It is no secret that winter is very much upon us in the United Kingdom. The sun is gone by 5PM, the weather has instantly produced a sharp chill and we’ve been in a perpetual state of wet and windy since the clocks went back. However, the United Kingdom didn’t earn the nickname Old Blighty for no reason, and its inhabitants are most accustomed to it these days. Like many countries that have wet climates, there’s a saying that goes – there’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad preparation, and that certainly rings true within the airgunning community.
With that in mind, this month we’re going to look at things you can do to prepare yourself for airgunning in cold and wet weather, looking towards some aftercare for your airgun!
IN THE FIELD
If you’ve been out shooting for a prolonged period of time, the chances are you’re going to want to throw your Airguns in the back of the car and get home to have that nice, long shower you’ve been thinking about. However, depending on how wet you’ve got, you might want to start caring for your airgun now.
Starting with the barrel, while airgun barrels don’t really need much cleaning, rainwater can seep down your barrel. To counteract this, simply running some felt cleaning pellets through the barrel can dispel any water and dry out the bore.
Following that, you’re going to want to dry the airgun off using a microfibre cloth. Be careful if your Air Rifles have got muddy as well as wet, as you could potentially scratch it! While potentially going a little overboard, you can make use of a can of compressed air to blow mud off before wiping, and the compressed air also helps to remove water from hard to reach areas!
AT HOME
Once you’ve got home, you’re going to want to do a number of things, but finishing what you started comes first. Provided you’re following the law and transporting your airgun in a gun bag, do yourself a favour and show the gun bag a little love. The chances are it is going to be a little damp inside, so open it up and let it dry out.
Now you’ve got that out of the way, give your airgun another once over with a microfibre cloth, just to make sure you’ve got rid of any remaining mud or residue. If anything is proving to be a little difficult to remove, you can make use of washing-up liquid to remove any stubborn debris.
The remaining step depends on just how wet you got, but we’d suggest doing it once in a while just to ensure you keep a healthy airgun. Firstly, Take off your moderator, especially if it’s a reflex type that comes back over the barrel or shroud, where water can become trapped. If your barrel is shrouded, take this off too, which might involve using a set of allen keys. It is also worth removing your stock for the same reasons.
Honestly, water can get everywhere and anywhere and is cause for a lot of future heartache in regard to rust building up. Instead of letting it run rampant, do yourself a favour and follow these steps!