Other Uses for Brake Clean

[GearHead_1]

...I do not reccomend brake cleaner for anything other than for cleaning brakes. thanks for the replies.

Brake Clean has many wonderful uses in the firearms building and maintenance game.

[Larry A]

Brake Clean has many wonderful uses in the firearms building and maintenance game.

Can brake clean be used to clean guns in stead of gun oil.?

[GearHead_1]

Can brake clean be used to clean guns in stead of gun oil.?

Larry, I would liken it to an alcohol wipe on a car. It will clean/strip virtually everything off. I use it when prepping a surface for paint/DuraCoat or when I`m going to apply a phosphate finish. I also use it when I paint or gold inlay roll marks to clean any over fill on the edges. DuraCoat is an oven cured coating that will stand up to most anything and is almost impossible to strip without glass beading.


Brake Cleaner is caustic and the same cautions should be used as when doing a brake job. Brake Cleaner`s smell always reminds me of going to the Dry Cleaner. They make a chlorine free brake cleaner which is safer for the user but it doesn`t work well in my opinion. CRC is my favorite BC.

When using it on a phosphate or parkerized finish it can leave the finish looking grayed out or with a white appearance. Once oiled it isn`t an isssue. I wouldn`t recommend it for cleaning a barrel (unless chromed). I think it would be like putting Simple Green on raw metal (aluminum).

That brings up a whole different issue Simple Green is an awsemome cleaner for plastic guns. Glock even recommends this. I have a friend that is in the National Gaurd and he says that his unit cleans their AR 15`s while in the shower using Simple Green, go figure.