Kerosene?

[Smokerr]

Yours - which according to you leaves rust on the gun. And then there is mine, which as far as I've been able to see, has never left any rust on my guns. If it did, I'd find something else.

You continue to change what I wrote. I do not leave rust on the gun. I do cause flash rust to form, it gets removed. Frankly you are attempting to make an issue out of nothing.

As for Trucks, Air Brakes. They have a compressor and storage tanks. You don't even know what Tanner Gas is, I do.

Tanks are not uphill. In almost all cases they are below the compressor. Does not matter. Best source of incoming air, a warm to hot mechanical room. Lower humidity. We had to dry our Hangar air to -40 to ensure that the pipes did not weep inside when the doors were open (-20 does happen at Anchorage International, not a lot but it does happen). The compressor plant was inside a (usually) warm to hot mechanical room. Cold days with the wind, all those openings and it got cold (cool to me, cold to most). Goggle Anchorage International, note the Hangar in the N. E. area. Also note it has a North orientation as far as aircraft in goes.

So lets talk compressors. Quincy, made in the USA, up to 25 hp recip units. Do you know what kind of valve operation they have? What is the symptoms of valve fouling? What causes it. How about IR? What crank setup is IR famous for?

Or lets talk about oiless type. Oxygen simulation for an MD11 flight simulator. What is the piston setup? Why air? Keeping Oxygen stocked costs a lot and the maint on an Oxy system is high. That is why modern fighters (and bombers) don't carry oxygen (small emergency tank). They make it in flight.

List me ;the types of air dryers. How many CFM does the average air tool use? Why are die grinder the death of small compressors. How big a compressor do you need to keep up with a die grinder.

What is the hp of a home compressor? Why is it controversial?

As for grease in the gun action, it keeps any stray water drops out as well as fouling.

 

[KingOfKindling]

You continue to change what I wrote. I do not leave rust on the gun. I do cause flash rust to form, it gets removed. Frankly you are attempting to make an issue out of nothing.

No. I did not say you left rust on your guns. I said if you didn't take it all the way off, and it was hidden by oil on the rag you used to wipe it off, it could cause more damage. And I also said that if you did take it all off, that additional wear isn't great for the finish. Blued guns that get cleaned a lot, look like they've been cleaned a lot.

I really can't think of a good reason why you'd let rust form in the first place. A bit of oil before cooking would solve all the problems.

As for Trucks, Air Brakes. They have a compressor and storage tanks. You don't even know what Tanner Gas is, I do.

Why would you even assume that? Is their antifreeze limited to a certain region? I kinda thought it was ubiquitous.

Doesn't matter where the tiny reservior on a truck air compressor is, the point is that it's tiny. The big tanks are generally on the trailer, and are up hill. Which valve was freezing on the trucks you had to service? The ones in the warm engine bay, or out on the trailer?

I've only ever rebuilt one small Quincy compressor, but I can't see what the valve type, fouling, or anything else has to do with the topic at hand. In fact, almost everything you've brought up has zero relevance to rusting a handgun. Could answer the majority of your questions, but they have almost nothing to do blow drying a handgun at my house.

I never questioned your credentials, in fact I took you at your word the first time. The thing I have issue with is ignoring the situation, which you seem to be mostly doing because my flash rust comments make you angry.

Lets say I've got a typical 1hp single phase air compressor - 50-60gal tank. Pretty standard, sold at every Home Depot or Lowes. It's left filled and connected to power in my garage. It is well maintained and the tank is kept pretty well drained.

Then I go out shooting a revolver. Come back, wash the barrel with soap and water, blow it off completely with compressed air, squirt some oil on it, then spread that oil with the compressor. What are the chances of that air having enough water to rust anything? Be honest, you know it's just about zero. You know that the air coming out of that tank is going to have a lower moisture content per volume than the ambient air in the garage. It's be the same for the cylinder, and the frame afterwards.

Could you maybe have some oily water droplets coming out after doing 10 guns and the compressor has had to run without time for vapor to settle? Maybe, but probably only if you did them all at once, which I wouldn't recommend no matter the drying regimen. Safer to do one at a time so you parts stay wet for the shortest amount of time.

 

[Rob M.]

I always preferred plain ole water but ....to each their own ...

 

[KingOfKindling]

I always preferred plain ole water but ....to each their own ...

Plain water works ok, but it can be hard to remove all the sulfur smells, and stubborn carbon from crevices. If you've done a bunch of shooting, leftover cap residue and lead can also be annoying to remove from the back of the cylinder.

Little bit of dish soap helps a lot with those two things, and cleans your brushes at the same time.

 

[Rob M.]

Plain water works ok, but it can be hard to remove all the sulfur smells, and stubborn carbon from crevices. If you've done a bunch of shooting, leftover cap residue and lead can also be annoying to remove from the back of the cylinder.

Little bit of dish soap helps a lot with those two things, and cleans your brushes at the same time.

Everyone has their own way of doing it . Ive been shooting B.P. since the late 80s and building trade guns since the early 90s so its all still new to me .....

 

[Pete453]

I always preferred plain ole water but ....to each their own ...

Same here, hot water out of the tap. I have the water heater set about 125°, fouling rinses right off. If soap is added, I feel it washes oils out of the pores of the metal. I rinse, dry, and oil, it's very quick and easy. I cleaned my 1860 thoroughly in ten minutes this past Monday. Long guns take way longer, at least 15-20 minutes, but it's possible to endure such a grueling task

 

[Smokerr]

I admit that I had not considered washing away the oils, I replace those anyway but I am going to try just hot water. I should have, well known in mechanical circles but was not thinking in that direction. We used other cleaning agents, the latter ones were non haz and beat the brute force cleaners all to heck. The one that was impossible was Tri Clore (brake cleaner). The Green Version is ok but lacks ooomph. There is a firm that came out with a Green Cleaner that was affective as Tri Clore (Triclorehtaline something). FDL cleaner. They sent me a free sample and we bought gallons of it at work.

