Let's Talk Cleaning Kits!

As you all know from my previous post, I just purchased an SD9VE and am now looking at getting a good quality complete cleaning kit for her, but the thing is, I know that the next firearms I will purchase down the line will be a Ruger 10/22, a Savage Arms 12 Gauge, and a Colt LE6920, so I would like any cleaning kit I buy to accommodate those units as well. What are your collective thoughts on cleaning solvent and lubricant? Any brands and types of either to get and/or stay away from? Thanks again for your collective wisdom towards a new firearm owner!

I'm not a big cleaning kit fan.

I assemble bits and pieces as I need them. Get a new caliber, get an appropriate brass bore brush that fits the old rod.

For cleaning, balistol and Hoppes #9, for lube, any light machine oil. A grease is also useful.

Top it off with a stiff, narrow toothbrush and some cotton rags cut to size for patches and rags and you have all you need.

You can get a cleaning kit at Walmart or your local gun shop. But RPG's suggestion is what most people wind up with. Get a tackle box. Buy a decent pistol rod, 9mm bore brush, jag and slot or mop. Add a package of cotton patches, bottle of Hoppes 9 and some gun oil and you have a starter kit. It will add up as you go. Oh, I almost forgot! An old toothbrush and some cotton swabs for those nooks and crannies.

Cleaning Kits

One of the frustrating things about cleaning kits is that the various manufacturers never standardized on a common thread. Often, cleaning tips won't interchange. Kleenbore has a nice system. You just need to insure that you buy all the tips you think you'll need. Also, brass wire brushes eventually wear out or take a set.

It has also been my experience that you sometimes benefit from a slightly larger brush than the stated caliber. I use a .45 caliber brush in a 44 caliber. My .35 caliber rifle brush is also used to clean 9mm barrels. The difference is .358 to .355.

I also use 12 gauge patches in my two .44 magnums.

Avoid buying cleaning patches in blister packs. If you go online, there are underwear companies that sell cleaning patches punched from cotton scrap, in bulk. These are a bargain compared to Hoppes or similar patches. You may also cut your own patches from discarded cotton undergarments.

Two staples in my cleaning kit are pipe cleaners and bamboo barbecue skewers to scrape out crud in corners without damaging the gun.

By cleaning kit do you mean bore snake and a bottle of oil? because that is all that is needed.

federali said:

One of the frustrating things about cleaning kits is that the various manufacturers never standardized on a common thread. Often, cleaning tips won't interchange. Kleenbore has a nice system. You just need to insure that you buy all the tips you think you'll need. Also, brass wire brushes eventually wear out or take a set.

It has also been my experience that you sometimes benefit from a slightly larger brush than the stated caliber. I use a .45 caliber brush in a 44 caliber. My .35 caliber rifle brush is also used to clean 9mm barrels. The difference is .358 to .355.

I also use 12 gauge patches in my two .44 magnums.

Avoid buying cleaning patches in blister packs. If you go online, there are underwear companies that sell cleaning patches punched from cotton scrap, in bulk. These are a bargain compared to Hoppes or similar patches. You may also cut your own patches from discarded cotton undergarments.

Two staples in my cleaning kit are pipe cleaners and bamboo barbecue skewers to scrape out crud in corners without damaging the gun.

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I've learned that a .41 brush is great in the cylinder of a .38/.357 to get the gunk out and loose.

EBK said:

By cleaning kit do you mean bore snake and a bottle of oil? because that is all that is needed.

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I used a bore snake for the first time on Wednesday to clean my K38. Pretty impressive.

I have since ordered a snake for my 20G Stevens and my .22lr weapons. Also viper solvent and viper oil.

My "cleaning kit" has been assembled over the years, and presently resides in a large ammo can. I've got some plastic divided boxes with various tips, brushes, and patch holders, several different solvents and oils, some rags, patches, lead wipes, and etc., and various handles and rods. It just sort of grows over the years. It's expanded to a drawer of one of my rollaway tool boxes, where I keep the screwdrivers and punches, and more rods, tips, brushes and patch holders . . .

I have a tool box filled with nothing but gun cleaning/repair supplies.

Got both brass and steel long gun rod kits, from long ago. Brass bore brushes is used for all guns. No steel brushes(ever).

(1) pistol cleaning kit that's self contained in a large hollow tube. Find them at Walmart hanging on hook by cleaning supplies. I keep the 9mm and 40cal brushes in it.

Got bore brushes/swabs from 17HMR to 45caliber and 20ga shotgun to clean lead and residue/reoil for all my gun barrels. I keep them in a small plastic Gatorade bottle for quick selection.

In that tool box includes cleaning patches, pipe cleaners, Hoppe's bore cleaner, Mobil1 oil, Wheeler screwdriver kit, Scope mount supplies/rings/bases/Loctite/small level for scopes/small needle nose plier/small vice grips/tape/paper target holding pins, and lots of other gun clean and repair supplies/accessories.

I set this box to grab at anytime whether at home or going to range and I need repairs.

I also use old bath towels on table at home or range to keep from scratching gun's finish and a small magnetic mechanic's tray to hold small springs/screws and such to keep from losing.

Now, for my AR's I have separate tool boxes for..............

I need more tool boxes for stuff.

