Ultra Sonic Pistol

[Mr Peabody]

If I take the grip panels off and magazine out of my Ruger MK111, will it get injured cleaning it in my Harbor Freight ultra sonic cleaner?

[ratboy]

my experience has shown me that if its steel its no problem. if it is aluminum it may alter the color of the finish a bit.
i clean a old army competition revolver in my tank and the grip frame is a lighter color now.
your mileage may vary.

[GhostHawk]

Your choice but IMO not needed.

5 minutes with an oily rag, a q-tip and a drop of ATF is all mine ever get. They run like clockwork.

[Ballistics in Scotland]

Agreed that any firearm of better than Chinese-puzzle construction can be well cleaned without one. Be careful with proprietary fluids for these cleaners. Hot ammonia may be acceptable for precious metals and stones, but not for some of the non-ferrous metals used in guns.

[LAGS]

My SS Ruger .357 got dropped in the mud one time.
I took the grips off and put it in the dishwasher.
It came out really clean.

[Mr Peabody]

Thanks Guys!

[Texas by God]

My SS Ruger .357 got dropped in the mud one time.
I took the grips off and put it in the dishwasher.
It came out really clean.
If the Missus ain't home I clean C&B revolvers this way haha.

[LAGS]

It was actually HER gun

[cheese1566]

I drop my lower half of my Ruger MK2 and bolt in the ultrasonic. No plastic or alum parts in it though. I do this once a year before indoor league starts.

I use the Hornady gun cleaning concentrate solution (not the brass cleaner). But I also use LR Ultrasonics oil in a seperate bath for a few minutes to prevent rust.

[AggieEE]

If you use household ammonia to clean copper fouling from a barrel make sure you have good ventilation as you will have ammonia gas coming off. L&R, and I'm sure other makers, gun cleaning solutions have a "quarntary(sp) ammonia compounds" meaning it acts like ammonia but doesn't out-gas. After rinsing, if you put the gun in a pot of boiling distilled water till hot then remove it will flash dry then you can oil. I do know that L&R oil will gum after some period of time, years?, because I've cleaned it off of some watch cleaners after years of use. Most water solvable oils are too thick for gun use.

Ultrasonics won't hurt plastic. Aluminum can have some surface etching depending on how good the anodizing is and the chemistry. There are cleaning chemicals made for cleaning aluminum and other white metals but I don't know how well they work. Highly polished aluminum will show surface damage before rough finishes.