We’re always searching for the best universal gun cleaning kit and in this list, you’ll discover what we’ve found. We’ll be looking at new kits, older kits, less popular designs and lesser known brands. While no kit is truly universal, there will be some firearms that they won’t clean. However, they will clean a great many of the most common modern firearms.
You should understand that no kit is quite completely universal. There will be some firearms that they won’t clean. However, they will clean a great many of the most common modern firearms. If you own any popular gun, a universal cleaning kit would be an excellent way to keep it clean without going for a specialized option.
Many people buy a Universal gun cleaning kit only to find out that it doesn’t fit their specific gun. It may work perfectly for two or three but then they always have trouble with at least one. We want to help you avoid this mistake. Complaints are made because they don’t come with gun cleaning solvent or the cleaning rod is not what they want. These can easily be purchased separately and there’s not a reason to not purchase a good kit just because it doesn’t include an item or two that you want.
We will be looking at the quality of the cleaning rods, brushes, case design, the assortment of tools, user reviews and more. We do not own many of these cleaning kits but have tried many of them out. We will show you what you need to look at closely and what you need to avoid. In this review we won’t include our gun cleaning kits that we reviewed previously. Instead we will be looking at some of the lesser know.
Many people complain that the Universal gun kits are too expensive. It’s true that some universal gun cleaning kits can cost over $100 but for this review we wanted to take a look at the less expensive ones. Keep in mind that many of these kits don’t include CLP or cleaning swabs which will cost you an additional $10 or so.
GLORYFIRE – Universal Gun Cleaning Kit
For a top pick, we decided to go with the Gloryfire Universal kit. The Gloryfire kit is a universal kit that has a little of everything. For the low price, this is one of the best universal kits on the market. It comes with a large 16” x 10” plastic case that weighs about 3 pounds. The kit comes with a little compartment on the bottom left and right side to store your CLP which is great.
This kit comes with 159 pieces and a nice set of brass cleaning rods. They also include a 3-year warranty if anything breaks you can ask them to refund it. I remember seeing Gloryfire brushes a couple of years ago and was going to buy them by opted for a different brand. This kit has gone down in price by a lot and from the reviews, I have read it really seems to be one of the best universal gun cleaning kits in the under $40 price range.
Overall the case is really sleek and contains just about everything you need, except for a good bore snake. You’ll find that almost all gun cleaning kits don’t include a bore snake but the should!
They don’t really specify the contents of the kit on their site but looking at the pictures you can see everything in the kit. This is one of the only universal gun kits to come with jags and bronze toothbrush style brushes as well. Includes 14 bronze brushes, 9 cleaning mops, 12 spear jags, 4 slotted patch loops; 3 utility brushes; 3 muzzle guards; 3 accessory adapter
Calibers include:
Rifle Calibers: 17-270 caliber rifles
Pistol Calibers: .22 .357 .38 .40 .44 .45 9mm
Shotguns Calibers: 12/10 gauge
Negatives
Like most kits this one doesn’t come with any gun cleaning solvent or CLP. It does come with an empty bottle that you have to fill up yourself. There was one complaint that the attachments for .223/5.56 were not included. I don’t know if this is true but it’s worth sending them an email if you intend to use it to clean .223s. Overall, probably the best kit you’re going to find for the price. It has everything you need (other than CLP) to clean the majority of all popular firearms.
Many people also don’t like the case that you get. What do you expect for the price? If you want a top of the line gun cleaning case that comes with 50 different compartments, then you’re going to have to pay more than most of these kits cost.
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M-Pro 7 – Tactical Gun Cleaning Kit
I’m a big fan of the M-Pro cleaner and have used it many times. The best universal cleaning kit they offer is also damn good. If you’re looking for a different style of case than this is it. Rather than jamming everything into a plastic box, each gun cleaning tool has its own plastic tube which is labeled.
The cleaning rods are three and a half pieces and can be adjusted to just about any size. Also included which I found was a little odd is the Hoppe’s Silicone Cloth, which is used to clean the surfaces of your guns.
The carrying case is pretty high quality and well designed. It has several pockets which hold all of the plastic tubes and other tools and there is elastic mesh for holding the cleaning solvents.
The M-Pro cleaning oil is very good and we recommend it on our top 10 list of cleaning solvents. This kit comes with a spray bottle and another one with a twist off lid. Personally, I would upgrade to a can of Break Free for a few dollars more but these two bottles will get the job done. In the picture you can’t really see what’s all included, so I managed to get a close up of everything inside the M-Pro Universal Kit.
Calibers include:
Brushes for .22/.223, .30, .45, 9mm, and 12 gauge
Brass jags for .22, .270, .37/.40, & .33/9mm
Negatives
Keep in mind that none of these kits come with a gun cleaning mat and you should buy one separately for sure. This kit also does not include nylon cleaning brushes, which will have to be purchased separately. The cleaning rods are made of aluminum, which means you have to go easy with them. You could probably upgrade this to at least a three-piece brass cleaning rod for added safety to your gun barrels. Other than those two things this kit has gotten amazing reviews and it’s one of the only kits out there where you don’t have to buy the gun cleaning solvent!
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Best Universal Gun Cleaning Kit – Under $30
Many of the universal kits don’t get cheaper than $30 if you want to clean a variety of firearms. Each brush can cost between $2-$5 and if you want a variety of different brushes you’re going to spend a little money. A good cleaning rod can cost $30, so you have to decide if you want to spend the extra money to properly clean your firearms without getting a headache when the cleaning rod snaps in half.
