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Care
of Weapons
From
Der Rekrut
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Below you
will find original instructions from an English
translation of the 1935 German Army manual for the
care of weapons. Thanks to Michael Bollow for
giving us permission to use excerpts of Der Rekrut here
on this site. If you would like to purchase this
manual, please visit his website at: http://members.aol.com/soldaten/rekrut.htm
Instructions
for Using Cleaning Kit No. 34 for Rifles, Carbines,
Pistols, Light and Heavy Machine Guns
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I. Description of Cleaning Kit No. 34
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| 1. |
The
cleaning kit and cleaners (except for gun
grease, linseed-oil varnish, and cleaning
cloth) are kept in a steel case. The
case contains:
1
cleaning chain
1 bore brush
1 oil brush
1 oiler
1 wiper for front end of receiver
a few cleaning patches |
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|
| 2. |
The
bore brush is used to loosen the residue
left from firing. |
| 3. |
The
oil brush is used to oil or re-oil the
inside of the barrel after cleaning. |
| 4. |
The
oiler is used to apply the gun-cleaning oil
and for oiling the brush. |
| 5. |
The
wiper is used to clean and oil the front end
of the receiver and, with a cleaning patch,
to clean the inside of the receiver. |
| 6. |
The
cleaning patches are used
- for removing oil from the cartridge
chamber and the inside of the barrel,
- for removing the residue in the cartridge
chamber and the inside of the barrel that
was loosened by the cleaning brush,
- for cleaning and oiling the front end of
the receiver and the inside of the receiver,
in conjunction with the wiper, and
- for spot application of oil or limited
oiling of all the rifle's steel parts. |
| |
|
II.
Cleaners and Protective Substances
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| 1. |
Gun-cleaning
oil is used for
a) cleaning and maintaining the inside
of the barrel.
b) protecting against the harmful
effects of residue buildup in the barrel
after shooting.
c) preventing rust formation on bare
or burnished steel.
d) keeping individual parts moveable,
particularly when subjected to gases. |
| 2. |
Gun
grease,
Linseed-oil varnish,
Cleaning cloth, and
Wood chips. |
| |
|
III.
Cleaning Procedure
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| We
differentiate between "everyday"
cleaning and "through" cleaning. |
| 1. |
| a) |
"Everyday"
cleaning is done after drills,
targeting exercises, etc., if the
weapon is not fired, has not
gotten wet, or is not very dusty. |
| b) |
"Through"
cleaning is done after shooting
with live ammunition, dummy
cartridges or subcaliber
ammunition, when the weapon has
gotten wet or very dusty, or if
the weapon is to be put in
storage. |
|
| 2. |
| a) |
Polish
the parts until they are bright
and remove black spots (rain
spots); grains of rust or rust
pits cause premature wear and
tear. |
| b) |
Heavy
residues inside the barrel that
cannot be removed by standard
cleaning procedures may be removed
only by the armorer-artificer by
means of a brass wire brush (with
2 rings and 2 cleaning chains). |
| c) |
Do
not blow out dust, or blow into
holes or indentations. This
causes rust. |
| d) |
When
abrupt temperature changes occur,
leave the muzzle cover on the
weapon and do not open the bolt
assembly until the steel parts no
longer have condensation on them.
Only then should you clean the
weapon. |
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| |
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A.
Everyday Cleaning
|
| 1. |
The
following steps are valid for machine-gun
barrels and the 08 pistol, as applicable.
If doing an everyday cleaning, oil the
inside of the barrel and the remove clinging
dust and dirt from the outside of the
weapon. To do so, proceed as follows. |
|
| a) |
Remove
the muzzle cover and open the
receiver cover. |
| b) |
Remove
the bolt assembly. |
| c) |
Lay
the cleaning patch in the cleaning
chain's double hook. To do
this, open the hook, guide the
center of the patch to the swivel,
close the hook firmly with your
left thumb and index finger, and
pull the patch into the hook ends
using your right hand. All
of the threads must be caught up
in the hook and the loose ends of
the patch should be of an even
length. |
| d) |
Let
the cleaning chain drop through
the barrel from the breech recess,
and pull the dry patch through the
barrel. To do so, set the
rifle butt on the ground.
