Here's a "new" cleaning one for you boys

General General Discussion
1

A customer, getting up in the years dropped a couple boxes of books by the shop as he is thinning out for a move. I saw one hard cover titled “The Rifle in America” 1938 by Philip B. Sharpe

I was browsing through the section “The Care of Your Rifle” Page 550, reads

As a firearms editor this author gets a constant stream of questions shot at him from readers who wish him to recommend a powder solvent. THIS IS ONE THING HE WILL NOT DO. He has tested every brand on the American market and a lot of special brands and finds that all of them work in a satisfactory manner. Take your choice.

So, I bolded the one part. Seems the topic of what’s best, etc has been around for a very long time when folks start asking, giving advice, getting upset when you don’t endorse their methods, etc.

One other note he made “a powder solvent is a powder solvent and an oil is an oil”

Anyhow, thought it may be interesting.

2

So I assume that if he lived long enough he would not have been a fan of CLP (i.e. a one-does-it-all formula)?

3

That’s kinda cheating with the nitrobenzene and all in 1938. :rolleyes:

4

Ballistol has been around since 1904. Not sure if any got brought back or imported though.

5

Whale oil or nothing!

6

I remember an interview I read with a retired formula racing crew chief when asked “what oil do you recommend?”. His answer- “ there are only 2 things to know about engine oil. 1. Make sure there is oil in your engine and 2. Change it occasionally.”

7

I can remember people cleaning guns with WD-40 and 3:1 oil.

8

My old man still does and his rifles, mostly from the 20s to the 50s, are pristine.

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9

The final redpill is that nothing is special. It’s usually the same stuff in a different box designed to make someone else money.

10

That’s what I used (WD-40) to clean the rifles I wasn’t supposed to have in my car / college dorm 20 years ago. Great times.

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11

My grandfather used WD40 and said it never gave him any problems. He used it on guns of all varieties for many decades, so if it were a major issue I think he would have stopped using it at some point.

12

Ive got 3 guns that Ive cleaned with WD-40 since the mid seventies…whats the prob? Answer: AINT NONE.
And Ive used machine oil & 3 in 1 MANY times in a pinch…especially on .22lr semis, like the 10/22 or Marlin 60, again…not once was there an issue.
I have tho- over the last several years…been using Ballistol, which is awesome on about everything.
I bet SteyrAUG said that to get a riise outta us boomers I bet. ALMOST worked!

13

Actually sometimes the new stuff is worse. I’d rather buy guns from a guy with WD-40 on his bench than Gunscrubber. At least the WD-40/3:1 oil crowd actually understood cleaning guns vs. the guys who want firearms “scrubbing bubbles.” I’ve seen more than a few people destroy some nice things with gun scrubber and they all had the nerve to be shocked that it would damage their firearms.

Most comical was the PD range with 5 gallon buckets of mineral spirits which they’d dunk their MP5s in muzzle first, let them soak an hour or so then fire a quick burst and declare them clean. Laziest shit I’ve ever seen.

14

That was actually kind of my point. Was done for generations but if you actually cleaned the guns with it, it worked.

15

Ever since I first saw this I have been trying to figure out a marketing scheme to sell sand by the individual grain.

https://www.duracoatfirearmfinishes.com/lcw-boiled-linseed-oil-p/blo.htm

16

Never is this more evident than shopping on a mega-online retailer like Amazon or Walmart.

Now as far as the topic, well, I think there are some lubricators/cleaners for firearms that are a bit better than others. Like, maybe 2 or 3.
The rest, well… like most folks here, I’ve watched them come on market, be pimped by all the Youtubers and trainer-personalities, and then in a year the hypebeasting is over, and they kinda disappear.

17

I started shooting in the late 1970s, right about the time that Breakfree CLP came out. It’s all I ever used on semi auto guns and pump shotguns.

Shooters way overthink gun oil.

18

I just bought a quart of Mobil 1 full synthetic a long time ago and put what I need in a little squeeze bottle from the kitchen store. I dont even USE “gun oil” LOL.

19

Another reference, amazing.

be sure you get a specialized gun oil turned out by manufactures of guns-not people who advertise miscellaneous oils for every purpose. There is one well-known old brand of oil on the market which is about the poorest thing one could possibly put into a gun despite the claims of it’s makers.

Wonder what that is and wow!, is anything new here?

20

I haven’t used a rod or brush in years…wipeout is da bomb.