Cleaning & Lubricating Your Bolt Action Rifle with Tetra® Gun Care Products

As many shooters would agree, the one-stage recoil of a bolt action rifle makes the firearm simpler and more reliable than a modern sporting rifle. However, even though there are fewer moving components that could potentially fail, there is still plenty to consider in terms of preventive maintenance.

With generally tight tolerances between the action and the bolt, pressure and load bearing should be addressed. Specifically, by applying Tetra^® Gun Grease on friction points, a hydrodynamic barrier is established, which will smooth out the movement of metal against metal, while protecting the parts from excessive wear and buildup – in all climates, from hot to cold, and dry to humid.

Key lubrication points include the breech face, the recess area and the lugs overall. While you’re disassembling, it is also advisable to clean and re-lubricate the firing pin spring (of course, don’t apply any lubricating coating to the firing pin itself).

General Application Instructions

Remove the bolt and spray it with Tetra^® Gun Action Blaster™ Cleaner Degreaser.

For additional effectiveness, brush the lugs, bolt face, bolt body and the rear to remove primer residue, in particular. Then, run a cleaner-saturated cotton patch or swab into the chamber and locking lug recesses, and allow it to work for several minutes. Use the Tetra ^® Gun 3-Piece Multi-Purpose Brush Set to accomplish this. You may find the new Tetra ProSmith™ Tapered-Tip Swabs handy as well.

Spray more Action Blaster™ and scrub, as needed. You can also use the gentler Tetra ^® Gun Action Blaster™ Synthetic-Safe formula if you are concerned about dripping onto polymer or wood surfaces.

Cleaning the Bore

Spray Tetra^® Gun Action Blaster™ through the bore and then swab with clean, dry patches until they appear clean. Black indicates additional fouling is being drawn out, while amber indicates that old petroleum-based solvent residue is leaching out. For harder buildup, use the Tetra ^® Gun Copper Solvent, and then spray Action Blaster™ through the bore afterwards to neutralize and flush out the solvent residue.

When you have thoroughly cleaned the bore, use Tetra ^® Gun Spray Lubricant directly in the bore, or apply Tetra ^® Gun Lubricant to cotton patches attached to a cleaning rod. Run the rod down the barrel 10-20 times until the lubricant is no longer visible. Now, you have successfully treated the bore.

To order Tetra ^® Gun care cleaning and lubricating products, visit the http://www.tetraguncare.com

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A Step by Step Guide to Cleaning & Lubricating Your AR15 with Tetra® Gun Care Products

The AR, or automatic rifle, platform and similar firearms have evolved into the modern sporting rifle, arguably the top-selling, most versatile and most popular firearm today. Let’s take some time to highlight how to properly clean and lubricate your modern sporting rifle using Tetra^® Gun care products.

First, as always, ensure that there is no ammunition in the area where you are cleaning the gun, and ensure that the gun is unloaded and cleared. Next, you are ready to break the firearm down to its main components. Before doing so, ensure that you are thoroughly versed in your firearms operator’s manual. If you aren’t sure how to disassemble your AR15, purchase an armorer’s manual or view one of the many videos on the subject available on the internet. However, if you are a new owner, don’t be intimidated; the quickest and best way to become familiar with the operation of your firearm is through disassembly and maintenance, as it gives you a ‘behind the scenes’ look at your gun’s parts and functions.

Separate the upper and lower receiver groups and set them aside, then remove the bolt carrier group assembly, to include the charging handle. Disassemble the bolt carrier group by removing the firing pin, retaining pin, firing pin, bolt cam pin and bolt. Next, remove the extractor pin and extractor from the bolt. Set all of these parts aside. You can remove the handguards if you wish, or if you are shooting on a rainy day or in extremely dusty or muddy conditions. Otherwise, leave them on and remove them only for routine or required cleaning of the barrel exterior.

