# AR-15 Cleaning Day



## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

I take one morning each month to clean and/or lubricate my AR-15's (sans my duty guns which get the same treatment weekly). I just finished the last 4 when I decided to snap a quick picture. The top two are my most recent builds using foliage green furniture. The bottom one is my 9mm. And yes, I have a thing about optics. But they are all either above the iron sights or co-witnessed. I think I only have 2 AR-15's with no optics at all. You will also note that in my house all weapon-lights are removed and are stored separately. But they are quick to throw on if need be. I don't use AR's for home security, that is what shotguns are for.


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## Startingout-Blair (Aug 28, 2012)

Sweet! Nice collection!


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## Moby76065 (Jul 31, 2012)

Guys like you make me go broke trying to catch up!


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## AKPrepper (Mar 18, 2011)

Moby76065 said:


> Guys like you make me go broke trying to catch up!


Awesome!!! I just love firearms photography!


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## ashley8072 (Apr 26, 2011)

AKPrepper said:


> Awesome!!! I just love firearms photography!


See Zorin Denus work on Facebook. He does some wicked stuff. He's recently started selling prints because of the demand that he's gotten from his pics. I'm proud to call him my friend.


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## biobacon (Aug 20, 2012)

Dang, dont mess with this guy


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

That was iPhone photography at its finest. 

Being an LEO does has advantages, like 20% off a lot of gun shops and gun supply stores. Plus all of my AR-15's are builds, not pre-assembled rifles. I buy a stripped lower, a lower parts kit, a bolt carrier group and a barreled upper. An hour or so later it's a rifle and I saved $200-400 in the process.


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## PennyPincher (Dec 5, 2011)

what do you use for optics?


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

I have used everything from Elcan to Aimpoint to Eotech. And while those are all excellent optics I can't afford to drop $600+ on optics every time I build a $600 rifle. So after years of trial and error I settled on buying optics that provide near top tier quality and durability for lower mid-range prices. My favorite is the C-more Railway with 8 MOA dot (top rifle) but the Vortex SPARC is also very good (middle two). Primary Arms also makes very good optics for the price but they are often out of stock. The bottom AR-15 in 9mm has a 3x Primary Arms scope that is very similar to a Burris AR-536 for about 1/3 the price. So far it has proven itself to be very durable and it holds zero without issue.


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## fondini (Mar 18, 2012)

Wife's









Mine
Black rain ordnance 
Love em


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## partdeux (Aug 3, 2011)

My first AR is from Windham Arms. It seems like a quality piece.


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

Windham Weaponry is a good company and I hope they really take off. Born from the remnants of Bushmaster after Remington bought the company and moved production elsewhere, leaving several people unemployed. I have seen a few very positive reviews by trustworthy reviewers. One in particular described the unusually high build quality of WW AR-15 and saying that is exceeded any Bushmaster he had handled and fired. It passed his T&E with flying colors.


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## mojo4 (Feb 19, 2012)

On a side note....I just had to return my eotech to the factory. There was a short somewhere and brand new batteries were being drained dead in a day. Not a big deal now because the factory is handling the matter under warranty but if SHTF how would I handle it then??? It would be a $400 paperweight! My next optic buy is going to be a meprotech. It is designed with fiber optic and has no batteries so less to go wrong! Of course they are pricey too but good stuff always is.


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

I think you mean Meprolight. I have looked at the Mepro 21 too, looks awesome. I think that these types of sights will be the wave of the future. They just need more competition to get the prices down a bit.


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## mojo4 (Feb 19, 2012)

My bad....its the meprolight 21 not meprotech. But still pricey!


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## mojo4 (Feb 19, 2012)

I got to play with one (my buddy is a gun nut with money to burn!) and it is awesome! It would be nice in the $200 to 250 area but at over $500 is still too much for 1 sight.


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

Sentry18 said:


> I don't use AR's for home security, that is what shotguns are for.


Amen!



Sentry18 said:


> I buy a stripped lower, a lower parts kit, a bolt carrier group and a barreled upper. An hour or so later it's a rifle and I saved $200-400 in the process.


Even now?? 
I know a couple years ago that was true, but GEEEZ the prices of the parts have gone up. Anymore, it seems you can get one already built for the same price as the individual parts cost. I only have one, and I know that if I took it apart and sold it piecemeal I would not lose money on it. I know for sure I couldn't build it for the same price in parts only because I have played with that idea and it just doesn't add up.



Moby76065 said:


> Guys like you make me go broke trying to catch up!


No, don't do that! There are NO Jones's to keep up with!


