Clean Glock, greater accuracy?

[IGOTGLOCKED]

I hear guys @ my lgs and at the range always bragging about how long it's been since they cleaned their Glocks. Although I understand when one pulls the trigger on a Glock it it will go bang, I have always been taught to take care of what one has. I do and always have however my question is how much is accuracy affected..? I know it does with a rifle, right?

 

Thanks in advance from IGG!

[IGOTGLOCKED]

1 minute ago, IGOTGLOCKED said:

I hear guys @ my lgs and at the range always bragging about how long it's been since they cleaned their Glocks. Although I understand when one pulls the trigger on a Glock it it will go bang, I have always been taught to take care of what one has. I do and always have however my question is how much is accuracy affected..? I know it does with a rifle, right?

 

Thanks in advance from IGG!

Apologies, wrong forum... How to I fix this?

[MemphisMechanic]

You’ll find that most of us don’t clean our guns very much. We used to before we got into USPSA, but shooting and practicing multiple times a week fixes that fairly quickly.

 

I’ve gone over 5,000 rounds with every gun I own except my Tanfoglio, and that’s only because I sold it first.

[SlvrDragon50]

I think you also need to realize that accuracy for USPSA purposes is not really that high with shots rarely going past 25 yards (if that). Also, there is one bulls eye competitor who shoots a CZ and pretty much never cleans his gun, and he still gets incredible scores.

[9x45]

15,000 rounds and almost ready to clean....  clean the bore after every match and oil it, but the rest of the grim just goes along for the ride...

 

 

 

[IGOTGLOCKED]

18 hours ago, MemphisMechanic said:

You’ll find that most of us don’t clean our guns very much. We used to before we got into USPSA, but shooting and practicing multiple times a week fixes that fairly quickly.

 

I’ve gone over 5,000 rounds with every gun I own except my Tanfoglio, and that’s only because I sold it first.

This goes with what I am hearing, thanks Memphis

[IGOTGLOCKED]

17 hours ago, SlvrDragon50 said:

I think you also need to realize that accuracy for USPSA purposes is not really that high with shots rarely going past 25 yards (if that). Also, there is one bulls eye competitor who shoots a CZ and pretty much never cleans his gun, and he still gets incredible scores.

Great point!

[IGOTGLOCKED]

3 hours ago, 9x45 said:

15,000 rounds and almost ready to clean....  clean the bore after every match and oil it, but the rest of the grim just goes along for the ride...

 

 

 

Not what I would have expected at that round count!

[fbzero]

For these sports, I doubt any minor degradation in accuracy would be noticed.  I've actually seen one of the bigger barrel manufacturers state not to clean their barrels, and to just shoot a couple FMJ's at the end of a range session to clear out anything left behind by shooting coated bullets.  Their take seemed to be that the chemicals would be more likely to harm the accuracy than what was being cleaned out.  I clean mine maybe every 5-6 matches though and it stays plenty accurate.  When I was just testing out the waters, I cleaned after every match.  That said, once you start doing 3-4+ matches a month, you realize quickly how much time you are spending cleaning guns over and over for very little to no measurable benefit...

Edited November 13, 2017 by fbzero

[lefty o]

6 hours ago, 9x45 said:

15,000 rounds and almost ready to clean....  clean the bore after every match and oil it, but the rest of the grim just goes along for the ride...

 

 

 

dang, run your cars 20,000 miles between oil changes too?  generally in an accurate rifle, a clean or fairly clean bore will give best accuracy, in a pistol unless your a super shooter i dont think youd ever notice the difference. my personal belief is, too long between cleanings just lets crud accumulate that can potentially cause more wear. i odnt mind skipping a few cleanings after shooting, but id feel guilty letting them get that bad. as with just about anything, you have to find what is acceptable to you.

[B_RAD]

I clean my guns fairly regularly. Probably around 500-800 rnds.  I think a clean Glock will have a better trigger pull and a less fowled barrel. So, I think they'll be more accurate.

 

Every once and a while I'll try to see how long I can go without cleaning but it didn't last long. I was on about 2k rounds with my accushadow and it started to hang up and not go to battery so I cleaned it.  I wonder though, if that wasn't do to me using a different lube?  Enos' slide glide.  

 

But for Glocks I definitely think you'll get a cleaner trigger pull with a clean gun. 

[9x45]

Lefty,  remember what I said, all that crud just goes along for the ride, it doesn't interfere with anything. As long as wear points are lubed, it's good to go. 

 

I wouldn't run a FMJ round the the barrel after a few hundred coated bullets, it will just increase the pressure, same as if they were cast lead. 

