Frequent detail stripping of a 2011

[Pro2AInPA]

Quick question. I know that's it's not necessary to detail a strip a 1911/2011 all that often. But, let's say someone wants to detail strip the gun and totally clean it every time they shoot it. Are there any problems this could cause?

[smokshwn]

Nothing other than wasting your time and the increased possibility of damaging parts in assembly/disassembly.

The real question is what purpose does it serve?

[Pro2AInPA]

Nothing other than wasting your time and the increased possibility of damaging parts in assembly/disassembly.

The real question is what purpose does it serve?

Putting the caveat that I realize it's not necessary was intended to prevent this very side discussion. I'm a bit anal retentive about my tools being clean. Guns are tools.

[Jaxshooter]

Nothing other than the possibility of breaking or damaging parts. I would not remove the grip any more often than I had to, it is not hard to crack them.

[Pro2AInPA]

Nothing other than the possibility of breaking or damaging parts. I would not remove the grip any more often than I had to, it is not hard to crack them.

Yeah, the grip comes off very infrequently. Especially since I have an unobtanium polymer SV grip on the gun.

Edited May 6, 2011 by Pro2AInPA

[smokshwn]

Nothing other than wasting your time and the increased possibility of damaging parts in assembly/disassembly.

The real question is what purpose does it serve?

Putting the caveat that I realize it's not necessary was intended to prevent this very side discussion. I'm a bit anal retentive about my tools being clean. Guns are tools.

I apologize, I have a difficult time guessing intentions. But to be pedantic. Guns are tools, primarily they are meant to work, it they are damaged by cleaning they have lost their function and are no longer tools but useless objects.

[Pro2AInPA]

Nothing other than wasting your time and the increased possibility of damaging parts in assembly/disassembly.

The real question is what purpose does it serve?

Putting the caveat that I realize it's not necessary was intended to prevent this very side discussion. I'm a bit anal retentive about my tools being clean. Guns are tools.

I apologize, I have a difficult time guessing intentions. But to be pedantic. Guns are tools, primarily they are meant to work, it they are damaged by cleaning they have lost their function and are no longer tools but useless objects.

Very good point, sir. What type of damage would be likely to occur and to which parts?

[G-ManBart]

If you're not taking the grip off, you're not detail stripping it.

Every time you mess with the sear spring, you risk tweaking it, and lots of folks don't have the ability to set them back to the way they were. Far better than taking the lower half of the gun apart is using one of the polymer safe spray cleaners (like carb cleaner)....blast it in there, and 99.9% of the gunk comes out. I've seen a lot of guns fail on the first stage after they were detail stripped the night before...just sayin'.

[Pro-Pain]

Another danger area can be the mag release button, these threads can be small and tight, repetitive on and off can loosen them up, and if you drop a button it's a PITA to find it, or have to replace it if you don't have a spare.

Sear spring is another one, especially if you don't line it up just right when you but the backstrap back on (ask me how I know).

If you're worried about the finish, it will wear faster in "tool" areas, around the bushing, where you pound in pins, if you use a screwdriver for the safeties, etc. all can get worn/scratched with breakdown/assembly.

You can get good at break down/assembly. When you get really good, post a Youtube video and see if someone can do it faster

[old506]

I just did a detail strip after bout 5k. I don't think that it really needed to be done in the first place but it had been about a year. The first time back to the range everything felt smoother. Not sure if it was real or imaginative but at least it felt better.

The problem I have is that I do it so infrequently that I forget how to do it and then am searching the internet to find out exactly how. I am in the "if it breaks or if I tweak something I am screwed" boat, I don't know how to adjust anything on the pistol so I try to do it infrequently.

[smokshwn]

Very good point, sir. What type of damage would be likely to occur and to which parts?

Sorry, didn't see this. But much like Gman states. Trigger bows get bent, sear springs get changed, fire control components can be damage, pretravel tabs get bent, and the screws holding the grip in place shoot loose easily if they are not loctited at all times, which is a whole PITA if you are unscrewing them each time.

In many cases we are our own worst enemies. The more you play with something the higher the likelihood we screw it up.

Almost any custom rifle barrel manufacturer will tell you that they see far more barrels damaged/worn due to cleaning than they ever do from excessive shooting.....there is a lesson there.

[jjanglin]

Bad thing about spraying into an assebled gun is pushing grud down into the main spring housing and getting a junk of

stuff built up , this can cause all kinds of problems i.e ruining sear and hammer mateing surfaces, failure to fire

and lock up the gun by putting way to much pressure on the hammer and gauling the slide.

Doesnt hurt nothing to take the gun apart and clean it, just be careful and lube the parts a little so they will slip back in place,

I just sent a gun back to one of my customers that had so much junk in the trigger gruop, I had to scrap it out.

Some powders will mulsify with the brake cleaner/carb cleaner being spray down in a gun.Its ok if ya have the parts in your had

and blow them off, just dont leave it in your gun.

