I must be doing something wrong...

[SteelShooter]

So I'm looking through all the pictures of everyone's guns, and they are beautiful. I look through the classifieds and the guns look great and it seems every one of them has only had a few rounds or a couple of hundred rounds put through them.
Then I look at my guns, and they look like crap compared to these. I have some obvious scratches from casing ejections or little nicks where I got some FTEjects and got hung up. And I'm sure I put at least a thousand rounds through each of my guns the first week I got them. I clean them religiously after each shoot and spend at least 45 minutes to an hour on each gun. So is it the way I'm cleaning them or something or am I just being too critical?
I've got a Sig P239 .40 and a Mosquito .22. I carry my P239 every day and I've got at least 1500 rounds through it I got it in April, my Mosquito has at least 7 or 8 thousand through it and I got that in January. These are the first guns I've owned, hence the question, I must be doing something wrong. Thoughts?

 

[45collector]

I've got guns that I've had for years, have put many rounds through, carry often, and never plan on selling. These are the guns that are pretty beat-up looking. Colt .45, Walther PPK/s, and S&W .38 snubby being a few.

Then there's some I've aquired that I've shot, maybe carried a few times, but I try to keep them in nice shape in case I ever decide to sell them to fund other projects.

If you really like your carry pistol, it fits you like a glove, it's reliable, user-friendly, and you can't see yourself getting rid of it anytime soon, don't worry about what the outside looks like. Take care of the guts and the bore so you know it's a dependable sidearm.

 

[MasterShinken]

When I was teaching sword arts, I had some students over my house once for a bbq. they all wanted to see my weapon collection. when I showed them what I had they were all shocked. Every single one I owned had dings, scratches, nicks, scrapes... All sorts of wear and tare. When they asked me how I could let this happen I simply responded that unlike alot of other people that get things as wall hangers, Ever single weapon I have in my house has been rigorously practiced with, trained on and used as needed. Each scratch in a masters sword adds to the spirit of that sword and eventually you can tell whos sword it is just by where and how the scratches and such appear on the sword. same thing with guns. take good care of them and they'll work well for you, but scuffs and such show that you use the gun and train with it as it should be, as a weapon.

 

[PWM]

No doubt. My P7M8 is looking pretty beat up and haggard (all my doing... sadly). But, it will fire when I pull the trigger and I can operate it safely and effectively in my sleep.

 

[Mike-Mike]

Thats because we are shooters and not collectors. I don't own a gun that I wouldn't shoot. I got some old stuff too. My guns are tools and they look like them.


ETA: I got a Ruger P85 that looks like it was left in a swamp. It has never failed me and it had seen 30k rounds easy.

 

[SteelShooter]

Thats because we are shooters and not collectors. I don't own a gun that I wouldn't shoot. I got some old stuff too. My guns are tools and they look like them.


ETA: I got a Ruger P85 that looks like it was left in a swamp. It has never failed me and it had seen 30k rounds easy.

Come to think of it, a lot of my tools look like this as well. I guess I have just never thought of them as show pieces and never even considered I would sell them. I shoot them often and have always performed.

 

[Pilgrim]

photoshop

 

[punx45]

photoshop

works for models, why not guns?

 

[gerrycaruso]

The only guns I own that look pristine, are the ones I don't shoot often. All my carry guns look awful.

 

[ateamrob]

Each scratch in a masters sword adds to the spirit of that sword and eventually you can tell whos sword it is just by where and how the scratches and such appear on the sword. same thing with guns. take good care of them and they'll work well for you, but scuffs and such show that you use the gun and train with it as it should be, as a weapon.

as a fellow Martial Artist to another, this is extremely well said and very true.

Very true....

 

[KMS]

I'm one of those folks that have shooters and safe queens..I'm and avid shooter,I go once a week during the spring/summer/fall months.My Sig P226/.40 has 15k maybe more rounds through it...and looks like it.

 

[GSG]

Thats because we are shooters and not collectors. I don't own a gun that I wouldn't shoot. I got some old stuff too. My guns are tools and they look like them.

Agreed.

I don't own a gun that I'm afraid to drop, scratch or bump into the wall. It's a tool, it gets used, and it's lovingly maintained. They will all function flawlessly, but I'm not looking to win a sexy gun award.

 

[GSG]

And to the OP, I think a big issue is that most gun owners hardly ever shoot their guns. They'll put a box or two of ammo through it when they get it, and then it gets carried or lives in the safe or whatever else and doesn't get touched.

If you have a gun that you want to rely on, you need to do a lot of practice with it, to the point where the gun is like a part of you. If it's a safe queen, all you really have to do is keep it in the safe.

 

[fubar]

My handguns are beat to crap. My rifles look pretty good.

