Tips on Cleaning the C-7

[Delta]

Can anyone give me some tips on cleaning the C-7 rifle? Even though I cleaned my C-7 the night before inspection, it somehow got dirty in the morning (the chamber part). Anyone feel like the barrel is a b*tch to clean? I did at least 20 something pull-throughs and the it still made the cloth dirty. Merry X'mas by the way and a happy new year.

 

[Fishbone Jones]

It's the CLP. It draws the carbon out of the metal. No matter how well you clean it, if you put CLP on it, it will be dirty in the morning. You wouldn't have that problem if you used gun oil, but your not supposed to and I won't tell you to.

 

[Munner]

Just take a minute before inspection to giv'er a once over with a rag.

I found Q-Tips to be crucial to getting the chamber inspection worthy.

Good luck!

 

[shaboing]

pipe cleaners are also very effective on various parts

 

[jwsteele]

The rifle is nearly impossible to make impeccably clean but is easy to make clean for the purposes of inspection.  Just watch how your section commander wiggles his fingers in it and then do it yourself later and see where he's finding the junk.  Clean those areas really well the night before and just before inspection give it another wipe down and do a pull through on the barrell so if he looks down it he can't see anything.  For field inspections it's most important to have a really clean and smooth working bolt.  And after blasting off a magazine of blanks...your weapon will not be clean again unless the staff gives you a solid hour to clean it.  It never hurts to amnesty bush those stupid blanks either.

 

[wongskc]

Further to Recceguy's comments, minimize your use of CLP for cleaning the rifle.  Ironically enough, the rifle will look cleaner if you do a less through job (i.e. not use CLP to clean it) than if you did it properly.

 

[George Wallace]

..........  It never hurts to amnesty bush those stupid blanks either.

You are a VERY BAD BOY!.... :tsktsk:

 

[atticus]

take it in the shower with you and then clean it. my Sgt suggested it but he also suggested not to get caught doing it.

 

[Hoover]

The rifle is nearly impossible to make impeccably clean but is easy to make clean for the purposes of inspection.  Just watch how your section commander wiggles his fingers in it and then do it yourself later and see where he's finding the junk.  Clean those areas really well the night before and just before inspection give it another wipe down and do a pull through on the barrell so if he looks down it he can't see anything.  For field inspections it's most important to have a really clean and smooth working bolt.  And after blasting off a magazine of blanks...your weapon will not be clean again unless the staff gives you a solid hour to clean it.  It never hurts to amnesty bush those stupid blanks either.

Might of been different when I went through but we didn't stand at attention gawking around the room at our instructors fingering our weapons.  

Also, I've never seen a full mag of blanks with my own eyes in my life!!

 

[Hoover]

Can of compressed air, paintbrushes, toothbrushes, I've seen it all done.

I never got picked up for a dirty weapon, was the cleanest thing on my body...smile.

 

[Fishbone Jones]

Might of been different when I went through but we didn't stand at attention gawking around the room at our instructors fingering our weapons.  

Also, I've never seen a full mag of blanks with my own eyes in my life!!

Ma

Can of compressed air, paintbrushes, toothbrushes, I've seen it all done.

I never got picked up for a dirty weapon, was the cleanest thing on my body...smile.

It all might have to do with the extremely limited time you've spent in the military : Having completed only BMQ, you've still got lots to see and learn "I've seen it all done" PULLEEEZZE :. Never got picked up for a dirty weapon? Just wait.

Please get some TI before you start running your gate like a vet.

 

[Sh0rtbUs]

put some effort into it and you are good to go.

Thats about it in a nutshell. Can someone confirm whether or not its a chargable offense to treat your weapon with water?

 

[jwsteele]

Well pardon me for causing such a fuss.  I put lots of effort into cleaning my weapon but I found that generally (especially in the field) it was almost impossible to make the whole weapon clean without it getting a little dirty within 15 minutes.  In regards to amnesty bushing the blank rounds...I don't see the big deal.  I hate firing them.  All they do is make the weapon incredibly filthy and it feels like firing a cap gun.  Obviously I wouldn't dispose of live rounds when my life may depend on them...it's just common sense.  The guy asked for tips on cleaning the C7 and in my limited experience those were the techniques that I found got me through inspections and saved me some time in the field.  It's really not a big deal.

 

[chrisf]

All sorts of tips and tricks, but unless you're sure of what you're doing, many of them have the potential to go bad very quickly (Not to say I haven't and don't use them...).

Unless you know what you're doing, stick to CLP, a rag , q-tips, and pipe cleaners.

And don't be an idiot and ditch your ammunition... mostly because depending on the individual, if somone refers you to an "amnesty bush", it means they were probably peeing there

 

[atticus]

Bad idea. IMHO. 

Why's that? I've seen it done (i've never acually have done it) and it worked great. You still gotta acually clean it with CLP afterwards though or it would probably rust.

 

[Gunnerlove]

Simple green, hot water and a bunch of scrub brushes and the brushes from your cleaning kit. Oil it up with CLP let it sit for a while then scrub it clean with soapy water and all the brushes. Dry it with compressed air and oil it up again. I treat my weapons like machine tools and clean them as such. Cleaning like this you can get even a C-9 inspection ready in a half hour even if you just put a few thousand rounds through it.


Now if you are a tool you will end up with a dirty rusty weapon and a charge filed against you.  

