what is the best way to clean grease from a new gun?
- Thread starter Sig_1959
- Start date
Mineral spirits will do just fine. Mix in about 1 part gun oil so it doesn't leave the metal totally dry. Remove the grips for this as solvent on the rubber isn't a great thing. Scrub the grips in hot water with dish detergent and an old toothbrush. Clean out the inside of the barrel using a normal gun cleaning kit and methods.
There's a cheap to make online recipe for a good cleaning mix called Ed's Red. Google for it. I've used both the ER mix and Hoppes #9. The only thing the Hoppes did better was to remove some copper fouling on one gun by the looks of the bit of blue-green stain on the patches. But for powder and lead fouling the Ed's Red works great.
And it's always a good idea to wear solvent resistant gloves when working with them. Over time the solvents can do nasty things to your skin and the solvents that soak through and enter the blood stream do nasty things to your internal organs. A bit of mineral spirits here and there isn't a biggie. But the Ed's Red and Hoppes has a lot of the higher aromatic solvents in them and those are nasty things. So wear gloves when you're playing with solvents.
Oil the slide ways, outside of the barrel and the action afterwards. And a drop of oil on the mainspring so it wets the guide shaft would not be a bad idea either.
Now go shoot.
There's a cheap to make online recipe for a good cleaning mix called Ed's Red. Google for it. I've used both the ER mix and Hoppes #9. The only thing the Hoppes did better was to remove some copper fouling on one gun by the looks of the bit of blue-green stain on the patches. But for powder and lead fouling the Ed's Red works great.
And it's always a good idea to wear solvent resistant gloves when working with them. Over time the solvents can do nasty things to your skin and the solvents that soak through and enter the blood stream do nasty things to your internal organs. A bit of mineral spirits here and there isn't a biggie. But the Ed's Red and Hoppes has a lot of the higher aromatic solvents in them and those are nasty things. So wear gloves when you're playing with solvents.
Oil the slide ways, outside of the barrel and the action afterwards. And a drop of oil on the mainspring so it wets the guide shaft would not be a bad idea either.
Now go shoot.
The problem with brake cleaner is that it TOTALLY strips off ALL oils. Mind you with the coating used on the CZ's totally stripping the oils away and then only oiling the moving parts may not be such a bad option. Just be sure to get a dab on all the pivots in the trigger and sear areas. Also don't forget the double action foot that you can just see rubbing on the frame's ramp under the sear action block. Once you field strip the gun and look in under the action block while slightly pulling the trigger you'll see what I mean. And ditto on removing the grips. I tried a bit of brake cleaner on the back of one and it does start to dissolve the rubber compound. So off with the grips first for any brake cleaner or any solvent more aromatic than mineral spirits.
Brake cleaner does work very well, but there's some nasty stuff in that spray can. Toluene, xylene, hexane, heptane, methyl alcohol, and in some cases chlorinated hydrocarbons. Those cans tend to spray at high pressure and the mystery juice can go all over the place. There's a real danger inhaling or ingesting any of those chemicals. I prefer a nice shallow tray of varsol with my medical gloves. A little bit more work, but way easier to control.
+1. Remove grips, field-strip, spray non-chlorinated brake cleaner, wipe, repeat. Then spray with whatever oil you fancy, and blow away excess with compressed air. Assemble & wipe the outside. You're done.
However, if you prefer to take your time and enjoy the process, go with Ed's Red. I still do it sometimes...
Greenhorse six
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Wd-40
Hot varsol. Peavy Mart sells varsol heaters. Just make sure you heat it in a metal can outside the house before dipping.
