[wvhunter]

I recently got my first hunting rifle a few weeks ago (tikka t3 30.06), and I love it. I went out with a friend to sight it in already and he cleaned it for me afterwards. I havn't gotten a chance to get my own cleaning equipment and was wondering if it would hurt to take it out to the range and get some more practice in without cleaning it afterwards? I just havnt gotten the money together to get a nice cleaning rest and rods.

[X-Rap]

I will get slammed for this advice but here it goes.I don't believe that you will have any trouble with shooting your rifle and not cleaning it. You can likely shoot quite a few boxes of shells before you start to see your accuracy degrade in a 30-06 if you are shooting good jacked bullets. Next when you shoot your clean gun check if your first round has a different point of impact than your following shots. If so this is not unusual and you may want to go hunting with your gun dirty as in 3 or 4 rounds to foul the barrel.Lastly I'm not advcating filthy weapons and do clean mine but I don't shoot corrosive ammo and if gun sits for a while in the safe without the bore being scrubed I don't lose sleep over it.As far as equipment about 15 or 20 bucks will get you a bore snake and a bottle of bore solvent.

[ACP230]

I sighted my deer rifle in about 10 days ago.
It was shooting where I wanted it to, so when I got home I just wiped it down well and put it back in the rack. I won't clean it now till after I go after deer with it.

['Card]

There wouldn't be any harm in that. To be honest, most of us probably clean our rifles too often anyway.

Generally speaking, you don't want a modern rifle to sit in a case (or a safe, or whatever) for too long (I'm talking like, months here) after being shot without being cleaned. You should also clean it before putting it away if it's gotten rained on or mud on it. Other than that, it's not that big of a deal. Older rifles require a little more TLC because they've usually got dents and dings that provide openings for rust, but new ones don't normally need that level of attention.

For a bolt action, you have to shoot it a lot before it gets to the point where performace will be impacted.

[atomchaser]

Don't worry about it unless you dropped in the swamp or mud. For practical hunting accuracy, it won't make a difference. Do make it a habit to do a quick bore inspection/extractor check before you take it out hunting.

[Art Eatman]

Unless you live in a really high-humidity area, the inside of the barrel won't rust up in any sort of short time.

Get some WD40. Spray a bit on a Kleenex or piece of rag. Wipe down the rifle, and remove the bolt, wipe it and that part of the inside of the receiver you can reach, and replace the bolt.

First chance you get to go by a gunstore, get a 22-caliber teflon-coated cleaning rod, some patches (I like the 2"x2" GI type for 30-caliber), and some spray-type gun oil. The Remington stuff is as good as any. A couple of copper brushes, for occasional use.

If all I take is a few shots to check for sight-in, or a few shots when hunting, I don't do any more than just run an oily patch down the barrel. "Cleaning", as such, isn't really necessary.

Art

[X-Rap]

Thanks guys I thought shure I,d get pounced on by some purests that think a bore must be cleaned till its worn out. You have restored my faith in my fellow man.

[dakotasin]

i never hunt w/ a clean rifle - point-of-impact is often different w/ a clean rifle than it is w/ a fouled rifle.

when you get your cleaning gear, don't neglect the copper-remover. copper will build up during firing and eventually degrade accuracy enough that it becomes frustrating. patch out the bore on occasion w/ barnes cr-10, and follow that up w/ whatever your normal cleaning solvent is (i like hoppes #9, the foaming cleaners do ok, and outers has some that work well).

copper solvents are ammonia-based, so you must follow-up w/ something to make sure it is all out of the rifle (ammonia-based solvents attract water -rust- so cleaning after copper removal w/ hoppes, then a light oiling is good practice).

[Waywatcher]

I hunt with a Tikka .30-06 and find that if I fire a round after cleaning (any length of time) it hits about 2-3" off at 100 yds. After I shoot it a couple times though I can get MOA groups with it, so it's obviously the oiled bore.

I highly recommend zeroing your rifle and leaving it dirty.

[Grumulkin]

I agree, a freshly oiled bore will make bullets hit in a different place than usual. If you remove the oil from the bore with solvent before you go to the range, you probably won't have this problem.

[wvhunter]

wow that is some great information guys. i knew there was a reason i liked this forum, i just discovered it a month or so ago. i think ill go get some practice in with it tomorrow at the range then let it lay until rifle season starts here and hopefully get my first buck.