anything similar to these.
