.308 Rifle Cleaning

[fudge1187]

Hi All

 

Just got my first rifle and realised i have no idea how to clean it! Would you mind talking me through what to do along with the products I need to buy/use please?

 

Its a Rem 700 Custom Barrel - brand new - hence don't wanna mess up and damage the barrel!

 

Sorry in advance I am sure every newbie asked the same question - I did a quick search but couldn't find anything!

 

Thank you :-)

[bully]

You could right a book on this subject. Anyway a brief,basic run down to get you started.

Get used to looking into the muzzle for an indication of what your bore looks like.

Use a torch, or an earbud to put in the end holding it, the light reflects off the white of the earbud to make it easier to observe. This is the best bet without a bore scope.

There are many different views about whether or not you should run a bore in, so I will skip that.

There's three main things going on in your bore.

Carbon fouling

Copper fouling

And rust, or hopefully not, thats why we use a rust preventative.

Looking into the muzzle, carbon will look black, copper will look gold.

 

Right, your new bore.

Clean in before the first ever shot. This removes any protecting oils, metal filing and crap in general.

There's many views on what to use, brush, no brush, patch etc.

Use a basic cleaner, like hoppes, I would pass a nylon bush up and down a couple of times as well.

If your not shooting, put a rust preventative patch through last.

When your ready to shoot make sure there is no oil left in the bore, this can create a buldge in the barrel if left in.(it's best to put a patch down the bore every time before use, there are exceptions to this but we are doing the basics for now)

If you want to break the bore in go ahead, start shooting.

Myself I usually shoot 1 round then clean, and repeat two or three times.

After this my cleaning is based on what I see in the muzzle or bore. But often the best idea is to let the target tell you if it needs cleaning.

To see carbon and even some copper is ok. But too much copper or maybe even carbon can be the reason why your rifle isn't shooting the way it once did.

If you haven't shot many rounds or the muzzle doesn't look too fouled, or your target groups are still what you expect, then all you really need to do before storage is put 1 or two rust preventative patches in.

Don't forget to also apply this to the chamber.

You might or might not use a bore guide.

To remove copper when the time comes you will need a cleaner that is rated to remove copper, follow the instructions, some copper cleaners are not suppose to be left in too long.

And as a side note, be careful how many shots in row you use, barrel heat or too much or it is another way to ruin a bore quickly.

 

This is some basics, you can research for years on the internet about barrel cleaning,

Good luck.

[TJC]

Do what this fella suggests

 

[Morse]

Standby for many many opinions on this..... the thread 'Clean Barrel' started on 21/8/16 may add something to your research. From what I recall there are some videos referenced as well.

 

I personally use KG products (the website is decent and explains that each one does) for day to day maintenance. For my break in routine I used Butches products and a bag of pre-cut patches I bought when I picked up the new gun. What ever approach you decide is best for you I recommend you buy a decent quality cleaning rod and bore guide and use them every time, look after the muzzle crown as a they are easily damaged and run the barrel in.

 

If you are new to this as part of your routine check and double check that the barrel is clear every time before you put the bolt back in. This will ensure you don't leave a cleaning patch in the bore with the horrible consequences this can bring. Hope this helps and the new gun shoots well.

[duey]

Bore guide is first step before anything else

Rod

Patches for your caliber, pro shot do a good range

Carbon remover

Copper remover

Gun oil

High pressure grease for the bolt and lugs

Read the instructions on the bottle of whatever carbon / copper remover you get

 

Also where are you located as there may be someone local to you that would be willing to show you how

 

Duey

[fudge1187]

Guys as expected from this forum some cracking information for me to soak in and some videos to watch.

 

I always like to get personal opinions rather than online youtube videos and its much more realistic and builds a community.

 

Ill do more ready and if anyone else has any tips please continue the tread!

 

Thank you!

[gbal]

fudge: you might already have noticed there are differnt views on cleaning regimes.That's one reason why one user's method may not be the one to adopt-thee are also differnt issues for differnt shooting disciplines and barrels.Try this:

 

Barrel Cleaning Proceedures -the great debate Accurate Shooter site

 

It cover a lot of the ground,and has some expert opinion/consensus.

 

If you don't know about 'Accurate Shooter' add it to your go to for reliable information on most topics-it tends to be fairly advanced/thorough-which is what you need to read,then decide.... as well as specific product recomendations-you should see why a three shot hunter might have a differnt regime from a 50 shots in an afternoon competition shooter where .01 inch matters.

 

Get a good rod (like Tipton) and if you can ,a bore guide to minimise damage-and don't skimp on cotton patches.

 

Good shooting.

 

gbal

[JabaliHunter]

KG 2

Isopropyl alcohol (or lighter fluid) to use as a degreaser

Eezox oil

grease eg KG 11

 

Correct bore guide

Good quality rod

Cotton patches (round or square)

Correct (or 1 cal undersize) pointed jag

Chamber mop

Lug recess cleaning tool

[bully]

Maybe I can learn something too.

Without starting an argument...

