How to Clean a Colt 45
The Colt M-1911--the official name of the Colt .45 semiautomatic pistol--began life as the primary sidearm of the United States military and has since become one of the most recognizable pistols in the world. The Colt .45 has seen use in both civilian and professional sectors, and is still the primary sidearm of the Marine Force Recon--even though the rest of the military has adopted the M-9 pistol as their primary sidearm. Cleaning a Colt .45 is a relatively simple process, but is also quite crucial to keeping the pistol in good working order.
Instructions
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1
Eject the magazine from the Colt .45 and clear the firing chamber by racking the slide back several times. Unloading and clearing the weapon should always be your first step whenever you are working on any kind of firearm.
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2
Field strip your Colt .45 to prepare it for cleaning. If you are unsure how to field strip your pistol, there are sources online that can help.
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3
Dip your bore brush in cleaning solvent and use it to scrub out the inside of the barrel.
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4
Run several cloth swatches through the barrel to collect any dirt or carbon buildup that was knocked loose by the bore brush. Continue doing this until the cloth swatches come out clean.
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5
Apply gun oil to a cloth swatch and run it through the barrel. Follow this with several clean swatches to sop up any excess oil.
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6
Apply cleaning solvent to a clean cloth and use it to wipe down all the loose pieces of the Colt. Do this several times to collect all the grime from the parts.
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7
Wipe down all the metal parts with an oil-soaked cloth. This will both lubricate and prevent rust or corrosion from forming on the metal.
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8
Reassemble your Colt .45.
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