doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com Sonic Cleaning of Gun Parts

Anyone here using a sonic cleaner for cleaning up gun parts?
We pulled the barrel on the 94/64 and took it apart, full of crud.

I bought a sonic cleaner last year for cleaning up brass and use white vinegar, water and little soap. The one I have has a heater in it and the brass, inside and out, comes out looking new.

What liquid should I use to clean metal parts?

I have used one for years....love mine! I use Chem-Crest 235 which I believe it came from Brownell's.

they are fantastic, especially for say shotgun locks, I've also
had some Lyman 48 sights where there grease had solidified and
none of the adjustments would turn. A few minutes in an ultrasonic cleaner and everything was great. I use carborator cleaner.

You fellas put me to shame! I'm still in the Q-tip and solvent era!

Gary, don't worry. Your way might be the best way. I bought a pretty large ultraonic cleaner to clean brass, and it works, but just barely. Not worth hassle. Might not be using it right but I don't see it being all that great. One of those things that needs to move on down the road.

Michael,

I got one a couple of years ago after a visit to Abe Chabers shop. I heard a noise in his back room, a low buzz, I asked and was shown the little tank at work. Abe then cleaned a Highwall action I had disassembled and I was amazed that the internal parts came back with most of their original finish intact, vivid case colors and bright nitre blues.

The major manufacturer in the US is L&R from NJ. They make the units that Brownells sells, indeed they sell the same unit under many names. They sell a lot of this size to denists and tattoo artists.

I first bought an unheated 140 size and it worked well but then I was able to find a heated 210 size and that's large enough for a pistol frame. The heated ones work very well. I use Abe's recommended mixture of water, Simple Green and non sudsing ammonia.

When I got the heated one I immediately tore down a grimy Rem. M14 I had gotten for free and cleaned every part, they came out looking like the day they left the factory. I was even able to clean the frame with barrel attached, one half at a time. Now I have to figure out how to get the thing back together, gun in a box!

Brett, interestingly enough last week I tried to clean some old brass 12ga shells, it did not work well, I may have to find a different solution, maybe I'll try Michaels.

By keeping a watch on eBay you should be able to find a good condition, used, heated 210 for about $300. A quick test to see if it's working is to fill the tank with water and suspend a piece of aluminum foil in it. In a few minutes the foil with start to show holes and eventually disintegrate.

BTW, they are great for cleaning the crud off saltwater fishing reels.

Caveat! These cleaners remove every trace of oil and the parts will start to rust right away. You can get an extra pan to fill with oil and then use the ultrasonic action to lube the cleaned parts.


Here are some pics of the internal surfaces from that 1885 after cleaning.

Thanks Guys, all good info.

I bought a larger one from Harbor Freight and it will take a action no problem.

It's hard to get any liquid shipped to Alaska these days so I'll see what is available. Simple Green should be easy to find locally. Do you know what the mix is?

Couple of years ago I bought a Crest brand Industrial unit, extremely disappointed�.yes it cleaned, but not as well as I would have liked. It also left a sort of frosted/pitted finish on highly polished parts.

After about two years the unit died, warranty expired, opened it up to see if it was user repairable (fuse etc) unit was made in Malaysia. Sent it back to Crest�. Was quoted a price to repair� told them to keep it.

What I use now, I find very effective. Go down to your local 2nd hand store; buy a crock pot for $5. Make a mixture of 50% Sodium Hydroxide (LYE) based drain cleaner and 50% water. Put parts in and let cook. The lye/water mix will breakdown most oils greases, paint, varnish, carbon, crud etc�but not harm the steel. In fact, the solution provides an anti rusting environment, so parts can sit in the solution indefinitely without worry about rusting. The solution will also not harm most metal finishes� Bluing, CCH etc.

Do not put parts made out of aluminum, brass or zinc in the solution�it will dissolve them.

Normally when a gun comes in for a complete restoration, gun is disassembled, all parts thrown into the crock pot, set on high, at the end of the day; I�ll turn of the crock pot. Next morning take parts out, rinse with water and coat with LPS 2.

Mike, on the advise of Ron Peterson, I just use Spic and Span powder in the tank with water. It is eco friendly. It cleans very well. Rinse off in hot water, blow dry with compressed air, and then a spray lubricant. I let all dry and cool and blow off with compressed air again and blot off as well as possible with cotton or paper towels.

Rob, Michael's Vinegar works well on brass because its slightly acidic. In the shop we use a cup of food grade powdered citric acid on a 22 cubic foot vibe machine full of brass parts and they look like jewelery in just a few minutes.