How Often Should I Clean My Concealed Carry Gun?
It’s an age-old question that will probably never really have a satisfying resolution. It also seems to be fairly polarizing: either you’re in one camp, or you’re in the other. We’re talking, of course, about how often to clean your guns. Some shooters out there say that you absolutely must clean your firearms every time you shoot them. But others are a little less demanding, and say that you can clean your gun every 100, 200, or even 1,000 rounds. In this post, we’ll endeavor to discover how often you should clean your gun and when your firearm should be cleaned.
How Often to Clean Your Gun: When Should a Firearm be Cleaned?
So who’s right? Do you need to meticulously scrub your firearm after every trip to the range? Or are you okay to leave your guns dirty for a little while before cleaning them? As always, the answer lies somewhere in the middle. For this particular question, the way you use the firearm will have a huge impact on how often you clean it. We’ll look at two different examples on cleaning intervals below.
How Often Should You Clean Range Guns?
This category has the widest amount of acceptable laziness associated with it. Depending on your range gun, you may not need to clean it very much at all. Some AK enthusiasts out there fire their guns for 1000 rounds or more without ever touching bore cleaner to a single part of their rifle. The same can be said of some shotguns used for sporting clays, although this is a little less acceptable than running your AK dirty.
Or, if your firearm is particularly fussy, you may need to clean it after every range trip. That goes for some touchy firearms like the M1A. If you don’t clean your firearm, carbon buildup and fouling from shooting can increase your likelihood of jamming. This is particularly true of semi-auto guns. Revolvers don’t tend to jam as much if they’re well-maintained. But make no mistake, they’ll definitely misfire if you let them get too dirty.
How Often Should You Clean Your Carry Firearm?
With these facts in mind, let’s cover how often you should clean your carry firearm. The rules for a carry gun are a little different from everything else.
Generally, you always want to make sure that your concealed carry weapon is squeaky clean. After all, your life may depend on this firearm at some point. You don’t want a dirty gun misfiring right when you need it to function flawlessly. To really keep your gun in tip-top shape, you’ll also want to clean it at least once a month – even if you don't shoot it. This will keep it well-lubricated and ready for action should the need ever arise.
Aside from keeping your concealed carry gun perfectly cleaned, you’ll also want a concealable holster. After all, what good is a carry gun if you don’t have a holster to keep it on your person? Check out our full selection of leather holsters here.
