47 replies to this topic

[Ashes]

http://www.harborfre...temnumber=95563

Looks like Harbor Freight is having a sale on the Chicago Electric Power Tools ultrasonic cleaner. $60 instead of $80.
Anyone used this particular model before?

Thx!

[cowboyflyfisher]

I've never used it, but I did want to say I've never had any trouble with the power tools I've bought at Harbor Freight.  They also sell some metal "forget dog, beware of owner" signs with a revolver facing you, in case you're going to the store.

[BobbyT]

Shows up as $80 for me at the link.

Oh and in case you guys are unaware, if you have a store near you you can consistently get 15% off everything.  They have coupons for 3-4 day sales, but they just redo them again the next weekend (literally, every weekend).  You can sign up for their email list, or find them online.

[Don Gwinn]

For that price, I might need one.  Thanks!

[Ashes]

http://www.jewelsmal...ulclcdasij.html

Tank Dimensions 6 × 3.5 × 1.5 inches
This model should hold a BCG and it is on sale at $44.95. (No heater on it though)
Hopefully this thing will show up in the next few days and I can post a review on it.

This company also sells larger gun cleaners and smaller units.

[BobbyT]

I never considered getting one of these because it didn't occur to me they're that cheap.  But now I'm wondering if it would be nice for tossing small stuff into.

Like, say, a barrel.  In particular, I'm thinking about surplus pistols with corrosive primer salts.  Do you guys think coming home, dropping the barrel in for a while, then drying & oiling it would be sufficient to remove them?  I don't mind cleaning them properly, but I get all OCD about wanting every speck of primer salt out, and just letting them hang out in the cleaner while I took care of the slide would be a time & labor saver.

[Ashes]

Well the unit is finally here.



The upside:
I dropped a Glock 17 barrel into it with some distilled water which I had warmed in a coffee mug in the microwave for 2.5 minutes, just hot enough so that I can stick my finger in there and leave it there. Boiling hot water will probably overheat the unit and damage it. Warning! Neither the Glock barrel nor the ultrasonic cleaner were placed in the microwave...  
About 3 minutes later the Glock barrel was clean. No gun oil left on the barrel and the exterior surfaces were squeeky clean. Using hot distilled water improves the cleaning action and lets the barrel dry off quickly after being removed from the bath. The inside of the barrel required ONE oily patch to remove the remaining residue. Shouldn't have had any remaining residue, but this proved to me that I should use a gun cleaning fluid instead of just plain distilled water.

The downside:
At 6 inches long the inside tank is not quite long enough to fit an AR BCG. It needs to be 6 and 3/4 inches long. But the instructions show that I can partially immerse a long object by letting one side hang on the lip of the tank. I will try this later when I get some better water based gun cleaner, with pictures!

[Xwing]

The jewelry cleaner is a good idea.  I don't think my wife would be thrilled if I started putting gun parts in her cleaner though.  Were you able to "clean out" the cleaner after use, and get the gun oil & grime out?

[pyre400]

Ashes, on Dec 8 2009, 10:30 PM, said:

Well the unit is finally here.



The upside:
I dropped a Glock 17 barrel into it with some distilled water which I had warmed in a coffee mug in the microwave for 2.5 minutes, just hot enough so that I can stick my finger in there and leave it there. Boiling hot water will probably overheat the unit and damage it. Warning! Neither the Glock barrel nor the ultrasonic cleaner were placed in the microwave...  
About 3 minutes later the Glock barrel was clean. No gun oil left on the barrel and the exterior surfaces were squeeky clean. Using hot distilled water improves the cleaning action and lets the barrel dry off quickly after being removed from the bath. The inside of the barrel required ONE oily patch to remove the remaining residue. Shouldn't have had any remaining residue, but this proved to me that I should use a gun cleaning fluid instead of just plain distilled water.

The downside:
At 6 inches long the inside tank is not quite long enough to fit an AR BCG. It needs to be 6 and 3/4 inches long. But the instructions show that I can partially immerse a long object by letting one side hang on the lip of the tank. I will try this later when I get some better water based gun cleaner, with pictures!

Hey, thanks for your report.

Do you have any other pistol bbls to compare with?
I'm curious how well it works on getting into the grooves, I have one particular pistol that always gets lead build up in the grooves.  I get it clean, but its a PITA.

Also, do you think the tank could handle some of the harsh chemicals?  I'm assuming no since you are using water based.  That may be a downside.

Lastly, if you ever do get a chance to try it on your bolt from the AR - the tapered area just after the rings can sometimes be a pain.  I wonder how well it works on that.  I've polished mine so it comes clean quicker, but its still one of the more tougher areas for me to clean.

As I said, thanks again.  This looks promising.

