[id10t]

It all really depends.

I clean my 22s when either accuracy falls off or reliability issues start occurring

I clean my rifles when shooting nasty ammo or I look at a part and go "eewwww" (semis), or when accuracy falls off (bolt guns)

I clean my black powder pistol within a few hours of shooting. I usually do the same for my BP rifle, but have let it go as long as 8 weeks, being shot every few days, and examining for rust (was part of a experiment to satisfy my own curiosity). Finally cleaned it when some gunk was blocking path from cap to powder charge and I got "pfft" instead of "kaboom"


Note that cleaning is different from wiping fingerprints and oils and crap from the outside surfaces...