 

[COBRA-6]

Well pardon me for causing such a fuss.  I put lots of effort into cleaning my weapon but I found that generally (especially in the field) it was almost impossible to make the whole weapon clean without it getting a little dirty within 15 minutes.  In regards to amnesty bushing the blank rounds...I don't see the big deal.  I hate firing them.  All they do is make the weapon incredibly filthy and it feels like firing a cap gun.  Obviously I wouldn't dispose of live rounds when my life may depend on them...it's just common sense.  The guy asked for tips on cleaning the C7 and in my limited experience those were the techniques that I found got me through inspections and saved me some time in the field.  It's really not a big deal.

You would if I was the Course O and I caught you doing that. Same goes for any of the NCO's that I've had as instructors. Depending on your course staff and what kind of mood they're in, the consequences could range from them firing off a few mags of blanks through your weapon (to ensure you had something to clean that night), all the way up to doing the hatless dance and a hefty fine. 

 

[NATO Boy]

Tips for cleaning ANY weapon...

1. Shower - It works, if you use hot water (any water works if you're washing out sand or mud.) We were actually instructed to clean the 60mm Mortar in the shower and then wipe it down with Varsol.

2. Baby Wipes - Preferably "Wet Ones." Non-abrasive, highly useable, and they get carbon off C6 / C9 gas parts in seconds. Also good for field baths / getting campaint off before returning to garison. After using them on a weapon, though, be sure to give it a coat of CLP.

3. Brake cleaner - Haven't tried this: mil-surp rifle collectors swear by it (gets carbon off anything.) Guys I've talked to who did their PLQ like it too. Warning: don't confuse brake cleaner with CARBURATOR CLEANER! Carb cleaner is abrasive (strips blueing off of metal and can corode some plastics, ie the plastic handguards.)

4. Mixing CLP and Naptha - Works good on a hot day (and when getting 10 C9s clean in 1 hour with a fireteam partner is your only option.) CLP draws the carbon away from the parts, Naptha evapourates. Weapon wipes down easier/faster. Only recommended for a VERY HASTY cleaning.

5. Steel Wool - BIG NO NO! Unless you're cleaning slightly worn parts with no blueing (read hollow portion of C6 gas piston.)

6. Air can and paint brush - Good if you're in a dry dusty environment where your weapon won't be as oiled as usual (read Arid regions, or Petawawa during the summer.)

7. Coke or pepsi - Work really well for cleaning caked-on stuff on bolt / gas parts. Simply put parts in a container, fill it with a fizzy can/bottle of Coke or Pepsi, and clean something else for a while. Then pull out the parts, dry and lightly oil them, dump the oily Coke down the toilet, and Bob's your Uncle. Mechanics at my local garage do this with tools that start to rust (works like a charm.)

8. Bore Snake (insert calibre here) - One pull-through with this is like 50 pull-throughs with patches and jags. And the boresnake is water / machine-washable too. And, "gasp" it kinda looks like a Gartner Snake!"

These are just a few of MANY: these being more common around me. Try 'em out; see what works for you.

 

[zipperhead_cop]

I believe you will be in a world of hurt if you take your weapon in the shower.  That will cause you nothing but problems. 
One trick I used to do with the inside of the barrel was to wrap a 2x4 around the brush and ram it through.  Dont use the pull through, because if the string breaks you are skee-rued.  Use the push rod only.  If you get it stuck, you will look dumb.  But the extra push on the sides will pick up a load more crap. 
We had one guy with us that had an actual set of dentist picks.  God knows where he got them but they were brilliant at scraping out the little pain in the ass spots and the metal is soft enough to not scratch the weapon.
I usually went super light on the CLP.  I also tried to get away with not using it at all, because carbon sticks to oil.  Having said that, I will now take the justified pummelling from the better qualified NCO's here for not properly taking care of the weapon.  It was a course trick, not a unit trick and definately not a Roto trick.
We also would try to get away with sticking little bits of crap ie) paper, cotton in the end of the barrel if we knew that we would not be shooting that day.  Again, a course trick that will get you jacked up if you get caught.
In general, get in the habit of cleaning as concurrent activity when you have a bit of down time.  It is good practice, and keeps you from looking idle to the course staff. 
Don't ditch your rounds.  "train as you would fight, and you will fight as you trained".  You dont want the first time you get a level 2 stoppage to be when you are in an ambush in Afghanistan.  Play the game, clean the bang stick.
Also remember:  if your course NCO, warrant, officer wants you to fail your inspection, you will.  Some inspections cannot be passed, regardless of how well you turn out.

 

[TCBF]

The old paraflare tubes would fit two FN gas piston rods and a gas plug, then fill it up with Coca-Cola or vinegar, put the end cap on, and shake, then let it sit.  We did NOT leave it overnight - especially using the vinegar.

I liked the US 'Lube Oil Automatic Weapons' or LAW oil.  I did not like their LSA that much. 

Our 3GP335A was the best cold weather stuff we had.  I used that on both Brownings on the Lynx, and sprayed the outsides with WD-40.

You can't beat WD-40 as a rust preventor if spray CLP is not avail, especially on machine guns.

Wrapping a swab around a bore or chamber brush only serves to wreck the brush.

Use the rod handle as it was designed - put the chamber brush on the end of it, and use a rod section as a cross-piece (through the hole in the handle) to make a T handle type chamber brush.  When done, turn rod the other way a bit to loosen the chamber brush or you will tear your hand trying to loosen it.

Use a female end of a rod section to scrape clean the ledge inside the bolt carrier.  Finish with a CLP'd swab over the end of it.

Remember to pipecleaner the firing pin hole in the bolt face (pull the pipeclener all the way through the bolt), and the drain hole in the butt.

Remember to space your gas ring gaps.

If you completely dry your John Inglis mags for the Pistol and it rains in the Afghani desert, see to them quick or they WILL turn orange on you.

Use dust covers and blow-off caps.

Tom