With your left hand, grasp the
rifle in between the upper band
and the lower band, and with your
right hand, pull the cleaning
chain through the barrel. |
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|
| e) |
Apply
oil to the oil brush and oil the
inside of the barrel. Hold
the gun as in d). Be sure
that both hooks in the brush's
rings are hooked. To apply
oil to the brush: Take the
shaft of the oiler's dropper valve
between your index and middle
fingers. Produce a few drops
of oil by pressing on the air
valve with your thumb. |
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|
| f) |
Wipe
out the front end of the receiver. |
| g) |
Remove
and clean the muzzle cover. |
| h) |
Wipe
and oil the outside of the bolt
assembly. |
| i) |
Wipe,
spot-clean and oil the weapon
using the cleaning cloth and an
oiled cleaning patch. |
|
|
Make
sure to avoid introducing dirt, sand, etc.
through the movements of the cleaning chain,
patch and brushes. Each time you clean
the weapon, clean the cleaning kit
afterwards. |
| |
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B.
Thorough Cleaning
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| The
goal of thorough cleaning of the inside of
the barrel is to remove residues left by
previous oiling, as well as any foreign
material such as dust, dirt, etc.
Furthermore, all external and internal parts
of the weapon are cleaned and appropriately
treated to protect them from rust. |
|
To
perform a thorough cleaning, proceed as
follows. |
| a) |
Remove
the muzzle cover and open the
receiver cover. |
| b) |
Remove
the bolt assembly. |
| c) |
Oil
the bore brush and pull it through
the barrel twice, using the
cleaning chain and beginning at
the cartridge chamber. |
| d) |
Use
the cleaning chain to pull two or
three cleaning patches through the
barrel, one at a time and
beginning at the cartridge
chamber. If the cleaning
patches do not become very dirty
when pulled through, turn the
patches inside-out and pull them
through again. |
|
|
| e) |
The
inside of the barrel is clean when
the last patch pulled through the
barrel remains clean. |
| f) |
Apply
oil to the oil brush and pull it
through the barrel once or twice,
using the cleaning chain and
beginning from the cartridge
chamber. |
| g) |
Remove
and clean the muzzle cover. |
| h) |
Wipe
out the front end and inside of
the receiver. |
| i) |
Disassemble,
clean and oil the bolt assembly. |
| k) |
Clean
and oil the remaining steel parts
of the weapon, using cleaning
patches and the cleaning cloth. |
| l) |
Clean
and varnish the stock and hand
guard. |
| m) |
Rub
the openings in the stock with gun
grease. |
|
| |
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C.
Procedure Before Firing
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| Before
firing the weapon, remove the oil from the
inside of the barrel. Removing the oil
ensures that the first shot can be fired
accurately. |
| |
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D.
Procedure After Firing or When the Weapon
has Become Wet or Very Dusty
|
| 1. |
Temporarily
oil the inside of the barrel after firing -
even when using dummy cartridges - or when
the weapon has become wet or very dusty. |
| 2. |
The
purpose of temporary oiling is to remove
firing residue or foreign material such as
dust, water or snow from the inside of the
barrel, thus making a later thorough
cleaning easier. It also protects the
inside of the barrel from rust. |
| 3. |
Temporary
oiling should be done as soon as possible
after firing, or when the weapon has been
subjected to inclement weather, etc., and
cannot be cleaned immediately. Proceed
as follows:
| a) |
Remove
the muzzle cover and open the
receiver cover. |
| b) |
Open
the bolt assembly and pull it back
to the bolt catch. |
| c) |
Liberally
oil the bore brush and pull it
through the barrel once, using the
cleaning chain and beginning at
the cartridge chamber. |
|
| 4. |
To
prevent fouling, the weapon must be cleaned
within several days after being fired.
(This includes the weapons of soldiers on
leave or in the hospital.) |
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