Simple Green from Wally World

[Vomitus]

  I tried something today. Mixed Simple Green,1 oz  to two cups of tap water. Took the lock off and did the "qwik" clean method of plugging the vent,fill up the bore and let it sit 10 minutes.I then used a wet patch soaked in the same solution and proceeded with my regular routine for cleaning. Was very surprised how well this worked. Barrel just sparkles. Any pros or cons ? Ever try this stuff?

[smylee grouch]

I do the same but omit the simple green, just water and my bores come out clean and a shot of WD40 keeps them clean after I dry them out.   Smylee

[Daryl]

Vom. - check out the MSDS sheet for salts or corrosives - I'd do a PH test as well. I have some PH strips if you want to test it, but no 'green solution', simple or otherwise.

[Roger Fisher]

  I tried something today. Mixed Simple Green,1 oz  to two cups of tap water. Took the lock off and did the "qwik" clean method of plugging the vent,fill up the bore and let it sit 10 minutes.I then used a wet patch soaked in the same solution and proceeded with my regular routine for cleaning. Was very surprised how well this worked. Barrel just sparkles. Any pros or cons ? Ever try this stuff?

Sure - Use it 20% in water mainly 'cause it works fairly well as a hand cleaner and tells me were my minor hand cuts are

[William Worth]

I had a bad experience with a similar cleaner ("Clear Magic") using it to clean the windshield of an airplane.  It seemed like pretty innocuous stuff-until I began getting agressive filiform corrosion all over the aluminum (which obviously is most of the rest of the airplane).

I looked up "Simple Green's") MSDS.  One thing that struck me was that it listed a pH around 9.5 +/- .5...so it can range from 9.0-10.0...pretty caustic...

As the Mad Monk has stated, everything in black powder residue is water soluble, so guess what I use now?  Yup!  Dihydrous oxide....

[ottawa]

that's pretty aggressive stuff look what it did to the grand canyon

[Vomitus]

 Toilet Tub and Tank(Abrams) cleaner? Checking bore brb. OK, no rust, no rough spots,just a little WD40 residual. Smooth as ever. More pros and cons.It does have a slightly caustic aroma, but I work in a pulp mill so my smell may not mean much.I mixed 1 ounce to 2 cups of water. Not really a hot mix. No harm done,it appears.
  Yep, I always just use straight cold water. Just trying something different.

[t.caster]

I know what all the "experts" say, but I have used SG for cleaning barrels since it came out (what 20+ yrs.?)and all my barrels are mirror bright & clean. I dilute it probably 20:1. I run a RIG soaked patch down the barrel inside & out after cleaning.
Yes SG will remove stock finish, that is why I remove the barrel from the stock each time. And no, I have NEVER broken or hurt a stock doing this.
Now, WD40.....I don't buy or use. But I do use Liquid Wrench and 3in1 spray lubes/penetrants to name a couple others that I like.

[Naphtali]

  I tried something today. Mixed Simple Green,1 oz  to two cups of tap water. Took the lock off and did the "qwik" clean method of plugging the vent,fill up the bore and let it sit 10 minutes.I then used a wet patch soaked in the same solution and proceeded with my regular routine for cleaning. Was very surprised how well this worked. Barrel just sparkles. Any pros or cons ? Ever try this stuff?

When cleaning my Kodiak Safari, step one is to patch-clean the barrels with scalding water into which is a combination of Dawn detergent and Simple Green. This preps for Black Off to finish the cleaning job.

Cleaning the double rifle completely takes about 30 minutes. I have been cleaning using Simple Green - muzzleloaders and breech-loaders, black powder and smokeless - for nearly a decade. And I experience zero issues.

Hope this helps.

[B.Habermehl]

Simple green has been my favorite cleaner and patch lube for years now. It's the best stuff since sliced bread as a patch lube especially for youth field day type shoots where the gun will be fired 100 or more times with minimal cleaning between groups of kids.  I use it as my general patch lube for club shoots. BJH

[roundball]

Simple Green from Wally World

Noticing the reference to Simple Green from Wally World, just trying to clarify if Walmart has some particular version of is it the same Simple Green sold anywhere.....for example, is this the product being referenced?


http://www.simplegreen.com/products_all_purpose_cleaner.php

[Vomitus]

   Rb,
  Yes ,That's the stuff. Just the bottle is a 2 quart size that I bought,same label.

[David Rase]

Never tried simple green.  I have been using Fantastic spray cleaner for about 3 years now and am very happy with the results.  I used to use a product called 10X.  You mixed the bottle of concentrate with a gallon of water.  It was a red colored cleaner.  Used it for a long time back when I lived in Colorado.  Finally quit using it because I felt it was corrosive if not completely flushed out.
Dave

[Daryl]

I had a bad experience with a similar cleaner ("Clear Magic") using it to clean the windshield of an airplane.  It seemed like pretty innocuous stuff-until I began getting agressive filiform corrosion all over the aluminum (which obviously is most of the rest of the airplane).

