Silicone or Oily Cloth finish? Old School or? For Gen3

[antilamr]

Following in the foot steps of my last post on grease for the 3913 I once again am seeking to avail myself of the forum members experiences. In preparation of the arrival of my used 3913 I have been trying to resurrect all my old cleaning tools. I found my old silicone cloth which has long dried out. I would use it only for wiping my guns after an "admiration session", making sure my prints would not be edged in for perpetuity.
Being the OCD kind of gun owner, I've been readying/watching online information on everything gun cleaning. My question to you is why after you've oiled everything, use the cloth that wipes the excess oil off to coat the exterior of your barrel & frame instead of using a silicone treated cloth? What works for best you? My guns are not being cleaned for long term storage, should be shooting every week when possible. This rant is getting kind of long so I'll save the rest for another post. Thanks for putting up with me.

[bigwheelzip]

For us with OCD, use the silicone wipe as the last step after the oil wipe.

[antilamr]

Originally Posted by bigwheelzip

For us with OCD, use the silicone wipe as the last step after the oil wipe.

That was my thought originally. I've been looking around at all the neat tools/picks/applicators etc for cleaning that I'll need a second job to get them all. So many choices out there so I decided to see what the real S&W owners were using.
"If it aint broke don't fix it!" Wanted some insight.

[chief38]

Once every few years I buy 5 yards of 100% white cotton flannel at a fabric store. I cut them into 18 x 18 inch squares and squirt my favorite gun oil which is Rig #2 Oil on them and store in a heavy duty zip lock bag. I put one in my Range Bag and keep a few in my Work Shop. After cleaning a gun and prior tp storing it, I give it a quick wipe down with the treated rag.
Inexpensive, convenient and works well. When dirty - just toss it or use the dirty ones for outside dirtier jobs.

The Silicone rags are OK too, but more expensive and harder to recharge. When my Rig-Rag gets a bit dry, I just squirt a little more Rig #2 on it.

[joeintexas]

I do the same as chief38, a quick wipe down after cleaning before storing. You will find at least one forum member that disagrees with this strongly. Apparently he does not live in a extremely humid area. Wipe down with clean dry cloth when removing. Down here we don't like rust. Good luck and have fun.

[URIT]

I wipe the outside of my firearms with a silicone rag when I'm finished cleaning it; then, store it in my gold rod equipped gun safe in a silicone sock.

I've posted this comprehensive article about gun lubricants before...

Lubrication 101: Gun oil, snake oil, and how to tell the difference. - www.GrantCunningham.com www.GrantCunningham.com

[nachogrande]

Can't remember where I got them but inexpensive cloth white gloves, donned before handling guns, prevents the finger prints in the first place. After some time they will get oil on them & act as the oily rag.

[NYlakesider]

I have used the silicone wipes for decades and will continue to do so.

[antilamr]

Originally Posted by URIT

I wipe the outside of my firearms with a silicone rag when I'm finished cleaning it; then, store it in my gold rod equipped gun safe in a silicone sock.

I've posted this comprehensive article about gun lubricants before...

Lubrication 101: Gun oil, snake oil, and how to tell the difference. - www.GrantCunningham.com www.GrantCunningham.com

I thank you for that post as I did read it and am now waiting for their grease and oil! I remember years ago taking a soft clean-ish rag to wipe off our revolvers when done cleaning. The oil residue is what we used to be the protectant for the outside of the 6 shooter. It wasn't until later that I eventually picked up a silicone cloth. Didn't shoot for years so no cleaning action going on. Only silicone cloth usage since the firearms were stuck in safe duty.

[mauser9]

Been using the Remington Green wipe cloth lately. Contains Rem-Oil and rust inhibitors. Picked it up at a Bass Pro Shop for around six bucks.

[Dutchboy901]

Please do not interpret this question as a high-jack, however I think it is to some degree related.

My question is regarding storage. Is it better/safer to store your Gens in a silicone sock or the gun case itself? After cleaning & wipe down, I store all of my Gen pistols in the factory gun case & place them in the safe.

While this takes up a lotta room in my safe, I'm wondering if I should just store them in a sock as I do with my wheel guns?

[antilamr]

Originally Posted by Dutchboy901

Please do not interpret this question as a high-jack, however I think it is to some degree related.

My question is regarding storage. Is it better/safer to store your Gens in a silicone sock or the gun case itself? After cleaning & wipe down, I store all of my Gen pistols in the factory gun case & place them in the safe.

While this takes up a lotta room in my safe, I'm wondering if I should just store them in a sock as I do with my wheel guns?

