Scrubbing old barrels

[dispatch55126]

I've owned a MN 91/30 for a month now, put about 100 rounds through it and have cleaned it at least 12 times. Each time the barrel looked as dirty as when I first cleaned it. I used brushes, patches, solvent, simple green, you name it. I had posted a similar thread a little while back and someone had mentioned brake cleaner. Seeing as this was my deer rifle, I hadn't tried it until now and it works great. I took a pencil eraser, wrapped teflon tape around it until I had a watertite seal and stuck it into one end of the barrel. I then filled the barrel with the brake cleaner and let it sit for a hour. Afterwards, I drained the cleaner, brushed it a few times and when I sprayed some more cleaner down the breach out came a black sludge and the barrel shined for the first time since I owned it. I've heard it can strip the blue and have been careful, but if you're desperate, this works.

 

[atblis]

Brake cleaner

I've never had brake cleaner strip blueing. It will remove paint, harm some plastics, and remove stock finishes though.

 

[P95Carry]

My 91/30 barrel is ''sorta OK" but I have my first SKS, a Yugo - with a very ''black'' barrel - it shoots quite well.

But I may try this just ''because''

In fact my Turk Mauser barrel is none too shiny but even so - it shoots like a champ.

 

[dispatch55126]

And the Mosin shoots great but I like to look down the barrel after I clean it and have it actually look clean. I don't know about filling up a gas operated barrel with brake cleaner though. I have no idea if it would plug, jam, or damage it tubing.

 

[FieroCDSP]

Personally, I think brake cleaner is probably the most efficient cleaner to get rid of cosmoline. I had heard the stories about unpacking a surplus SKS, but the reality is so much worse. I ended up soaking all the metal parts in a rubbermaid tote with a few inches of brake cleaner in it. I need to hit the inside of the barrel again. I've cleaned the snot out of the thing with the usual cleaners and I still get crud on the patches. If anyone has a good recommendation for cleaning the stock, I'd appreciate it. I used a product called Desolve-It from Wal-mart's cleaning product aisle, and that worked okay, but I still have that bit that's slowly seeping out of the wood.

 

[Mr White]

Depends on how much you want to 'clean' it.

To just get the surface crud off w/o having to refinish it, a wipedown with mineral spirits and #0000 steel wool or a blue Scotchbrite works well.

If you want to get it down to bare wood to refinish it, I know ZipStrip and a green Scotchbrite pad work really well and I've heard that Easy-Off oven cleaner works well too. After that, go to a hardware store and get some TSP (Trisodium Phosphate) and clean the stock per the directions on the TSP box. TSP is very good for a final cleaning of wood before refinishing. It gets off anything that the zipstrip may have missed.

If you want to really clean the cosmo out of the stock, put the stock in the oven at about 150. Take it out every 20 min or so and wipe it down. Cosmo will continue to bleed out of it until its gone. You just keep wiping it off as it bleeds.

Make sure you put trays below it to catch the mess or your wife or mother will kill you.

 

[kir_kenix]

ive started using brake cleaner as well. cleanest i have ever seen bore on a few of my rifles! im not really sure why i didnt try it before to be honest.

 

[X-Rap]

You blasphemers wait till the solvent police find this thread. You will all be banished to the wilderness, brake cleaner ooooooohhhhhhh the humanity.