Gun cleaning kits

Status
Not open for further replies.
P

Pushrod

Member
Joined
Jul 17, 2006
Messages
224
Location
MD/WV
I know there are other threads on this, but I would like to get some clarification on this. Alot of people swear by the Boresnake. I've looked at these and am interested. Do you have to use cleaning fluid on the boresnake or just pull it through as it?

I looked at the Otis kits also, they seem to consist of a flexible metal cable that pulls the cleaning patches through the barrel, I take it the metal cable with its attached brass patch holder wont damage the barrel?

Right now I use three piece aluminum rods for cleaning my rifles and handguns, and have done so for years, but recently have heard that these will affect the accuracy after a while due to the aluminum wearing the barrel interior.

What do you guys/gals suggest for the best and safest (for the gun) cleaning?
 
Do you have to use cleaning fluid on the boresnake or just pull it through as it?
Click to expand...
I usually spray some CLP into the barrel as well as a little on the snake itself. Occasionally I'll swab the bore with Hoppes #9 first, let it sit for 5 minutes, and then pull the snake through.

Right now I use three piece aluminum rods for cleaning my rifles and handguns, and have done so for years, but recently have heard that these will affect the accuracy after a while due to the aluminum wearing the barrel interior.
Click to expand...
I doubt it. Barrel steel is some tough stuff, most likely tougher than than the aluminum that cleaning rod if made of. I use a brass rod sometimes and that thing's softer than snot (or so it seems).
 
I bought a BoreSnake.

I recently bought patch based breech to muzzle system from Otis. I didn't like the idea of repeatedly pulling the crud I had cleaned out of a barrel back through the barrel. I have no clue as to whether that is a real concern, or and indication of neurosis on my part.


Barrel steel is some tough stuff, most likely tougher than than the aluminum that cleaning rod if made of.
Click to expand...

I that what concerns folks who are concerned is the aluminum oxide that forms. Aluminum oxide is an abrasive.

Mike
 
I like the bore snake concept. And people I know who use it like it. I don't have one. I would think you would need some way to clean the grit out of it after a while. Maybe rinse it off with some kerosene or something.

Someone once told me they put theirs in the dish washer to clean it periodically. Not sure if they were serious or not.
 
You can wash a bore-snake in the washing machine, or by hand in hot soap & water.
Then rinse and hang it up to air dry.

I like Bore-Snakes for quick hit & miss cleaning, and especially for rifles that must be cleaned from the muzzle.

In general though, with center-fire rifles, you will eventually need to use a good cleaning rod to remove copper fouling and really give the bore a through cleaning.

The best are one-piece uncoated stainless steel, one piece coated rods from Dewey, (goofy threads) and the new carbon fiber rods.

None of these will hold embedded grit like a jointed aluminum rod.

And yes, cleaning rod wear is really real!
I have several old Winchester lever-actions that have lost most of the muzzle rifling due to cleaning rod wear.

If you always can clean from the breech end of the barrel, cleaning rod wear is not so much of a concern.
Cleaning from the muzzle is where the most damage occurs.

1224.jpg
rcmodel
 
I stick with Dewey one piece coated cleaning rods exclusively.

I keep a multi-piece aluminum rod kit in my gunbox, but mostly just for checking for and clearing obstructions in the bores of my pistols. I almost never use it for actual cleaning.
 
I have one of the little hokey-puck sized Otis kits, and it's a great kit for the field. For serious cleaning, I prefer a one piece rod and a bore guide to protect the barrel.

I haven't tried the Boresnake, but it looks like a nice field option. The Otis kits only advantage for me is that it fits every caliber I shoot, so I don't have to remember which caliber Boresnake to bring. Still, a toothbrush, solvent bottle, small rag and a Boresnake would make a nice permanent addition to the trapdoor in my AR15.....

Kevin
 
Aluminum may be soft, but aluminum oxide is very hard. And that's what's at the surface of an aluminum cleaning rod.

The Otis cables are vinyl coated, like a bicycle lock, with the exposed metal ends being brass.
 
