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On the occasional deep clean. I'd say 20% of the time.
Do you remove the cylinder when cleaning your DA revolvers?
- Thread starter desmobob
- Start date
S&WshooterFIN
Member
Almost every time
357 shooter
Member
Not necessary unless there is an issue. Keep taking the yoke screw in and out and you will inadvertently scratch the sideplate, mess up the screw slot or the threads.
gmiller0737
Member
For Me Zero % of the time I don't like dinked up screw slots or the chance a screwdriver might slip resulting in a scratch for Me it's not worth it
Always. I have hollow ground screwdrivers for every gun screw I'll ever see, and so far, I've never bunged up a screw (knocks on head).
bmcgilvray
Member
bmcgilvray
Member
I will not.
I haven't yet degraded a side plate or a screw and I have removed yoke screws many times since the mid 1970s, especially on favorite revolvers I have owned since the mid 1970s.
Cylinder removal beats awkward revolver cleaning while dealing with an opened cylinder.
My approach as well. My cleaning program is rather simplistic and I don't go for white glove inspection level clean and it is a waste of time and effort to do so. About every 300 rounds, a few passes of a bore brush followed by a few dry patches and she is All set. Don't use solvents either.
Carefully cleaning under the extractor star is definitely more critical.
My opinion if you are taking more than 5-10 minutes to clean a gun to get it back to duty ready status, you are wasting time.
Targets Guy
US Veteran
I do it every time.
Although I use high quality oil and try to keep the ejector star and underneath dry, sometimes oil migrates. After sitting for a long time, the cylinder will be hard to turn. When that happens, I remove the cylinder and use a solvent to get the gummed up oil out. BTW, I never use WD-40 on any of my guns. It gums up the worst!
Chrisj357
Member
Sometimes wasting time is ok. On revolver cleaning day I probably spend more than 10 minutes per revolver. I'd say at least 15. I clean all six of them one after the other. I choose a day when I have two hours to spend. It's an enjoyable two hours for me.
I'm thinking that folks who never remove their cylinder will probably never know how much powder residue builds up in there. If it builds up on the outside of a cylinder it builds up on the inside. The fact that the revolver was never designed with a cylinder that can be easily removed doesn't mean they don't get dirty. Ruger MKII's are very take down unfriendly, yet they need to be disassembled occasionally to be properly cleaned. A 1911 isn't what I would call take down friendly either but you have to field strip them to clean them properly. A good comparison would be an HK or Sig, those are easy to take down and clean. 1911's, not so much. The reason is the design is over 100 years old. Not much has changed with S&W revolvers in a hundred years either, except maybe the quality.
I don't clean my revolvers or pistols every time I shoot them, but when I do, I give them a through cleaning. That means field stripping pistols and removing cylinders in revolvers.
Some people aren't going to want to take the time to do that. Heck, some people don't even clean their firearms.
I don't clean my revolvers or pistols every time I shoot them, but when I do, I give them a through cleaning. That means field stripping pistols and removing cylinders in revolvers.
Some people aren't going to want to take the time to do that. Heck, some people don't even clean their firearms.
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The yoke is removed every time I clean a revolver. Every time!! The yoke tube and other parts get residue on them too and need to be properly cleaned and oiled to maintain smooth use. It also makes it immensely easier to clean the face of the cylinder of lead build up, if any and under the extractor and chambers. Also easier to clean the frame inside the cylinder window, without beating up the cylinder with a brush.
Guns I shoot a lot generally get cleaned in 400-500 rounds. If I'm just putting 50 or 100 rounds through one that I seldom shoot, I like to clean before storing. Upon occasion, I have taken one out of the safe that has been shot and put away and I can't remember how long its been since I shot it. I like to avoid that.
Guns I shoot a lot generally get cleaned in 400-500 rounds. If I'm just putting 50 or 100 rounds through one that I seldom shoot, I like to clean before storing. Upon occasion, I have taken one out of the safe that has been shot and put away and I can't remember how long its been since I shot it. I like to avoid that.
Old Corp
Member
Only remove the cylinder if the gun is beyond filthy - and I rarely shoot mine to get to that point anymore. - But I have at times, just depends.