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

> Even now??
> I know a couple years ago that was true, but GEEEZ the prices of the parts have gone up. Anymore, it seems you can get one already built for the same price as the individual parts cost. I only have one, and I know that if I took it apart and sold it piecemeal I would not lose money on it. I know for sure I couldn't build it for the same price in parts only because I have played with that idea and it just doesn't add up.


It really depends on who made the parts and pieces and if you have the time & patience to wait for great deals. There are so many companies out there right now making AR-15 components and rifles it's crazy, and they are not created equally. Part of the trick is knowing which companies have higher quality control standards and which ones don't, regardless of where they fall amongst their peers on price point.

I recently built an AR-15 that is a combination of a PSA lightweight upper, Rainier Arms lower, DPMS parts kit and Magpul MOE furniture. I have right around $585 into it (before optics), Palmetto State Armory sells a similar rifle for $699 without the MOE furniture.


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## DJgang (Apr 10, 2011)

Anyone added a slide fire to their ARs yet? :ignore:


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

I don't own one, but I did shoot a Colt AR-15 in 9mm with one mounted on it. It was a lot of fun and surprisingly controllable. It's also a very inexpensive way of getting the "full-auto" feel and capability. With a lot of practice (and ammo) you could _probably_ use the system for combat use, but it requires more muscle memory than using an actual Class III rifle.


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## HozayBuck (Jan 27, 2010)

DJgang said:


> Anyone added a slide fire to their ARs yet? :ignore:


*I bought one and played with it for a while but sold it for the same reason I got out of Class 3 guns. Ammo is just too damn expensive to blow away. Fun? Oh hell yes but ..$$...

S18 I agree 100%, you can build cheaper then buy and with quality parts you'll have a much better weapon.

I clean my AR's the same way and my AKs on the last Sat of the year 

I'm still waiting for my Lone Wolf upper in .40 S&W that will use Glock mags. but it's a long wait... maybe this month.

I've used most everything in the way of optics from 1-4x Leupold to Burris red dot to Eotech ( which now lives on my AK) to my current Acog on my AR. I like the Acog and will stay with it...... for now

I'm wanting something different and have thought about using the AR 308 platform and build a 243 .. no real reason except the 243 is an awesome round. Might have to break down and just buy a factory built upper and then figger out "Why did I do this"....*


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## ComputerGuy (Dec 10, 2010)

Any recommendations for an AR cleaning kit? I know the AR platform has different brushes etc, As I remember from my distant military range days!!


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

I have a cleaning bench that is so well stocked I doubt there is a firearm in existence that I could not make shine like new. But in my BOB, range bag and vehicle I keep an AR-15 cleaning kit from Kleen Bore along with a bottle of Break Free CLP or FP10.


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## ComputerGuy (Dec 10, 2010)

Sentry18 said:


> I have a cleaning bench that is so well stocked I doubt there is a firearm in existence that I could not make shine like new. But in my BOB, range bag and vehicle I keep an AR-15 cleaning kit from Kleen Bore along with a bottle of Break Free CLP or FP10.


Thank you very much. I appreciate the recommendation. I have/had a very finicky DPMS!


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## LongRider (May 8, 2012)

Sentry18 said:


> I take one morning each month to clean and/or lubricate my AR-15's


Try *Gunzilla*. If you do I guarantee you will thank me. Just as I guarantee that if you use Gunzilla on those guns you just cleaned you will find that you left more dirt and carbon behind than you imagined. The claims on their website understate it effectiveness. The most impressive of which is that officers in combat are buying it out of their own pocket and having all of their units use it. Each of whom swear using it has saved their soldiers lives.

Oh the guarantee if you do not like it send me the unused portion along with the receipt and I will reimburse you the cost and shipping. Or a one time only offer. PM me your mailing address I will send you as small sample, just enough for a couple of cleanings that you promise to use on one of your AR's exclusively. If you like it post a review of it and buy another member a sample under the same conditions. I have no connection with Gunzilla other than that of a satisfied customer who would like to see good people have the best available. I buy it by the gallon as part of my preps and give out to friends.


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## ComputerGuy (Dec 10, 2010)

As luck would help me. I was cleaning the DPMS and the FSB moved on me with no effort. I am thinking my cycling problem might be that the FFSB was loose, not aligned and the BCG was not getting a sufficient amount of air in blowback. I went ahead and got some lock tite and hopefully the thhing will cycle


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

So LongRider, are you trying to say that you like Gunzilla? 

I'll tell you what, I will buy a bottle here in the near future (I am running low on bore solvent anyway) just to give it a shot. The last stuff I bought was from a company out of Montana (Montana Xtreme) and you need to wear a gas mask just to use the stuff.


