Best tips on upkeep for my revolver

[agaas4]

Hi everyone, I'm about to buy my first revolver, a model 19-4 6" from 1978. Bluing is around 92% and I'd like to keep it in the best shape possible. This is my first revolver, and handgun as well so I want to know anything from what cleaning tools and supplies I need as well as the best ways to store. Anything of that nature would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Florida Guy]

There are a bunch of supplies you will need.
Maybe a good idea to watch a few Youtube videos on cleaning a revolver.... there are many, and they should be of help to you.

 

[agaas4]

I'll do that now, thanks!

 

[old bear]

Cleaning supplies fairly easy. A good bore cleaner, patches, brass bore brush, a mop used to apply the bore cleaner, a tooth brush, a brass brush, gun oil, and rags. The brass and tooth brushes are to be used for cleaning the inside of the cylinder frame. Start with the tooth brush first.

About twice a year I like to apply two THIN coats of Johnson and Johnson's paste wax.

As for storage I use either "Bore-store" silicon treated bags. Or Crown Royal bags treated with silicon spray.

As Florida Guy suggested spend a little time with YouTube.

And Welcome to the forum.

Added: As Colonel Jeff Cooper advised, "never let the sun set on a dirty gun."

 

[ISCS Yoda]

What Florida guy said!

This website will be of assistance to you:

How to Correctly Clean Your Revolver Gun | The Art of Manliness

This Google search will give you a ton of good sites:

https://www.google.com/search?site=...edr...0...1c.1.64.hp..1.21.1570.0.nGICRNC6m94

Cleaning supplies and kits abound in those websites.

Basically, you need only a very few items. For my purposes a universal bore brush/rod in your caliber with appropriate attachments, Hoppe's #9, Gunscrubber, Rem oil, and some rags and you're set.

There are some folks who fanatically clean their guns after every use. There are some folks who clean their guns every February - and if they forget there is always next February. You need to decide where you fit into those two extremes. Modern, clean shooting, non-corrosive ammunition is not the same as blackpowder or corrosive ammunition. So it does little damage to your gun as a general rule.

One rule of thumb I follow, because I used to be a fanatic about cleaning and became a February-type guy, is I never put a gun away hot. I always let them cool before I pack them in after a shooting session. I often, but not always, wipe them off with a silicone cloth (or an oily rag; you'll have plenty of those after awhile) before I put them back in the safe.

When I'm inclined I will thoroughly clean my toys - I'm just not often so inclined.

So, as a new shooter, train with that thing, then train some more. Make it a part of you. If cleaning assists with that marriage, get'r'dun!

Oh, one more thing - I agree that you should put the gun away in a modern, silicone gun sock.

 

[CajunBass]

I'm one of the "February guys." I use a cleaning rod with a slotted tip, some patches...old T-shirts work fine, but you can buy them, a bottle of Hoppes or some other "gun cleaning stuff", and a bottle of "gun oil."

Cut a patch to the right size. Do it a few times. You'll figure out the right size. Dip it in the "cleaning stuff". I press the excess out of the patch on the inside of the bottle.

Run the patch through the bore, and the charge holes in the cylinder. You will now have a dirty patch. Repeat as needed until you get a clean patch...or in my case, a more or less clean patch. IF, and it doesn't happen often, I see something stubborn in there, I'll get out a brass brush and run it through to clean that out, but I don't shoot lead bullets much anymore, so I almost never use a brush.

Run a couple of dry patches through the same places to get as much excess "cleaning stuff" off as you can. Especially the charge holes. You don't want any excess lube in there.

Open the cylinder. Take your oil bottle and put a couple of drops of oil here and there on the holes you see in the frame, and a drop or two on the trigger and hammer. Just a couple of drops. It doesn't take much. If you get too much it will run out for days, if not weeks. Work the action a couple of times.

Wipe the gun down with a rag. I use a silicone rag I get from my gun store for a couple of bucks. After I do that, since I don't really like my guns "wet" I wipe it down again with a dry rag to get the excess off. (Lately I've started to skip this step and just wax the exterior with paste wax. Paste wax also has the advantage of making it very easy to clean the soot off after firing.)

I save the odd sock that seem to turn up in the dryer from time to time, and store my guns in them in the safe.

It took much longer to write that than it does to actually do it.