[Ashes]

The tank is stainless steel and wiped clean with a paper towel. The cleaner comes with a plastic basket which apparently reduces the power of the unit by 30% if used. I'm weighing the idea of having more power at the expense of scratching up the tank and having dissimilar metals touching or just using a longer cleaning cycle... The plastic basket also wiped clean easily.

On the point of stronger solvents, I believe some people use a combination of mineral spirits and transmission fluid in theirs to help clean the guns. I don't have a good way of getting rid of mineral spirits/trans fluid so I am planning on using a gun cleaning fluid called MPro-7. The makers of MPro-7 recommend diluting their product with 1:9 parts water in an ultrasonic cleaner for best cleaning. They also recommend filtering the dirty MPro-7 liquid through something like a coffee filter and using it over and over. I've been using this stuff for years to clean my guns and have been impressed with how well it dissolves fouling, how it doesn't smell, and is non-toxic.

http://www.mpro7.com/MPro7-Faqs.html

I've run out of MPro-7 gun cleaner and am waiting for more to show up...  
Sorry for the delay.

[pyre400]

Ashes, on Dec 9 2009, 09:55 PM, said:

The tank is stainless steel and wiped clean with a paper towel. The cleaner comes with a plastic basket which apparently reduces the power of the unit by 30% if used. I'm weighing the idea of having more power at the expense of scratching up the tank and having dissimilar metals touching or just using a longer cleaning cycle... The plastic basket also wiped clean easily.

On the point of stronger solvents, I believe some people use a combination of mineral spirits and transmission fluid in theirs to help clean the guns. I don't have a good way of getting rid of mineral spirits/trans fluid so I am planning on using a gun cleaning fluid called MPro-7. The makers of MPro-7 recommend diluting their product with 1:9 parts water in an ultrasonic cleaner for best cleaning. They also recommend filtering the dirty MPro-7 liquid through something like a coffee filter and using it over and over. I've been using this stuff for years to clean my guns and have been impressed with how well it dissolves fouling, how it doesn't smell, and is non-toxic.

http://www.mpro7.com/MPro7-Faqs.html

I've run out of MPro-7 gun cleaner and am waiting for more to show up...  
Sorry for the delay.

Hey, thanks agian.

I throw my used solvents in with the used motor oil in my garage (sometimes I've used the kerosene to start fires in the burn pit).  The naperville fd accepts household hazardous chemicals (residential only) every Saturday from 8:00AM to 1:00PM (location near Deal and 88).

I've never used Mpro7 - if its as good as you say, I'd better give it a shot.  I always loved the sweet smell of hoppes though  

[Ashes]

Ultrasonic Cleaner Review!



This is a review of the Sharpertek Ultrasonic Cleaner CD-3800 XP PRO which is basically a small jewelry cleaner with 30 watts of cleaning power. Sells for about $45.
http://www.jewelsmal...ulclcdasij.html

The interior tank on this unit measures 6 × 3.5 × 1.5 inches. Which in hindsight is too short for an AR-15 bolt carrier, but should handle most pistol barrels with ease. There is a slightly larger unit (60watts) which sells for $200 (currently on sale for $90), and measures 6.75 x 5.38 x 2.75 inches which might just barely clear a stripped BCG. The tank in this case is stainless steel and so far cleans up easily by wiping clean with a paper towel. It does scratch if you put metal objects into the tank. There is a supplied basket for small items that you can use to prevent scratches to the stainless tank, but be warned that the plastic basket aborbs the ultrasonic waves and reduces the power of the unit by 30%.

Plastic basket for small items.


The unit has one power setting and uses a fixed variable timer to shut off the unit when the cleaning cycle ends. The timer has 5 settings of 90seconds, 180sec, 280sec, 380sec, 480sec. Simply selected the duration of the cleaning cycle and hit start. The unit will shut off when the countdown timer hits zero.

For this review we will be cleaning a chromed bolt carrier group. The bolt was already wiped down once, but still has some stubborn carbon in hard to clean areas. Cleaning solution is 1 part MPro7 gun cleaning solution and 4 parts warm distilled water. The makes of MPro7 recommend 1 part MPro7 to 9 parts water for use in ultrasonic cleaner so I could use less solution in the future, but it is easier to eyeball a 1:4 mix than a 1:9 mix. Distilled water was heated in a coffee mug in the microwave separately from the cleaning solution and then later mixed. Solution was comfortably warm to the touch and not burning hot.

Before Pictures:

Bolt Face and front of carrier. Notice the carbon rings on the chromed face of the carrier.


Side of the carrier. Notice the carbon imbedded in the machining marks.



The stripped carrier was about 1/3 submerged in the tank as it had to sit at an angle because it was too long to fit in the tank. It was set to a cleaning cycle of about 5 minutes in a mixture of warm distilled water and MPro-7 cleaning solution. The bolt and other small parts were put into the plastic basket and cleaned in the dirty solution for about 8 minutes.

