:: Bersa Talk ::

Hi all-

After reading several, several posts on here about the safest thing to use for my duotone Thunder 380 I picked up some Break Free CLP.  This was the liquid aerosol stuff, not the foaming cleaner.  (This was all that I could find during my shopping trip.)  It cleaned OK I suppose, but what really got me was the downright offensive scent. 

Now I'm not one of those "sensitive" people by any means:  I could (slight exaggeration) sniff gasoline and airplane glue all day and not mind one bit.  But this stuff just lingered hours later and I could not even bear to hold the firearm because the smell would transfer to my hands.  My small-framed girlfriend, whom I had in mind when I purchased the gun, also refused to touch the thing.  I doused the gun in naphtha with only marginal improvement.

I'm desperately looking for a nickel-safe alternative for Break Free CLP which is readily available.  I have read posts touting various specialty products, and if mail-order is the way I have to do it, so be it.  But I'd rather not, as I go through quite a bit of cleaning/shooting per week.

I use Hoppes #9 on the slide, naphtha on [most of] the frame, but I still need something for the barrel. I'm tempted to use #9 down that as well, but having dribblings out of the breech and onto the nickel is virtually unavoidable.

So I'm at a loss here as to what to buy.  Did I get the wrong BreakFree stuff?  Is the foaming CLP what I really need?  Any way to mask the smell of the liquid CLP?  Is using Hoppes #9 in the bore [only] safe, especially if flushed with naphtha afterwards?  Will RemOil clean at all, as it claims?

Desperate for anything else,
-core

core:

Hi all-

After reading several, several posts on here about the safest thing to use for my duotone Thunder 380 I picked up some Break Free CLP. 

I'm desperately looking for a nickel-safe alternative for Break Free CLP which is readily available. 

Maybe I missed something in your post. You say you have a duotone Thunder 380 and you're looking for something that is nickel-safe. Why? There's no nickel in the duotone Thunder 380. Just use Hoppe's or something else that doesn't offend your delicate olfactory nerves.

Incidentally, welcome to Bersa Talk.

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p-t-max

I'm no expert, I'm just, well---opinionated!

http://blog648.blogspot.com/

p-t-max:

Maybe I missed something in your post. You say you have a duotone Thunder 380 and you're looking for something that is nickel-safe. Why? There's no nickel in the duotone Thunder 380. Just use Hoppe's or something else that doesn't offend your delicate olfactory nerves.

Thanks for the welcome, p-t-max.  Perhaps I was misinformed, but I was under the impression that the silverish part of the duotone was satin-nickel, or something of the sort.  Certainly I've heard horror stories about the finish flaking off after the use of harsh solvents.

As a new Bersa owner I may have been mistaken in my nomenclature.  The gun I have has a [black] steel slide, black plastic grips, and what I understand to be a nickel-satin finished frame.

Is Hoppes #9 safe for the silverish parts of this gun?

Thanks,
-core

P.S.  As I said I definitely don't have delicate olfactory nerves.  But this stuff I got ahold of ranks right up there with unmentionable things in a family forum.

Welcome to BT.
Your frame is silver anodized aluminum alloy. No nickel to be harmed.
The black frames are just black anodizing too, btw. Clean away with your favorite recipe.

I don't use CLP, so I'll make a note for the future of it's foulness if I ever consider it.

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By now your name and particulars have been fed into every laptop, desktop, mainframe and supermarket scanner that collectively make up the global information conspiracy, otherwise known as "The Beast." - Dale

p-t-max:

core:

Hi all-

After reading several, several posts on here about the safest thing to use for my duotone Thunder 380 I picked up some Break Free CLP. 

I'm desperately looking for a nickel-safe alternative for Break Free CLP which is readily available. 

Maybe I missed something in your post. You say you have a duotone Thunder 380 and you're looking for something that is nickel-safe. Why? There's no nickel in the duotone Thunder 380. Just use Hoppe's or something else that doesn't offend your delicate olfactory nerves.

Incidentally, welcome to Bersa Talk.

P-T,

 I may have just learned something that I didn't know about my duo tone T-.380. I was also under the impression that the silver part of the duo tone was the same as the all silver nickle T-.380, It looks the same to me. What is the difference in the two coatings? 

