How often do you completely disassemble of your BP revolvers?

[DCP]

How often do you completely disassemble of your BP revolvers?

or

When do you completely disassemble of your BP revolvers?

[Vann]

I do a complete tear down on my stainless Ruger Vaqueros once a year, when I use BP in them. I pull the grips and trigger guards off on my 58 Remington's when ever I finish shooting them. On my 51 Navies I clean them the best I can with out taking them completely apart, and after a year of use I'll tear them down and oil them up real good in the back strap area and under the trigger guard.

I used to use Ox yoke wonder lube and pack the internals on all of my BP guns, now I just use ballistol.

[Maven]

I have both Ruger (stainless) and Euroarms Rem. New Army (blued) revolvers, but Ruger cautions that full disassembly isn't normally required: I've followed their advice. OTOH, I've fully disassembled the Euroarms revolver no more than 3 times since I purchased it in 1978 or -79. Both function perfectly with no rust anywhere on the Euroarms.

Btw, I do remove, clean, and grease the threads of the nipples of both pistols after each range session.

[Beagle333]

I do a full disassembly of my cap-n-balls about every 4th shooting. More if I know that some caps or fragments fell down in the transmission, but usually every 4th session.

[bigted]

im in the Maven camp ... I do not pull em clear apart usually till I need to pull em apart for some other reason. my cleaning regimen is pretty good and fast and ends with oil drippin from all orifice's.

when I do pull the internals apart I find a rather oily ... dark ... slight ... bit of gunk that is hurting nothing and just wipes it all off everything and reassemble and go on with my bus.

'rem oil' in a spray can as well as the 'outers gun oil' is a wonderful thing and may not be traditional but it sure works. I do not even use hot water to clean ... just spritz with my water/ballistol mix [7to1] and go about toothbrushin it all off and clean the chambers/bore with the same and let the pressurized oil fly into all nooks and cranny's till she just drips ... wipe her down and wait till I get to go shooting again. never any rust or a hint of it.

[Texantothecore]

My Navys, after cleaning with Windex and copious amounts of water, are dried and when put back into the pistol case are dripping oil. I have to fire off six caps to blow out the oil otherwise they misfire because of oil soaked bp.

I used to break them down but found not much to clean out. If anything does get in there it gets soaked in oil.

[Petrol & Powder]

I try not to tear my Remington copy all the way down often.
I clean the barrel, cylinder and the frame very well after shooting it and never have a problem. I only shoot BP in cap & ball revolvers and I'm a fan of Windex and hot water followed by liberal amounts of RIG when it's dry. I confine the hot water to the barrel and never put the gun away dirty or wet. Never had a problem and there isn't a speck of rust anywhere.
I don't think it's a good practice to pull screws in and out every time you play with a gun but I will pull it all the way down if it's exceptionally dirty and I know it will be stored for a long time.

[Battis]

I completely tear down and clean my BP handguns after each shooting session, within a day usually. I mean every screw, nipple, part, every crevice and corner, etc. I soak each part in hot soapy water, and rinse with cold water. I do not use any petroleum produces because they attract dirt and ****. I use toothbrushes and pipe cleaners. Why? Why not. BP is very corrosive. I know my guns inside and out, literally. I know (for example) when a cap fragment is blocking the action. Anal? Naw. Thorough. Plus, I enjoy doing it. I've bought too many used guns over the years that were neglected by previous owners, and were a mess inside. It's not everyone's technique but it works for me.

[Texantothecore]

I've have considered removing the grips, taking down the revolver into three parts and cleaning the gun for a while in a sonic cleaner but it is a bit too high tech for the gun. Sort of a turnoff.

I take it apart when I have the time.

[Texantothecore]

Important!!!

When you reassemble the pistol, Loc-Tite is your dearest friend.

[bigted]

I've have considered removing the grips, taking down the revolver into three parts and cleaning the gun for a while in a sonic cleaner but it is a bit too high tech for the gun. Sort of a turnoff.

I take it apart when I have the time.

Tex ... be very careful with the sonic cleaner and the blackpowder revolvers ... here is why I state this;

I purchased a second gen 1862 5 shot police brand new and so very Colt shiny. I also got the idea to do the sonic clean on the barrel and cylinder so I hosed it off then broke it down and put it in the sonic cleaner for 15 minutes.

as I pulled the dripping trey out of the solution I nearly choked in disbelief ... most of the shiny Colt finish had become a mottled mess and tho it were clean ... as in sparkling ... I completely ruined the finish on my 1862 prize. she shoots like a dream but now it more resembles a mottled mating of blue and bare metal.

so caution is in order in the sonic cleaner bus.

[Texantothecore]

Tex ... be very careful with the sonic cleaner and the blackpowder revolvers ... here is why I state this;

I purchased a second gen 1862 5 shot police brand new and so very Colt shiny. I also got the idea to do the sonic clean on the barrel and cylinder so I hosed it off then broke it down and put it in the sonic cleaner for 15 minutes.

as I pulled the dripping trey out of the solution I nearly choked in disbelief ... most of the shiny Colt finish had become a mottled mess and tho it were clean ... as in sparkling ... I completely ruined the finish on my 1862 prize. she shoots like a dream but now it more resembles a mottled mating of blue and bare metal.

so caution is in order in the sonic cleaner bus.

Thanks for the heads up on the finish. I wonder what did the damage to that finish, it would have to be very reactive to do much of anything remotely like you described.

[Mk42gunner]

I've had nine or ten Cap and Ball revolvers ranging from an Armi San Marco Walker to an 1861 Navy (Pietta). All Colts, mostly Navies, and I don't think I have ever taken one down completely.

