Damage from Cleaning "Lower Receiver"

[plinx]

If I get cleaning fluid (Otis brand) or Ballistol into the part of my 15-22 which I think is called the "lower receiver" (has trigger-mechanism in it), does this damage the gun in any way?

Also, does it damage the 15-22 if you don't clean it before shooting it?

 

[imashooter2]

No and maybe.

The lower receiver is impervious to standard gun cleaning fluids.

Whether or not you damage your gun by shooting without cleaning depends on what sort of dirt or grit is present in the rifle and where that dirt or grit is.

 

[RedNeck Jim]

Also, does it damage the 15-22 if you don't clean it before shooting it?

I was always taught to clean before shooting. Assuming you verified the bore is not obstructed, I would think you would be OK to shoot... but why chance it? Cleaning a new gun helps you to familiarize yourself with the weapon, allows you to verify there is no obstruction, allows you to verify the moving parts are properly lubed plus allows you to perform safety checks.

I see lots of positives for cleaning first. None for shooting first.

 

[plinx]

Whether or not you damage your gun by shooting without cleaning depends on what sort of dirt or grit is present in the rifle and where that dirt or grit is.

I'm referring to a new fresh-out-of-box rifle that hasn't been cleaned & lubed before shooting; and still has whatever factory lubes (if any) were on it.

 

[Road Man]

I'm referring to a new fresh-out-of-box rifle that hasn't been cleaned & lubed before shooting; and still has whatever factory lubes (if any) were on it.

Fresh out of the box firearms can vary wildly with regard to cleanliness.

If the bore is not obstructed then it is likely that no real damage would be done. However, I agree that cleaning a new gun is an important first step in gun ownership.

On a 15-22 cleaning the bolt and rails may help with reliability. Cleaning the barrel may have some bearing on longevity.

Generally metal on metal areas will benefit form lubrication. Oil left on metal surfaces will attract contaminants that might eventually inhibit lubrication or even cause abrasion damage. Generally a trigger on an AR style rifle does not need lubrication. It needs to be clean. A very light lubrication might be beneficial, however there is a fine line between light and too much. Too much will attract dirt, and the dirt will likely be bad.

I don't lubricate any components in the lower receiver. I usually just blow out the lower with compressed air and call it good. Sometimes a wipe down with a lint free cloth, but I don't dwell on the lower.

In the upper I really only pay attention to the breech face. The barrel extension and face of the bolt are where I spend some cleaning time, but I try to wipe off any cleaning fluids and oils. I try only to leave a very light coat of oil on the bolt and barrel extension. The feed ramp needs some attention, but is left only very lightly lubricated. The rails that the bolt moves on get a light to moderate coating of oil, but not a heavy coating.

 

[tomcatt51]

I always run a patch thru the barrel of a new gun before shooting it. I like to KNOW there isn't left over crud in there. Fact is I tear most everything down before shooting it. Partly to make sure nothing is in there that shouldn't be and some things, like modding S&W revolvers for endshake bearings, are best done before the surfaces wear.

Some new guns are clean but some have a surprising amount of debris and machining chips inside. I just like to be sure.

 

[ChattanoogaPhil]

My guess is that a majority of guns sold are taken out of the box, loaded and fired. I've read a lot of crazy whacky things here, but I can't remember anyone posting they damaged a new 1522 due to not cleaning.
Run a patch through the barrel and inspect the gun for anything amiss. Enjoy.

 

[TheMaineEvent]

It's generally a good idea to clean a new firearm so you remove any protective material from the factory, ensure it's clean, and properly lubed and protected.

Some lubes, such as frog lube and ballistol, protect and lube by getting into the pores of the metal. As such, I think it's good to give a new firearm the first layer of protection if you're using something that "bonds" with the metal.

Also, follow up cleanings are easier since the carbon tends to come off much easier due to the base layer that was put down. Again, I'm referring to products like I mentioned above. I don't know as it would make a difference if you used something else, but you mentioned Ballistol, which is a great product BTW.

 

[thezoltar]

Chattanoogaphil is, sadly, correct. I work at a range and see this all the time. It's not only new shooters either. Lots of people buy a gun and head straight to the range. About half of them have no issues at all and half have all sorts of issues from just bad accuracy to loading or ejection failures on semiautos. I've seen revolvers that won't open because the packing grease is gummed up from the first six shots. So, if you choose to shoot before cleaning just be aware that any failures of proper operation are most likely not the fault of the gun itself.

 

[little_airwolf]

Being plastic. Arent some cleaners bad for the plastic?

 

[gm272gs]

Old and new gun cleaners won't harm any modern plastic/polymer parts. Some of the old bakelite parts on old guns (say, 1930s to 1950s) may be affected, though.

Don't ever use stuff that "works just as good" as gun cleaner on your polymer gun (like brake parts or carburetor cleaner) because some mook on YouTube said it was a great idea.

