Cleaning the gas piston with?

JRLSH

New member
Hello all. Quick question and probably a dumb one at that. Anyway, the manual on the rifle in question (FN Scar 17s) says NOT to use lube in any way, shape, or form on the gas piston, gas regulator and the gas block. OK, question is : Can I use CLP on the parts to clean them and then wipe the parts off fully or should I use a solvent to clean them and put them back into the rifle like that without any CLP on them at all? The manual says to fully disassemble the rifle before shooting it and clean it thoroughly before shooting, but does not clarify what to use on those parts except to say NOT to use any lube on those specific parts. Any suggestions would be most helpful. Thanks for ya'lls input....
 

Snyper

New member
I'd use J B Bore cleaner or Flitz polish to remove the carbon, then rinse with acetone or alcohol to remove any residues

CLP is a lube, and I doubt you can wipe it all off
 

JRLSH

New member
cleaning

Thanks snyper, that was sort of my thinking, that I could not get it all off those parts, but why in the world would you not put some type of protectant on those parts? Seems crazy to me.
 

wogpotter

New member
FAL has similar warnings.
I use Sweets 7.62 as it really rips the baked on carbon of the piston face. Its water-based so you can remove with a damp patch & it has no lube properties.:eek:
 

Dfariswheel

New member
To clean gas system parts like pistons, you can use a "lead-away" cloth made for removing leading and carbon from stainless pistols and hard chromed gas system parts.
(Do NOT use on blued steel, it removes bluing).

A second method is to use a liquid carbon remover like Slip 2000 Carbon Killer.
This is a safe liquid you shake up well, then soak the parts for 15 minutes or so.
After soaking, usually any remaining carbon can be brushed off.

NEVER, EVER use any abrasive, polish, steel scraper (unless it's designed for that purpose), steel wool, sand paper or other abrasives or steel objects like pocket knives.
If the piston or cylinder gets scratched, carbon fouling will adhere and build up even faster.
Also, many gas systems use hard chrome plated parts, The finish can be damaged, exposing plain steel.

The reason not to put ANY lubricant, bore cleaner, or anything else in a gas system is that you have super heated plasma gas coming through at over 2500 degrees and some thousands of pounds PSI.
Anything in the system will get burned into a sticky tar-like mess that will cause the gas system to stick and cause jams.
I don't know of any commonly available lubricant or bore solvent that can take 2500 degrees and not burn.

Unless specifically stated otherwise don't use anything in a gas system, they're intended to run dry.
One of the very few exceptions is the M1 Rifle manuals call for using a few drops of lubricant in the gas cylinder where the piston rides.
 

TATER

New member
In Other Words,.. Oil is a Hydrocarbon and spent Gunpowder is Carbon, (They really like each other) Carbon/Hydrocarbon bond..
 

TATER

New member
In a closed system, Thats got to be rare though.. :eek:
I thought dieseling might be a some catch-word for carbon build up..
 

wogpotter

New member
It depends on the flash point of the lube used. If its lower than the flame temperature of the gas entering the system it'll happen every time.
 

Erno86

New member
You can go with Gunzilla --- which claims to be non-flammable --- it cleans carbon, copper, lead, rust, plastic fouling and the use of corrosive ammo --- smells good; though it can remove a wood stock's finish.

I use Gunzilla as my primary solvent and lubricant for cleaning my guns.
 
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wogpotter

New member
I don't think anyone had a problem with cleaning. The clean & then leave it in CLP type materials were the problem.
 
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