The results are below:

Close up of clean bolt


Close up of clean bolt face


Clean Extractor


Clean Carrier Face. You can see down into the gas cylinder. Note the hard carbon still remaining at the bottom. Some of this had to be scrapped using a carrier cleaner tool and there is still carbon left.


The firing pin was covered in carbon which seeped into the oil from the still dirty firing pin channel. Now it is very very clean and completely degreased.


Carrier Side After. Remember the carbon in the machining marks? They are all gone now.


A view from the tail end of the carrier. You can see it is clean until you get to the bottom and there is a ring of hard carbon left over.


The cleaning solution after we were done. I tried to filter this stuff through a coffee filter, but the particles are so fine that the coffee filter was unable to catch anything. I've written into the makers of MPro7 to find out what they recommend to use to filter this mess out. Right now I have the fluid sitting in a bottle and am hoping that the particles will eventually settle to the bottom and I can skim the clean fluid off the top.



According to the directions for using MPro7 with an ultrasonic cleaner, I am suppose to let the cycle run for about 15 minutes. But for the purposes of this demonstration, the shorter cleaning cycle still proved that it can get the parts cleaner than I could if I were cleaning these by hand. The ultrasonic cleaner even with the MPro7 gun cleaner was unable to cut through the hard carbon deposits in the shortened time I had given it. But the softer carbon and grease on the other surfaces were completely gone. After pulling the parts from the warm/dirty solution and drying them I gave all exterior surfaces a wipe with an oil soaked patch. By the time I was done, the patch was STILL white. The Q-Tip I used to oil the inside of the bolt also remained clean. But the Q-Tip used to oil the inside of the carrier picked up carbon from the remaining hard carbon rings.

Overall I have mixed feelings about the results. I will probably resoak everything at a later date using clean solution in an effort to get rid of the remaining hard carbon spots on the tail of the bolt and inside the carrier. I know this is a futile gesture as these areas will just get covered in hard carbon again the next time the gun is fired, but it would be interesting to see just how clean this cleaner can get these impossible to clean areas.

This has been an interesting experiment and I hope all of you have enjoyed the results.

edit: In a year or two if the price on this unit drops under $300. It'll probably be my next Christmas gift.
http://www.jewelsmall.com/heulcl.html

[pyre400]

More good stuff - thanks for the writeup and all the photos Ashes

I was hoping that the hard stuff would come off too, but I guess if that's all I have to clean on the BCG, and I can use it on my pistols, its still worth it.

I asked for it for a late Christmas gift, but got the eyebrow raise.  I may have to get it after Christmas

[Ashes]

As a quick update. The solution I've been using and reusing is a 1:9 of MPro7 and distilled water. After a cleaning, I let the tank sit for a few minutes to let the large particles settle to the bottom and use a small scoop to skim off the top layer into a glass bottle, in this case a lipton tea bottle that is capped tightly. The remaining solution with large particles is tossed. The solution stays a deep gray/green color, probably from picking up loose parkerizing. After a few days, smaller particles settle to the bottom of the glass bottle, these particles are visible and a sludge forms at the bottom of the bottle. At this point it is possible to see through liquid in the bottle. When I am ready to clean the guns again, I'll pour the top layer from the bottle into the ultrasonic cleaner, leaving the sludge at the bottom of the bottle. Then top off the cleaner tank with more MPro7. No additional water is added, this is because the MPro7 has cleaners that tend to evaporate off, so I want to strengthen the solution (same reason the solution is tightly capped while stored).

As a note. The solution stays cleaner when cleaning Glock parts as opposed to AR parts. As noted above, I'm assuming this is from loose particles of parkerizing that is being shaken off. I'll update if I see issues.

[Kenny]

Would it work with Hoppes #9 cleaning solution? I have a big bottle of that & I have always loved that for cleaning guns. I am going to Harbor Freight to get one today. i am going to try to get a real big one if they have one for a decent price. i would love to put parts from the .50 in there.

[Ashes]

Kenny:

Use of flamable solvents:
http://wmporter.com/ugc/

Concerns about finish removal.
http://glocktalk.com...hp/t-81561.html

I use the MPro7 stuff because it is nonflamable, nontoxic and doesn't smell at all.

[Kenny]

Ashes, on 24 March 2010 - 07:26 AM, said:

Kenny:

Use of flamable solvents:
http://wmporter.com/ugc/

Concerns about finish removal.
http://glocktalk.com...hp/t-81561.html

I use the MPro7 stuff because it is nonflamable, nontoxic and doesn't smell at all.

I love the smell of Hoppes #9

[Ashes]

I forgot to add that distilled water is cheap!

[Kenny]

This thing is awesome I don't know how I ever lived without it before!!!!

