quick AND thorough AR cleaning
 

hello....i unintentionally hijacked another thread into an AR cleaning debate, so i thought i'd start my own.

last time i started an AR care thread, i am afraid i left more confused than when i started. i got suggestions about cleaning and lube products that ranged from dish soap to hoppe's to vegetable oil :D

i use, and really like WIPEOUT foaming cleaner for barrel cleaning.

i am especially interested suggestions for products to soak the parts to make cleaning the bolt, etc much easier.

i had a friend who suggested breakfree....but i don't understand the whole "it cleans & lubricates" at the same time thing.

any suggestions for a good cleaning and lube product appreciated...i am probably more interested in "off the shelf" vs "home brews" :p

also, please mention any products that are "wrong" or might damage function or finish.

thanks for any input. this is a very helpful AR board, and i appreciate all your help.

well, i use breakfree CLP. mostly due to thats what i used in the military and so i just continue to use it. it does the job but i can only assume there may be better options. but for right now i'll keep using it. if you want to soak a few items, i would say the firing pin, retaining pin, and the can pin. would be soakable. i wouldnt want to soak the bolt or BC. but thats just me.

thanks. i appreciate your input. basically, is CLP the only product you use to clean AND lubricate?

mostly yes, ive been using hoppe's as well and dont really notice a difference. probly wont buy any more once the bottle is gone.

I would read this link. It really covers it all. !!!

Best of all it has pictures.

Frog Lube is The best or Slip 2000 EWL

http://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=35490

What clp does is it soaks into and disolves carbon. It grts into the pores of metal and floats carbon up off the metal. It is designed to work with parkerized surfaces the best. Oiling a firearm liberally with clp over the course of days allows it to displace water carbon dirt etc preventing rust from forming under normal storage conditions.

You can store a firearm thats been cleaned to whiteglove standard wipe clp on it come back in a few days and run the same glove it will be black with carbon pulled out of the metal displaced by the clp.

Sonic cleaners are great for steel parts. I use clp as general carbon cleaner and hoppes for a barrel cleaning as hoppes works great at lead removal. Its also good for cleaning when corrosive ammo is used.

I dont use gun oil for lube it evaporites or suffers thermal breakdown under moderate to light use. Frog lube slip 2000 great products but expensive. I get the same lube results from a cheap quart of 30w synthetic motor oil. Motor oil will not break down under the heat a firearm generates in its moving parts. It works and its cheap.

So Are you saying that the 30w motor oil is better to use on your gun than any other reasonably priced gun lube?

I lube my guns with Mobil1 full synthetic 5-30w motor oil.

Cheap, easy and it works.

That's awesome I've never heard that