Dish soap has good cleaning qualities and my thought was to maximize getting them clean.

I have to admit I have no nose for sulfur smell and apparently neither does my wife! (the same one who changed me from a shower in the morning to a shower before I went to bed or was sleeping alone!~)

I don't worry about crevices, grease takes care of that until I clean the whole thing out.

 

[KingOfKindling]

I wouldn't worry too much about washing oils off the gun, you're gonna put fresh oil right back on the gun. We're also not talking about cast iron here, mostly polished steel, and the "pores" are going to be more like cracks than holes.

You'd probably be fine not using soap for a bit, but I personally would try and clean out old oil. I've had to deal with lots of firearms cared for in that manner, and layers of oxidizing oil is not great for the metal underneath. Side action rifle locks are some of the worst in this regard, though I have also had to de-rust a few revolvers treated the same way.

The crevices I was talking about are mostly on the cylinder and the barrel assembly. You've got a lot less to worry about on the frame now that corrosive caps are pretty much gone. Still like to clean up all the lead residue left behind from those non-corrosive caps. You probably get more lead exposure from primers and caps than bullets on a firearm, and I like to limit that exposure.

 

[bpd303]

Long guns take way longer, at least 15-20 minutes, but it's possible to endure such a grueling task

I solved that by using pressure and ambient temperature water. Converted a pump up garden sprayer which takes about 10 min total.


The tube & nozzle will reach the breech of my longest gun.

 

[Smokerr]

Now that is some imagination?

My take would be to get a bucket of hot water and soap and a nylon brush (they hold fluid better than brass) and dip it in the soap and water, run it through the bore, use the garden hose nozzle (fire hose type) and send water up the spout and repeat until clean.

 

[buttap]

Makes me think of a Eric Clapton song...

 

[buttap]

Makes me think of a Eric Clapton song...

 

[Pete453]

I solved that by using pressure and ambient temperature water. Converted a pump up garden sprayer which takes about 10 min total.
View attachment 381222
View attachment 381221
The tube & nozzle will reach the breech of my longest gun.

Hey, that's slick!

Now that is some imagination?

My take would be to get a bucket of hot water and soap and a nylon brush (they hold fluid better than brass) and dip it in the soap and water, run it through the bore, use the garden hose nozzle (fire hose type) and send water up the spout and repeat until clean.

I have a 3/8 clear hose that goes on the faucet, I've stuck it to the breech in my trade gun with the muzzle angled down in the laundry tub. It's really not any faster than pouring the barrel full with a toothpick in the touch hole. I will tell you, give it a try, that's how we learn.
When I have guns to clean, I don't want to make a project out of a 15 minute job. If others want to do it different, I don't have a hard spot for their methods, I'm only relaying my methods. They've been working well for 25+ years, I see no need to change.
But, if a different method works for you, have at it, we all do things differently.

 

[Smokerr]

I only do pistols so the kitchen sink, a stainless steel pan, nylong brush and hot water work just fine.

Granted its not complicated but its fast. Does a perfect job. Put the parts in the shell dryer and done deal (I put the barrel of the ROA in the tray and keep the handle outside it. It puts out 150 deg heat so it dries things fast (and air flow).

Then oil the parts, clean any flash rust off, good to go. I can do the pistols (two currently) and cylinders in about 5 minutes.

Its good to see how others do it, gives you ideas. A lot of this is mental and what suits one person, no matter how logical for them, does not suit another. I try to keep things as simple as possible. Others seem to like a complex solution.

So what works for me and seems simple is not the same for them.

 

[M. De Land]

Plain water works ok, but it can be hard to remove all the sulfur smells, and stubborn carbon from crevices. If you've done a bunch of shooting, leftover cap residue and lead can also be annoying to remove from the back of the cylinder.

Little bit of dish soap helps a lot with those two things, and cleans your brushes at the same time.

A bit of dish soap makes water wetter and hence can de solve fouling more efficiently ! If it's warm water the metal conducts the heat for faster evaporation. Still a bit of Ballistol or WD-40 will raise any left over water in cracks and crevices where it can fully evaporate and leave a barrier to prevent oxidation.

 

[Pete453]

Its good to see how others do it, gives you ideas. A lot of this is mental and what suits one person, no matter how logical for them, does not suit another. I try to keep things as simple as possible. Others seem to like a complex solution.

So what works for me and seems simple is not the same for them

Right on

 

[AZshot]

I cover my gun in a large tub of dry rice, to dry it out, after using water to clean it.

Kidding. All I know is I've been cleaning BP guns for about 47-50 years. I've always used water, sometimes with a little dish soap. The main thing I learned and changed over the years is not to use hot water. I have experienced flash rust with hot water, so now I use tap temperture.

I'm not going to get into the drying method or lubes and chemicals because the question was about cleaning. Lubes are a rabbit hole.

 

[buttap]

I agree with warm water not hot and add a little bit of dish soap. As a retired fire person "wet water " penetrates much better than plain water and all wet water is but pretty much dish soap injected in the water. The dish soap cures the water tension issue so it will get right in what ever it is soaking into. I have no issue with hot too as then just wipe it down and oil and end of the flash rust deal but prefer not to deal with that.