Oh boy, it's hot outside. The burden of packing in the sun.

[mr surveyor]

I'm not sure how many of y'all actually work out in the great outdoors on a daily basis, but I can tell you for certain that carry methods are drastically altered this time of year. I have the priviledge to be in the field quite often, whether it be thick brushy woods, wide open barren construction site, center of a highway, snake infested bottom land or most anywhere you can imagine a surveyor to be. When you have other "work related" gear to carry, and have to be rather physically active (cutting brush for line of sight, up and down for driving stakes, ets.), daily carry requires compromises. So far, the only practical carry method I've found for this nasty, sweaty time of the year is an "expendable" .38 spl Rossi in a high ride leather OWB pancake holster. Standard dress is jeans or cargo style pants, t-shirt and either a thin Magellan or Columbia over shirt (must have the extra pockets to carry even more stuff). Most days the holster is soaked, and the Rossi has to have a wipe down and shot of CLP into the action. I've been trying to decide whether or not to subject a S&W 637 to these conditions so as not to worry about rust. I'm not sure how much sweat/moisture makes it's way into the guts of the revolver through trigger or hammer action???

I haven't detail stripped enough revolvers to have any idea of the amount of sweat or other moisture sources find entry to the internals of a revolver, or the amount of damage that can be done. Anyone want to offer experience on that part of the summer carry issues?


surv

[Excaliber]

I've been trying to decide whether or not to subject a S&W 637 to these conditions so as not to worry about rust

I'm not sure how much sweat/moisture makes it's way into the guts of the revolver through trigger or hammer action???

Those are some nasty carry conditions you described!

A stainless gun will greatly reduce the rust concerns and you won't have to worry about the finish being worn away and exposing rustable metal underneath. Just be aware it does not eliminate the rust concern. If you need proof, take the grips off a stainless gun that's been used for daily carry in hot weather. That brown stuff you'll see is rust which will eventually form wherever moisture accumulates and hangs around for a while.

In the extremely humid and sweaty climate of an IWB carry under your working conditions, a LOT of moisture will work its way into the action. CLP is a bit sloppy for dealing with this, but I'd expect it to work fairly well. A tidier solution for flushing out the moisture and any dirt that works its way in may be one of the volatile aerosol cleaners like Quick Scrub or Gun Scrubber.

[mr surveyor]

Excaliber,

After flushing with Gun Scrubber, through the trigger opening I presume, how long should it take to thoroughly dry, and what lube and method of application do you recommend?

I have been carrying "junkers" in the field for quite some time due to the oft times nasty conditions. The external surfaces are always what one sees and tends to. This thread really got me to think about the less obvious conditions to the internals of the revolver.

I may take the sides of the current field gun and examine the "guts".

Thanks for the suggestions.

surv

[stevie_d_64]

Rule #1...

You WILL carry that heavy full sized 1911 in our climate and LIKE IT!

Otherwise...R. Lee Ermey will come in and make you feel really sad...Or something...

I'm fixing to go out and forage for something to do today...And I'm carrying that "Sledgehammer"...If I can do it, you can do it!!!

[DoubleJ]

Rule #1...

You WILL carry that heavy full sized 1911 in our climate and LIKE IT!

Otherwise...R. Lee Ermey will come in and make you feel really sad...Or something...

man, you know Gunny is a Glock-man!

[LedJedi]

Excaliber,

After flushing with Gun Scrubber, through the trigger opening I presume, how long should it take to thoroughly dry, and what lube and method of application do you recommend?

I have been carrying "junkers" in the field for quite some time due to the oft times nasty conditions. The external surfaces are always what one sees and tends to. This thread really got me to think about the less obvious conditions to the internals of the revolver.

I may take the sides of the current field gun and examine the "guts".

Thanks for the suggestions.

surv

Have you considered using something like CLP break free that's both a cleaner and a lube so you knock both out in one step? I swear by the stuff. Your mileage my vary.

[mr surveyor]

Yeah, I use BreakFree CLP on all my guns. I just wasn't sure whether to take the side plate off and apply grease to the internals of the revolver, or just hose it out with CLP.

I did take off the the side plate, thouroughly blew it out with WD40 (all I had in the cabinet), and am now wondering about the "grease vs CLP" question on the intrails of a revolver. In the past I have just applied small globs of grease to the visible bearing surfaces inside, but not sure if that's the right approach. Amazingly, there was really NO evidence of corrosion or foreign matter internally, other than a bit of gritty dust that washed out.

Summer conditions create a really nasty environment for carry guns.

[Skiprr]

After flushing with Gun Scrubber, through the trigger opening I presume, how long should it take to thoroughly dry, and what lube and method of application do you recommend?

