Posted: 10/1/2010 8:49:19 AM EDT
|
Howdy! I love my S&W 640 - easy to carry and conceal, and quite reliable. One thing I don't like is cleaning it. This is the first revolver I've ever owned. I shot it last Friday, and cleaned it the same night, but the barrel side of the cylinder has residue that I simply cannot get off with what I'm using - a brush and solvent. I even tried solvent and some very fine steel wool. I know that it is nigh on impossible to make that area of the cylinder look "new" but I at least want to be able to get off the black. What cleaning solution and techniques would work? Also, this thing has a propensity to rust even with my oiling it once a week - specifically on the grip screw and site - the rest is stainless steel. I've not had that problem with my other carry guns - all semi-autos. What type of oil or grease should I be using? |
|
DO NOT use steel wool on a stainless or aluminum gun.
The steel wool particles will embed in the metal and will rust, ruining the metal. To remove the carbon, buy a "lead-away" type cloth at a gun store. These are heavy cloths that remove carbon and leading by simply wiping the area. DO NOT use on a blued or aluminum gun, the cloth also wipes bluing or aluminum coatings right off. For rusting sights and screws about all you can do is keep a thin coat of a good rust preventing lubricant like CLP Breakfree or wax on them. CLP is a very good rust preventer, but you have to make sure to keep a coat on it. I often use a clean toothbrush with a drop or two of CLP to quickly brush the areas to keep the coating intact. Another method is to use a wax like Johnson's Paste Wax or Renaissance Hard Carnuba on the areas. Simply use a toothbrush or cloth to apply a thin coat, and don't wipe it off. Don't use auto wax. These dry white, and often contain abrasives to polish paint. These can strip the bluing off. |
|
Quoted: DO NOT use steel wool on a stainless or aluminum gun. The steel wool particles will embed in the metal and will rust, ruining the metal. To remove the carbon, buy a "lead-away" type cloth at a gun store. These are heavy cloths that remove carbon and leading by simply wiping the area. DO NOT use on a blued or aluminum gun, the cloth also wipes bluing or aluminum coatings right off. For rusting sights and screws about all you can do is keep a thin coat of a good rust preventing lubricant like CLP Breakfree or wax on them. CLP is a very good rust preventer, but you have to make sure to keep a coat on it. I often use a clean toothbrush with a drop or two of CLP to quickly brush the areas to keep the coating intact. Another method is to use a wax like Johnson's Paste Wax or Renaissance Hard Carnuba on the areas. Simply use a toothbrush or cloth to apply a thin coat, and don't wipe it off. Don't use auto wax. These dry white, and often contain abrasives to polish paint. These can strip the bluing off. Good advice. Most of the carbon left on the cylinder after scrubbing is generally cosmetic, and won't affect functioning. A lead-away cloth will make short work of it, if it bothers you. DO NOT USE on blued guns!!! |
|
Quoted: For those of us who don't care too much about the aesthetics, is there any drawback to there being discoloration on the barrel side of the cylinder, so long as it's wiped down and cleaned up so no crud gets between the cylinder & forcing cone? No, unless there is a severe build up, it doesn't hurt a thing. |
| The carbon is staining the metal. I know, that sounds kind of stupid, but it's basically what's happening. Carbon is getting in the pores of the metal and nothing short of lots of soaking, or actually removal of metal will get it out. Wipe off what you can and just ignore the rest. |
|
The Lead Away cloth worked fantastically!!! It worked so well that the face of the cylinder looks, honestly, new - save for a small portion against the rod in the middle (is that the extractor?). How hard is it to remove the cylinder so I have access to clean that area? Thanks for the advice! |
|
Quoted: The Lead Away cloth worked fantastically!!! It worked so well that the face of the cylinder looks, honestly, new - save for a small portion against the rod in the middle (is that the extractor?). How hard is it to remove the cylinder so I have access to clean that area? Thanks for the advice! My 686 has a small screw on the right side, below the cylinder that can easily be removed in order to take the crane and cylinder out for cleaning. Use the proper sized screwdriver. I remove the cylinder each time I clean her up. BTW- does anyone have any hints as to how to clean the area of the frame above the forcing cone. I haven't figured that one out yet. |
|
Quoted:
BTW- does anyone have any hints as to how to clean the area of the frame above the forcing cone. I haven't figured that one out yet. Flitz on a Q-tip if you really want to be anal about getting it clean. 
Or a tooth brush with Flitz. Or also a pencil eraser will work as far as you can get it in there. |
|
Quoted:
Quoted:
BTW- does anyone have any hints as to how to clean the area of the frame above the forcing cone. I haven't figured that one out yet. Flitz on a Q-tip if you really want to be anal about getting it clean.
Or a tooth brush with Flitz. Or also a pencil eraser will work as far as you can get it in there. I use a dental pick...it gets in and cleans out the crud above the forcing cone. Then I use a q tip with some Rem oil or Mobil 1 to wipe it clean. |
|
Last weekend I took a few revolvers out to the range and decided to give all the stainless ones a one time cylinder face cleaning. As others mentioned, it's just a staining of the cylinder and won't have any bearing on the performance of the firearm. This time around I used Hoppe's Elite gun cleaner, a bit higher on the food chain then #9 and the price reflects that. I used it and a bronze bore brush for the cylinder walls. To finish off the face I used (very gently) Mothers Billet metal polish on a soft cotton rag. Pops the staining right off. One thing to be cautious of, any thing that says polish will have some abrasives in it and will wear away some metal. The next time I do this is if I ever sell one. I've not bothered with the blued ones except with using the Hoppe's. But with all that said:
Here's a few of the stainless ones that I did. Pics aren't all that hot but you should get the idea. 
A lot of mine, like all the S&W's have a brushed finish on them but I have a few with a glossy finish like Vaqueros that, even new, need a helping hand with swirling so that they glow more than shine. That's where I use the Mothers just on the outside. It takes a couple weeks, an hour or so at night after work to get them the way I like them when I first pick one up. 
|