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Posted: 12/31/2014 2:55:12 PM EDT
| What's the chemical in brake cleaner that you don't want to use? |
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Brake cleaner is an excellent - and aggressive - degreasing agent. It dries fast without noticeable residue, too. It's NOT a "regular rifle cleaning process" agent, and even the non-chlorinated stuff ain't good for plastics. Most of the plastics in an AR are pretty tough, but it's a good idea to avoid contact with brake cleaner on anything that's plastic. The stuff can even eat various kinds of protective gloves, so don't expect those fancy nitrile gloves to keep your skin protected.
If you pay attention to the TM's instructions, brake cleaner is essentially going to do the same job as dry cleaning fluid - which is not something you and I can get anymore, since it's a CFC that eats ozone and kills puppies*. The purpose is to completely strip lubricants off of metal parts, for some very specific procedures. For the most part, while I still have a can of non-chlorinated brake cleaner stashed away, I degrease with Slip 2000's 725 Gun Cleaner, which is a water based degreaser that works VERY well. You MUST apply protective coatings to anything you clean with 725, because it takes everything off. *Dry cleaning fluid will only kill puppies if you throw them into the fluid. It is, however, a very nasty chemical that really is very bad for the atmosphere, your lungs, your skin, and especially your eyes. There's evidence that exposure also can increase one's risk of developing Parkinson's Disease NINEFOLD. That's bad. |
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