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Not only am I new to CHL (still waiting, actually), but I'm a new gun owner as well and consequently don't know a lot about proper maintenance. I clean my M&P every time I shoot, but I was wondering if it is recommended to clean it after carrying as well -- obviously not every day, but weekly? Monthly?

Also, if anyone has any cleaning & maintenance tips or links, they would be much appreciated. Thank you in advance!

I clean after every shooting session. If carried and not shot, about once a month I field strip and re-lubricate. Remember, a dirty gun will work if lubricated, a clean gun won't work if dry. You'll see and hear about what oils, greases, and cleaners are best. Use whatever you like I like Mobil1 motor oil and Lubraplate grease. I clean with Ed's Red or Hoppes.

I clean my glocks bi-annually regardless of round count.

Clean my SP101 after every range session.

After carrying, when I take off holster and what not every night I wipe the down with a lightly oiled rag to take are of any moisture. Lube everything about once a month for all guns.

I usually wipe down my pistols with a "cleaning cloth." I have several brands, such as Winchester, and each comes lightly lubricated in the package. Brings the metal on the pistol to a nice shine.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Winchester-99 ... h/14644725

I think I paid about 2-3 dollars for this one.

If I haven't been to the range in a while I will clean my M&P when I notice the lint building up. Usually about every other month. My wifes cousin, who is a detective, never fires his duty P229 and hates cleaning it. The lint on and in it is attrocious!!!

olafpfj wrote:My wifes cousin, who is a detective, never fires his duty P229 and hates cleaning it. The lint on and in it is attrocious!!!

Wow, I can't imagine letting my M&P get that bad. I'm a little bit of a neat freak when cleaning things, to the point that it probably takes me twice as long to clean something as it should -- guns included!

I kind of spot clean any gun I own anytime it gets very smudged or I see a bit of grime/dust starting to build up. I also am trying to make it a habit to shoot my concealed carry gun at least once a month (after all, I am new to concealed carrying so all of this is a new habit except keeping a clean gun) to stay familiar with it and clean it thoroughly afterwards. I don't think a gun should go without shooting long enough to need a field strip to get the dust bunnies out if you are going to carry it on a regular basis! That's just my view on it though.

guntotinpreacher wrote:I kind of spot clean any gun I own anytime it gets very smudged or I see a bit of grime/dust starting to build up.

That sounds like something I'm more likely to do, especially if I notice fingerprints or the like when unholstering for the evening. What do you use for your spot cleaning?

A cloth with a little bit of whatever gun oil I happen to have handy. Learned to do that to keep guns from rusting when being lugged through the woods out in the country, but it seems to work well with a concealed carry gun in the city too!

I remove the slide from my Glock and throw the rest of the gun in the dishwasher twice a year. Comes out nice and clean.

...a click when you were expecting a bang is a horrible noise...clean as necessary...

olafpfj wrote:If I haven't been to the range in a while I will clean my M&P when I notice the lint building up. Usually about every other month. My wifes cousin, who is a detective, never fires his duty P229 and hates cleaning it. The lint on and in it is attrocious!!!

If lint is accumulating on your pistol, you aren't shooting it enough.

The fix is: Go to the range, get it properly dirty, and then clean it.

jmra wrote:I remove the slide from my Glock and throw the rest of the gun in the dishwasher twice a year. Comes out nice and clean.

Wow, I never thought of that, but I guess it would probably do wonders for the little crevices on top where rags and brushes don't really reach. The only thing I think I would be worried about would be rust forming somewhere on the inside of the gun that I can't get to (e.g. the trigger mechanism) from leftover or trapped moisture. Do you stick it in there upside down to allow for any kind of natural drainage, or does it not really matter?

...top rack only...

I clean it if I get fish slime on it.
I kinda clean it if I go to the beach ... falling out of the kayak rinses it.

Important >> I change ammo after swimming (or falling off the kayak) with my Glock.



I clean it after shooting.
After "carry" ? About once a year I'll take a toothpick and some cotton swab Q-tips and get and odd looking substances off, but my holster pretty well keeps everything out, except when I was first breaking in a holster with Baby Powder, it got swabbed/toothpicked more often.