How to Clean a Sharps Rifle

Sharps rifle's have an old-fashioned style.

The Sharps rifles are manufactured in Italy and are known for their precision craftsmanship. Sharp rifles have an old-fashion style and need proper cleaning to continue functioning properly after shooting. If the rifle is not cleaned regularly and properly, the black powder will erode the gun, eventually preventing it from shooting. By cleaning your Sharps rifle properly after every shoot, you will extend the life of your rifle and be able to shoot safely for many years.

Things You'll Need

• Gun oil
• Black powder solvent
• Knife
• Swabs

Instructions

1. Field strip the gun by pushing in the tiny plunger pin on the right side of the frame, and rotate the arm of the lever hinge pin past the plunger pin. Turn the rifle upside down while rotating the hinge pin back and forth to remove it. Slide the lever of the breech block up out of the rifle after the hinge pin is removed.

2. Remove the gas check plate from the breech block by sliding the edge of a knife in-between the plate and the breech block. Clean the gas plate and breech block separately by rinsing them with warm water and black powder solvent. Allow the separate parts to dry.

3. Clean the rest of the rifle parts by soaking them in warm water and lightly scrubbing them with black powder solvent. Set the rifle aside to dry. Swab the inside of the barrel to ensure all the powder and solvent are out of the gun.

4. Lubricate all the parts of the gun with gun oil and reassemble the gun. Allow the oil on the gun to dry for at least 24 hours before shooting the gun again.

Tips & Warnings

• Shooting a gun can be very dangerous. Make sure to take precautions and follow all instructions the rifle provides.

• If you are not knowledgeable about your Sharps rifle you should not fire, field strip, or clean the gun.

References

• Tristar Sporting Arms: Sharps
• Navy Arms: Sharps care and loading instructions