A lot of people make a big deal out of worrying about rust. I don't because I have never had a gun rust. I got no idea why, it's just never happened so I don't think about it a lot.

 

[05CarbonDRZ]

Unfourtnely I am One of the Guys who HAS to clean every Gun after I shoot it.That coupled with the fact that I feel the need to detail clean every time leads to some long cleaning sessions.I just love knowing that every Gun in my Safe is spotless and ready to take to the Range at a moments notice.

 

[muddocktor]

I am one who cleans my revolvers every time I shoot them, but not so much for my semi auto pistols. Especially my nickel plated pistols and my 629; just can't stand to see a shiny pistol with black crud all over it. And if it has been a range session where I've run more than 100 rounds through it I will remove the yoke and cylinder and clean all the carbon out of there too and put a thin fresh coat of clean oil on the yoke before sliding the cylinder back on it and reinstalling it in the frame. That's not hard to do, since you only have to remove 1 screw to remove the yoke and cylinder. It also makes it easier to clean the frame opening and forcing cone area with the cylinder out of the frame. I use a toothbrush to scrub the carbon off of most of the pistol where it has built up, but I do use a brass bristle brush on the cylinder face occasionally to cut through the built up carbon on the face of the cylinder. I do that quite often on the 629, but only occasionally on my nickel 27-2 that I shoot. And if I don't use a brass bristle brush, I still wipe the cylinder face off as good as I can to get any loose carbon off it.

 

[raylan007]

Strip the grips/stocks, cylinder and latch, clean the barrel and cylinder. Then for the beauty treatment that also acts as a moister repellent and makes both lead and finger prints easy to wipe clean I like Renaissance Wax. Amazon has a tin of a couple of ounces that will last you a couple of years, read the story behind the development, it is interesting. The also have a product called Pre-lim that they recommend you use prior to the finish coats of Ren Wax but after buying it I can see that it wasn't necessary. Any degreaser will work in place of the Pre-Lim. I use a single cleaning patch to apply a nice thin even coat, let it set for 5 minutes and buff it off lightly by hand, very easy and guaranteed not to ruin your bluing with any abrasive chemicals and will provide a nice middle of the road luster. Here is the best example I can provide of its preformance. I should note this blue carbona finish on this M15-2 was in very good condition to begin with but I now have the peace of mind that if it gets handled (not likely) some creations fingerprints or sweaty hands will damage this one of a kind finish. It also makes cleaning any lead residue a breeze and takes a matter of minutes to reapply future coats. All good thus far.
Pair of two's

 

[CapnMic]

as others have said a few youtube videos will have you going in the right direction on cleaning and maintaining your revolver... it is quite simple. If you have not taken off the grips .. you should do so as this is an area often neglected (not needed every cleaning session of course but a few times a year).. cleaning allows you really get to know your firearm and inspect for normal wear .. and I like to keep my revolvers free of fingerprints and oils from my hands whenever I am done for the day. I even use a little compressed can-air to blow out the gunk from time to time in hard to get to places followed by a drop of oil .. too much oil is not good so don't over-do it.

avoid storing your firearm in an area where it will collect condensation/humidity .. if you use a gun safe or lockbox consider a small packet of silica to absorb that moisture .. if you use your firearm in adverse weather .. just step up your cleaning routine accordingly .. avoid storing a revolver in a holster too long and never put it away wet.

Holsters will hold that moisture to the metal .. and my take on holsters is that the gun is only in a holster when I'm carrying it .. all other times my gun is breathing ambient air. Guns in storage never have my fingerprints on them .. I may handle them but they get a quick wipe down before going into the storage box/drawer/safe .. been doing this 30+ years and very pleased with my results. PS: the model 19 was my first personally owned revolver .. beautiful blue steel w/red insert in the front sight, white outline rear sight .. paid about $260 for it brand spanking new - Ft Worth Texas ..

As a new gun owner ... nothing impresses other gun owners more than someone who takes care of their firearm and demonstrates safe handling practices .. make that part of your routine and by all means enjoy shooting it ..

 

[soFlaNative]

I'll recommend a cleaning kit from J. Dewey. Good brass rod can be used with or without the muzzle guide and a 2 sided bristle brush is handy for cleaning around forcing cone and cylinder face.
A small rag tied around the rear of the frame means I wont impact the area pushing the brush thru the barrel and a TSA approved travel bottle (about 3 oz.) allows me to dribble solvent onto a patch or brush without dipping crud into the fresh stuff.