MikeGrijak said:

I just purchased an SD9VE and am now looking at getting a good quality complete cleaning kit

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Go to Wal-Mart. Buy an Outers 9mm pistol kit. The kit comes with a rod and tips (patch holder, jag, bore mop) and a phosphor bronze brush. Depending on the kit it will come with either solvent, tri-clean (all in one), or gun oil and patches. Buy a fishing tackle box to store your cleaning supplies and tools.

MikeGrijak said:

I know that the next firearms I will purchase down the line will be a Ruger 10/22, a Savage Arms 12 Gauge, and a Colt LE6920, so I would like any cleaning kit I buy to accommodate those units as well.

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Pistol cleaning kit and long gun kits are different things. You build up cleaning and maintenance tools over time. Buy what you need to fill a specific purpose.

Semi-auto .22 cal rifle, look at this thread: http://smith-wessonforum.com/smith-...8269-new-ars-here-some-tools-i-use-clean.html. The thread outlines AR-15 cleaning kit. A .22lr rifle will use similar basic cleaning kit.

Once equipped for a rifle, the shotgun requires the necessary size rod attachments.

MikeGrijak said:

What are your collective thoughts on cleaning solvent and lubricant? Any brands and types of either to get and/or stay away from?

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The typical new guy question that starts fights on message boards. There is never a single consensus on what solvent or lube to use. You can go from commonly found inexpensive cleaners, to products that make fantastical claims of fitness of use because they are used by classified black op operator ninjas.

Because you don't know what you don't know yet.

1. Hoppes No.9 Solvent.
2. Breakfree CLP

In my opinion, these are the two things to start off with. They're proven products. They're not expensive. Get some hands on experience before delving into the solvent/lube bottomless pit.

Targets Guy said:

I used a bore snake for the first time on Wednesday to clean my K38. Pretty impressive.

I have since ordered a snake for my 20G Stevens and my .22lr weapons. Also viper solvent and viper oil.

Click to expand...

A bore snake for every caliber you own and a few bottles of your oil of choice. I use motor oil or sometimes CLP its all you need. For bolt/breech faces I just use an old tooth brush. Some slightly larger Bore snakes can even be used in slightly smaller caliber bbls. Like 9mm in a 30 cal BBL. ie .355 vs .310 (AK BBL) And a 12 gauge snake works perfect for AK gas tubes.
Snakes can be stored in butstock compartments and even pistol grips its just so handy.

TriumphMan said:

I have a tool box filled with nothing but gun cleaning/repair supplies.

Got both brass and steel long gun rod kits, from long ago. Brass bore brushes is used for all guns. No steel brushes(ever).

(1) pistol cleaning kit that's self contained in a large hollow tube. Find them at Walmart hanging on hook by cleaning supplies. I keep the 9mm and 40cal brushes in it.

Got bore brushes/swabs from 17HMR to 45caliber and 20ga shotgun to clean lead and residue/reoil for all my gun barrels. I keep them in a small plastic Gatorade bottle for quick selection.

In that tool box includes cleaning patches, pipe cleaners, Hoppe's bore cleaner, Mobil1 oil, Wheeler screwdriver kit, Scope mount supplies/rings/bases/Loctite/small level for scopes/small needle nose plier/small vice grips/tape/paper target holding pins, and lots of other gun clean and repair supplies/accessories.

I set this box to grab at anytime whether at home or going to range and I need repairs.

I also use old bath towels on table at home or range to keep from scratching gun's finish and a small magnetic mechanic's tray to hold small springs/screws and such to keep from losing.

Now, for my AR's I have separate tool boxes for..............

I need more tool boxes for stuff.

Click to expand...

I too have a tool box loaded with ALL kinds of firearms cleaning material and, I usually go shopping in there to make a mini cleaning kit if I go to the range or the woods. I also have a couple of bore snakes.
I too lay out a towel when working on my firearms. I use a white towel because it's easier to see the parts.

as others have mentioned,my cleaning kit,which takes care of a variety of calibers is in a large tackle box...I simply add to it as needed...I'm not much of a fan of a boresnake

I bought one of those Hoppes nylon bag kits from Walmart when I got my shotgun. It has multiple caliber brass brushes. I used up all the oil and solvent many moons ago. Now I use the rod and swap out the barrel brushes depending on which gun I'm cleaning. As for cleaner/ lube. I use Ballistol on my SD9VE and CLP on my shotgun, but will be going back to Ballistol once that is all gone. Old t-shirts get retired to cleaning rags and I buy some bulk patches for the "white glove" test. Oh and a bottle of rubbing alcohol, toothbrushes and cotton swabs get used too.

I've gradually moved away from "institutional standard" cleaning kits over the past 30 years. Most of my cleaning is done with old t-shirt rags (launderable & reusable) and q-tips--the cheap Walmart brand ones, with the paper shafts--the plastic ones don't hold the cotton on, as well.

Round, pointy wood toothpicks are handy for pushing crud out of corners of breech face, and up in extractor area.

I don't shoot any lead except in .22, and they don't seem to load up the bore, so bore brushing has gone by the wayside, except for what's on the bore snakes...and I can't say I miss it.

AFA lubes--yes, the endless argument pit. I don't think there's enough difference between any of em (but not WD-40, please), as long as you use one, when and where needed.