I've cleaned my 226 a few times now - just a basic field strip and cleaning.
Just wondering, is it necessary to disassemble the entire gun for cleaning? Or is a basic field strip all that is necessary?
I want to make sure I'm giving it a decent cleaning job.
Field striping is enough for 99.9% of cleaning. My 226 has never been detail striped and it has at least 10k rounds through it. Even after getting dunked and muddy it just got the parts washer and air compressor.
All military arms are meant to be properly maintained by field stripping and cleaning.
I recently bought a surplus 228 that made me pull my grip panels from my 226 and do a little extra preventative maintenance. First being the mainspring/hammer strut. The 228 had the old style spring that is captured by a roll pin onto the hammer strut; all 3 parts were rusted together. The new style mainspring/strut fit in a polymer housing which if free of oil/grease could become a potential spot for rust to form as well. Also, a drop of oil on the magazine catch wouldnt hurt either, there are two small springs in there for the magazine catch and the magazine catch retainer that keeps it in the frame; both of which can rust and neither of which you will see unless you were to pull the magazine catch out.
Originally Posted By DarnHippie:
All military arms are meant to be properly maintained by field stripping and cleaning.
Made for hard use, use hard.
