Barrel cleaning: how and why?

[meles meles]

How do you clean your barrel and, more importantly, why?

If you do clean, what's your regimen ? For example, do you clean with a solvent, a brush, both, or neither ? Do you finish off with an oiled patch, or not ? 

If you clean, why do you do it ?

If you don't clean, why not ?

[Popsbengo]

41 minutes ago, meles meles said:

How do you clean your barrel and, more importantly, why?

If you do clean, what's your regimen ? For example, do you clean with a solvent, a brush, both, or neither ? Do you finish off with an oiled patch, or not ? 

If you clean, why do you do it ?

If you don't clean, why not ?

I clean all my precision centre fire rifles after shooting - I don't make any attempt to clean after x-rounds,  just after the day is done as as soon as I can get to it.   I believe it adds to accuracy however I've never actually proven that to myself - rather received wisdom there.  It's also important to stop corrosion from residues (again, received wisdom).  If travelling overnight after a shoot I will spray WD40 down the bore just to displace any moisture.  Cheap, easy and if it does something good, if it doesn't no loss.  I adopt the precautionary principle  - cleaning hasn't done any harm and may have done some good.

Back home,  I push one dry patch through on a spear jag to take out any loose rubbish,  then one solvent patch to remove any loosely adhered fouling.  Then a brush with a stiff nylon brush liberally soaked in Wipe Out Tactical Advantage- about as many strokes as shots fired upto about a max of 20ish.

Leave to soak for 15 mins while I clean the bolt.   Push through tight fitting dry patches until clean coming out.  Inspect with Hawkeye bore scope for copper etc.  If still Cu in the bore another go with a specialist Cu remover leaving it to work.  Dry it out with a spray cleaner and then finish with an oiled patch and then a dry to take the bulk away.  I dry patch out before shooting to take the oil away.

I'll swab the chamber occasionally with a 410 mop and solvent ensuring no 'fur' left behind.   Once in a while I may use a bronze brush and solvent a couple of passes only if there's any stubborn crud after a long shoot (like 100 rounds at Eskdalemuir).

I have got bore polish but I don't feel the need (so far).  Quality lap-polished bores stay that way it seems.

For under-lever rifles, military SOP,  brush, patch dry, oil, patch dry:  put it away.  Accuracy is what it is, I don't really care too much as I can't shoot for sh1t of hand even at 20 yds 😁  Lead gets the occasional Wipe-Out Lead-Away treatment - excellent stuff.

For rimfire - once a year so about 500 rounds for me.  Boiling water is great for getting the bee's wax out (carefully).   Accuracy goes to sh1t for 50 rounds but recovers to better than it was before cleaning so that's why I clean.  I can tell from accuracy dropping off it's time for a clean.  I shoot 20yd Bench Rest so I see individual shots scoring or not.

[terryh]

Brock

Sometimes feel this is in the same category as discussing politics and religion 😁

Personally I struggle to see the benefit of cleaning the snot out of a rifle every time you use it so my regimes are driven by both the firearm type, its use and thirdly round count.

Easiest to clean and fixed method would be BPCR's, cleaned on the point before going into the gun bag, 2 x patches with solvent, 1 x dry patch, 1 x patch with Ballistol. When back home, 1 x patch with Ballistol and a wipe over with Ballistol on all surfaces. Put away.

22rf , barrels seldom cleaned but looking at BR and LR so this might change (NB 'might'). Actions of 22rf do need IMHO a bit of regular TLC especially semi-autos. Good application of a solvent, rimfire magic in this case, tooth brushing, blast out with break cleaner and light lube, Ballistol specific gun lube rather than GP lube.

CF rifles again depends on the cartridge, some need more effort re. the chamber end, carbon removal and occasional use of Lusso paste on their own nylon brush. Normal range day with say 60-80 rounds then a 'light clean' Carb-out on a patch and leave for a while, then Wipeout accelerator followed by Wipeout Tactical all this on the VFG felt patches. Remove all cleaning fluids using isopropyl alcohol, then light coating of Ballistol. If deemed necessary deep clean using above method with Robosol process added prior to clean up and storing.

Lugs always cleaned regardless using a tool that holds a dental swab thing. Bolts etc. wiped over and cleaned then lubed with Milcom TW25 gun grease.

I have two different bore scopes which are used now and then to check things in general, an old Hawkeye and one of the new USB gadgets, the Hawkeye getting most use.

As I said, this works for me and I have confidence in my processes - which is after all what your need.

Their is no 'right way' to do it.

Comment - cannot understand why folks clean rifles between each load during load development, seems counter intuitive to me?

Brgds Terry

[Richiew]

Hi all 

I also use kg products carbon remover first after a range day and often get to the stage of clean patches . Paranoia kicks in then I run a  bore brush as per manual for 25 passes through from chamber to muzzle only then take off the rod then repeat . The amount of crap that really comes out is amazing then the copper blue comes out too . Also tried the way of it’s shooting great today so don’t clean and shoot next weekend- ‘‘twas all over the target so stopped doing that !!! . On the 308 clean and brush every time . On the rimfire s clean when accuracy falls off  only . Cheers 

[BuckhurstBen]

You guys have got too much time on your hands!! Not to mention the cost of all those patches 😂😂

[Popsbengo]

1 hour ago, BuckhurstBen said:

You guys have got too much time on your hands!! Not to mention the cost of all those patches 😂😂

Maybe but compared to the cost of the ammunition it's less than peanuts.

[Re-Pete]

 Seems to me there's little point in frantically trying to get that last faint smear of copper out when the next round will simply replace it. It's been said many times that over enthusiastic cleaning can reduce barrel life more than normal wear and tear, particularly when using some of the expensive snake oil products currently in fashion.

And a clean patch only tells you the patch is clean..............

Pete

[phoenix]

On my centrefires, one pass with a boresnake after each outing when at least one shot is fired - nothing else

On my bolt action 22 rimfire - nothing

 

Cheers

 

Bruce

[Catch-22]

Personally I like to clean the carbon out of the barrel after each shoot, regardless of round count. The carbon and moisture buildup in the bore will encourage rust.

So a couple of patches of a carbon remover (Hoppes 9 or more recently use the CR2 cleaner),  then a few dry patches to ensure bore is dry, then one well soaked patch of CorrosionX to protect the bore in storage. This gets wiped out with a dry patch before I go shooting.

I don’t worry about the copper until the target tells me to worry about it.

[Shuggy]

Wipe Out Patch Out - wet patch, soak for 15 minutes and then nylon brush to shift the carbon. Then wet patch, followed by two dry and repeat until satisfied. I have some Accelerator too for the days that I am in a hurry.

Then a single wet patch of Balistol for storage, followed by dry patches to ready for shooting.

Why? Because it's what my local gunshop had in stock.

[TJC]

Usually clean when accuracy starts to go, which at the moment is every 400-500 rounds and then it's just a few patches with CLP. 

[Guntis]

Looks that I did not pay enough attention to old barrel! 

Now I am cleaning after each shooting. Ordered Iosso as well. 

And I will never go for black steel barrels anymore!