I don't use a bore guide, I did when I first started however. And was probably a good idea to get a feel for things. Often I only put one patch down and want to include the chamber, so a guide would just be in the way.

Many people say you should use a boreguide or you can damage the bore. Can anyone tell me what to look for to see this damage? I have a borescope and have never noticed it.

[snakeman]

Maybe I can learn something too.

Without starting an argument...

I don't use a bore guide, I did when I first started however. And was probably a good idea to get a feel for things. Often I only put one patch down and want to include the chamber, so a guide would just be in the way.

Many people say you should use a boreguide or you can damage the bore. Can anyone tell me what to look for to see this damage? I have a borescope and have never noticed it.

 

Point of impact 3in from your point of aim is a hell of a clue ......and do, my friend, use a boreguide 'always'!

[duey]

Use a bore guide then clean chamber afterwards, there are chamber cleaning tools that work well

[bully]

Point of impact 3in from your point of aim is a hell of a clue ......and do, my friend, use a boreguide 'always'!

And so how does the cleaning without a boreguide make this shot go three inches from the point of aim?

[gbal]

Bore guides have two main functions.

One,to prevent the throat of the rifle (where the chamber merges into the rifling) from damage by centering the rod and jag into the bore.

Two,to protect coated rods from being deeply scratched by the sharp chamber edges.

 

Some rod guides have O rings to seal off the barrrel about half way down the chamber,so preventing solvent(and maybe crud) leaking back into the action and trigger area ,causing malfunctions.

 

bully-by the time the symptoms of damage are apparent,it's too late (the example mentioned is ,I am sure,a deliberate exaggeration-but makes the point.Damage to chamber,throat,rifling are not good for 'accuracy'. Let's hope no-one is cleaning a bolt gun from the muzzle-but there muzzle guides that protect the crown when this has to be done in other actions.

 

gbal

[snakeman]

Bore guides have two main functions.

One,to prevent the throat of the rifle (where the chamber merges into the rifling) from damage by centering the rod and jag into the bore.

Two,to protect coated rods from being deeply scratched by the sharp chamber edges.

 

Some rod guides have O rings to seal off the barrrel about half way down the chamber,so preventing solvent(and maybe crud) leaking back into the action and trigger area ,causing malfunctions.

 

bully-by the time the symptoms of damage are apparent,it's too late (the example mentioned is ,I am sure,a deliberate exaggeration-but makes the point.Damage to chamber,throat,rifling are not good for 'accuracy'. Let's hope no-one is cleaning a bolt gun from the muzzle-but there muzzle guides that protect the crown when this has to be done in other actions.

 

gbal

 

Indeed it is. Then, the next shot could be an inch horizontal the other way, the next back to the original point of impact convincing you everything is good (no damage) down the tube. You could end up chasing the bullet ad-infinitum...Simply put and, to convey the prerequisite of a boreguide, I wouldn't clean the rifle if I didn't have a boreguide

[VarmLR]

My regime:

 

From clean bore up to 40 shots fired:

1. chamber cleaned with chamber mop
2. boreguide with O-ring fitted
3. KG1 applied to patch and jag and patched through
4. Brass brush with KG1 applied and rodded several times but NOT pushed through end of barrel
5. Rifle left for 15 to 20 minutes and patched out until clean.

For more than 40 cumulative firings:

 

as above plus:

1. Wipeout Patchout applied with patch and jag
2. nylon brush rodded several times up bore to foam Wipeout
3. Wipeout left for at least one hour
4. Dry patch cleaned. If any blue is evident on patches, a repeat dose of wipeout is applied as above. Jag is always washed in water between applications to avoid false indicators.

Chamber re-cleaned, muzzle cleaned with nylon brush and KG1; muzzle threads cleaned off and a very small amount of gun oil or food safe white grease applied to them, all excess removed.

 

Bolt cleaned and every few months, bolt stripped, cleaned, re-oiled and re-assembled. Magazine checked and cleaned.

 

Bolt coated in a thin coating of gun oil with excess removed. No oil to bolt face, ever. Bolt face cleaned with nylon brush and cloth.

 

I have found that many solutions for copper removal are better used after a good soaking and cleaning with KG1, as some, like Wipeout which claim to do it all, are really fighting the carbon, so don't seem to be as effective at copper removal unless KG1 is first used to get all the carbon fouling out first. Perhaps I just need to leave the Wipeout in for longer (some leave it overnight) but the above cleaning regime works for me.

 

I also use M-Pro 7 which I've found is an excellent barrel conditioner as well as being effective for copper removal.

[lapua]

Callum is the best rifle builder in the uk, do what he says

 

http://www.precisionrifles.com/information/faqs/cleaning/

[Brillo]

I asked the same question when I started rifle shooting and I was given three important bits of advise.

 

1. Use a good bore guide.

2. Use a good bore guide.

3. Use a good bore guide

 

I was then given another bit of advise; do not, under any circumstances pull a phosphor/bronze brush back down the barrel. If you use such an implement, only push it down the bore.