Everyone who is preparing for emergency survival should have a bug out bag with three days essentials for rapid grab and go. And if you plan on being armed, the basic essentials of weapon cleaning need to be packed along in it. Weight is always a consideration for anything you pack in BOB, and your weapon cleaning kit needs to be lightweight as well as functional.

I have read a number of recommended packing lists for bug out bags that are posted on the web, and many of them are good. But almost none of them that I have seen even mention a cleaning kit for whatever firearms you may be carrying. Weapon cleaning and maintenance is certainly not rocket science, but it seems to be a subject that many preppers think little about. Theoretically, BOB should keep you going for three days minimum. And a lot can happen to your firearms in three days depending on weather and other conditions. Rain, dust, dirt, use, all can make your firearm inoperative quickly.

You can keep your bullet launcher launching bullets with a bare minimum of items: Pull through (or bore snake) with proper size brush, toothbrush, solvent/lubricant, a clean rag and the right size patches. I am a great fan of the Hoppes Bore Snake. I started using them in Afghanistan and they work wonderfully for a quick bore cleaning. They are also washable. When it comes to solvents/lubricants there are a lot on the market, and everyone seems to have their favorite. The idea is to be able to effectively clean the gunk out of the chamber/bore and properly lubricate the action. I prefer lubes/solvents with Teflon in them such as Rem Oil as they tend to provide lubrication even when dried out from the heat of firing. But when it comes right down to it, you could get by with basic 10-50wt. motor oil if you had to. ( I can hear the purists screaming now. But I have done it and it works fine).These items placed in a waterproof freezer bag will get you by. For some rifles like my AKs, I like to carry a small tube of rifle grease.

If you are carrying multiple calibers or want to be able to maintain weapons of different caliber you might come across, Otis makes a line of small muticaliber kits that are really first class. I carried one of their tactical kits in Afghanistan along with a bore snake and it rides in my bug out bag now. It has a pretty nifty pull through of its own and can clean bores from .17 through .50 caliber. The case zippers up into a small round package that fits easily in your BOB.

Having a small, lightweight and practical cleaning kit in your bug out bag for your defensive weapons is easy and something you shouldn’t neglect.