 

[Pilgrim]

I have some newer ones I shoot a lot. Older ones usually get shot a little but pampered a lot.

 

[depicts]

I have working guns and "special" guns. Even the special guns can have some wear, as they have been passed down to me from Dad, an Uncle or Grandfather.

Other special guns are ones so nice only I shoot them. I learned with one of my nicest guns not to lend all of them out. I took a nephew shooting and he set my new Weatherby XXII down on top of a bunch of empty .22 shells, and then pulled the rifle toward him, scratching the length of the barrel. This was one of those... "I didn't ever think I'd own one this nice"... kind of gun.

My working guns look just like they sound. Muzzle wear from holstering. Bluing worn off on the fronts of cylinders. Back straps worn from handling. A few dings on the wood.

I guess I only take pictures of the pretty ones.

 

[jar]

ETA: I got a Ruger P85 that looks like it was left in a swamp. It has never failed me and it had seen 30k rounds easy.

The Ruger P series guns aren't lookers to start with. If I had one I'd probably shoot it inside a paper bag.

 

[vellnueve]

I have a lot of guns that have been used extensively and don't show that they've been beaten up. They're not mutually exclusive.

 

[z0mbi]

So I'm looking through all the pictures of everyone's guns, and they are beautiful. I look through the classifieds and the guns look great and it seems every one of them has only had a few rounds or a couple of hundred rounds put through them.
Then I look at my guns, and they look like crap compared to these. I have some obvious scratches from casing ejections or little nicks where I got some FTEjects and got hung up. And I'm sure I put at least a thousand rounds through each of my guns the first week I got them. I clean them religiously after each shoot and spend at least 45 minutes to an hour on each gun. So is it the way I'm cleaning them or something or am I just being too critical?
I've got a Sig P239 .40 and a Mosquito .22. I carry my P239 every day and I've got at least 1500 rounds through it I got it in April, my Mosquito has at least 7 or 8 thousand through it and I got that in January. These are the first guns I've owned, hence the question, I must be doing something wrong. Thoughts?

Why would you think you were doing something wrong? I don't understand your position. You present us with a conflicting preface to your question "Am I doing something wrong?" by saying that:

A)Everyone elses guns look beautiful and have only a few rounds fired
B)Your guns look like crap and have thousands of rounds down the pipe

If your question is why do your guns look like crap, you already have your answer, I hope it would appear obvious.

 

[ephemeratta]

My garand looked beautiful. Second oldest firearm I owned and it had seen more use in its life than any arm in my collection. Until I gave it to my Dad that is
Used guns look used. Previously-owned(read: safe-queens) look pristine.
If the bluing isn't off the edges of my 1911 that is an indication I'm not practicing with it enough.
The only gun in my collection, safe-queens aside, that still looks pristine after being battered is my S&W model 66. That thing really takes a beating and shows ridiculously well.
A well worn firearm is the same to me as a show piece. And, I wouldn't hesitate in buying anything that showed its age as long is it has a good barrel and solid operation.

ETA - I just realized my SP101 is in geat shape too after being put through its paces.

 

[Kenny474]

All my guns are roughed up as well. Not beat looking, but they all show signs of wear from hunting or shooting. No big deal, as they all work flawlessly. I do have a wall hanger, but it's an old Damascus double barrel 8ga. muzzle loader that I inherited from my Grandfather and is in no way pristine.

People with pristine guns either have too many guns, or don't shoot them enough. Maybe even both.
Kenny

 

[Rob]

I only cherish/baby the guns that have a very special place in my heart. A Govt 1911 my uncle bought off a GI after WWII and a 1950's Colt Python .357 that my father gave me. Ok...and my .44mag Desert Eagle. Everything else is fair game.

My Beretta 92FS looks like hell but shoots like a dream. It's easily my worst looking gun but easily my favorite gun. The action is smooth and I can hit what I'm aiming at. Many many thousands of rounds through the pipe.

I don't try to ding, scratch, or otherwise maul my guns, but it happens. Do I get a little mad when I drop a gun on cement? Yeah but I don't rush out to a smith to have it reblued. I also don't like to sell my guns. I'm a shooter/collector. I buy what I like, keep them, and shoot them (except for that Warthog, but let's forget about that). However, do I enjoy buying a nice looking gun? Sure. The first thing I do is detail strip it and admire at it's pristine beauty. Then I shoot the piss out of it and never look back. Funny how that goes.

So long as the action and barrel are in good condition, everything else is just cosmetic.

 

[SteelShooter]

Why would you think you were doing something wrong? I don't understand your position. You present us with a conflicting preface to your question "Am I doing something wrong?" by saying that:

A)Everyone elses guns look beautiful and have only a few rounds fired
B)Your guns look like crap and have thousands of rounds down the pipe

If your question is why do your guns look like crap, you already have your answer, I hope it would appear obvious.