For a quick-and-go if I haven't been shooting the gun and it doesn't need cleaning for fouling or carbon build-up, I'll field-strip it (I'm not really a wheel-gun guy, so this is in reference to autoloaders), and remove the grips if it's a steel frame; my primary carry has an aluminum frame, so the area under the grips gets a little less attention, though I do pop off the grips and work under them every two or three cleanings.

I've really come to like Mil-Comm's (http://www.mil-comm.com/) TW25B EP aerosol lubricant and protectant. I've used their TW25B grease for some time now on my 1911s and anything I carry where I want the lubricant to stay put and not drip. The aerosol contains the same proprietary nano-particle synthetic lubricant in an isopropyl alcohol carrier, so it--like Birchwood Casey Gun Scrubber--displaces any moisture on contact, but it leaves behind a light, metal-penetrating protective surface and high-performance lubricant.

I put a quick shot of TW25B aerosol down the barrel and one onto it, a shot into the top of the slide, a shot into the trigger mechanism, and one onto the top of the frame, depending on the type of pistol. Then I'll wait a minute or two, run a patch through the chamber and barrel, and then squirt some compressed air through the frame and trigger area (I don't have a compressor like some folks on the Forum; I just use the canned cleaning duster stuff designed for PCs) and wipe down everything with a shop cloth, spreading the TW25B around the frame and slide. The compressed air really isn't necessary; I'm just sorta fastidious about leaving anything that could drip into my holster or get unexpectedly on my hands. Then I may touch-up the grease application on the slides and on the outside of the barrel, if needed.

Reassemble and I'm good to go. Takes all of five or six minutes, and I'd think the TW25B aerosol would be ideal for a carry revolver...and probably take even less time to apply.

FWIW, I've used all kinds of various lubricants, and while I still have a varied collection of solvents and cleaners, I now pretty much exclusively use the Mil-Comm products and Militec-1 http://www.militec-1.com/ for my firearm lubrication needs.

[ScubaSigGuy]

You might try a coating of RIG grease on the internals to keep the moisture from getting to them.

T-9 Boeshield is great for corrosion prevention as well. http://www.boeshield.com

[mr surveyor]

Thanks Guys. With nothing on hand but CLP and Hoppes Gun Grease, I decided to apply a dose of the Gun Grease to the internals. I will probably hose it out next week though as it is a bit on the thin side of what I would like for internal parts that won't be exposed much.

Summer conditions, whether hot and dry/dusty, or hot and humid/steamy, have to take their toll on every day carry weapons. I'm glad threads like this pop up occasionally to make me think a bit.


surv

[Rugrash]

Most of the time when it's hot like this I pocket carry my S&W .38 snubby in my Desantis Nemesis rather than my G19 in my VersaMax 2.

-Rug

[Excaliber]

After flushing with Gun Scrubber, through the trigger opening I presume, how long should it take to thoroughly dry, and what lube and method of application do you recommend?

WD40 is a real slow, messy approach that sorta works to flush away moisture and very light dirt if you have enough patience. On the down side, it leaves a light oil that attracts dust and grit, and would probably aggravate the situation you're facing.

GunScrubber is a powerful, high volatility solvent that removes all oils, moisture, powder residue, etc. and dries in well under a minute. It leaves a completely dry and clean surface.

For lubrication, I would suggest a dry lube product like S&W dry lube that doesn't leave a liquid film and won't attract dust and dirt. It's available from Brownell's at:

http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/store/ ... DRY%20LUBE

[stevie_d_64]

Rule #1...

You WILL carry that heavy full sized 1911 in our climate and LIKE IT!

Otherwise...R. Lee Ermey will come in and make you feel really sad...Or something...

man, you know Gunny is a Glock-man!

Only by contract baby! Only by contract...

I believe the Gunny would be proficient with a wrist rocket...

[Wildscar]

And while you at Wal-Mart checking out the Under armor shirts take a look at their Hawaiian Shirts. I picked up a few of those. They are thin enough to breath real good. I will have to look to night to see what they are made out of but that shirt with an under armor shirt I spoke of was like wearing one shirt. I was still able to keep the Beretta covers and not die from heat exhaustion.

They are 100% PolyEster, meaning they are hot, and smell weird (I hate that polyester smell )
WS is right about the setup, though, and it is a good'en.

Nope they are 100% Raytheon. I have never heard of the stuff but they breath better than anything I have in my closet right now. They are not the flashy bright color Hawiian shirts like you might then. They have greys and blacks and a couple blues that looks really good as my wife tells me.

[KBCraig]

"100% Raytheon"