doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com What a difference a good cleaning makes

I'm a believer:

From this.....




To this.....

Wow! Canvasback, that is an incredible change!

Here is a similar result. I don’t have a before photo but can tell you I thought all the colors on this old Sauer were gone. What a remarkable change a sonic cleaning made! Afterwards I used Formby’s satin tung oil to protect it. Incidentally, the workmanship in these side locks is incredible. Gun is from about 1895.

Once again, I just tossed the whole action into the sonic cleaner without disassembly and when finished washed it thoroughly under hot water and dried with a heat gun turned low. Kept it hot enough to be very uncomfortable to hold. I know a better cleaning could have been done with a complete disassembly but I didn’t want to risk marring the screw heads. Lightly oiled all visible moving parts.

Thanks, Joe, I just ordered one. Now to see if such glorious colors are hiding on any of my old girls.

Joe, what cleaning solution do you use in your ultrasonic ?

Lyman Turbo Sonic cleaning solutions for steel and gun parts. Rather expensive but I reuse the diluted solution. When finished I just put the fluid in a plastic container with a snap on lid. Sometimes I filter it through a coffee filter if there’s a lot of crud in it. Have never had to throw away the stuff and renew it. My bottle will probably last a lifetime (which ain’t saying much at my age).

You guys who guys who use these cleaners .......... do you think this one would give maximum cleaning effect? It appears to be pretty much the same unit as Joe's 2500, but with a stainless steel exterior.

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1064118839?pid=118839

Stan, I have one of those and like it a lot. Big enough to put two entire pistol frames or receivers in at one time. Does an excellent job. I use Simple Green Pro for a cleaner but follow the directions on the jug of cleaner for mixing.

Stanton, I think it would be great and would probably prefer it over my Lyman 2500 simply because of its larger capacity. I’d expect both to clean equally well.

Thanks, both. That's my next gunshop purchase.

I agree with Stan. And knowing what we have learned about ultrasonic cleaning bringing out hidden case colors, I won't be using steel wool or Frontier pads on actions and locks until I am certain that there are no case colors to remove or degrade.

As far as the thought that steel wool is softer than case hardening, so it cannot damage that hardened surface, consider this... high speed steel taps and drill bits become dull when used enough on mild steel.