You combined two thoughts into one in A - I looked through pictures and the guns are beautiful, and I looked through the classifieds and they all seem like they have minimal amount of rounds through them. My guns look like crap, and they have a lot of rounds through them. So, because I am a new shooter I have to surmise either A) I am not cleaning my guns correctly or B) I am shooting too much.
I didn't see any emoticons anywhere so I am assuming your question/statement is legit.

 

[Rob]

You are actually doing the two things you can't do enough of - clean and shoot your guns. Keep shooting and doing what you're doing.

 

[depicts]

You are actually doing the two things you can't do enough of - clean and shoot your guns. Keep shooting and doing what you're doing.

I beg to differ. More guns have been ruined by over cleaning than have been ruined by lots of use. Especially rimfires.

 

[Hanwei]

SteelShooter...

If your guns are dinged up/worn from carrying/shooting... nothing's wrong. Lots of us have dinged up guns from shooting/carrying.

If your guns are dinged up/worn from cleaning.... ie: you're damaging your guns during the cleaning process... then you're doing something wrong.

I'm not sure how one would damage a gun during the cleaning process (other than scratching the inside of the barrel) but if you think this is the case... then stop doing what you're doing and have someone show you how to correctly clean your guns.

But if your guns simply show wear from use... then you have nothing to worry about.

I carry a Glock 26 and it shows a bunch of holster wear. I keep this gun clean because my life depends on it. However, my Glock 34 used in IDPA hasn't been cleaned in over 2000 rounds... (and I have no plans on cleaning it until I get a failure of some kind... a little experiment of mine) but it doesn't look dinged up at all... and I don't baby this gun... even so, if I decided to put it up for sale tonight it'd look brand new in the photos.

Unless you're damaging your guns during the cleaning process I wouldn't worry what your guns look like. Just keep shooting

 

[zzrider]

My 92FS still looks pristine, but that's just because 9mm is so damned hard to find I don't get to shoot it nearly as much as I'd like to.

IMO, a gun is like a guitar or a motorcycle - they should show loving use, or what's the point?

 

[ShadeWPI]

Most likely you're not doing anything wrong.

1) Most people are only going to "Show Off" their best looking guns. The well worn carry pistol with bright, wear polished steel showing through the bluing, the hunting rifle with the deep gouge from getting caught on a barbed wire fence, the revolver with an "interesting" pattern on the cylinder from being dropped on the one rock in the bench area at the range don't get "held up for display"

2) Most of the guns people put up in the classified as guns they don't use very often. I personally have never sold a gun, I don't plan on selling a gun. I try to keep them looking as good as possible, but I use them, I just don't abuse them.

A gun should look used, but well maintained and well carred for, and if you're going to sell it, take the time to make it look as good as possible. Nothing drives me nuts more than picking up a used gun at a shop, looking down the barrel and seeing a dirty, fouled barrel. (I now carry a bore snake when I'm looking at used guns)

And yes, it is possible to over-clean a gun. Running a bronze or brass brush up and down the barrel adds wear, rubbing a cleaning rod against the chamber or muzzle can wear and damage this sensitive areas. Keep the weapon clean and oiled, but do be careful with it. It's a little more delicate than your neighbor's hammer.

 

[Zombieoutfitters]

Physical condition

I know what you are saying...my guns bear the brunt of training for "one-handed racking", inadvertent contact with abraisive surfaces, the usual war-wounds of frequent range time. But they get used, they should look used...but not abused.

I clean and polish them at LEAST weekly and take great pride in them.

HOWEVER to my eye they look used. In a photo - that is a different story all together...they look pretty mint. My guess is a photo can hide the blemishes one would see in person.

Check out these photos - they look pretty good but in person I can assure you there are signs of use. The Mosquito has over 7,000 rounds and the PPS has little marks near the barrel on the slide from one-hand racking practice. Can't see those much in the photos.

http://www.zombieoutfitters.net/zombiegallery.html

Perhaps you might be a bit too critical in comparing your items to photos - sounds like you take GREAT care of your firearms.

 

[center442]

My 92FS still looks pristine, but that's just because 9mm is so damned hard to find I don't get to shoot it nearly as much as I'd like to.

IMO, a gun is like a guitar or a motorcycle - they should show loving use, or what's the point?

Exactly what I say about my wife!

I have some guns that look almost new...they're the ones that I don't shoot as much as the others. All of my "go to" guns have some wear and a few dings, and I wouldn't have it any other way. They're tools, not pieces of art meant to be viewed but not handled. I do differentiate between use and abuse: my guns are used, some well-used, but not abused.

I look at the wear and dings as "marks of character."