After Range Report HCS200 UltraSonic Cleaner

[rm9792]

Picked up one of these at the HGCS Show in Houston. Claims to clean up to 35 guns before changing the solution so lets see.
Setup was easy, simply fill with hot tap water and pour the 8oz solution in. Disassemble the pistol (field, not detail) and put in the basket. Turn on for 8-12 minutes. Runs very quiet, a little louder than a cheap fish tank pump.

I ran 14 pistols thru that I had already cleaned by hand, and I thought I was pretty anal about cleanliness. Boy was i mistaken. I dropped in a SS Taurus 92 so I could see any activity better. Within about 10 seconds there was little streams of crud floating off the pistol like it was smoking out of every crevice. within 2 pistols the pan looked like it was full of oil.
Once the time has passed rinse with warm water then you set another pan on top filled with a lubing solution and run another 10 minutes to flush out the water and lube it up.
The 92 came out looking like it was right off the assembly line as there was not a drop of oil on it and was absolutely spotless. Every little corner was clean and it looked a little strange, never seen one that clean and dry before. Couldnt tell as much with blued pistols but the SS ones definitely showed the cleaning results well.

Only pistol that didnt come out spotless was a DE .50. But it was caked pretty heavy internally since the reloads from T's werent the cleanest burning in the world. A quick wipe with a Q-Tip got the last little bit from the corners and all was good there too.

All in all it was expensive ($399) but to me it was worth the money as it cleans better than I ever could. Doesnt take much space at all but will barely fit the Desert Eagle in the basket. Rifle receivers could be done, without the barrel of course. I did fit 2 Taurus 92's in there at once but that might not clean as well, instructions dont say.

You could use for other things such as car parts if you wanted to as well. Comes with 1 gallon of lube, enough for 2 fills, should last a while. Also comes with 2 8oz jars of cleaning solution to mix with water, enough for up to 70 guns. Might stretch to 100 if you are cheap!

[frankie_the_yankee]

You really got it for $299? That sounds pretty good. Brownell's has it for $399. It's also on eBAY for $399.

[rm9792]

You really got it for $299? That sounds pretty good. Brownell's has it for $399. It's also on eBAY for $399.

You are right, was 399.

[whohears]

i've been thinking about getting one of these for awhile. i guess I was a bit skeptical of how well it would work, considering the money...

thanks for posting up your experience. I'm putting one on my Christmas list.

[mdek]

I'm wondering what the possibility would be for buying one of those cheaper ultrasonic jewelry cleaning units and filling it with the same types of liquids that you use with the real thing. Assuming if the chamber was large enough to use, I'd imagine it would give the same results, minus the warm fuzzy feeling that the setup is being used as it was intended.

I may have to try this out at some point.

[AEA]

How do you think this would handle a 1911 frame with Real Ivory Grips on it?
Think it would hurt the grips in any way?

[mdek]

Does the HCS200 have any indication of wattage or the frequency in Hz?

[Renegade]

I have that unit too and it works well. I used to rarely clean my guns, now I almost always clean them after a shoot. I am very happy with it.

[frankie_the_yankee]

How do you think this would handle a 1911 frame with Real Ivory Grips on it?
Think it would hurt the grips in any way?

I would remove the grips before immersing the gun in the solution.

[rm9792]

How do you think this would handle a 1911 frame with Real Ivory Grips on it?
Think it would hurt the grips in any way?

Shouldnt, but I took all my grips off.

[propellerhead]

I heard good thing about ultrasonic cleaners. It breaks away stuff you don't even see. I took my XD9 to the gun shop for a $30 ultrasonic cleaning when it hit its 10,000 round mark.

[Rex B]

I have seen several references to people using the Harbor Freight ultrasonic units. They say the bigger/more expensive one at about $120 is the best deal, and it's heated.

I'd like to know what is in that 8-oz cleaning solution.

I figured on using Super clean aka purple cleaner.

for lube I dunno - ATF?

[NcongruNt]

I have seen several references to people using the Harbor Freight ultrasonic units. They say the bigger/more expensive one at about $120 is the best deal, and it's heated.

I'd like to know what is in that 8-oz cleaning solution.

I figured on using Super clean aka purple cleaner.

for lube I dunno - ATF?

I've used Simple Green soaking overnight for degreasing motor parts. I imagine it would work well in this kind of application.

[Rex B]

Don't use Purple Cleaner or Simple green on anything aluminum.

[Renegade]

How do you think this would handle a 1911 frame with Real Ivory Grips on it?
Think it would hurt the grips in any way?

I would remove the grips before immersing the gun in the solution.

+1

You are supposed to remove the grips for better cleaning.