A lot of those automotive cleaners have acetone, toluene, heptane, xylene, and ethyl benzene in them. All of which can destroy certain plastics to a certain degree.

 

[little_airwolf]

Ya break cleaner and break oil is really bad stuff. I heard it does horrible stuff to paint jobs on cars.
I also heard solomi and other meats do this too.

Back to guns. Yes cleaning gun parts with cleaner that osnt used for guns is just silly.

 

[Road Man]

There is automobile brake cleaner. This solvent is made for cleaning car parts that get extremely dirty from the brakes on your car. Automobile brake cleaner is pretty aggressive stuff.

There are gun cleaners called "Break-Free". These are gun cleaners and not automotive parts cleaners. These "Brake-Free" gun cleaners are a lot less aggressive and should be safe on most gun parts.

I sometimes think that new gun owners may not know the difference. When cleaning a firearm use the solvent made for guns, not cars, they are very different solvents.

I am sure that there are people out there that use the automotive brake cleaner on their firearms. I don't, but "Break-Free" CLP is some pretty decent stuff.

 

[Boz]

A lot of those automotive cleaners have acetone, toluene, heptane, xylene, and ethyl benzene in them. All of which can destroy certain plastics to a certain degree.

As I understand it, destroying plastic is the least of the problems with certain cleaners such as brake cleaner. If the brake cleaner contains Tetrachloroethylene, the combustion (heat) of the gun powder might cause the brake cleaner to "decompose to harmful or fatal corrosive gases such as hydrogen chloride and possibly phosgene". Nasty stuff to breathe or get on your skin. Best to use approved gun cleaning solutions.

As to cleaning a brand new firearm, I would. As others have said, you want to make sure the firearm is in good working order before putting the first round through the barrel.

I see it as no different than someone handing you a firearm. Regardless whether the person handing you the firearm check to make sure the firearm was clear, it is your responsibility to double-check once handed to you. Smith and Wesson may have checked the 15-22 for functionality at the factory, but it is your responsibility to double-check functionality once the 15-22 is in your possession. Safety first.

 

[johncal]

Sorry, but I just have to say it.

You use BRAKE cleaner. It's for BRAKES.

You can BREAK your gun.

 

[plinx]

Tried shooting again today at ~25 yards. Didn't notice any changes in accuracy. I'm guessing things are working ok.

 

[Jaymo]

As I understand it, destroying plastic is the least of the problems with certain cleaners such as break cleaner. If the break cleaner contains Tetrachloroethylene, the combustion (heat) of the gun powder might cause the break cleaner to "decompose to harmful or fatal corrosive gases such as hydrogen chloride and possibly phosgene". Nasty stuff to breathe or get on your skin. Best to use approved gun cleaning solutions.

As to cleaning a brand new firearm, I would. As others have said, you want to make sure the firearm is in good working order before putting the first round through the barrel.

I see it as no different than someone handing you a firearm. Regardless whether the person handing you the firearm check to make sure the firearm was clear, it is your responsibility to double-check once handed to you. Smith and Wesson may have checked the 15-22 for functionality at the factory, but it is your responsibility to double-check functionality once the 15-22 is in your possession. Safety first.

Brake cleaner evaporates completely, leaving no residue.

Carburetor cleaner is a fantastic powder solvent.

Brake cleaner is a fantastic degreaser.

This is very over-hyped.

The Nylon compounds used in guns are impervious to auto solvents.
Now, if you cleaned your combat Tupperware with battery acid, you'd see some serious degradation.

 

[johncal]

Here's a list of chemical resistance for Nylon 6 & 66. You're pretty safe with almost anything unless you're a mad scientist just IMO. The stuff that would hurt it would only be if you soaked it for extended periods but most of that stuff would kill you before hurting the polymer. You can see what would hurt it on the list. Surprisingly bleach (chlorine) is really harmful, but I can't imagine cleaning the rifle with bleach.

Let me further clarify this. I have done a lot of research on the net, and this seems to be everybody's best guess. I also worked with a lot of nylon 66 in my day and I would say this looks, feels, performs, etc. to be exactly what it is. If anyone has proof positive that it's not nylon 66 from S&W please correct me. I don't want to mislead anyone. Regardless of manufacturer, all nylon materials will respond pretty much the same way. The big thing that improves the strength and stiffness is how much fiberglass is in the mix.

(click the expand box in the corner to see the entire document)

 

[Boz]

Brake cleaner evaporates completely, leaving no residue.

It's not about residue or allowing brake cleaner enough time to completely evaporate outside when there's no one around. In fact, just the opposite. Brake cleaner takes time to evaporate and a little pocket or puddle would take longer. Heat would speed up the vaporization. Breathing brake cleaner while it is evaporating or when vaporized by heat, is not advised. It's about before, not after it's gone.