RC

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Not PT but I believe all the nickel plated parts are found on the slide (decocker, hammer, etc) and the frames of all the BT380's are anodized aluminum.  Although I'm not sure if the trigger is nickel plated or not.

Bronson

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"Each new generation born is in effect an invasion of civilization by little barbarians, who must be civilized before it is too late." T. Sowell.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Bersa Thunder .380
Browning HiPower
Kahr CW40
Kel-Tec P-32
Ruger Mark I
Ruger GP100

Bronson:

..... Although I'm not sure if the trigger is nickel plated or not.

Good point. I dont know either.

And yes, the frames are anodized, whether black or silver and no matter which slide finish.

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By now your name and particulars have been fed into every laptop, desktop, mainframe and supermarket scanner that collectively make up the global information conspiracy, otherwise known as "The Beast." - Dale

See what we can learn in this forum, I had no clue.  Now why am I on this forum at 3:40 AM, EST.  Good night youall as we say down here in the ZOO

RC

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Well, I've got a big can of Break Free CLP, and I've never smelled anything offensive when using it. It has much less of a strong odor than say Hoppe's, for instance. But maybe you got a bad batch. If it was that horrible, I'd toss it and get something else for sure. Outers Gun Oil, Hoppe's, and Gunslick are other products I've used with satisfactory results. And of course there are dozens of products out there, so take your pick. 

Here's a link to Bersa Thunder 380 Chapterhouse where maintenance and cleaning is discussed at length. I'll just quote two paragraphs.

http://bersachapterhouse.50webs.com/manual1d.html

"WARNING: naphtha (lighter fluid) and many other cleaning fluids are highly flammable. Take the appropriate safety measures when working with flammable material and its fumes."

...

"The Bersa Thunder 380 has an aluminium alloy frame that is naturally resistant to corrosion. The factory finish aside, exposed aluminium quickly forms a hard patina of aluminium oxide, protecting the metal beneath it from exposure to most harmful elements (this is in fact the natural protective mechanism that anodizing seeks to mimic). The slide, barrel and many internal components are steel, however, and potentially vulnerable to rust."

 

 

 

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p-t-max

I'm no expert, I'm just, well---opinionated!

http://blog648.blogspot.com/

Welcome aboard, core.

My wife objects to strong odors, and strongly discourages the cleaning of my firearms on the kitchen counter because of the smell.  I've been reading about different cleaners, too, and ordered a can of eezox from ebay.  It's supposed to have a pleasant odor as well as providing a nice protective coating.  I don't know if it's available near your location, but it certainly wasn't near mine.  Haven't heard anything bad about it.  I haven't received it yet, but am anxiously awaiting it's arrival!

See their Website for more info:

http://www.eezox.com/

Dano

Maybe it was the combination of chemicals used that caused the offensive odor.  Kinda like chlorine bleach mixed with ammonia.  Personally, I like the smell of Hoppes #9.  If someone would make a cologne or deororant that smelled like that, I'd buy it in bulk.

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"There are no good guns. There are no bad guns. Any gun in the hands of a bad man is a bad thing. Any gun in the hands of a decent person is no threat to anybody-except bad people..." -- Charlton Heston

Thanks for all the input guys; sounds like I'd be doing no harm sticking with Hoppes so that's what I'll do.

Nordic- the chemical reaction makes perfect sense.  Although I just remembered no, that's not it, because well...  I thought it would be ok to not use the straw and "just be careful".  Big mistake; the stuff went ALL over the place.  My poor couch and desk smelled like the stuff for two days, and there was no chance of intermixing where it landed.

I have a satin-nickel finish .380CC.  Hoppes has never done me wrong on barrel cleaning.  I would never recommend using anywhere beside inside the barrel, however.  The 'liquid'  erosol CLP is my gun lube of choice, and has never done me wrong.  I personally don't find the smell of it strong compared to most other products.  Rem-oil and remoil wipes have even less smell.

YMMV.

b.t.w.  I personally can't stand the smell, but my buddy really likes diluted 'Simple Green' for a cleaner, but I can't vouch at all if it is nickel safe.