JS>AV>soaking helps loosen dirt and deposits in your weapon.  When
JS>AV>you are done bathing, you finish cleaning the gun and
JS>AV>lubricate it as usual, so there is no need for any special
JS>AV>coatings.
JS>We used to clean the trigger mechanism of our M-16's by running _hot_
JS>(150-160o) water down though the action.  This was in Ft. Sill, OK, and
JS>it was hot and dry enough where we could do this and it would dry within
JS>a minute.  i do this with my pistols sometimes and hit them with the hair
JS>dryer for a few minutes afterwards too.  Works great and no rust!  :-)
In the old days, we used to set up immersion heaters -- which hook to
the sides of 55-gallon galvanized cans -- and set them to boil the
water. There were about five cans in a row.  We'd strip down our M1s,
M14s, or M16s, put the small parts in a basket and lower them into the
water, while we dunked the larger parts.  We'd use a patch to pump
boiling water through the bore.
The final dip was in the last can -- to ensure we didn't pick up any
floating crud.  The parts would dry in seconds, leaving the rifles
chemically and mechanically clean.  Then all we had to do was oil and
return them to the racks.
This works fine at Fort Polk, La, at Fort Benning, GA, and in Vietnam --
in other words, in any climate.  For the M16, of course, you have to be
careful you don't dunk the buffer, and you have to relube before going
to the range or into action.
For a muzzle loader, I pull the wedges, and stand the breech in a
bucket.  With a towel wrapped around the barrel and twisted to form a
"handle" I pour boiling water in the bucket and down the muzzle, then
pump water back and fourth with a cleaning rod and patch.  I finish off
with a fresh dose of clean, boiling water.
You can watch the moisture evaporate off the barrel -- this ensures all
the water is out of the nooks and crannies.
I finish up with Ed's Red -- Ed Harris' home mixture of ATF, Stoddard's
Solvent, Acetone and deoderized Kerosine.  I melt a pound of anhydrous
lanolin into each gallon I make up, and the lanolin provides extra
insurance against any lurking moisture.
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