Jump to content
Brian Enos's Forums... Maku mozo!

Gun Scrubber Vs Brake Clean


calhunter

Recommended Posts

OK Chemists, Is there any difference between Birchwood Casey's Gun Scrubber and CRC's Brake Clean? Other than about $6 a can. I've used both and can't tell the difference. I noticed that now the CRC is non-Clorinated, but I assume Gun Scrubber is. <_<

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yup, $0.99 brake cleaner has been a great time saver for me. Don't let to much of it get on your fiber optic front sight though.

Your right about the Hi Viz sights, I take them off now. They are only .99 I was concerned about the $3K gun underneath. I'll save the money, buys more shot! :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Gun Scrubber - Brake cleaner with some lube.

Brake Cleaner - Gun scrubber without lube.

Carb Cleaner - Very harsh. Have heard you should not use it on guns. Anything that takes paint off of a car could really screw up blueing.

I've used Brake Cleaner but not carb cleaner.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Brake cleaner is a degreaser.

Okay, you clean your gun and it's got all this solvent all over it. Spray it with brake cleaner ... or Gun Scrubber if you can afford it.

Then oil it up good. (Glock owners, feel free to feel superior ... I hear that Glocks don't need lubrication. I don't believe it, but you can go with whatever toots your horn.)

In cold weather, I prefer sewing machine or similar very light oil. In hot weather, synthetic motor oil is a good choice but anything that can handle high temperatures and isn't likely to break down will work. (I've seen guns that get so hot from a single stage that they're still too hot to comfortably hold on the next stage .. an hour later on the next stage.)

Gun Scrubber may do the job, but it won't do anything that Brake Cleaner won't do.

Your choice.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

We used to use carb cleaner all the time, in fact I've left my gun in the carb cleaning tank a few times in the good ole days. The only thing I've found different between Brake Cleaner and Gun Scrubber is that it's hard to get cold blue to take after using Brake Cleaner, with Gun Scrubber no problem. Doesn't make sense but that's what I've found.

Ross

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...

Mineral spirits in a squirt bottle beats them both...to the tune of about $6 a gallon. Not nearly the pressure to strictly blow the gunk off, but if you spray it, brush it with a tooth brush (not a lot even), and spray it again the mineral spirits will evaporate and your gun will be plenty clean. It is also not as harsh on plastic parts like gun scrubber. Oil it up good afterwards though.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is entirely hearsay, so take a grain of salt with it. However, one of my early shooting mentors happened to be a CS prof at GA Tech, and he told this story about Gun Scrubber. He got real curious how it could be worth $6 a can, if there was something special about it. So, he took a can to a friend of his who was a professor in the Chemistry department, and asked him to analyze the contents as a favor.... Long story short, the contents of the Gun Scrubber can apparently exactly match that of a can of BraKleen Brake Parts Cleaner.

That was probably 10 or 15 years ago that he did it, and contents may have changed in both products since then, but.....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It is kind of like Special Weapons and Tactics or Bomb Squad gear. You can take any product, paint it black, put some nylon straps or velcro on it, and charge three times as much. They do it because we will buy it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The only thing solvent-based cleaners will harm on most guns are fiber optic sights. Most grips, frames, and furniture are made of some form of nylon, which is incredibly chemically resistant. You'd have to soak your Glock in carb cleaner for a month to hurt nylon (not recommended). Everybody thinks plastic is plastic and that what melts polystyrene (which is damned near everything from gas to Oil of Olay) is also equally bad for your nylon Glock. This is not so.

In short, worry less, shoot more.

(By the way, Oil of Olay is so strong, that it is THE litmus test for testing plastics for chemical resistance.)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was in a gun store yesterday and Gunscrubber has a new formula that is suppose to not harm Synthetic stocks. $12 a CAN! Geat real. :angry: For that price I'll gladly take the stock off and use the $2 Brake Clean.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...