I looked up "Simple Green's") MSDS.  One thing that struck me was that it listed a pH around 9.5 +/- .5...so it can range from 9.0-10.0...pretty caustic...

As the Mad Monk has stated, everything in black powder residue is water soluble, so guess what I use now?  Yup!  Dihydrous oxide....

9 to 10 pH - this sounds important to me.  Is that straight-up or diluted?  Even if diluted, it's more caustic than water.

[William Worth]

I assume the pH stated would be of the undiluted product.  Adding water or anything else would be a wild card that the manufacturer could only speculate on.

[Burgess_rudy]

that's pretty aggressive stuff look what it did to the grand canyon

We Geography majors find that statement pretty @!*% funny.

[Mad Monk]

I had a bad experience with a similar cleaner ("Clear Magic") using it to clean the windshield of an airplane.  It seemed like pretty innocuous stuff-until I began getting agressive filiform corrosion all over the aluminum (which obviously is most of the rest of the airplane).

I looked up "Simple Green's") MSDS.  One thing that struck me was that it listed a pH around 9.5 +/- .5...so it can range from 9.0-10.0...pretty caustic...

As the Mad Monk has stated, everything in black powder residue is water soluble, so guess what I use now?  Yup!  Dihydrous oxide....

9 to 10 pH - this sounds important to me.  Is that straight-up or diluted?  Even if diluted, it's more caustic than water.

I should point out that the pH of the black powder residue left in the bore will show a pH of around 8.5 since most of it is potassium carbonate (potash).  A soap with a pH in the 9.0 to 10.0 range is considered to be moderately caustic.   From the early days of New England settlement this wood ashes extracted potash was known as American ashes on the world market.  A good bit used in soap making in Europe.

E. Ogre

[Dphariss]

Unless your rifle stock is finished with plastic I would not use SG unless its very dilute.
I have quit using soap to remove BP fouling. Its not needed and requires rinsing to be really safe.

Dan

[roundball]

   Rb, Yes ,That's the stuff. Just the bottle is a 2 quart size that I bought,same label.

We usually have one of those spray bottles around all the time for some little clean up odd job.

What's always puzzled me was the label on the spray bottle...the label says 'concentrated'...but its sold in a spray bottle as a household cleaner to be used just as it is in the spray bottle.
As opposed to bulk containers labeled 'concentrated' which are normally then diluted to some degree.

Good stuff for general cleaning for sure...but after seeing in this thread that it'll attack gun finishes I'd be afraid I'd get some on the finish so I won't let it anywhere near mine...hot soapy water is still king for this old boy

[Daryl]

Another cleaner that some of the guys use or used is Wipe Out - a flaming cleaner, listed also on the can as being a black powder cleaner. Well, I tried it. A dribble came out of the plugged went and the drip ran down the stock to the but plate. I didn't see it in time.  I now have a white line running from the lock mortice to the butt plate. It removed the finish and stain. I'll keep it in mind for when I decide to re-finish the stock- works 'Like Magic".

[Mike R]

SG is already 78% water, The balance being 5% each of 2-butoxyethanol, ethoxylated alcohol mix, tetrapotassium phosphate and sodium citrate.  The last 2% is color and odor agents. 

[Vomitus]

  After reading E.Ogre's post stating that the fouling in a barrel is about +- 8.5 caustic, I can't see how SG can have a drastic effect on a gun barrel.( I diluted mine to 1 tablespoon to 1 cup of water.)Short method of cleaning,(tooth pick in vent,fill barrel with solution) and let sit 10 minutes. Five patches later,all's good.(Taylor describes this method of cleaning, like "going for a dump and not removing your trousers"!) till you   I think this method will be fine for rondy shoots where a shooter will be shooting it again the same or following day. I've done daily checks on the bore condition, sparkling clean,nothing adverse yet.

[Daryl]

 After reading E.Ogre's post stating that the fouling in a barrel is about +- 8.5 caustic, I can't see how SG can have a drastic effect on a gun barrel.( I diluted mine to 1 tablespoon to 1 cup of water.)Short method of cleaning,(tooth pick in vent,fill barrel with solution) and let sit 10 minutes. Five patches later,all's good.(Taylor describes this method of cleaning, like "going for a dump and not removing your trousers"!) till you :'  I think this method will be fine for rondy shoots where a shooter will be shooting it again the same or following day. I've done daily checks on the bore condition, sparkling clean,nothing adverse yet.

I've done this with plain water at rondy when in a hurry to get 'rondy-ing'.