 

[Mcwsky09]

I used brake cleaner on a part that didn't realize was painted and it took of some of the paint. Mosin Nagant caked in cosmoline. I have refinished the stock and had to reblue part of the barrel but have to refinish the magwell and some other parts yet.
I would only recommend brake cleaner for part that are similar to brake rotors, that is to say bare metal without any fancy finish and only as a first step in a cleaning/lubricating process.

 

[wbear]

Ha! I wish brake cleaner or carb cleaner still had a few of those nasty sounding chemicals mentioned in an earlier reply above. Then they would still work like they did originally.

The EPA has made sure all the effective aromatic solvents can no longer be put in these and many other products. This has reduced their performance to "***, why doesn't my carpet spot remover work any more?

Remember how everyone loved Thompson's Water Seal, not anymore.
Read some reviews of the "new and improved formula" before putting it on your deck.

 

[Decipher]

Very reputable gun builders recommend using non-chlorinated brake cleaner on ARs. That has been my practice for a while now but I intend on changing that. It does damage plastics and I have zero intentions on using it for my 15-22.

Lastly, I can't fathom the idea of firing a weapon without first cleaning it and inspecting it. Check out the handgun threads here. A guy just found a cracked slide on his brand new Shield. Had he shot it, my guess is it would have killed him. Even just cleaning my 15-22 for the first time showed excessive amounts of machining debris in my barrel. So...yeah...clean and lube your new weapon. The oil on your new gun is machining oil, not lubrication.

 

[plinx]

Is Ballistol bad for polymer and/or plastics on guns? Does it do any harm to any part of the 15-22? If I understand right, someone from S&W said (to paraphrase them) they'd recommend using a cleaner that is better for newer finishes, and that works well with polymer to clean my 15-22.

(I guess they are implying Ballistol is bad for polymer and new finishes on the 15-22...?)

But I got conflicting advice... others seem adamant that Ballistol works wonders on all their guns, including the 15-22. The internet is filled with posts like that, but not specifically about the 15-22.

 

[roadkill45]

non chlorinated brake clean $1.97 at Walmart, rem oil, and Mobile one and a bore snake is all i use on any of my guns. you just have to remember it is a very effective paint stripper. sometimes that's a good thing if you are redoing a crappy camo job.
read the brake cleaner can, then read the gun scrubber can...same stuff! I don't go for the latest greatest snake oil on the market when there are a limited amount of chemicals really that can be used and most already have been.
you just don't go crazy with the stuff and i break down my gun prior to using brake cleaner. have never had an issue on any of my polymer guns.
if using on anything with wood, i take it off first, like i said it will take off a clear coat.
AR lowers just get an air job with the compressor, i have CMC triggers so not worried about lubing those.

way too much hype over choosing a cheap alternative ie brake cleaner, over way too expensive frog ****, or ballistol, or whatever.

 

[Decipher]

My only issue with the non-chlorinated brake cleaner is the residue type feeling left after using it. My AR is all nickel boron and it leaves a very fine white film on it. Once I give her a good wipe down with a quality synthetic gun oil, she's good as new. I have no plans on using it or getting it anywhere close to my 15-22. I got some of it on my foregrip and it blemished the pastic a bit. That's enough for me to keep it away from my new weapon.

I simply use Hopps #9 and lint free rags to clean all my weapons. It works great, doesn't damage a thing, and allows me to carefully inspect as I go. Follow that with an oil wipe, and one good final wipe down and I'm good to go. I agree. No need for the latest and greatest. It doesn't exist.

 

[roadkill45]

it will "dry" out the metal, and after that, i just use some spray rem oil to bring all my Glocks and AR's back to black. i actually don't clean the 15-22 that much.
bore snake, wipe around extractor/ejector and blow out the lower. that's about it.

 

[Decipher]

The bore snake is one of the best tools out there for cleaning, hands down. It's a must with any rifle.

 

[tomcatt51]

My only issue with the non-chlorinated brake cleaner is the residue type feeling left after using it.

What you're seeing/feeling is a really clean part with no oil on it. Run an oily cloth over it and you get back to the "oiled part" feel you're accustomed to.

What you get when buying "gun specific" cleaners is frequently the same stuff they package for other (higher volume) applications but you get to pay twice as much because it's labeled "gun cleaner".

 

[Decipher]

Yeah, the more I thought about it the more I realized it was just that. Thanks!

 

[johncal]

What you're seeing/feeling is a really clean part with no oil on it. Run an oily cloth over it and you get back to the "oiled part" feel you're accustomed to.

What you get when buying "gun specific" cleaners is frequently the same stuff they package for other (higher volume) applications but you get to pay twice as much because it's labeled "gun cleaner".

Or he did damage the polymer and the oil just hides it.

Would you care to back up your statement about other non-relate products being repackaged as gun cleaner with any type of proof?

Not trying to be argumentative but that sounds like a pretty good reach.