There are still many good options in the $20-$30 range for a universal kit. After looking at everything under $30 we think we found the best universal kit with the highest quality brushes.
Gun Boss Pro – Universal Gun Cleaning Kit
Although we have no affiliation with Real Avid and I know their products keep coming up on our lists. I own a couple of their sets and really like the real avid cleaning rod. It has a comfortable rotating handle that has never bent or broken for me. This kit comes with the same rod that I like to use.
The case for this kit is just as you see it. It has there kickstand design, similar to a drill bit kit, where you can prop up the case and use it like that. I think this might be the best kid by real avid and includes an array of different items.
I really like the design on the front where it has the label of each caliber stamped on the slot with the brush fitting inside it. The cleaning rod alone in this kit is worth the price and I know for a fact that real avid makes high-quality bronze brushes.
Calibers include:
Rifle Calibers: .22, .223, .243, .260, 6.5MM, .270, .280, 7MM, .30, .308, 7.62MM
Pistol Calibers: .22, 9MM, .357, .38, .40, .44, .45
Shotguns Calibers: 12/20 gauge
Negatives
If you’re looking for the best universal gun cleaning kit you’re not going to find it for $30. After comparing many kits for this price range this was the best we could find. The best kit will easily cost you over $100 with add-ons but this is a great set to get you started.
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Best Universal Gun Cleaning Kit – Under $20
We were skeptical that we wound find a decent universal kit under $20 but I think we found just the one. It doesn’t include a few items that you might need but if you’re on real budget then this one is the best.
Beileshi 28pcs Universal Gun Cleaning Kit
This is a surprisingly impressive universal kit with a lot of good reviews. This kit comes with brass cleaning brushes, rather than bronze. Most people prefer bronze but they are more expensive. The aluminum carrying case is pretty nice and everything fits nicely into it. To be honest I don’t know how this kit costs less than $20 but it does and it’s good.
The kit comes with an instructions manual to tell you what every piece does. The cleaning rods are three-piece steel rods and while I’m not a big fan of the three-piece rods, they will get the job done.
Includes 10 brushes, 5 cleaning brushes, 3 shotgun rods, 3 pistol/rifle rods, 2 slotted tips
Calibers include:
Rifle Calibers: 410 17, 30, 270/280
Pistol Calibers: .22, 45, 40, 357/38
Shotguns Calibers: 10/12, 20/28 gauge
Negatives
As usual you will have to get your CLP separately. The case was the only problem I found negative after reading all of the reviews. I’m surprised this kit even comes with a case for this price. People should complain about the tools in the case, not the case. You can always get a cheap tackle box or use a backpack to store your cleaning parts if you need to.
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Conclusion
The best universal cleaning kits are expensive but we wanted to find the best ones that are also inexpensive. You don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars to keep all your guns clean and we hope that we proved that with this review. Sure, the cases may suck and fall apart in the mail but you can always use a different case. It’s the cleaning tools that are important, so when people complain about a carrying case not being good that’s not important.
If you have an AR, then you will probably want to throw the AR cleaning tool in your tool box as well.
As always, be sure to double-check the caliber in each kit to make sure it works with your firearms. These universal kits also do not include gun cleaning solvent which will be necessary if you want to use the kits properly.
Parts of a Gun Cleaning Kit
If you’re new to the world of guns and you want to make a choice between which universal gun cleaning kit you should buy, there are some things you need to consider when it comes to the components of the kit. While a lot of people choose to get their guns cleaned by a professional, the cheaper and more convenient option is to do it yourself with a cleaning kit.
A gun cleaning kit comes with several components, each of which plays an important part in keeping your gun performing at its best.
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Bore brush
Bore brushes are available in both nylon and bronze. A lot of carbon residue builds up on the inside of the barrel of your gun when you shoot it. Bronze bore brushes are meant for heavy duty use while nylon bore brushes can be used for more sensitive areas.
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Double Ended Brushes
Double ended brushes look like toothbrushes with a brush at both ends of the handle. You might also find some double ended brushes that look like they’ve come straight from a dentist’s office. Materials like nylon, steel, and brass can all be used for the construction of high quality brushes.
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Swabs
Cleaning swabs are present in cleaning kits. Usually made out of cotton, these swabs help you wipe off anything that bore brushes might leave on the inside of your barrel. Materials like oil are also removed with swabs. You also get cotton swabs to clean your gun, which resemble q-tips.
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Patches
While a lot of gun cleaning involves removing difficult residue, an equally important part is using solvent and swabs to properly finish up your cleaning.
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Luster Cloth
Keeping your gun looking great is also an important aspect of gun cleaning. While it doesn’t have the same effect on precision and reliability, using a silicon lubricant based luster cloth can go a long way in making your gun more appealing.
The Bottom Line
Universal gun cleaning kits are a convenient option for people who either own multiple guns or don’t want to get something for a specific purpose. A universal gun cleaning kit can keep your gun in the best shape, making it more reliable and increasing its lifespan. You can also expect more accuracy from a clean gun.
We hope that this article about the best universal gun cleaning kits available on the market today has helped you make an informed decision about which option to go for. If you’re a gun owner and are interested in similar topics, Gun Cleaning HQ has a lot of informational articles and buying guides that you should check out!
