Posted: 11/8/2010 2:07:19 PM EDT
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Hello all! I was at the Pit this weekend and I realized that I was shooting some older Olympic .223 and I think it might be corrosive...?
It smelled funky and left a kind of black grey residue in my AR’s bore and action. I have never seen that color fouling in my AR's before. Is there any special way of cleaning an AR when using this type of ammo or just the old method of a good powder cleaner followed up with copper and lead cleaner? Any tips or suggestions would be great! |
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windex is good for neuralizing the corrosive residue. but you still need to give it a good scrub down with your normal cleaner. I shoot steel core (in WI) out of my ak and windex is what I was told to use. Are you kidding me? 
With all the fancy crap we buy for or guns I need to go tto the kitchen and reach for the Windex? 
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If you think it is corrosive, hot water is the best way to remove corrosive primer residue. Remove your upper from your lower, remove the BCG and charging handle and scrub the barrel and upper receiver good with hot water and dish detergent. Scrub your disassembled bolt carrier group as well using hot water and detergent.
Make sure to rinse well using water as hot as you can handle. Try to get some hot water down the gas tube. If you get your parts hot enough, they will dry almost instantly. |
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Quoted:
If you think it is corrosive, hot water is the best way to remove corrosive primer residue. Remove your upper from your lower, remove the BCG and charging handle and scrub the barrel and upper receiver good with hot water and dish detergent. Scrub your disassembled bolt carrier group as well using hot water and detergent. Make sure to rinse well using water as hot as you can handle. Try to get some hot water down the gas tube. If you get your parts hot enough, they will dry almost instantly. Ok... thats makes some sense... Thanks! 
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| Ammonia is the best way to prevent damage from corrosive ammunition. Hoppes makes a good cleaner that contains ammonia. This is also why windex works as a cheap alternative. I would not rely on just hot water. I once shot some 50's 8mm that was corrosive and it had begun to corrode by the time I got home from the range. Don't wait long to clean your rifle! |
| Yeah, the C&R crowd swears by Windex for the ammonia, and you can adjust the spray to get into gas tubes, etc. The important thing as he mentioned above is that you don't wait before neutralizing the corrosive salts. Throwing a bottle of Windex in the range bag stops the clock before you even get back in the car to drive home. |
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Quoted:
Ammonia is the best way to prevent damage from corrosive ammunition. Hoppes makes a good cleaner that contains ammonia. This is also why windex works as a cheap alternative. I would not rely on just hot water. I once shot some 50's 8mm that was corrosive and it had begun to corrode by the time I got home from the range. Don't wait long to clean your rifle! With all due respect, sir, hot water has been used for many years-much longer than Windex has been on the market. I'm quite sure that in sufficient quantity, Windex will work fine, as will hot water. I think if you do some more research, you will find that ammonia itself is not really good for the rifle. It can cause deterioration of finishes and etching of metal surfaces but it's your rifle, use what you are comfortable with. Your point about not waiting is well advised. The corrosive effects of primer salts begin immediatelt and should be neutralized ASAP. |
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I shoot corrosive through ammo C&R stuff and through 5.45 AR uppers and AK's. Use hot water inside & outside paying attention to the gas tube and muzzle brake/FH areas. If you want you can even boil a pot of hot water and most of the surface water will flash off. Follow up with a water soluble lubricant like Balistol/water mix, Slip 2000 or whatever again paying attention to all the nooks and crannies. You don't want your detent spring getting all rusty on your AR. If you don't have that use WD40 as its name is Water Displacement 40 and not lube 40. Once water is dried clean as per your normal cleaning regime.
Modern Windex does not have any ammonia in it per it's MSDS. http://www.generalmonitors.com/downloads/msds/10272.pdf Reason why the Windex thing works is cause it's water and flushes out the corrosive salts. So in essense you are using fancy expensive blue water to do what hot water does at home.
