Proper Cleaning

[Picknlittle]

Okay. You've been to the range for a couple hours or you come in from a weekend hunt. To what extent to you clean your rifle.

Is there such a thing a normal after use and a more intricate deep cleaning at a given period?

I typically use copper solvent and brush, then swab out with dry patches. Then run a lubed patch thru the barrel and wipe out the reciever and wipe down the bolt. Is this enough or is there something important I'm overlooking?

 

[never_retreat]

Clean them when they stop working or when your hand gets dirty picking it up

 

[hexidismal]

Although I am a total nut in some ways when it comes to cleaning, I don't think you need many products to do it properly. I always clean my guns thoroughly after any firing (and even occasionaly when they haven't fired, which is what might be a bit of overkill). All I use though is your basic good old Hoppe's #9 and a good lubricant/protectant. I highly recommend fp-10 for that.

 

[Lupinus]

more gns have been damaged by over cleaning then under cleaning. Heck, my marlin 22 does better when it hasn't been cleaned, takes at least 200 rounds for it to shoot really good agian lol. The cinterfires get a wet patch or two down them until they come out respectably clean. The only time a brush goes down my guns is if I know there is some really tough crud down there or fouling.

 

[Elza]

hexidismal:

+1 You just descried me as well.

 

[obxned]

I clean the barrel (no wire brush) and action, then lightly oil to prevent rust. Disassembly and detail cleaning is about a once a year affair on rifles.

 

[thebaldguy]

I think it's a good idea to clean and lube firearms after each use. I think most cleaning damage is in the barrel; it comes from serious overuse of cleaning rods and wire brushes. I use a patch with solvent, then a wet brush for a few strokes, and finally dry patches. A clean patch with a few drops of oil for protection when done.

 

[esmith]

I hear its bad for the gun if you run your brush down the muzzle end of the rifle. Is this true? If it is, why?

All i do is run the brush through once and use my bore mop a couple of times with some patches until its fairly clean. After cleaning the bolt and breach i oil everything down a bit then do the action a few times to spread it evenly.

 

[CliffH]

I hear its bad for the gun if you run your brush down the muzzle end of the rifle. Is this true? If it is, why?

The way I understand it is: When cleaning from the muzzle end it is too easy to allow the rod to rub against the end of the muzzle, thereby damaging the crown. Messing up the crown messes up the grouping.

I'll run a copper brush with Hoppe's on it followed by a couple Hoppe's coated patches, then clean/dry patches until they come out clean. Follow that with a lightly oiled patch, clean the bolt face, then lightly oil the bolt & all exterior metal. I do that at the end of each day's shooting.

 

[Elza]

CliffH: The way I understand it is: When cleaning from the muzzle end it is too easy to allow the rod to rub against the end of the muzzle, thereby damaging the crown. Messing up the crown messes up the grouping.

That is what I've always been told. I've seen military rifles with an adapter that attached to the muzzle to keep the rod away from the barrel. Is this a carry-over from the days of steel cleaning rods? I wouldn't think that aluminum or brass rods would damage a steel barrel.

 

[Picknlittle]

This has been very helpful. I was afraid I was under cleaning. It seems I might do well to hold back the brush a bit more.

Thanks all,

 

[esmith]

Well i probably ran the rod through the muzzle at least 10 times on my .22. Which to me, doesn't sound good. Is my gun damaged?

 

[Liberty1776]

I am new to your society...your words frighten and confuse me...what is this "kleeynyng" ritual of which you speak???

 

[RNB65]

Here's the lowdown on gun cleaning --

If you watch a hundred different people clean guns you're going to see a hundred different methods on how to do it. Some are going to be meticulous and spend an hour per gun and some are going to be done in 10 minutes. Some are going to scrub the barrel until in it is shiny clean and patches come out looking brand new and some are going to just push thru a patch or two soaked with solvent and be done with it (and some aren't going to clean the barrel at all because noncorrosive ammo doesn't do any harm to the barrel). Some are going to use B-F CLP for everything and some are going to use a whole handful of products (and they're all going to be different -- Outers, Shooter's Choice, Hoppes, Remington, Kleen Bore, Birchwood Casey, Break Free, Gun Slick, G96, WD40, etc., etc.,).

In the end, as long as the action is reasonably cleaned and lubed, all the guns are going to work well regardless of how much time and effort went into cleaning them. As long as the bolt will move, the slide will slide, and the cylinder will rotate, the gun doesn't care how clean the rest of it is.

 

[Molon Labe]

Here are some things I've learned over the years on the subject of cleaning the bore:

1. Use brushes with brass (not steel) cores.
2. A dirty bore has copper and carbon in it. You should attack them separately.
3. It is more difficult to remove carbon than copper. This is because carbon cannot be dissolved.
4. Most "carbon solvents" do not do a good job of removing carbon from the bore.
5. The best carbon remover is a product called Carbon Killer. It is a surfactant.
6. When using Carbon Killer, let it soak in the barrel for ten minutes, scrub bore with a bronze brush, wipe bore with patches, and then repeat.
7. The best copper removers contain ammonia.

 

[Molon Labe]

I think most cleaning damage is in the barrel; it comes from serious overuse of cleaning rods and wire brushes.

A bronze-bristled brush will not hurt your barrel. As for the cleaning rod, you should only use a one-piece coated (or graphite) rod.

 

[bogie]

It's not "overcleaning."

It's "incompetent cleaning."

DO NOT use those aluminum rods that they sell at wal-mart. They'll eat a bore faster than you can say "What was Bogie blathering about this time?"

Do not use stainless brushes if you care about a barrel.

Use a bore guide.

 

[Ready2Defend]

I use gun scrubber spray on the action, then brush and patches through the barrel. I recently got a good light to look down the barrels with. Looks the same before/after brushing so with the above comments I am going to brush less.

Any comments on the gun scrubber spray?

 

[armedandsafe]

Is this a carry-over from the days of steel cleaning rods? I wouldn't think that aluminum or brass rods would damage a steel barrel.

Take a look at the ingrediant label on many sand papers and grinding wheels. You will find "aluminum oxide" listed. Then take a look at what happens to the surface of any untreated/coated piece of aluminum. You will find that the surface of a piece of aluminum will oxidize almost instantly. Therefore...

Pops

 

[Rustynuts]

No one uses a boresnake? Self centering and no need for a road to scratch the bore. Has built-in brass "brushes"

 

[Molon Labe]

No one uses a boresnake? Self centering and no need for a road to scratch the bore. Has built-in brass "brushes"

I heard a lot of good things about bore snakes. So a couple years ago I bought one. It's the most worthless thing I've ever purchased.

 

[CliffH]

I'ved got & used a bore snake. I don't depend on it for making the barrel "clean", instead I'll run it through the barrel a couple of times during a long range session - maybe every 50 to 60 rounds. Probably don't need to, but it doesn't hurt anything that I can tell. And the bore snake'll come in handy if I ever get stuck in the field for a while, it's a lot easier to pack than a full cleaning kit.

 

[Molon Labe]

And the bore snake'll come in handy if I ever get stuck in the field for a while, it's a lot easier to pack than a full cleaning kit.

I suppose a bore snake might come in handy as a field-expedient tool. Other than that, I consider them worthless.

 

[RNB65]

I own Boresnakes in all the common calibers, but I never use them. When I clean guns, I concentrate on cleaning the action not the barrel. Also, I found it is easier to just use a cleaning rod rather than trying to feed a long string down the barrel.

 

[esmith]

well what else do you people decide is important for cleaning guns with. It sounds like a 1 piece rod with a bore guide would do fine.