I'm no expert but I keep all my revolvers in thier factory boxes.
But, all of them are either nickle or SS Queens.

[Dutchboy901]

Originally Posted by antilamr

I'm no expert but I keep all my revolvers in thier factory boxes.
But, all of them are either nickle or SS Queens.

Thank you. I suppose if I put my wheel guns back in the boxes, I may run out of room! It's certainly food for thought!

[chief38]

Originally Posted by antilamr

I'm no expert but I keep all my revolvers in thier factory boxes.
But, all of them are either nickle or SS Queens.

I keep all my hand guns in their Factory box as well, but do wipe them down with my Rig-Rag and they always have fresh VOC paper around them. 98% of mine are Blued guns with 2% Nickel and Stainless Steel thrown in for some color contrast. I have no safe queens so they all get shot.

[BE Mike]

I have always used a silicone cloth to wipe down my guns and it has worked very well over the decades. The only issue I've had is when I was in Florida and carried a blued revolver every day. I just couldn't keep the exposed back of the grip from getting rusty. I solved the problem by getting the revolver hard chromed.

[URIT]

I got the idea of storing my guns in silicone socks from Hickok45. The practice made enough room in my safe for a half dozen additional guns.

I'm not a fan of oil on finishes. I've gone back a couple days after cleaning a bore to clean-patch and leaving a very light film of oil in the bore only to run a patch through the bore again to find more bluish copper tint on a fresh patch. The oil acts as a bit of a solvent in the bore which I want to avoid on my finishes.

[Dutchboy901]

Thanks URIT. I gotta concur with you, in that if using a sock I have much more room in my safe vs storing in the factory box! The other thing is that a silicone sock provides additional protection, which I like!

[Racer X]

Silicone and wood don't play well together. If the silicone gets through the finish and gets into the wood, it is almost impossible to remove it if you need to refinish your stock or grips. You will likely get fish-eyes in the finish.

[Execpro]

Many many years ago I used regular gun oil and finished with a silicone cloth on my blued handguns and rifles. Unless I did it frequently,you could see rust forming on the surface.
Enter Rem oil with Teflon. It penetrates into the pores of the metal and displaces moisture. For over 30 years have used it for cleaning bbl and the rest of gun ( No other products) inside and out with no surface rust forming.
I use CLP to lube pistols in the areas the manufactures recommend because it does not evaporate with heat like Rem oil.
Have owned 71 guns since 1967 (all gone but 4) plus guns issued to me for duty.
I sometimes don’t touch a gun for 6 months. But when checked over, it’s as good as the day I cleaned it.
This has been my experience and I continue this process today.
JMO, silicon wipes/bags etc. is the old technology. I’m sure there are products better than what I use.

Be SAFE and Shoot often!

[VTHokiesDuckHunter]

I’ve got everything from traditional Hoppes products to Hornady one shot (very good stuff).

Most of the time I’m using a good CLP when cleaning and oiling is needed (and then I wipe most of it off); and RIG +P grease for slide rails, O/U shotgun bearing surfaces and the like.

[smoothshooter]

Doesn't matter that much what you use, the main thing is to at least use SOMETHING.
OCD guys like you are going to be wiping your guns down at least once a week anyway, so what you use is immaterial.
I personally use Hoppe's #9 inside and out almost all the time, with good results. I also wipe off the excess when finishing up.
I do not clean my guns every time after I shoot them.
If I put a lot of rounds through one I do a pretty decent clean job, depending on how dirty the gun is.

I have seen guys almost wear a gun out from obsessively cleaning it over and over and over. Especially the ones who think they have to totally disassemble the the thing every time.
Weird.

[Ribwizzard]

I dunno.....silicone repelle's oil. Seems like the two products would be working against each other and am surprised I'm the first to mention this.
I would think it would b ed wise to wipe off gun oil/solvent with clean rag before using silicone cloth .
As far as what I prefer? Gun oil for storage. The silicone cloth is good for EDC blue steel guns, so as not to have oily gun tucked in your pants

[SuperMan]

I have been using G96 Silicone Spray and a cloth on all my guns for at least 20 years. On carry guns especially you don't get any oil stains on your clothes if carrying IWB without a holster.

After greasing the slide rails I also spray down the inside of the slide and frame...

Bob

[MichiganScott]

Years ago when I shot nothing but blued steel guns I always used an oily rag when done cleaning. Now that everything I shoot is stainless steel, aluminum, or nitrided, my guns get wiped down with a dry paper towel to remove any cleaning residue. I've switched to wax for a preservative on everything.

[jbtrucker]

I have a silicone cloth and a microfiber cloth with a mist of Rem oil works really well