A way to buy more time before you flush out the corrosive salts is to shot a few non corrosive rounds right before you finish shooting for the day. Some C&R's really frown on this but you go figure out what you want to do. Might buy you a few hours or a few days before you flush out the salts. I do it so that I get peace of mind when shooting the 5.45 AR particularly the gas tube. Another bit of info for you non corrosive ammo folks. The corrosive part is the primer. When shot it leaves residue (salts) that absords water from the air thus rusting out your gun. |
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I shoot corrosive through ammo C&R stuff and through 5.45 AR uppers and AK's. Use hot water inside & outside paying attention to the gas tube and muzzle brake/FH areas. If you want you can even boil a pot of hot water and most of the surface water will flash off. Follow up with a water soluble lubricant like Balistol/water mix, Slip 2000 or whatever again paying attention to all the nooks and crannies. You don't want your detent spring getting all rusty on your AR. If you don't have that use WD40 as its name is Water Displacement 40 and not lube 40. Once water is dried clean as per your normal cleaning regime. Modern Windex does not have any ammonia in it per it's MSDS. http://www.generalmonitors.com/downloads/msds/10272.pdf Reason why the Windex thing works is cause it's water and flushes out the corrosive salts. So in essense you are using fancy expensive blue water to do what hot water does at home.
A way to buy more time before you flush out the corrosive salts is to shot a few non corrosive rounds right before you finish shooting for the day. Some C&R's really frown on this but you go figure out what you want to do. Might buy you a few hours or a few days before you flush out the salts. I do it so that I get peace of mind when shooting the 5.45 AR particularly the gas tube. Another bit of info for you non corrosive ammo folks. The corrosive part is the primer. When shot it leaves residue (salts) that absords water from the air thus rusting out your gun. What ingredients are in Windex® Glass and Multi-Surface Cleaners? All but two Windex® Glass and Multi-Surface Cleaners contain detergents, solvents, fragrance, Ammonia-D®, and alcohol. They should not be used if ammonia is not recommended for use on surface. (Windex® Multi-Surface Vinegar and Windex® Outdoor Multi-Surface do not contain ammonia. They are safe to use in these cases.) http://www.windex.com/faq/ |
| I guess it is personal preference, but I just don't like running water over my firearms. We did it in the Marines which was fine for their rifles, but I wont do it with my stuff. I think we only used water in the Marines to get the mud and dirt off our rifles, so if you've been crawling around with your AR you might need to get out the garden hose. Besides, if hot water is used you must be very thorough in removing the water and lubing the firearm. Remember, your basically making salt water at first. As far as ammonia not being good for the rifle, this is true if it is undiluted and left on for extended periods of time. That is why I recommend a commercial solution like Hoppes #9. This will also remove copper fouling that the primer salts can hide under. As always its your rifle so do what you think best. Companies like Hoppes have been around for a long time and know what they are doing though. |
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Well ammonia is in most Windex products. So much for looking at just the MSDS'. Regardless if there is ammonia or not in windex it's the water that flushes the salts away so I'll stick by just use water in corrosive ammo situation.
Back to the OP's real issue with Olympic ammo. Wasn't that the ammo from Greece that was kind of spotty quality. It should be non corrosive and thus this whole how to clean with corrosive ammo is moot. You ever shower with the M60's and a bunch of other guys keep an eye out for authority. It quite weird 
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Well ammonia is in most Windex products. So much for looking at just the MSDS'. Regardless if there is ammonia or not in windex it's the water that flushes the salts away so I'll stick by just use water in corrosive ammo situation. Back to the OP's real issue with Olympic ammo. Wasn't that the ammo from Greece that was kind of spotty quality. It should be non corrosive and thus this whole how to clean with corrosive ammo is moot. You ever shower with the M60's and a bunch of other guys keep an eye out for authority. It quite weird You are correct on the ammo ... its from Greece! But I don’t remember and other ammo making such a bad smell and leaving such a strange looking residue on my rifle? Thats why I asked if any one had any tips on cleaning corrosive ammo just in case I had a batch of messed up powder or something! As far as your last comment... I have no clue to what you are saying? |