Cleaning 223- Patches continue to come out Dirty

[dcloco]

I know some folk don't like using bore snakes, but I use them extensively, plus I clean after just about every range session. My cleaning routine is as follows.

1. Separate upper from lower and spray Oreilly's non-chlorinated brake cleaner down barrel and chamber, let sit.
2. Take apart BCG, clean with brake cleaner and re-lube.
3. Then I take my cleaning rod with a brush dipped in Hoppee's #9 and run it through the barrel a few times
4. Take chamber brush and brush the chamber
5. Then I take my bore snake and run it through the barrel a few times and barrel is almost spotless. If I was to run a patch through it, it would probably come out just a tad dirty, nothing I would have a fit over
6. Wipe out upper and re-assemble. Done.

Now there are a lot of folk that don't clean their rifle as often, which there is no harm in doing so, the AR platform will run a very long time without a cleaning, just as long as it's lubed. The downfall to this, is that it is a PITA to clean when it comes time. Me, I would personally take 5 min to clean after every range session, than a couple of hours if I don't.

Brake cleaner leaves a residue............

 

[H&R Glock]

after shooting for 64 years, I find that 50 shades of gray is just fine with me. You can buy all the $11 per ounce cleaning miracles and you are just wasting your money.

 

[bdickens]

Brake cleaner leaves a residue............

No it doesn't.

The last thing you want on braking surfaces is residue.

 

[12Bravo20]

Heck when we would come back from long field exercises that involved shooting a lot of blanks, we would clean our weapons in parts cleaners down in the motor pool. Yes we did have to oil everything up really good as soon as we wiped them down and dried them. Believe me, trying to turn in a weapon to the arms room is way harder than just cleaning a rifle after a range trip.

There really in no need to get anal retentive when cleaning an AR15. I sure won't spend the time to get one clean enough to turn into the arms room ever again.

 

[tmd16556]

The last thing you want on braking surfaces is residue

This just reminds me of how my college roommate and I would shine and oil our bicycle rims (where the brake calipers go). They looked great and it stopped the squeal, but you did have to expect minimal breaking for the first few minutes of a ride. His family owned a bike shop and we both knew better, but we really liked doing dumb things with bicycles.

Now that I think of it, Ballistol is probably pretty good for bikes too.

 

[bdickens]

Its a wonder humanity managed to survive for tens of thousands of years before we sent our children out into the world encased in bubble wrap....

 

[AJC1]

The purpose of cleaning matters. I clean to get the best accuracy possible, and prevent carbon ring. If your just shooting for fun at the range and the gun doesn't pull duty as a home defense weapon then clean when you want or have issues. If it's going home to protect the family after the range then squeaky clean is appropriate.

 

[bdickens]

Squeaky clean is overkill.

 

[Ivy Mike]

You would be surprised by how well brake parts cleaner and a scotch brite pad work. Wrap a piece of the scotch brite around a cleaning rod, spray with brake cleaner (non chlorinated stuff from walmart is $3) and run it through the bore a bunch of times. Use nothing more abrasive than the green pads and you might start some of the finer ones if you're concerned with wear.
But I've never had an issue.

 

[sarduy]

I clean my Son-in-Laws AR 15 in 223 ammo. I scrape the barrel 3 or 4 times with a brass brush in my rod and then send Ballistol down the barrel on my cleaning rod. After 5 or 6 or these I start sending clean patches down the barrel.

It seems that I could send 50 clean patches down there and still get some discoloration (dirt or lube) on them. I usually quit when they get "goodenough" but do any of you continue until they are completely clean.

Shoe lace with knots tied in along the length. Dip in oil, pull thru barrel a couple of times. Rag and oil for the rest.

 

[taliv]

just something to think about...

if your patches keep coming out dirty, the 'dirt' might not be coming from the barrel. try wiping your cleaning rod, cleaning out the inside of your bore guide, and making sure there's not dirt in the chamber.

 

[Terry G]

Hoppe's N0.9 or Shooter's Choice wet patch and let it set while I clean the rest of the gun. Wet a bronze or nylon brush with the solvent and poke it through several times, wait a bit (5 to 10 minutes) then run patches through until slightly grey. If your waiting for pure white YOU will be old and grey.