 

 

 

[Pasley]

I clean my Glock once a month, right before the first of two monthly matches.  Sometimes a fairly detailed cleaning and sometimes just a quick wipe.  I generally shoot about a thousand rounds per month, matches and practice.  It's just a part of getting ready for the match for me.  I have no interest in seeing how long it can go between cleanings and sure don't want to find out during a match.

 

I very rarely clean the bore and whenever I do I think that was a big waste of effort since nothing much comes out.  I only shoot plated and jhp.

[lefty o]

1 hour ago, 9x45 said:

Lefty,  remember what I said, all that crud just goes along for the ride, it doesn't interfere with anything. As long as wear points are lubed, it's good to go. 

 

I wouldn't run a FMJ round the the barrel after a few hundred coated bullets, it will just increase the pressure, same as if they were cast lead. 

 

 

 

your gun, your choice. even though most of it may be just along for a ride, that crud isnt necessarily staying in one spot during firing.

[9x45]

Maybe, but it's only worked for over 240,000 rounds so far,,,,

[lefty o]

keep on rockin'!

[191138sc]

On ‎11‎/‎13‎/‎2017 at 2:16 PM, fbzero said:

I've actually seen one of the bigger barrel manufacturers state not to clean their barrels, and to just shoot a couple FMJ's at the end of a range session to clear out anything left behind by shooting coated bullets

+1 Have over 45000 rounds thru my Trubor barrel and never have cleaned. Have run JHP exclusively since the beginning. Rest of the gun gets cleaned after 5000 rounds and complete tear down once per year. YMMV.

[T-Free]

Nothing beats the feeling of showing up on match day with a super clean, lubed up, smooth cycling gun. I would kick myself if i had a dirty gun related issue costing me valuable seconds to resolve during a match. If i dont have time to fully clean it even a quick 10 minute wipe down and re lube makes me feel so much better. Accuracy wise i dont really notice any group size difference from the first 10 rounds on up to 500 on a stock glock barrel. I never go past 500 rounds without cleaning the barrel since i shoot coated lead. Never had a leading issue with coated lead but just like to keep it clean.

[rowdyb]

Coming from a different machine related competitive background (mnt bike racing) I just can't let a gun go that long without being cleaned that I use in competition. I clean my gun every 1k rounds at the most. And they are definitely spotless come match morning.

[IGOTGLOCKED]

On 11/13/2017 at 3:16 PM, fbzero said:

For these sports, I doubt any minor degradation in accuracy would be noticed.  I've actually seen one of the bigger barrel manufacturers state not to clean their barrels, and to just shoot a couple FMJ's at the end of a range session to clear out anything left behind by shooting coated bullets.  Their take seemed to be that the chemicals would be more likely to harm the accuracy than what was being cleaned out.  I clean mine maybe every 5-6 matches though and it stays plenty accurate.  When I was just testing out the waters, I cleaned after every match.  That said, once you start doing 3-4+ matches a month, you realize quickly how much time you are spending cleaning guns over and over for very little to no measurable benefit...

Shooting more rounds through a dirty barrel to clean it, really..? 

[IGOTGLOCKED]

On 11/14/2017 at 9:51 AM, 9x45 said:

Lefty,  remember what I said, all that crud just goes along for the ride, it doesn't interfere with anything. As long as wear points are lubed, it's good to go. 

 

I wouldn't run a FMJ round the the barrel after a few hundred coated bullets, it will just increase the pressure, same as if they were cast lead. 

 

 

 

Agreed, what ^ he said. That just intuitively does not make sense...

[9x45]

Yea, I know, but really the crud is just there, not interfering with anything... I don't trust clean Glocks. But then that is based on my experience of running over 430,000 rounds downrange thru various Glocks since 1992, and all reloads.

[fbzero]

13 hours ago, IGOTGLOCKED said:

Shooting more rounds through a dirty barrel to clean it, really..? 

 

Scoff if you want, I'm just passing on information I have read, which relates specifically to 416SS, but perhaps to other materials used as well (not 100% sure).  Clearly I don't follow that, since I actually do clean mine after every 5-6 matches.  That said, I'm not going to pretend that I know more than the sources of that information.

 

The video I was referring to: 

The article Adam is referring to: http://www.schuemann.com/Portals/0/Documentation/Webfile_Barrel_Cleaning.pdf

[tattooo]

There are many people out there that barely clean a firearm without issues but basic knowledge is that clean from debris moving parts will operate smoother with less wear and tear and less fouling will be more accurate even if it is marginal. I know we are referring to Glock's and accuracy loss may be minimal, and I understand they are not precision rifles but do those go thousands of rounds without being cleaned ? Same principle. I always take care of anything I have to make it last but that is just me and to each his own.