Just wipe the aluminum rag with a cloth and any slight amount of aluminum oxide that has formed will be removed. This is a non-problem.
Snakes are a good field expedient for quick removal of the massive amounts of crud during a long range session or on a hunt. They don't, however, do a thorough job. You can't attach a bronze brush or a jag to a snake. You need to go through those steps for a thorough cleaning. Yes, where possible, it's better to clean from the breech end, which is possible with most lever actions, bolt actions, and pistols. Revolvers must be done from the muzzle end and care has to be taken. Some more tips: I've used this procedure on all civilian guns for over 30 years, except that I don't think I had Breakfree and Rem-Oil for the whole time:
1. Clean with Hoppe's #9, one of the smells of freedom, the other being burnt JP-4, or Breakfree aerosol (carburetor cleaner works almost as good), depending on how dirty the gun is.
2. Saturate with WD-40 (no, I've never had a problem) or Rem-Oil, whichever comes to hand first.
3. Wipe off thoroughly with cotton rag and Q-tips and slotted tip/jag with cotton patches. Get chambers bone dry (oil can kill primers).
4. Drip tiny drops of Hoppe's gun oil on points of wear.
5. For autos, put a little dab of a good grease like Rig (or the old black Outers/Garcia stuff) on the slide rails and any bright spots.
6. Apply very thin coat of Hoppe's gun oil in barrel using a wool or cotton mop.
7. Thoroughly wipe off any excess.
For magazines and moon clips, I use only Hoppe's #9 and dry thoroughly. Absolutely no oil, it can kill primers.
In the military we used milspec bore cleaner and LSA. Worked great. If you're on a budget get some of these at a surplus outlet and you'll be OK. Lots of guys have used thin motor oil or transmission fluid for gun oil with good results too.
 
Bore Snake for range/quick cleaning
Otis for regular cleaning
Cleaning rod for pushing out brass/rounds and cleaning firearms that have fouling.
On cleaning rods I like stainless steel best.
It's not what you use so much as how. A lot of damage has been done to firearms by improper cleaning procedures.
 
Just wipe the aluminum rag with a cloth and any slight amount of aluminum oxide that has formed will be removed.
Click to expand...
Aluminum really likes oxygen. Aluminum oxide forms on the surface of freshly exposed aluminum within seconds.
 
It's not the aluminum oxide you have to worry about.

It's all the carbon & primer grit that gets trapped in the cleaning rod joints.
It's just like fine lapping compound!

Years ago, folks wore out Winchester lever-action muzzles with dirty wood or brass jointed rods! And everyone knows wood & brass is WAY softer then barrel steel.

And then later, they did it some more with GI jointed steel rods on M-1 rifles & Carbines that couldn't be cleaned from the rear end.
The joints themselves act just like little steel scrapers, in addition to the abrasive grit the joints trap!

1224.jpg
rcmodel
 
Somewhere I have a gun cleaning kit put up.

Don't ask me when I last saw it, much less used it.

I concern myself with chambers, extraction and magazines/cylinders.
I subscribe to Will Shumann's take on barrel cleaning - I don't.
I subscribe to Gabe McMillian's take on barrel break in - I don't.

Never believed in Boresnake concept, running dirty back through, stuff in a washer I don't want, and perhaps having to remove stuck Boresnakes for others, supports my take.

I get these stiff bristle Utility brushes from NAPA, on a twist wire , that fit various calibers, .22, 9mm, 45ACP for instance.

I do chambers with these. Pipe cleaners for extraction. If I bend one, I can do chambers without taking gun apart.
Then again if'n one knows how, a Pipe Cleaner works on a pistol chamber.
Lube, and run the gun.

Unwritten Rule : Never show up to compete with a clean gun.

Yeah, I CCW a dirty gun for the same reasons.

When one shoots say 200 -500 rds a day, reloads, cleaning cuts into quality shooting time.
WE inspect and maintain, we know the guns, they tell /told us when they need attention.

Some current examples:

We only put ~29,000 rds through a 870 in 13 months.
We only put ~12,000 rds through a Kel-Tec P-11 in 6 months
We only put ~40,000 rds through a Old Gov't Model of 1911 in 12 months.

We'd rather shoot the durn things.
 
Better than sliced bread.

