I am kind of spoiled.
As our facilitys lead( Only) Armorer, I am tasked with quarterly cleanings, and have a Crest 2 rifle unit at my disposal.
Using the Crest solution at recommended dillution I can get rifles that have seen 600-1200 rounds 80% clean in 20 min. on average.
From there bore scrubbing and detail cleaning is the same as without.
Due to budget constraints, I have tinkered with several water based tank solutions to find a more cost effective product.
The stuff from Crest, L&R , and the folks at MPro(X-it) all have sent samples and have been compared.
The Crest solution came out on top with a close second going to X-it.
So close that I suspect Crest is buying their solutions from the same company, and our Chemistry geeks cannot determine a difference.
Have run simple green in the tanks a time or two.
Works just fine. Though some will warn about the PH and anodizing worries.
Havn't seen any proof yet.
Sonic tanks are a godsend if you have 100+ weapons to babysit.
Just realze that you will also need a high volume air compressor, and the availability of a large volume of HOT rinse water.
Also have a L&R pistol tank.
Good unit.
Very effective, but too small in volume for our needs, except for the odd job of cleaning Padlocks and the occaisional sidearm that gets dropped in the mud now and then.
As a side note,
If you reload or shoot black powder....
Brass gets the best cleaning possible and the BP guns come out sparkling!!!
There is no replacement for elbow grease and attention to detail however.
Still gotta worship the things for what they are in the end.
S-28