 

[kbm6893]

I clean my guns after every range trip. No exceptions and no delay. Right after I get home the cleaning kit comes out. And they are spotless when I am done. Grips come off revolvers. Lots of oil and dirt will get trapped under there if you don't. Chambers of revolvers are mirror bright. Bore is spotless. Magazines of semi auto's get disassembled and cleaned too. I value my weapons and want them to work and look right. My kids will get them one day. I want them to be proud of them too. Also, NEVER store that 19 in a holster, and I would even avoid holstering it at all if you want to keep the blueing looking good.

Last spring, I had to shoot a pesky groundhog. I didn't enjoy it but he was becoming a problem. Ruger 10/22 was used. 2 rounds fired (first hit him in the neck and didn't kill him. Second to the head did the job). I cleaned the gun before putting it away. Just the way I am.

 

[Arik]

Everyone has their way for their own reasons. No one way is perfect or correct.

I clean my guns. ........sometimes. the only time I clean religiously after shooting is when I use corrosive ammo and that doesn't apply to the model 19 or any commercial ammo. Otherwise modern powders arnt dirty and I don't see the need to clean after a few boxes of ammo.

 

[loeman]

I'm in the clean it every time you use it camp. Even after you clean the bore until your patch comes out snow white, more powder residue will continue to find its way out of the molecular structure of your bore. Just wait a couple of days and run another clean patch through the bore. You'll be surprised at what you will find in your "clean" barrel.

One thing I don't do is disassemble my semi auto mags every time. However, I do use a toothbrush with Hoppes on the follower. I also depress the follower and use the toothbrush in and around the top of the mag. I do a complete dis-assembly about once a year.

 

[Nightowl]

I prefer to clean my guns that I do not shoot often after the range session. In the past I have found uncleaned guns in the safe that have been there for some time that I have forgotten to clean, and even forgot that they had been shot! So, those I like to clean before putting them back. The ones I shoot regularly, I only clean when they are ready, like maybe once a month, after 500 or more rounds are fired.

 

[Andrew2105]

Cleaning & maintaining your handgun is covered in the NRA basic Pistol Class. After the class, the manual as well as the knowledge that you receive will remain quite useful. Don't forget to have the gun unloaded & check twice before cleaning, fitting a holster & anything else you do.

Please be sure to have a good Firearms screwdriver set, most firearms screws are wider & tightly screwed in (some with thread locker) causing many "ham fisted" amateur gunsmiths to have ugly chewed up screw heads on their guns. The old "Sears Craftsman" screwdrivers are not your friend when dealing with your gun.

Please take the NRA class first! Oh yeah, I like a bore snake & CLP.

 

[Florida Guy]

Please be sure to have a good Firearms screwdriver set, most firearms screws are wider & tightly screwed in (some with thread locker) causing many "ham fisted" amateur gunsmiths to have ugly chewed up screw heads on their guns. The old "Sears Craftsman" screwdrivers are not your friend when dealing with your gun.

I have found this set contains many/most (not all) of the bits I've needed, and it's not very expensive.

There are many other more expensive sets on the market.

 

[rwsmith]

Excellent stuff here....

I'm a basic sort guy and don't get too fancy. A piece of old T shirt is an essential item. Some areas not to neglect:

The ejector and under the ejector 'star'

The forcing cone and around it.

The scorches on the front of a .357 cylinder are tough to get off. I have a SS gun and use a kitchen product that may not be compatible with blued guns. Some people leave the scorches there as a 'badge of honor'.

If you shoot lead, some means to remove deposits.

PS: Remember that the Model 19 (though one of the greatest guns ever) isn't made for continuous full .357 loads and will shake loose after while.

 

[arjay]

A shop towel is useful and a wadded up piece of paper towel makes a good patch.

 

[theoneff]

I'm starting to get a little bit of a guilty feeling. I wipe them down after the range as long as the weather was nice. Clean the bore and cylinders when I feel like it or I dont want to get embarrassed and razzed by my buddies. I like a Bore Snake and Balistol. Spray it down, run the bore snakle through the cylinder and bore, wipe it down, have a beer. Not necessarily in that order. Theo