How To Clean a Handgun: Gun Maintenance Guide

Corrosion, rust, and dirt are small things that lead to huge problems with your gun. Handgun malfunctions, misfires, and jams are warning signs. That’s why a huge part of gun ownership is maintaining your firearms.

Performance matters most when you’re hunting game or are practicing to improve your marksmanship skills at the range. Knowing how to clean a gun is one of the things you can do to ensure your firearm remains in top condition.

The term ‘firearm’ covers quite a broad-range of guns and other weapons that all have unique features, parts, and functions. For this guide, we’re breaking down the anatomy of a pistol. Pistols are a very popular choice for most gun owners.

• Barrel: The barrel contains the chamber through which your bullets fire.
• Sights: Sights help improve your aim and accuracy while shooting. They’re typically located at the front and back of the barrel to optimize your experience.
• Muzzle: The muzzle is located at the end of the barrel opposite of your hand. Bullets exit through this part of the gun.
• Slide/Bolt: In semi-automatic pistols, the metal slide sits atop the frame of the gun moving backwards and forwards as you shoot the gun. Doing so loads your rounds from the magazine into the barrel. Empty cartridges also eject from the slide.
• Safety: The safety switch assists shooters by preventing accidental firearm discharges. Not all guns have the same exact design of safety; in general, they block the trigger’s ability to move or some are even designed to disconnect the trigger.
• Trigger: The trigger is the part of the gun that you squeeze to release the bullet currently in the chamber of your barrel.
• Trigger guard: The trigger guard contains the trigger and firing mechanism. This frame is another safety measure that is designed to help prevent bullets from firing if the gun is accidentally squeezed or bumped.
• Magazine: A magazine contains your unused bullets and cartridges. Inexperienced shooters may use ‘magazine’ and ‘clip’ interchangeably; however, a magazine is essential to the functionality of the gun. A clip is a tool you can use to load your ammunition into the magazine more efficiently.
• Grip: The grip is simply where you hold onto the gun.

You can clean your firearm or handgun in just nine simple steps. In this guide, we'll walk you through the entire process: step-by-step.

As always, check the gun to ensure that no ammunition is in the chamber before you begin disassembling the firearm. Orient the barrel of the gun in a safe direction pointing away from you and others who might be in the area.

Before continuing further, double-check that the gun has no bullets accessible to the barrel. To do so, you’ll want to eject the magazine if it’s removable on your gun. Then clear the chamber.

If a round happens to be present, open up the bolt, slide, or action (depending on which type of gun you intend to clean) to remove it. After taking those safety measures, check once more to ensure the firearm is clear before progressing on.

When you know the gun is unloaded, the next step is to prep your workspace. It should be free of loose ammunition, clean, and well-ventilated.

If you’re unable to clean your gun outdoors or in your garage, open a window to allow a natural draft to flow through the room where you set up your workspace. Don’t set the gun or any parts on a hard surface like a table or wood workspace.

Always set these delicate parts on a clean mat to prevent the surface from any lube/oil drips or protect the gun from any external gun wear and tear.

In order to properly maintain your gun, you’ll need to use specific products and tools. Part of good gun cleaning best practices is building a small stash of tools and supplies designed for your guns.

That stash can become a go-to kit for you anytime you feel like your firearm needs a refresh. For this gun cleaning guide, we recommend having a few specific supplies in your cleaning kit.

Generally, you can purchase ready-to-go gun cleaning kits that come standard with the basic tools you’ll need to clean and maintain most guns. However, over time you may learn you prefer specific brands over the ones found in these kits.

Most can find a gun cleaning kit satisfactory. While your gun may require more or even less tools, the following supply recommendations should be considered as the minimum you should stock your kit up with.

• Universal Cleaning Kit
• Gun Cleaning Solvent
• Lubicrating Oil
• Bore Snake
• Cleaning Brushes

When you clean a gun, you’ll also likely need a few disposable supplies to ensure your gun stays in the best condition. In your kit, consider having gloves to protect your skin and cleaning patches to ensure that dirt does not transfer to other parts of your gun.

Each firearm will be manufactured differently. That means there isn’t a universal way to detail how to break a gun down. Consult your gun owner’s manual or the manufacturer to learn more about your specific firearm’s process.

As you break down your gun, take care to place all the pieces to the side. Any smaller parts like pins or springs being lost is a real consequence if you don’t organize it all. To make the process as simple and streamlined as possible, consider using a separate pan or even a spare (clean) ice cube tray.

• Brush the barrel with a dry, sturdy-fiber brush to loosen up the grime on the barrel before any solvent is used on the gun.
• Saturate a bore cleaning brush suited to the exact caliber of your gun with the gun cleaning solvent.
• Insert the bore brush into the barrel moving in a single direction — do not move the brush back and forth or backward as. Doing so may transfer the dirt and debris build up back onto the clean parts.
• With the solvent still coating the inside of the barrel, set it to the side and let the solvent do its work for at least a few minutes. Now is the perfect time to spend your time cleaning the other parts of your gun.
• When it’s time to come back to the barrel, slide the bore brush out of the barrel. Grab a clean disposable patch and shape it around the tip of your bore brush. You’ll be able to confirm whether or not the barrel is truly clean with this method; however, you could also opt to look inside of the barrel.

Grab a nylon or a copper brush and scrub at the slide or bolt to loosen any dirt or debris in or on the parts. Apply a generous coat of solvent. Let the solvent sit on the slide or bolt for a few minutes before you scrub with your nylon or copper brush. Once you’re satisfied with the results, carefully wipe down the gun with a clean patch.

Following the cleaning of the bolt or slide, lubricate the firearm with oil. Focus on any areas that see a lot of wear due to frequent friction. Avoid using a lot of lubrication, as doing so can adversely affect the integrity of the slide or bolt movement. If the glove still feels a bit stiff, you can repeat this as many times as you need to fully break in your softball glove.

To reassemble your firearm, refer back to your gun owner’s manual or contact the manufacturer for any questions you may have. Take a few extra moments to inspect the state of your gun’s condition. Think about what it’s supposed to look like and if you see anything of concern.

When it’s assembled, once again check to ensure the gun is not loaded prior to wrack the slide or bolt a bit. This is an important step to help the lubrication to spread and disperse evenly across the slide or bolt.

Lightly wipe at the exterior of the gun to help get rid of any fingerprints, dirt, and debris.

• Lasting performance: When you don’t clean your gun, all the gunpowder, small fragments, and even dirt build up over time. Any of those can significantly alter the gun’s performance. Misfires, jams, and bullets getting stuck can happen due to poor gun maintenance.
• Investment confidence: While there are firearms more affordable than others, guns as a whole are generally at least a small investment. And unlike other steep investments, firearms can hold their value when properly maintained.
• Catching any safety concerns: When you regularly clean your gun, you’re able to spot any parts that might be damaged or impaired in some way. As a firearm owner or user, safety is the top priority.

• If you often visit the range, it’s best to get into the habit of cleaning your gun after each trip.
• Home defense guns won’t likely be used nearly as often, but we recommend cleaning them on occasion to ensure they’re ready should you need them in an emergency situation.
• Hunting rifles should be cleaned at least before and after the season.

Corrosion, rust, and a build up of gunpowder, dirt, and small fragments are all possible symptoms when you do not clean and maintain your gun. These days, ammo isn’t cheap, but some ammunition can actually be corrosive to your gun. Any corrosion can threaten the integrity of your gun. Any of the aforementioned factors can cause your gun to fire improperly or not at all over time when it’s not cleaned.