Before:


After 6 min in the cleaner with Hoppes #9 solvent:

[Ashes]

Kenny, on 24 March 2010 - 01:19 PM, said:

This thing is awesome I don't know how I ever lived without it before!!!!

Looking good Kenny.
Now how about a picture of your cleaner?

[Kenny]

Ashes, on 24 March 2010 - 02:00 PM, said:

Kenny, on 24 March 2010 - 01:19 PM, said:

This thing is awesome I don't know how I ever lived without it before!!!!

Looking good Kenny.
Now how about a picture of your cleaner?

it is this one http://www.harborfre...temnumber=95563

[CSpark]

Kenny, on 24 March 2010 - 03:06 PM, said:

Ashes, on 24 March 2010 - 02:00 PM, said:

Kenny, on 24 March 2010 - 01:19 PM, said:

This thing is awesome I don't know how I ever lived without it before!!!!

Looking good Kenny.
Now how about a picture of your cleaner?

it is this one http://www.harborfre...temnumber=95563

I think I will cruise out there on Friday and pick me one up as well. Kenny where can I get the Hoppes #9. Would the Gander Mtn. by you have it on hand? Since I will be out that way I could swing by there as well.

[pyre400]

CSpark, on 24 March 2010 - 07:17 PM, said:

I think I will cruise out there on Friday and pick me one up as well. Kenny where can I get the Hoppes #9. Would the Gander Mtn. by you have it on hand? Since I will be out that way I could swing by there as well.

Its pretty common stuff. I've seen it at every big store - gander, dicks, bass pro..

+1 on the sweet smell of hoppe's. Diesel is the only thing that smells nicer

[CSpark]

pyre400, on 24 March 2010 - 07:47 PM, said:

CSpark, on 24 March 2010 - 07:17 PM, said:

I think I will cruise out there on Friday and pick me one up as well. Kenny where can I get the Hoppes #9. Would the Gander Mtn. by you have it on hand? Since I will be out that way I could swing by there as well.

Its pretty common stuff. I've seen it at every big store - gander, dicks, bass pro..

+1 on the sweet smell of hoppe's. Diesel is the only thing that smells nicer

Thanks for the info and +1 on the diesel, I work on them everyday. It is nose candy.

[pyre400]

CSpark, on 24 March 2010 - 07:48 PM, said:

Thanks for the info and +1 on the diesel, I work on them everyday. It is nose candy.

youbetcha



So I decided to join the party.. I spent a little bit more by purchasing from Amazon (Kendal brand) but the same unit as Kenny got. I had some amazon gift cards I got for various merits at work.

Thanks Ashes for turning us on to this, and thanks Kenny for bringing this up again. I'll have to see how it works on all the guns after a 8 hour lead fest. I'll let the thing run while cleaning the rifle barrels.

I'm thinking I'll have the same realization I had when I got a snow blower 7 years ago - WTF did I wait so long?

[Kenny]

Does anyone know the flashpoint on Hoppes #9? That is the only thing I would worry about because the heater in the machine gets the solution pretty darn hot!!

Chad you may want to call first I think I got the last one at this store.

Look at the inside of the bolt carrier in the before pic (black) and the after pic (shiny) it is awesome.

I am going to keep my eyes open & put the word out to all my friends in the manufacturing business to find a big one for rifles.
I could take it to the local range & charge $10 each to clean guns after a competition. I know I would pay that to save myself 1/2 hour when I got home.

[jobes]

Here are the MSDS http://www.hoppes.com/au_msds.html

I wonder  how it would work on motorcycle chains

[pyre400]

Kenny, on 24 March 2010 - 09:49 PM, said:

Does anyone know the flashpoint on Hoppes #9? That is the only thing I would worry about because the heater in the machine gets the solution pretty darn hot!!

http://www.hoppes.co...ds/904_MSDS.pdf

Looks like ~62 degrees Fahrenheit is the flashpoint.

Kerosene and Ethyl Alcohol. Looks like it has some anesthetic properties as well - no wonder it smells so good LOL.

Its may be good to have a lot of ventilation, if anything, just to disperse the vapor. Autoignition is at >400 degrees but even a light switch could ignite vapors.

[Kenny]

Maybe Hoppes isn't the best idea!!! It says to store below 120 degrees!!!!

I need to find a better solution, I do not want water based. One of the things i like about hoppes is the fact that it cleans great but also leaves a slight film of oil on the parts, then i don't have to oil everything.

[pyre400]

jobes, on 24 March 2010 - 10:00 PM, said:

Here are the MSDS http://www.hoppes.com/au_msds.html

I wonder how it would work on motorcycle chains

I bet even some simplegreen and water would do the trick. Are those o-ring style chains?

Also, I'm not sure the type of chain you're talking, but it may not fit in the bin: Tank Size (LXWXH)- 9.84in X 5.90in X 3.15in