Is it better to clean before or after you shoot your guns? Does it really matter? Can I clean my gun a few weeks later or should I do it right away? Sometimes I feel like it's a waste to clean and then next week I shoot it again.

I clean them before, due to storage and the liberal coating of LPS on them, and immediately after a day at the range.

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For me it depends.  But I always clean it before I call it a day.  If it was not touched for some time like a few months, I will do a quick cleaning before I blast a few rounds.

I clean after every range session.  It's not really the cleaning that's important, you can go a hell of a long time without cleaning, at least from a fouling standpoint.  The thing that concerns me is that in Hawaii you can almost see rust forming on unprotected metal, so I worry that some parts of the gun may have had the CLP burned away and are exposed.  Most of the reason I'm so zealous about cleaning after each and every range session is to get a good coat of oil on everything to stave off rust.

Depends on what I shoot.

Non corrosive : meh...when I feel like it.

Corrosive : winded down the barrel as soon as I'm done, clean as soon as I get home.

How do you know if you got corrosive or non? Remember I'm still a noob.

How do you know if you got corrosive or non? Remember I'm still a noob.

If you're not shooting old milsurp ammo, don't worry about it.

Q shoots ancient ammo from bible days.

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when i get home, or the next day.

I like to reapply a coat of lube on my guns before I go out to the range.  As for cleaning, I usually do it later in the day, or within the next few days.  I'm not a stickler when it comes to keeping them clean, but I enjoy having something to do with my hands if I'm bored at home.

Personally I take them apart and give them a thorough cleaning when I first get them to clean off the factory stuff and familiarize myself. Then every time I go to the range to shoot them I clean them no matter if its 1000 rounds or 10 rounds.

Every once in a while I will take them out of their cases and wipe them down with clp, make sure nothing is rusting.. etc. If I haven't gone to the range in a while I will sometimes pull them out and just wipe everything down internally once again to make sure everything is clean and lubed and not starting to rust.

While we're on the subject maybe you should list your most and least favorite gun to clean!

Most favorite: Ruger 1911, Love taking it apart, Super easy to clean being all stainless with no real small nooks and crannies

Least favorite: Ruger MkIII 22/45, Hate taking it apart. Nooks and crannies everywhere, always gets dirt and powder residue everywhere including inside the trigger components. Hate putting it back together!!

I used to clean them very thouroughly after each shooting session, but when I started shooting USPSA competition and shoot more often, i just clean fast kind...sometimes just clean the bore and remove powder residues.  Sometimes I wait for 1 week, before cleaning.  But before a big match I thouroughly clean'em, complete disaasembly.  I usually run a dry patch on the bore before shooting any firearm, and check for any obstruction.  I do not brush the bores as often now a days, and does not seem to affect accuracy.  I usually use a 50/50 mixture of hydrogen peroxide and vinegar to clean stubborn leaded barrels (.22s), it works really great....only for couple minutes soaking.  Cleaning your gun after each use is always a good practice though.

Depends on the gun. I try to clean same-day, but as a general rule anything Glock/pump-/bolt-/lever-action gets cleaned last because it can wait.

I clean them when I first get them to clear out any packing grease or gunk that they slap on to prevent corrosion while in storage.  That stuff can be nasty.

Beyond that, I generally clean my guns after each range session, usually in the next few days.  If I know I will be going back to the range soon, I won't clean them. 

When I first got into guns, I was more thorough, particularly with my first AR.  Now, it's pretty quick and just enough to clear the crap away.  Now that I've started using Fireclean with my AR, the clean up is really easy.  I don't really need to clean it that much since I don't have high round counts days anymore, but a quick wipe down and relube is all it really needs.  Nowadays, I typically clean more thoroughly at some milestone round counts, like every 1000 rounds or so, depending on the gun. 

Cleaning for me is also about checking parts for wear.  Unusual wear can be a sign of something out of whack or something gone bad.  Most of my guns don't NEED to be cleaned as often as I do, but I just want to make sure to give them preventative maintenance.

That said, I've seen the way some people clean their guns in ways that can harm their guns.  Like putting the bore brush and rod on a drill and going to town!   

I also noticed that my Rem 700 had rust on the outside of the barrel on a small portion where I usually pick up the gun and also on the rings and bases.  I've put DampRid in my safe and I am more careful to make sure I wipe down the metal parts before putting the gun back into my safe.  I plan to eventually have the barrel, rings and bases coated when I swap out the stock later next year, but until then, I have to keep an eye on it. 

when i get home after a day of shooting.
if i dont shoot a gun for a few months, i take it out and wipe it with some CLP.
I try not to take too many guns to the range, bc i know i have to clean each one after. 
I dont mind cleaning any gun, bc it must be done.  I learn to love it.  I take pride in keeping them clean.

easiest guns to clean of mine are my XDM and Beretta Neos.
XDM breaks down in a few seconds, Beretta just one screw.

My Xdm is hands down my easiest gun to clean.  Id say my biggest pain in the asses is my Remington 597, and my M1a.  But I actually try not to disassemble my M1a if I can help it so I don't screw around with the bedding.

I'm also a big advocator for bore snakes.  While its important to have a cleaning rod, bore snakes are freakin awesome. 

I recently was given my first bottle of fireclean last week, after my cousin and dad became obsessed with the product.  Everything I read about it so far seems to be good, but I haven't used it yet to have any first hand experience.  I stripped all the other oils off of my sw 15-22 and applied it as directed, so I guess I'll see what happens next time I go shooting. I don't think I can afford to shoot enough 5.56 to test it out.  .22lr gets plenty dirty enough though.  Id say the one downside is its hellish expensive.  $15-$20 bucks for a 2oz bottle is ridiculous.

For me, the best time to clean is right after a day of shooting. I'm already dirty and the guns are already out. If I'm too tired and put them away for later, I might procrastinate too long and end up scrambling to clean them the day before or morning of the next range day

IMHO (and what I forget to do almost every time) the best thing to do is bring a rag and bore snake with you to the range and use em right after shooting. It's quick (so you won't piss off the guys waiting for a bench) and it's easy. It'll make cleaning a lot easier later or you might not even need to clean before the next range trip

Right after a day of the range. 

If I haven't touched them for a while or I'm feeling the "itch", sometimes I'll just take them apart and clean them just because. 

sometimes I'll just take them apart and clean them just because. 

I actually enjoy disassembling and reassembling my firearms for fun and practice.

I time myself and try and see how fast I can properly take them apart and put them back together.

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