 

[wiscoaster]

.... and making sure there's not dirt in the chamber.

That's good advice. The chamber gets missed if just running patches through the bore, and a dirty chamber can cause all kinds of functional problems.

 

[Deanimator]

I clean the way I was taught in ROTC and the Army. I clean until the bore is clean.

I use Shooter's Choice to clean, with bore brushes and numerous patches. After patches start coming out clean, I lube lightly with Shooter's Choice.

Edit: I meant to say lube with Clenzoil.

 

[Dudedog]

Do Not get a Borescope. If you think you are frustrated now, just wait until you can see into it.

Ignorance is Bliss

 

[Ranger99]

Hoppe's N0.9 or Shooter's Choice wet patch and let it set . . .

Key phrase ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

 

[792mauser]

Some solvent down the bore.
Then a sandwich and a beer.
Check the news for a bit.
Then check work emails.
Another couple of solvent patches.
Then go grocery shopping.
Put it all away.
Then several dry patches and an oiled one.

 

[lightman]

just something to think about...

if your patches keep coming out dirty, the 'dirt' might not be coming from the barrel. try wiping your cleaning rod, cleaning out the inside of your bore guide, and making sure there's not dirt in the chamber.

Along these same lines, a really strong copper solvent will attack your brass brush or brass jag giving you a false indicator of a dirty bore.

 

[dcloco]

No it doesn't.

The last thing you want on braking surfaces is residue.

Some do. Spray on a piece of glass and observe what is left.

 

[JDeere]

Me too. Perfection is overkill. Usually I stop when the dark black turns to light gray-brown.

Yep a happy barrel is a slightly fouled barrel. I like to spend my time at the range shooting and not sitting at home trying to get a squeaky clean barrel...

 

[Slamfire]

I clean my Son-in-Laws AR 15 in 223 ammo. I scrape the barrel 3 or 4 times with a brass brush in my rod and then send Ballistol down the barrel on my cleaning rod. After 5 or 6 or these I start sending clean patches down the barrel.

It seems that I could send 50 clean patches down there and still get some discoloration (dirt or lube) on them. I usually quit when they get "goodenough" but do any of you continue until they are completely clean.

If I use JB bore paste I can get a tube clean enough that patches come out white, but in my opinion, white patches mean little to nothing. Attempting to clean the barrel so that patches always come out white is simply obsessive compulsive behavior. Pass a brush down the tube till the resistance does not change, and push patches down the barrel to remove the residue on the surface. Occasionally use JB Bore Paste to remove impacted material in the throat, because chemicals and brushes won't remove the build up. It takes an abrasive, and I can feel the difference in brushing resistance after a JB Bore Paste session. It takes less resistance, so something was scrubbed away.

 

[Ethan Verity]

When I first got started in the shooting hobby, I would try to clean my gun to immaculate perfection each time. I realized, after spending several hours to clean a single gun, that something's got to give!

Now I just brush the barrel 5 times, CLP patch out the heavy crud, and call it a day. That's all that really needs to be done anyway.

 

[nettlle]

JB Bore cleaner is abrasive. So to me using an abrasive to get a white patch is the tail wagging the dog. On some of my hot varmint calibers, 22-250 for example, bore life is already short enough without adding an abrasive cleaner to the bore to lap it's life away even sooner.

Powder fouling isn't all that hard to get out. Doesn't take anything super exotic to remove it. If you have leading use Chore Boy. Chore Boy works very well and gets the leading out quickly. But always fix the leading permanently buy trying different ammo (or bullets if reloading). Long term Chore Boy isn't a good idea either. If your barrel is extremely hard to clean it's probably not because of the type of cleaner you are using but rather something else.

Some bores are so rough straight from the factory they are almost impossible to clean. It's rare but it does happen.

 

[Charlie98]

I haven't worried about cleaning a barrel until the patches come out still white and clean since getting out of the Army.

that’s me.

 

[bdickens]

I haven't worried about cleaning a barrel until the patches come out still white and clean since getting out of the Army.

All that obsessive overcleaning is not for the gun's benefit.

It is to satisfy the fetish that the white glove brigade has for making Joe clean stuff whether it needs it or not.