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## LongRider (May 8, 2012)

Sentry18 said:


> So LongRider, are you trying to say that you like Gunzilla?
> 
> I'll tell you what, I will buy a bottle here in the near future (I am running low on bore solvent anyway) just to give it a shot. The last stuff I bought was from a company out of Montana (Montana Xtreme) and you need to wear a gas mask just to use the stuff.


Absolutely. I actually first bought some to disprove these asinine claims that it cleaned, lubricated and protected in one step with one product. Especially one that claimed to be non toxic made from organic material. I had tried some of the others and they never worked. None ever cleaned as well as the old tried and true stables I've used for nearly forty years Always been a dyed in the wool Hoppes 9, Rem oil, dab of lithium grease guy with a cabinet full of solvents and lubricants. As did a guy on another forum, if you think I am enthusiastic about it you should read what he posted. Obviously both of us had to eat crow because Gunzilla does do everything it claims better than it says.

First it is organic, no chemical smell at all. I am anal about keeping my guns clean, those patches come out pristine white on every nook and cranny or the gun is not clean. I could not believe how many dirty patches I got from my "clean" gun with Gunzilla. I ended up cleaning every gun I own with it and had to order another bottle because I had after all only bought the smallest bottle to prove they were full of BS. So it cleans great does not stink up the house, although honestly I kinda like the smell of Hoppes but the wife HATES it. So gun cleaning used to always be a in the shop thing until now.
But I did not trust the lubrication claims at all and I have some money invested in these guns. Not about to ruin any of them because they are not properly lubricated. But I was gonna prove they were full of BS. I was especially uncomfortable because Gunzilla dries, leaving a nearly invisible whitish film. I could feel it was slick from what had dried on my fingers but still my fingers are not metal to metal rubbing together at high rates of friction either. So I took three guns an old beater 1911, my EDC .45XD compact and a AR. On each of them I broke the gun down after the very first shot and looked for any sign of wear, than every couple of shots, than after a couple of mags. Seriously I did not trust this stuff and finally ran a couple of mags blasting away as fast as I could. Nothing, if anything the guns seemed to run quieter, smoother and cooler but all that is really subjective. When I went back to clean them, they all cleaned up quicker and easier. Like the carbon just fell off, but than I had not really shot a lot of rounds through any one of them that day. Since than however they just kept getting easier and faster to clean regardless of round count. Gunzilla does not really repel carbon, dust and dirt instead it is non ionic which apparently means nothing will stick to it. Whatever the reason cleaning takes a fraction of the time it used to and I don't need to go back and lubricate oil or grease them.

So yeah I like the stuff. Other wise I would not have made the offer I did. I'm a cheap bastard I never bet unless I know I will win.


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

I hope they are giving you a commission or you own stock in the company.


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## semperscott (Nov 7, 2010)

I've put several AR's together and they were good rifles. Two weeks ago I got a really great deal on a rifle I've thought about for a while. 

The rifle I got is a DPMS LR308C TAC 20. I've broken it in exactly how DPMS recommends. From the first shot fired till now well over 1,000 shots later the rifle is very accurate. I am very pleased with the rifle and looking forward to getting a good scope on it.

I clean all my firearms weekly as well as after each time I fire them. Course after that boating incident I have on the new rifle remaining. :laugh:


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

I also love the smell of Hoppe's No.9, but it has become pretty expensive... and since I am also cheap, I just use "Ed's Red"

1 part Dexron ATF, GM Spec. D-20265 or later.
1 part Kerosene - deodorized, K1
1 part Aliphatic Mineral Spirits
CAS #64741-49-9, or substitute "Stoddard Solvent", CAS #8052-41-3, or equivalent.
1 part Acetone, CAS #67-64-1.


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## LongRider (May 8, 2012)

Sentry18 said:


> I hope they are giving you a commission or you own stock in the company.


No wish I did. Lately been giving some to guys getting deployed and that can get a bit spendy. Though they buy their own after being given a bit to test. Come to think of it I wish I got a commission for all the folks I've turned onto this stuff, but I am retired and to lazy to do anything that looks to much like work.


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## Magus (Dec 1, 2008)

Sentry18 said:


> I have a cleaning bench that is so well stocked I doubt there is a firearm in existence that I could not make shine like new. But in my BOB, range bag and vehicle I keep an AR-15 cleaning kit from Kleen Bore along with a bottle of Break Free CLP or FP10.


Where are the pipe cleaners?


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## ComputerGuy (Dec 10, 2010)

Just got this kit in the mail today!! Need to buy at least 3 more for redundancy.


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## partdeux (Aug 3, 2011)

Hell of a recommendation for gunzilla.

I was going to make a batch of ed's red


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