I went out to the range today to shoot some of my newer guns, and one of them was a 4" 681. I followed everyone's advice, and the gun cleaned up really well with the polishing cloth. Problem is, I can now see why the gun was so dirty when I got it.

I shot about 200 rounds of 158 grain .38 special+P in my 681. The outside of the cylinder was filthy, and got very hot. The front of the cylinder had a large amount of build up as well. I spent a good 20 minutes cleaning up the gun this afternoon, and it cleaned up very well.

I am just surprised by the amount of build up and the speed that the lead did build up. Should I expect the build up every time I shoot or is this an oddity? I never had a problem using this ammo on my 442 though I have to admit there is a lot more recoil with the 442 than with the 681.

Other than the build up, I love this gun. I have a 6" 586 which I haven't shot yet, but I may not end up shooting that much due to how much I enjoy the 681.

Thank you.

If you shoot lead, you're going to spend more time cleaning the gun, there's no way around that. I use a lot of Hoppe's #9 when cleaning, and where there is lead buildup I'll use a bronze bristle brush to help break up the deposits.

There's also a product called a "Lead-away" cloth, it's impregnated with a chemical that helps break down the lead, and I use it on the cylinder face and the forcing cone. Not cheap, but it works.

Chemical Cloths Cleaner

I prefer to shoot a lot of plated and jacketed bullets. More costly in the long run, but with clean ammo I spend a LOT less time cleaning.......yet another reason to handload. My 38's go an average of 1200 rounds between cleanings, using plated bullets and WST powder.

First, congratulations on having a great revolver.
I like to shoot mine a lot, and that (for me) means loading lead bullets.
While there's no real reason to "clean" a 681 after every range session, I just like to do it because its such a nice gun. Almost a Zen thing to do. I have found that wetting it well with Kroil will soak the crud loose better than anything else I've tried.
As stated above, the lead removing cloths are great, too.
For a final bit of love, a bit of Mother's Mag Polish and an old T-shirt in the evening finishes things off.

__________________
-jwk-
US Army '72-'95

Just incase you don't know. Never use lead away cloth on blued guns, it will remove the blueing.

I don't mind cleaning the gun, I consider that part of the whole gun ownership thing. Layers of lead will cause issues in firing the gun so might as well be proactive, and clean it after every use.

I do use the cloth, and it does a good job. It gets rid of 99% of the lead build up. The one I have is only for stainless guns which is a pity since I also need to find one for my blued guns.

I just find a small issue when I shoot 50 rounds on my 442 with the same ammo, and there is only slight build up on that gun which I can easily clean with my standard cleaning solution than with the 681 which looks like thousands of rounds went through it.

That is a very nice gun in great shape! After I shot the ammo yesterday, there is a real reason to clean that gun after every use because the build up will cause problems down the road. When I first got it the lead buildup was horrible where it probably would have an effect shooting the gun in the immediate future. The lead removing cloth cleaned up the cylinder very good.

After shooting the gun, the cylinder was very hot, and had a lot of lead build up. I don't understand why it happened on the 681 but not my 442. Either way, I got it cleanup again where it is looking pretty good.

I will look into the Kroil. Thanks.

The kroil works by getting under the dirt/lead because it is so fine. So the longer it sits in the kroil the better it is able to penetrate and easier the gun is to clean.

I would try some different ammo, but I typical clean after each shoot on my 681 with the same barrel length.
Winchester and Blazer are particularly dirty.

I am going to have to figure out how to get the cylinder removed. I believe there is one screw on the right side of the gun that I have to remove to do that, but my screwdriver isn't able loosen that screw.

I was shooting Federal .38 special +P ammo. I also have to Privi .357 mag ammo I haven't tried yet. I am hoping that the ammo is cleaner.

6 shots vs. 5, aluminum frame vs. stainless steel, the cylinder will be hotter on the 681 every time. The bullets coming from that 681 have a lot farther to travel than the those leaving the 442, so you'll experience less buildup on the snub.

I wouldn't think that one actual would make a difference but I guess it can. This was the first time shooting a stainless steel revolver (my 63 had a problem and all my other revolvers are blue) so I guess I have to get used to it. You do have a good point on the bullet travel on my 681 as that is a 4" barrel compared to 1 7/8" on the 442.

When the cylinder gets pretty hot, good idea to give the gun a rest for several minutes to cool down or is it okay to keep going?

Sir,

The heat won't hurt; keep shooting. You may want to leave it set in the open air awhile after you're done and before you pack it up to leave, depending on what kind of case you carry it in.

I use Smith's blue boxes with the foam on the interior, and sometimes I'm a bit afraid to put my hot 686s in those things as I pack up to leave, thinking it may melt the foam. It never has, though; I guess it takes more heat than that to damage the stuff. I shoot full house .357s in mine, so my guns get pretty stinking hot by the time I'm done.

Andy

Thanks. After it got pretty hot, I did put it in one of the blue boxes, but didn't close the box. Probably didn't matter too much since it was over 100 outside. No damage to the box or the gun.