When I was shooting them a lot, I would occasionally take the grips, back strap and trigger guard off, to flush out the insides. They usually looked good, so I figured I didn't have to take everything apart until something broke. Nothing ever broke, so......

Now watch, the next time I shoot one of them every single piece will break.

Robert

[snapshot]

After every time I shoot them

[doc1876]

I completely tear down and clean my BP handguns after each shooting session, within a day usually. I mean every screw, nipple, part, every crevice and corner, etc. I soak each part in hot soapy water, and rinse with cold water. I do not use any petroleum produces because they attract dirt and ****. I use toothbrushes and pipe cleaners. Why? Why not. BP is very corrosive. I know my guns inside and out, literally. I know (for example) when a cap fragment is blocking the action. Anal? Naw. Thorough. Plus, I enjoy doing it. I've bought too many used guns over the years that were neglected by previous owners, and were a mess inside. It's not everyone's technique but it works for me.



what he said, and then when I put it back together, i use only a good grease, no oils. I coat everything including the screw threads. (I would have never considered lock tight except on one screw on a peacemaker) I have at least 4 pistols that are over 40 years old, and no rust or even staining.
the same goes for my long guns, including the lock.

[Vann]

Seems like every time I took out the screw that holds the cylinder stop/trigger spring in. The spring would break shortly after. After changing those from flat springs to wire springs, I haven't had a problem. I still keep spare hammer and hand springs on hand.

[Omnivore]

I take mine all the way down about every two or three times out with it. I used to do it every time, but then others said they only did it rarely, so I started decreasing the interval. Besides; I grease up the internals so much that there isn't powder fouling in the lockwork. Instead there's a ton of wet grease with some fouling mized in. It's never been a problem. If you look inside my guns, you will find no corrosion. Other than wear surfaces that have taken on a bit of a polished look over the years, they look new in there.

To say that you do not use "petrolium products" on the lockwork because "they attract dirt and ****" is a bit bizzare. The reason we're not supposed to use petro products is that they can react with the fouling, making it harder to remove. "Attracting dirt" has nothing to do with anything here, unless you're dragging your gun through the dust.

When you fire it, the gun will get covered inside and out with powder and cap fouling, and you want something in there to keep it soft, and to guard against corrosion, but mainly to keep the fouling soft. If you use enough grease or oil to keep the fouling soft, then the corrosion issue is taken care of already. THAT is the issue there; keeping the fouling soft so the gun keeps operating and also for easy, just-wipe-it-off cleaning. I've used Ballistol or Bore Butter with equally good results, also using lube cookies in the loads to keep the bore and cylinder arbor fouling soft (see a pattern here?). I really goop it up in there, so the fouling just wipes off with the goo. Works for me. There's no reason to make a puzzle out of it. Any sort of grease or oil that doesn't turn hard will do the same thing. Everyone has their favorite, but in fact it's not important.

With proper fouling mitigation, you can shoot all day with no additional lube or cleaning (VERY much in contrast to what some people say). Then wipe the bore, rinse out the chambers, wipe off the outside, re-oil it and put it away. I do use Q-tips to get around the hammer channel and whatnot, but only take all the lockwork out once in a while assaid above. Same goes for the nipples; they don't come out every time either.

The test for your bore fouling mitigation is;
Run one, tight-fitting, dry patch through the bore, one direction, one time, after your shooting session. The bore should now appear clean for the most part. If not, it means you're getting fouling accumulation while shooting, and that should not happen. Your 100th shot should leave the bore the same as it was after the first shot. If not, use more lube in the load.

[Battis]

I thought this was an opinion posting, not a method critique.
I said I don't use petroleum products on the innards, but I do use Bore Butter internally and sometimes PAM as a barrel lube. OK, I said petroleum products attract dirt and carap - how about just dirty carap, which still has everything to do with what I'm talking about.
Not using petroleum products (for whatever reason) is bizarre? Not really. I suppose I could use them, but what I do now works very well for me. It ain't broke, so I won't fix it.

[heelerau]

Mate, I only strip my cap and balls when I have had a problem, or have found a cap that has gone down into the gun. Good cones help a lot in not having fragments go ever where. My Remington is the best for not jamming, my Dragoon is next. The Navy is a bit finicky. I have last night just put new cones on that pistol and will be off this morning to the range, hopefully no jams today. I also leave a lot of grease inside which inhibits the progress of cap fragments into the innards.

[Nobade]

I strip 'em down completely every few years if I get bored. Otherwise, it's clean the outside barrel and cylinder, and flood the innards with spray Ballistol. That keeps the fouling wet so it doesn't rust or cause problems. When I do strip one down any fouling on the inside just wipes off and everything looks new again.

-Nobade

[Fly]

Gosh I hate tearing my guns all the way down often. The reason in wearing out the screws
& threads out. If you do have a bunch of extras on hand. Gun screws are very soft metal.

I do spray ballistol down in the internals. I clean barrel, cylinder,frame & hammer as best I can
the spray down inside with ballistol. Just the way I have done it for years.

Fly:coffeecom

[Hankster1962]

I do same as Battis does as well. I own three cap and balls, 2 are Remingtons (Piettas), and an 1851 colt Gregorelli-Uberti). I do not shoot them unless I know I could put time aside for cleaning. And when I say cleaning, I mean I strip them down to the last screw, and wash them all in hot soapy water, then Ballistol, then re-assemble. Probably overkill, but what the heck. I shoot only lead balls and triple "F". All three guns are pristine, and look new. The 1851 was manufactured sometime in mid fifties. Just remember to use the right gunsmith screwdrivers, and never over tighten the screws. I have been at the cap and ball revolver game for many years. This practice has never failed me. Good shooting.