Ask any good, seasoned patrol officer the importance of maintaining your everyday equipment and you might get a response like “Do cars need gas to run? Or, does a marathon runner need shoes to run in?” Having clean, up-to-date equipment such as a charged Taser or a full can of OC spray is important, but not nearly as important as maintaining your duty weapon. You don’t have to be an expert firearms instructor, a Tactical Commander or even be a gun crazy cop to know how to maintain a clean duty weapon. Ask any field training officer if he stresses the importance of a clean, functional weapon to his or her rookies, and I bet you will be hard pressed to find one that does not.
