What tools, accesories, and others do you need?

[flyfisher117]

What would you guys say is need for a someone just beginning into the AR world so that they can strip, clean, lubricate and put their Ar back together?

Whats everyones favorite lubes?

What do i need to clean the (sorry for not knowing the technical term) but the little star shapped lug that the bolt locks into? Ive seen the little swabs that are made to fit into that area but are they worth it?

Will my standard cleaning rod work for the barrel? or would one of those otis cleaning kits be a worth investment?

I was reading a thread about the C.A.T tool i believe it was called. Anyone have info on that?

 

[Strangedays]

Re: What tools, accesories, and others do you need?

Any cleaning kit will work. No you don't need the special swabs.
If you want to simply take the gun down you need no tools. Just pop the pins and pull the bolt out, clean it all up and put back together, no magic needed. I use castron full synthetic oil for mine and sometimes mix a bit of tranny fluid into the mix. I have found it to be cheaper than other oils and works great on all my guns.

 

[slothlacrosse]

Re: What tools, accesories, and others do you need?

for an AR, you will need a bunch of chamber brushes, a bore guide, toothbrushes, and a mil surp cleaning kit.

take 1 section of the mil surp rod and attach the chamber brush. attach it to a drill, apply choke and carb cleaner and you have the world's finest chamber cleaning tool.

use the bore guide and the rest of the goodies in the mil surp cleaning kit to punch out the barrel. i don't use a brush on my barrels.

cleaning the bolt is easy too (no tools needed). remove the firing pin retaining pin and cam pin. spray down with choke and carb cleaner, scrub with toothbrush, apply more C&C cleaner.

once everything dries, i lube the bolt before i put it back in the carrier carrier and make sure you lube the top and bottom of the bolt carrier where it makes contact with the receiver.

i also run my buffer wet so i have to clean and re-lube that too.

 

[flyfisher117]

Re: What tools, accesories, and others do you need?

What would be the next best thing to carb cleaner? Not sure what it is about it but I have small allergic reactions when i use it, nothing life threatening. I just prefer to avoid the stuff unless need be.

Ive seen stores with these ar-15 cleaning kits, They come with a cleaning rod that breaks down into 5 or 6 pieces as well as all the brushes one needs as well as lube. Theyre made to fit into the buttstock of a gun. Are they worth the $20 or would buying a quality break down cleaning rod and my own brushes be better? I have 1 piece cleaning rods and multiple brushes (none for the chamber).

 

[E. Bryant]

Re: What tools, accesories, and others do you need?

If you have problems with carb cleaner, try "low-odor" brake cleaner or CRC's electric motor cleaner. Mineral spirits and naptha are also reasonably non-offending to most people.

 

[Victory]

Re: What tools, accesories, and others do you need?

Do not use a milspec steel rod in a barrel and do not attach said rod to a drill. WTF


Use a coated rod and bore guide. IE a dewey

 

[BCP]

Re: What tools, accesories, and others do you need?

Yeah rod+boreguide, patches, CLP and a rag are really all you need to clean+lube an AR. Just make sure it's a good straight 1 piece cleaning rod and not a multi-piece one.

 

[slothlacrosse]

Re: What tools, accesories, and others do you need?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: victory</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Do not use a milspec steel rod in a barrel and do not attach said rod to a drill. WTF


Use a coated rod and bore guide. IE a dewey

</div></div>

for the record, the chamber brush attached to the drill is for the chamber.

i have yet to find a better or more thorough way to clean the chamber of an AR.

 

[flyfisher117]

Re: What tools, accesories, and others do you need?

So are AR's pretty much just like cleaning a 10/22? take it apart as far as you can and clean everything good?

 

[slothlacrosse]

Re: What tools, accesories, and others do you need?

but it's a lot easier than taking apart a 10/22

 

[997/2man]

Re: What tools, accesories, and others do you need?

Save all of your old toothbrushes, q-tips work well around barrel extension. If you plan on doing this right, honestly a one piece rod is better. Break-Free and a little mineral spirits works o.k., douche out the bolt and carrier group, ck gas rings, etc. Try to find an old dental pick, got to have a bore brush.
Read your manual, take your time, search lubes and cleaning tips. The two big things with AR's is carbon build-up (BCG esp.) and barrel fouling.

Little tricks help, an empty sardine can is perfect size for a bolt to soak off carbon in. Mobil 1 is a really good lube, a little goes a long way. Some guys run "wet", some bone dry, can depend where you shoot, what you are doing.

Most AR's are easy to take care of. I see wooden stocks, blued metal, I appreciate how little maint. AR's really need.

 

[slothlacrosse]

Re: What tools, accesories, and others do you need?

oh, and the most basic and helpful tip for lubing your AR is: if it's shiny, it gets wet

any shiny or bare spots that appear on any part of your BCG are areas that have a lot of metal to metal contact and need to be lubed.

if you bite your fingernails like i do, keep a pair of pliers or a multitool handy for the firing pin retaining pin

 

[BCP]

Re: What tools, accesories, and others do you need?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: slothlacrosse</div><div class="ubbcode-body">

if you bite your fingernails like i do, keep a pair of pliers or a multitool handy for the firing pin retaining pin </div></div>

You can also use the pointy end of a cartridge...

 

[flyfisher117]

Re: What tools, accesories, and others do you need?

Toothbrushes ive got plenty, they are all that seems to make cleaning the bolt on my 10/22 easy so i have a few with different bristles (soft and hard etc)

My dental pick need to be updated. Its one that i found out in the shop and the tip of one of the picks was broken off but it still works.

Can you over soak your bolt? Ive always wanted to soak the bolt on my 10/22 but i dont want to harm it. Would just leaving any bolt in some kind of mild cleaner harm it or the finish if it has one?

 

[slothlacrosse]

Re: What tools, accesories, and others do you need?

i don't think you'll ever have to soak the bolt overnight, but you can if you need to.

you'd have to use a very harsh cleaner to remove the finish on most AR parts.