A gun in the hands of a hunter is not a weapon, it's a special tool that demands respect from those wielding it.

With buck season approaching, one way a hunter can show respect for his firearm is by properly preparing it for each season, according to Jack Lee, a member of the Butler Hunting and Fishing Club's board of directors.

Lee is also a board member and past president for the Pennsylvania Rifle and Pistol Association, the state's NRA affiliate. With more than 60 years as a participant in gun competitions Lee has been an avid hunter since age 12.

Cleaning guns

Lee said the first thing a hunter should do to prepare for an upcoming season is clean his gun. He said the kits are widely available and should include a ramrod for inserting into the barrel, a patch which is a small square cloth that attaches to the rod to collect the dirt and metal filings, and a solvent for breaking down buildups of metal filings, dirt and grime from repeated firing of the gun. The kit should include a fine quality oil for lubricating and protecting the gun's metal parts, and a smaller metal bristled brushes for scraping away tougher residue and buildups.

Lee said he recommends buying a hybrid kit with two interchangeable jigs that fit either a shotgun or a rifle. The jig screws into the tip of the ramrod and holds the patch.

He said a soft bristled toothbrush makes a nice addition to the kit. It helps to clean the chamber and other tight places.

Before beginning to clean, Lee said, hunters need to take into account what type of gun it is. Most shotguns and rifles are cleaned by inserting the rod from the back of the barrel; however, some lever-action rifles and muzzle-loaders are solidly built, which means they can't be taken apart or the barrel can't be exposed. For these guns, the ramrod is inserted from the front end of the barrel.

Lee said a hunter should avoid cleaning from the front-end, if they don't have to because it could cause additional wearing to the barrel.

“If you can, you always want to clean a gun from the breech-end,” he said.

Lee said the actual cleaning process is simple, with the most important step coming before ever inserting the rod: Check the breech and unload any ammunition still in the chamber.

“The primary thing to do before you clean a gun is to make sure it is unloaded,” he said.

Lee said to leave the chamber open while cleaning. He said a heavily-used gun with a buildup of metal filings should use the solvent on a patch and coat the inside of the barrel. Let the solvent work for about 30 minutes, before running a clean patch through the barrel. Continue with clean patches until one comes out clean, rather than black.

Lee said it's also a good idea to finish by coating a patch lightly with oil and running it through the barrel to protect against rust.

Lee said he cleans his guns after every use; although, how he cleans them depends on the situation. He said he usually only has to wipe the gun with a dry rag to remove moisture, but any firing of the gun demands a full cleaning.

“I clean mine after every use,” he said. “Never put a gun away wet.”

Lee said if a gun hits the ground at any time, especially barrel down, it should be thoroughly cleaned. He said a hunter should never try to shoot out any debris lodged in the barrel.

He recommends placing a small balloon over the tip of the barrel. The balloon will keep debris out, and the gun can be fired safely even if you forget to remove the balloon.

“It's not an obstruction,” he said. “It just blows away.”

Sighting targets

Another aspect of preparing a gun for each season is sighting.

Lee said most gun owners will sight the gun when they attach a new scope, plan to use different ammunition or when they want to target a different animal. He said he recommends sighting a gun for every season, even for new guns.

“The factory does a good job of getting them close, but you can't guarantee it in most cases,” he said.

Lee said rifles are usually straight-forward, but shotguns can be challenging because not only does ammunition affect trajectory, but so do choke tubes, which change the opening of the shotgun's tip, like the aperture of a camera. The opening controls the spread of the pellets.

He said anyone shooting a shotgun should learn the pattern that their gun shoots.

“Sighting a shotgun is about finding out where the pellets are going,” he said.

Lee said sighting guns is a trial and error process at a range, taking shots at different distances until the desired accuracy is achieved. He recommends starting with closer targets and working toward a longer distance.

With his high-powered rifles, Lee likes to sight his gun two inches high at 200 yards in case he needs to take a shot that is closer to 300 yards.

“I take advantage of the gun's ability to shoot at the distances I may run into,” he said.

Lee said those attaching a new scope might find it easier to first go through a process called bore sighting. To bore sight a gun, a person removes the barrel and places it on leveled blocks atop a solid surface. They then adjust the sight and compare it to what they can see by looking through the back end of the barrel at the target. It's a starting point.

“Usually it'll get you close to being on target,” Lee said.

Practice shooting

Lee said a clean and accurate gun is nice, but the gun is only as good as the person holding it. He said that practicing shooting at a range helps hunters get a feel for their gun and it allows for adjustments to be made, especially if something changed while it was being stored between seasons.

“I always try to shoot my rifles before each season,” he said. “You don't know what has happened in the offseason.”

Lee said a hunter should never take a gun into the field without knowing exactly how the gun will function.

“It doesn't hurt to go out to a field or a local range to practice,” he said. “Make sure it functions properly before you go out in the field.”