I keep an assortment of BoreSnakes around and light a candle every Sunday for its inventor.

I also use a regular cleaning rod/kit, but for quickie cleaning, a Boresnake is hard to beat.

When I'm looking to purchase a gun, I bring a BoreSnake and a small flashlight (and my reading glasses) along and run the Snake through the bore for inspection purposes. Looking at a bore without cleaning out the powder residue is like kicking the tires on a car you are thinking of buying: both are totally useless symbolic actions.

In this kind of circumstance, you can run the BoreSnake through the barrel dry.

Always wash the Boresnake in soapy water and rinse it out thoroughly in case you have run it through a gun which may have fired corrosive or black powder.

Laundry day at 230RN's house:

http://thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=296905
 
Last edited:
I have a boresnake for my CZ-52 and it's the best thing ever invented as far as I'm concerned.

Get done shooting corrosive ammo, squirt some Gunscrubber down the barrel, two passes with the boresnake and it's looking like new. Haven't had a speck of corrosion yet. Takes all of ten seconds.

As far as handguns are concerned I'll just be using boresnakes from now on, mostly just to get the crud out of the barrel. Rifles, with their much deeper and narrower grooves, will still get the cleaning-rod treatment. I need to get a one-piece soon here, the cheapo universal brass 3-piece is good enough for the Mosins and the .22s but I wouldn't want to be cleaning a K-31 or a Rem 700 with it...
 
Gun cleaning wear

There was an article in a recent Garand Collectors Assn where a guy set out to test just how much cleaning with segmented rods it would take to move the muzzle wear from one level to another. In a nutshell, with all the careless and vigorous cleaning he could perform over several months it only changed the MW by a small amount, not even from say 2 to 3. More like 2 to 2 and a quarter. He extrapolated that it would take a more or less average shooter a very very long time practicing reckless use of segmented rods to screw up a barrel.
 
Just wipe the aluminum rag with a cloth and any slight amount of aluminum oxide that has formed will be removed. This is a non-problem.
Click to expand...
Where do people get that nonsense? :banghead:

Aluminum cannot exist in a free state in the presence of oxygen. In fact, aluminum reacts with oxygen so strongly it would even take it away from other oxides. Mix aluminum powder with iron oxide powder (rust) and you get termite.

Whenever aluminum is exposed to air, a thin transparent film of aluminum oxide forms on the surface. That substance is also known under the name of "corundum", "sapphire", "ruby", "emery" (emery cloth) and such - all superior abrasive and cutting materials second only to diamond.

That is what the surface of you aliminum rod consists of and if you plan to "wipe it off", you better use diamond abrasive and a lot of force - and make sure to do it in vacuum or inert gas athmosphere. :rolleyes:

miko
 
You can't go wrong with the Otis Kits nor the boresnakes. They both serve a very useful purpose. After I received my first Otis kit I tossed my sectional cleaning rods.

Good luck :)
 
Wow - this thread is very informative! I was thinking of buying a sectional AL cleaning rod, but opted for an Otis kit. I have a bore snake for my .22 rifles that I like and I thought the Otis kit was similar, but let you use patches and separate brushes. Anyway, there are lots of interesting info in this thread.
 
I think the best way to get cleaning supplies is to single out each gun and what it needs plus replacement parts.

I usually goto the fishing department and pick up those thin small tupperware lure containers with extra long channels, work good for storing tooth brushes and bore brushes etc. So for the AR it goes like this

2 Chamber brushes
2-3 Brass bore brushes
1 brass jag
Some nice cleaning patches, I use the .22LR square ones
A small tube of CLP.

Keep it all in one thin fishing container and label it for that rifle. Do a container for each. At least thats what I do...
 
dude, you throw it in the washing machine every so often to clean it. me and dad swear by them. so much easier then rods. i put a bit of borescrubber on the end with the brass bristles and and sweep it threw until the bore is mirror bright. we got one for every cailber:cool:
also, go to gunshows and other gun places and make sure to look threw the cleaning stuff. i found a brass toothbrush looking thing once thats perfect for scrubbing cylinders and dads got this little mirror thingy that is great for shining light up the bore. he has never found anything like it since.
 