Mineral spirits in a spray bottle that can be charged up so you have some steady pressure is the best stuff to use to clean

a firearm.

Jikm/Pa

Sailors

[latech15]

I take my guns apart completely every two months or so. I am getting better about it, but I still clean them way too much. I do know how to get it back together, and know (for the most part) how to do it without screwing things up. There are plenty of places where you can screw up the finish if you aren't careful when disassembling/reassembling the gun though. My revolvers get thoroughly cleaned every time I shoot them. Just the outside, I don't mess around under the hood on a revo.

My glocks, every time, just because it is so easy.

I tend to clean them thoroughly if I have a big match coming up and will be doing a lot of dryfire practice. I typically do that all over the house and I don't want to get all the furniture dirty if I practice a table start on the bed or couch. However, once I have thoroughly cleaned a gun, I like to put at least 100 rounds through it before a big match just to be sure everything got put back in the right place.

[TMC]

Have you guys really bent or broken parts taking your guns apart? If you have maybe you should stop. I can't see how you can bend the sear spring or trigger bow? When I remove the mainspring housing the sear spring falls right out, when I push the hammer and sear pins out the hammer, sear and disconnector fall out. With the grip off the trigger falls out. If you need to put pressure on these parts to get them out you've got real problems.

I don't see any problem detail stripping a 2011. I can't count the number of times mine have been apart not counting building them where some small parts went in an out dozens of times while fitting them.

[Chris Keen]

Same here. I clean my guns practically every time I shoot them. If I shoot more than 50 rounds through them, they get detail cleaned. I never take the grip off, as I jusst don't want to dink with re-LocTiteing the grip screws everytime. But everything else comes out. Hammer, sear, sear spring, disco, msh, extractor, firing pin, etc. They all get cleaned and promptly get reinstalled. I dont worry about shooting 100 rounds thru them after cleaning. If the hammer falls when it's supposed to, and the trigger pull still measures what it should, then I'm fine with driving / flying all the way to a match and shooting it as is. I know alot of people think a dirty gun changes POA or POI from a clean gun, but I've never found any reason to believe that.

I just like a clean gun before I shoot, and that goes for practice, as well as club matches, and major matches too.

[latech15]

Chris, I subscribe to your YouTube channel. Whatever you do, keep doing it. It works.

[smokshwn]

No I haven't broken anything, but the question was asked if there was any downside. Although maybe less than common, why increase the chance by detail stripping every 2-300 rds when it is routinely trouble free to go a few thousand without any issues.

[sperman]

When I clean my guns, they come all of the way down. This includes my CZ as well as my 1911's. I don't clean my guns every time I shoot them, but if I'm going to take the time to clean them, I'm going to do it right. IMO, cleaning the top end is only half of the job.

[blue edge]

In the end! Its yours,I guess you can play with it and clean it as long as you want.

[bbbean]

Quick question. I know that's it's not necessary to detail a strip a 1911/2011 all that often. But, let's say someone wants to detail strip the gun and totally clean it every time they shoot it. Are there any problems this could cause?

Hairy palms.

[benny hill]

I strip my guns down everytime I shoot them. If anything happens, I know a great gunsmith.

[Aircooled6racer]

Hello: The parts that may get worked are the grips screws and sear spring. I clean the top end after every match or practice. I detail clean it after 5-10 outings. So that is about 1000-1500 rounds. I check the C-More mount screws every time now Thanks, Eric

[pjb45]

The only time I take my grip off my frame is after I have shot a lot of .22 with my TS conversion unit.

Other than that, I take mine down frequently to really clean them. By frequently, I do not mean after every match but at least every other month,especially if I am putting a lot of rounds down range. And most definitely before big matches; Nationals, A2, etc.

I use nano 386 on the metal parts after they have been cleaned, rinsed in acetone and dried. I use Blue Magic Gun Lube- really expensive stuff on my sear, hammers, disconnector, trigger bow, rails and barrel.

I also use VV320 which for me is a very clean powder.

I too do not like letting my guns get so dirty, the slide slows down.

I think Bob L. wrote an aricle about cleaning; he used soap and water on the rails, etc, then oil/lube appropriately-after each shooting session.

[want2race]

The small screws at the front of the trigger guard can strip out, not the threads but the head. They are not very strong.

When I disassemble the small parts (hammer, sear, disco) the sear spring falls out with the rest of the parts. No worries about that bending. I don't pull the main spring out very often, but the hole for the main spring cap retaining pin can be problematic if care is not taken during diss/reassembly.

[Pro2AInPA]

The small screws at the front of the trigger guard can strip out, not the threads but the head. They are not very strong.

When I disassemble the small parts (hammer, sear, disco) the sear spring falls out with the rest of the parts. No worries about that bending. I don't pull the main spring out very often, but the hole for the main spring cap retaining pin can be problematic if care is not taken during diss/reassembly.

I have about 5 sets of complete replacement grip screws(the small trigger guard screws and the grip screws and bushings) just in case I strip any out.