Now that the gun is disassembled, cleaning can begin. Start with the chamber. This is one of the problem areas of modern sporting rifle cleaning, but here is where using the right product helps. Spray Tetra^® Gun Action Blaster™ into the chamber and locking lug recesses and allow it to work for a few minutes. While the Action Blaster™ is doing its magic on the chamber, spray some more into the upper receiver. And with the use of Tetra^® Gun Double Ended Nylon Brush and ProSmith™ Tapered-Tip Swabs, clean the inside of the upper receiver. Next, clean the lugs and recesses with a chamber brush. Then, scrub the locking lug recesses thoroughly and flush with more Tetra^® Gun Action Blaster™. You’ll also find that ProSmith™ Tapered-Tip Swabs are a great tool for scrubbing between the lugs. Wipe out the chamber as well as inside the upper receiver with a clean rag. Once you are sure the chamber area is clean, dry with compressed air, clean rags or swabs.

Now you’re ready to move on to the bore. Remember, always clean from chamber to muzzle to keep fouling from being driven into the upper receiver. Always push patches, brushes and jags completely through the full length of the bore. Start by pushing a few patches soaked with Tetra^® Gun Copper Solvent down the barrel and allow it to saturate for 10-15 minutes. Next, apply more solvent to a ProSmith™ Brass Core Bronze or Nylon Brush, and run the brush down the bore 5-10 times. Follow with a solvent-soaked patch to get the loose fouling out, and then push a few Copper Solvent-soaked patches down the bore and allow it to work. Be sure to spray your brush with Tetra^® Gun Action Blaster™ to neutralize the Copper Solvent. This will both clean and prolong the life of your brush. Finally, spray the charging handle with Tetra^® Gun Spray and wipe clean.

Next, place a ProSmith™ Cleaning Patch on a ProSmith™ Brass Jag. Run patch-covered jags through the bore until they come out clean. Once you get clean patches in this manner, follow up with one patch sprayed with Action Blaster™, and then with one clean, dry patch. When the patches finally come out clean, push a patch soaked with gun cleaning solvent down the bore to remove or neutralize the copper solvent. Follow that with a dry patch and you’re finished cleaning the bore.

At this point, lightly spray the inside and outside of the upper receiver with Tetra^® Gun Spray Lubricant, and run a patch dampened with Tetra^® Gun Lubricant through the bore. For more thorough bore conditioning, go to the  Tetra^® Tech page to read further instructions on using Tetra^® Gun Lubricant as a bore conditioner, resulting in higher velocities, increased accuracy, easier cleaning and prolonged barrel life.

The firing pin, firing pin retaining pin, bolt cam pin, and bolt carrier are fairly easy to clean by spraying with Action Blaster™ and wiping clean with a rag. After these parts are clean, give each a light spray with Tetra^® Gun Spray Lubricant . The bolt itself can require some serious scrubbing and scraping, but again, the right tools can make this a much easier experience. Spray the bolt thoroughly inside and out with Tetra^® Gun Action Blaster™ and allow it to sit (a god idea is to start the cleaning process with this, before moving on to the upper receiver and barrel, to allow the Action Blaster™ to do much of the work for you). After allowing Action Blaster™ to work, scrub the exterior with the steel or bronze brush found in your Tetra^® Gun 3-Piece Multi-Purpose Brush Set. Spray more Action Blaster™ and scrub, as needed. After prolonged, high intensity shooting, Tetra^® Gun Copper Solvent can be used to effectively remove stubborn fouling, especially on the bolt locking lugs. Once the exterior is clean, thoroughly clean the interior using Action Blaster™ and Tapered-Tip Swabs and pipe cleaners. Once done, lubricate the exterior of the bolt with Tetra^® Gun Grease. Apply a small amount, and polish into the surface well, paying particular attention to the locking lugs and waistband of the bolt.

