new handgun....strip and lube before first shooting?

[VERT]

Clean a Glock monthly or after every time I fire it. WTH! Who cleans a Glock?

 

[Ggreen]

Clean a Glock monthly or after every time I fire it. WTH! Who cleans a Glock?

Only when my hand gets dirty from handling.

 

[breakingcontact]

I didn't read all 5 pages. Glocks have copper grease on the slide. Leave that alone.

 

[bwframe]

Ride it like you stole it! Clean it when it coughs.

 

[DoggyDaddy]

I just got one of the Star BM pistols from AIM. I did field strip it, but it was pretty clean and adequately lubed. However (and this is a good reason for at least field stripping), I did notice that the recoil spring seemed a little sloppy - as in it really didn't hold the guide rod firmly in place when re-assembling - so I just ordered a replacement from Wolff. I probably won't have the chance to shoot it before the new spring arrives, but I'm sure it would function as is, just maybe not optimally.

 

[IndyTom]

Hmm, just came out of the resurrected nekid poopin' thread and I'm wondering if I misread the title of this one. Is this about lubricating new handguns in the buff?

 

[gmcttr]

Yep....so do or do you not get nekid with a new handgun? [strike]Inquiring minds want to know.[/strike]

 

[hpclayto]

I don't see the point in cleaning a gun before you're gonna dirty it again. I always clean them after the range though.

 

[mcapo]

Basic clean and lube and a quick QC/function check. It is a deadly device.

Not saying that I haven't gone straight from the gun store to the range though....just wouldn't be my advice.

Just for the record, I want to say that I purchased a new gun friday...went to the range...did a quick field strip check and ran 100 rounds through it. So much for my own advice.....

 

[doddg]

Just for the record, I want to say that I purchased a new gun friday...went to the range...did a quick field strip check and ran 100 rounds through it. So much for my own advice.....

1. That is so funny!
2. I usually just pull the slide and put a drop or two at "wear" points, and put some rounds through it, b/c I'm too excited to do it the "right" way.

 

[Redlinetoys]

Interesting reading all around. I try to always clean and lube a new gun, just for peace of mind, though I am guilty of simply buying and firing away with strikerfire type handguns. Also guilty of running those dirty much longer than they should be...

 

[Drail]

I built race guns and did pistolsmithing for ten years back in the 90s. Every single new gun of any brand I saw was contaminated with metal filings and chips and machining burrs. If you have ever spent time in a machine shop you know what I am talking about. Take the time to strip a new gun down and clean it and lube it and inspect for broken/out of spec parts and cracks or defects BEFORE you shoot it. Of all the brands I worked on Ruger's guns were the worst. Huge burrs everywhere that made the action feel like a washboard road. I am not knocking Ruger's quality - a Ruger can be tuned into a very nice gun ( I own a bunch), but straight out of the box they are just horrible and they are even worse now than they were 20 years ago. Almost all of the new guns you buy are NOT lubed - they are coated in a rust preventative so that they can sit in a damp warehouse for years before they are sold. You really want to get that crap out of there before you shoot it and burn it on. If you do not own a small compressor - buy one. It will make cleaning your guns and magazines MUCH easier.

 

[Redlinetoys]

“Rust Preventative” rather than a true lube seems to the most convincing factor, haven’t seen any metal contaminants in any new ones, but definitely believe it can be there in some guns.

I built race guns and did pistolsmithing for ten years back in the 90s. Every single new gun of any brand I saw was contaminated with metal filings and chips and machining burrs. If you have ever spent time in a machine shop you know what I am talking about. Take the time to strip a new gun down and clean it and lube it and inspect for broken/out of spec parts and cracks or defects BEFORE you shoot it. Of all the brands I worked on Ruger's guns were the worst. Huge burrs everywhere that made the action feel like a washboard road. I am not knocking Ruger's quality - a Ruger can be tuned into a very nice gun ( I own a bunch), but straight out of the box they are just horrible and they are even worse now than they were 20 years ago. Almost all of the new guns you buy are NOT lubed - they are coated in a rust preventative so that they can sit in a damp warehouse for years before they are sold. You really want to get that crap out of there before you shoot it and burn it on. If you do not own a small compressor - buy one. It will make cleaning your guns and magazines MUCH easier.

 

[VERT]

Metal shavings in new guns can and is an issue. Good thing there is not enough metal in a Glock to ever be a problem.

 

[websbydoc]

Hey...Im honored! Im new here but a link to this thread (only my 3rd) is listed on the
latest emailing to the members....Thanks guys!

Jay

 

[Mark in Indiana]

I shot my Taurus pt111 straight out of the box. 135+ rounds, no problem. Looked good the next day when I cleaned it. I was lucky. Next gun will be cleaned when I bring it home. There's always a chance of contamination in a new gun. Also, it gives a shooter more experience in cleaning.

 

[EricG]

There is some copper colored stuff in Glocks that, per Glock manual, is to aide in break in.
First time Ive ever seen such instruction on a new polymer pistol. I found it in the silde/slide rails.

 

[Hohn]

The copper colored stuff is copper anti-seize. The actual chemical I'm almost certain is this stuff from Henkel/Loctite:

https://rivetsinstock.com/anti-seize-compounds.html

Copper and aluminum powders mixed in grease work as anti-seize because they are softer than the steels to which they are generally applied. That can help break-in a bit.


I generally will disassemble and generically inspect something, assessing the state of cleanliness.

I prefer light greases for some parts, oils for others.

Trigger guts get synthetic brake caliper grease from the auto parts store. Slides and such get Lubriplate 105 with the excess removed. Lighter loaded surfaces with higher velocity of movement get a lighter oil instead of a grease (think AR BCG).

Basically, the farther and faster something moves, the lighter the lube it needs/gets. Things like trigger parts that move small amounts under high surface loads get a thick lube like the brake caliper grease.



I've also demonstrated conclusively that more does not equal better. You actually have better function AND less wear with all but the thinnest film of lube removed. So spread it on as thin as you can get it, wipe off all excess with a blue paper towel (trust me, you cannot remove all the oil just by paper towel, you'd have to use a solvent).

Hope this helps.

 

[Ggreen]

"Contaminants" are not always a bad thing. When breaking in a new aircraft engine (loose tolerance engines, similar to the tolerances found in the vast majority of pistols and rifles today) we run an oil that actually suspends the metal flakes and "contaminants" so that the engine uses them to aid in seating the moving surfaces. Without this you can end up with hard glazed surfaces that will scrape away lubricants rather than have microscopic channels that allow the lubes to film between the two hard surfaces. Most of the high end smiths I've seen do all of this before you get your 1911 or bolt gun using valve lapping compound. Of course I've never seen one shoot with lapping compound on it, just working the action by hand followed by more fitting and a thorough cleaning before running the custom piece. A mass produced factory metal pistol or bolt could probably do well to have some abrasive break in. I'm a fan of "rack slide, drip lube, run gun, lube, run. I've had zero negative results. I only clean new pistols/rifles that have a cosmoline or other viscous preservative.