Proper gun cleaning is a process. Last time I cleaned rifles ( I cleaned two rifles and it took two hours) my buddy from the Army Reserves stated that to his recollection the cleaning of service weapons was a two part process that took two days.

You need to use a quality one piece cleaning rod (J Dewey, Tipton, etc.). Cleaning should be done from the breech whenever possible. When cleaning from the muzzle is necessary the operator needs to be very careful not to damage the barrel crown and/or rifling.

One also needs to be mindful of not pulling fouling back into the bore after you have pushed it out. In other words once you push a solvent saturated brush through your bore you need to either remove the brush or clean the filth out of it with gun scrubber or the like. Simply pulling a filth laden brush back through the bore after having used it is simply working against yourself.

In my view boresnakes are of limited value. I can see them as being a great field expedient cleaning tool. Personally I pull mine through the bore only once after have left Gunslick Bore Scrubber sit in the barrel for 15-30 minutes. This gets the powder fouling, copper, and/or lead moving this is a good start. The bore snake is then washed to remove the solvents and fouling with dishwashing soap and left to dry for it’s next cleaning session. The bore snake is not used again until it has been washed as doing so will likely result in pulling the recently removed fouling back into the bore.

When cleaning you need to be aware of what the cleaning product you are using is meant for. For instance Hoppes #9 is an oil based powder solvent. It will remove powder fouling but seems to be useless in removing copper. A good dedicated copper solvent like Barnes CR10 or Sweets 7.62 work great . You will know when you see the brilliant blue colored patch come out the other side that you are removing copper. WD 40 is not a cleaning solvent, it is a water displacer hence the moniker “WD.” I use it only to drive water off of metal surfaces. The only way I know of to remove lead from a bore is mechanically by use of pushing numerous cotton cleaning patches down the bore.

Repeat cleaning steps until patches come out clean. This can take quite a while and may require you to use a large number of patches 50-100 depending on the condition of the bore. Of course some bores never seem to get perfectly clean (see Russian Mosin Nagant Rifles). Always finish cleaning any firearm by anointing the bore with oil. I use Miltec 1 for this purpose.


I like to wear disposable gloves when I clean. While we may like the smell of Hoppes #9 it is likely based in petroleum products ( potentially carcinogenic) and is not good for you. As I prepare food daily I do not like the presence of toxic solvent residue on my hands. I find gloves a great barrier to reduce their presence.
 
Where do people get that nonsense?
Click to expand...

Where, indeed. Miko is dead right. I worked for many years in the Jewelry industry. I think it is pretty much a toss up as to which i.e. jewelry or firearms, is more rife with baseless misinformation, old wive's tale, and just plain old BS.

I have a 42" stainless rod with the ball bearing handle that I use at home on my bench for long guns. I bought a military style kit from Kleen-bore, and a bore guide

I keep all of this along with a basic screw driver set, various lubes, a bottle of Hoppe's #9 and a considerable stash of cleaning patches, and a good assortment of brushes, jags and eyelets in a .50 cal. ammo can with a couple of those plastic inerts. I take this with me to the range, hunting, or anywhere I might need to use it for long guns or pistols. It has served me very well. If you use a guide, and don't allow the rod to contact the sides of the barrel, then it really doesn't matter what it is made out of, or what it has imbedded in it. I have .30 cal and .223 bore snakes, but seldom use them.
 
I use a boresnake in every caliber I shoot and think they are great tools, especially for quick 'wipes' of the barrel right after a shoot when the barrels are still warm.

I don't like using solvents in mine because they become a problem to carry/store -especially since I do not wash mine with any regularity.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

N
  • Locked
cleaning kits?
Replies
15
Views
946
1911user
1
N
  • Locked
Cleaning from the Breech, and other cleaning stuff
Replies
4
Views
725
sm
S
N
  • Locked
Otis Delux Kit
Replies
7
Views
924
LAK
L
T
  • Locked
Best kits to clean your guns with?
Replies
2
Views
740
762x51
762x51
S
  • Locked
is it clean yet??
Replies
2
Views
451
dfariswheel
D
Back
Top