Next, move on to the lower receiver. Remove the buffer assembly and spring. Use compressed air, if possible, to spray out loose dirt and fouling from inside the action. Next, spray the action with Tetra^® Gun Spray, and wipe down thoroughly using Tapered-Tip Swabs and a rag. Next, spray some Tetra^® Gun Spray on to a clean, lint-free rag, and wipe down the outside of the lower receiver and inside of the magazine well. Do the same with the buffer assembly and recoil spring, and if you removed the handguards, then spray the barrel exterior and inside of the handguards. Once all is clean and lubricated, reassemble, and wipe off any handprints to remove the salts.

Don’t forget to clean your magazines as well. Magazine neglect is one of the greatest causes of malfunctions in auto-loaders like the modern sporting rifle. After disassembling your magazine, spray the inside and outside of the magazine body with Tetra^® Gun Spray and wipe clean. Next, do the same to the spring and follower, then reassemble, and once again, wipe away any handprints.

Proper cleaning and lubrication with Tetra^® Gun care products and accessories will ensure reliable functionality and add years of longevity to your modern sporting rifle.

Make sure to visit http://www.tetraguncare.com

 

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Tetra® Gun Care Pistol Cleaning and Lubrication Tips

When performing initial firearms maintenance on a new revolver or semi-automatic pistol, use Tetra^® Gun Grease and Tetra^® Gun Lubricant oil to pretreat metal surfaces. Since the firearm has never been used and the metal parts and the bore haven’t been affected by use, it can be cleaned and lubricated easily and effectively without having to introduce harsh solvents or metal brushes. The rule of thumb is: be as gentle as possible, and only use something stronger as necessary.

When cleaning the pistol after it has been fired, start with environmentally-safe, low-residue, water-based Tetra^® Gun Cleaner Degreaser, followed by synthetic Tetra^® Gun Lubricant. If the pistol has been previously conditioned with Tetra^® Gun Grease or Lubricant, then most likely only light fouling will be encountered, which can be lightly wiped off with a clean, dry cloth. Essentially, the grease or oil is acting as a buffer between the metal surface and the outside environment, so carbon residue particles don’t easily cling. In other words, with proper treatment, you can achieve ’less cleaning, more shooting.’

For handguns, problems can be encountered once strong solvents and harmful residue are introduced. Cleaners are meant to clean, but the solvent residue must be removed so that the grease or oil can make contact with the metal and do their jobs. Solvent residue simply gets in the way, and can react with lubricants and make a mess.

New Tetra^® Gun Cleaner Degreaser safely and easily cleans metal surfaces prior to lubrication, and leaves nearly no residue. Ideally, lubricants should be applied only to clean, dry parts. Spray parts generously with Cleaner Degreaser until wet and let it sit for a few minutes, then wipe off light fouling with cotton patches or a cloth. For added action, scrub the parts with a Tetra^® Gun Double-Ended Nylon Brush, or similar. A bronze brush can be used if you prefer. Then, spray again, and wipe metal surfaces until dry.

When the last cotton patch used is visibly clean, Tetra^® Gun Grease and Lubricant oil can be applied. Typically, Grease is used for high-wear surfaces such as triggers and semi-auto rails, while Lubricant is more universally applied, including in the barrel. Remember to polish Lubricant into metal surfaces until it is no longer visible. Trust what you don’t see; the technology works sub-micronically under the surface.

Lastly, to spray parts down with a cleaner and lubricant, we recommend our Tetra^® Gun Spray, which is similar to a synthetic CLP. Just spray and wipe off excess. Now you have a thoroughly cleaned and conditioned handgun that will stay cleaner, longer.

For more information on the advanced Tetra^® Gun care products mentioned here, make sure to visit http://www.tetraguncare.com

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PROPER GUN CARE FOR BLACK POWDER FIREARMS & SHOTGUNS

Muzzleloaders have a history of corrosive fouling due to the use of black powder, aka gunpowder. When the charge is ignited, these powders leave a great deal of fouling, which requires extra attention. Not only should you clean metal surfaces after a shoot, but also you should then lubricate parts to minimize future buildup. Doing so will promote easy loading next time around.

