:: Bersa Talk ::

GaryAdrian:

I have used Militech and CLP both and I found no smell in them. You can smell oil but not that much.
I have used everything from medium duty machine oil to WD40 on guns. They all have some smell.

Whew, I thought I was the only one that had no sense of smell. I thought CLP smelled pretty weakly of oil myself.

 Unlike my mom who could smell cigarette smoke or perfume that had rubbed off on my clothes from a date at 50 paces. (sometimes both.....and umm "other" female smells...."WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING?????"

Me....."ummm, nothing mom" and then it would start....

You want to know what stink is try Ballistol, I use it 1 part Ballistol to 4 parts water.  I soak my round ball patches with it, let the water evaporate and store the patches. Dee Dee even kicks me out of the house when I open the lid on the "stink-lube".

RC

 

 

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I've used Break Free CLP for over 20 years and have never noted an offensive smell about it. The organization I retired from owned 6,500 auto pistols, the same number of pump shotguns, and a thousand or so AR's and required that Break Free CLP was the only product that could be used on any Departmental firearm. I've sat in rooms with dozens of pistols being cleaned at the same time and there was no bad odor. I have to argee that there is something other than Break Free at work here and I wish I knew what it was so I could avoid it.

Hoppes is a good product, but don't get the idea that you must use an expensive or exotic solvent to clean a common automatic pistol because it just isn't true.  There are a host of solvents that will do a fine job of cleaning your pistol.......common automatic transmission fluid among them........a young friend of mine fresh back from Iraq says he has cleaned many an M2 .50 with it, and I have cleaned some pretty carboned-up auto pistols and AR's with it. Another friend uses ATF mixed with deodorized mineral spirits (paint thinner), and I use a popular homemade product called Ed's Red, a mixture of commonly available ingredients. I even use common GI bore cleaner once in a while, but it's the worst smelling of them all......darn good stuff, though. Especially for three bucks a quart. 

I should add that when I've fired my guns quite a bit I don't just wipe them out with solvent-soaked rags because that won't do it. Once they're gunked up good, I do what the competitive shooters do........strip the gun and flood some solvent into the slide and brush away with a toothbrush. Same for the frame and its components. Then I blast them out with non-chlorinated brake parts cleaner (about $2.50 at Walmart). But do this outdoors with good ventilation and wear some glasses and surgical gloves. It will remove all traces of lubrication so you must replace the lube before using the gun again, but the gun will never be cleaner. For a lubricant, I use nothing but Mobil 1 SAE 5W20 synthetic motor oil in my auto pistols and Mobil 1 SAE 0W20 in my AR's.

I now only use Break Free in my skeet gun because it does a good job of keeping plastic wad material from accumulating in the choke tubes.

Big FWIW!

JayPee

 

 

Break free clp never smelled bad to me. I saw an ad vid from outers, they have a cleaning kit for hunters thats supposed to be totally odor free.

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bersa thunder 380
taurus pt 24/7 pro cds .45acp
taurus pt 99 af 9mm para.
smith & wesson 22-S
4 rifles, 3 shotguns, 1 muzzleloader, 1 bow.

The smell of clp has never bothered me, the reason I don't like the stuff is there are better Cleaners, Lubes and Protectants out there.

JayPee,  "........strip the gun and flood some solvent into the slide and brush away with a toothbrush. Same for the frame and its components. Then I blast them out with non-chlorinated brake parts cleaner (about $2.50 at Walmart). But do this outdoors with good ventilation and wear some glasses and surgical gloves. It will remove all traces of lubrication so you must replace the lube before using the gun again, but the gun will never be cleaner."

I never knew there was any other way to clean a gun. I am only learning recently that others, well, don't clean like I do. Every time. I tend to prefer carb cleaner over bra-kleen. I use them both by the case though, not just on guns

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You trying to screen for communists? Don't worry, we're all cool. - Dale

I'll only use the wipe-it-out-with-rags routine if I've only fired under about twenty rounds and it is not a carry gun. If it's one I shoot a lot, have only fired about twenty rounds or less, and I'm going back to the range soon, I'll give it a good wipeout with solvent and rags, bore too, and relube it. Otherwise I go the more thorough route, especially with a gun used for defense.

I take it then that the carb cleaner is safe on anodized and polymer finishes? I've stuck with the brake parts cleaner because it's safe on all finishes and metals/plastics, and I just didn't know if that's the case with the carb cleaner.

Thanks for the response.  Jer

PS-I'm a Ventura native who relocated to Tennessee in '96 from Yuba City. Lived all over the state though, LA, SD, Sacto, Santa Barbara, the whole shebang.

Reginald Carstairs:

You want to know what stink is try Ballistol, I use it 1 part Ballistol to 4 parts water.  I soak my round ball patches with it, let the water evaporate and store the patches. Dee Dee even kicks me out of the house when I open the lid on the "stink-lube".

 

Maybe I should start blaming it on "Ballistol" ??

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Bersa Talk isn't perfect.. But we are perfecting the art of imperfection...

JayPee:

I take it then that the carb cleaner is safe on anodized and polymer finishes? I've stuck with the brake parts cleaner because it's safe on all finishes and metals/plastics, and I just didn't know if that's the case with the carb cleaner.

Anodized yes, polymer - not always. I remove the grip from the UC9 before using it, I haven't tested it.
I have melted some plastic stuff bigtime, others it seems to have no effect.

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You trying to screen for communists? Don't worry, we're all cool. - Dale

I've always been extremely fond of using Marvel Mystery Oil with a bit of molybdenum disulphide powder mixed into it. (I use the DOW chemicals brand as found at many industrial bearing shops)

Not something you want to use on a spanking new, un-bedded-in firearm, but once things have settled, it's great.

You've got me wondering if my sniffer is shot. I don't notice any disaggreable smell with CLP. Then again, When I was a rancher, I thought cowsh@# smelled like money!