Liberally apply Tetra^® Gun Copper Solvent to Cotton Patches. Swab the bore repeatedly – 10 to 20 times – to remove fouling. Repeat this until you can run a dry patch through the barrel that comes out clean. For most muzzleloaders, 2 ¼” round patches will do the job, as barrels are either .50 or .54 caliber. You can also spray the bore with Tetra^® Gun Action Blaster™ aerosol and follow these same steps.

These practices can be applied to all shotguns as well. For the most popular 12 gauge size, cotton patches up to 3” square are used, either on a patch holder or a jag. Some shooters wrap a gun cleaning patch over a bronze brush, but this method does not provide a precise fit. Instead, run a bronze brush through the bore to scrub hard buildup. Remember, a snug fit will provide the most thorough removal of fouling as you run a gun cleaning rod through the bore.

Tetra^® Gun Lubricating Wipes can be quite handy in thoroughly cleaning the breech plug and other parts, including the final wipe down of the outside of the shotgun barrel. You can effectively clean between the threads of the breech plug to prevent corrosion. The key is driving out moisture, and protecting against future rust and corrosion.

It is important to remember that as important as cleaning is, performance ultimately comes from proper lubrication of metal parts. Tetra^® Gun Grease is ideal for the breech plug, and also acts as an anti-seize lubricant for another critical part – the choke tube. Industry leader Carlson’s Choke Tubes has been using and recommending Tetra^® Gun Grease for many years.

One of the other benefits of a good bore treatment is to prevent short stroking, which is characterized by an insufficient rearward force. That scenario can be clearly exhibited in a pump action-style shotgun, in which friction can interfere with the complete and smooth cycling of the action. That friction, caused by buildup on critical operating surfaces or even imperfect gun parts, can be cured with proper lubrication. Tetra^® Gun Lubricant oil is a good preventative measure for this scenario, and is also excellent for conditioning the bore.

Get Tetra^®Gun care products at http://www.tetraguncare.com

THE IDEAL ACCESSORY FOR APPLYING GREASE

Tetra^® Gun Tapered-Tip Swabs are an excellent accessory that was recently added to the product line to fill an important niche in gun care. When applying Tetra^® Gun Grease to semi-auto pistol rails, or to more effectively reach fouling in the narrow crease by the rails, the pointed shape of the Tapered-Tip Swabs will be just the right fit. For more aggressive contact, the opposite end of the Swab can be used as well. It’s best to avoid using a metal tool, such as a sharp steel dental pick. That will actually abrade the metal, creating a groove in which buildup will gain a better foothold in the substrate, making your next cleanup even more difficult. Tetra^® Gun care’s Bronze and Nylon Brushes are a much better choice for cleaning these areas.

Tetra^® Gun Tapered-Tip Swabs are sold in packs of 200.  http://www.tetraguncare.com

Brands of Gun Oil, Grease and Cleaner Products

Hoppe's, Birchwood-Casey, Outer's, Gunslick, Break-Free, Kleen-Bore, CVA, T-17, Otis, Mpro7, Boresnake, Iosso, KG, Slip 2000, Eezox Blue Wonder, Gun Butter, Slide Glide, TW25B, Frog lube, Seal 1, Tetra, Kroil, Cleanzoil, Dewey, Tipton, Pro-Shot, Brownells, Corrosion-X, Ballistol, Dac, Gunmaster, Flitz, Butch's Bore Shine, Boretech, FP-10, Shooter's Choice, Militec, RIG, Southern Bloomer, Maine Shooting Supply, Professional's Choice, Crest, Lyman, RCBS, Hornady One Shot, L&R ultrasonics, Montana X-Treme, Wilson Ultimalube, Gun Scrubber, Sentry Solutions, Weapon Shield, Italian Gun Grease, Sweet's, J-B, Dewey, Tipton, Remoil, Remington, , Swab-its, Gunzilla, Breakthrough, Smith & Wesson, Colt