How much you clean your barrel
- Thread starter BurtG
- Start date
My happy crying face is meant on the video from "FMJ". Leonard talks to his rifle! Fricking awesome!
Muzzle down attitude...
My M14/M1G rifle rack. I have to finish the lower support of the rack. Which all the wood work should be done this week. Then just hand rubbing the oil into it with several coats of Minwax Tung Oil. Also will have hangers for my slings etc... for the top rack I made a steel hanger that the rear sling swivel/loop hooks over... mounted that to a custom board made from fancy walunt. Rifles hang upside down.
How much to clean and what to clean with are two good questions
I shot 22 rounds out of my man bun 6.5 yesterday (barrel was clean prior with Bore Tech)
I might not shoot it again for another month
Should I clean it? and if so with what?
I think I might just run a couple patches with rem oil on them and let it be, don't want to over clean, but the thought of crap from 22 rounds sitting in my custom barrel for a month or so bothers me.
I shot 22 rounds out of my man bun 6.5 yesterday (barrel was clean prior with Bore Tech)
I might not shoot it again for another month
Should I clean it? and if so with what?
I think I might just run a couple patches with rem oil on them and let it be, don't want to over clean, but the thought of crap from 22 rounds sitting in my custom barrel for a month or so bothers me.
Run patches of Hoppes down it till they come out clean. Once clean a light coat of Hoppes. Will protect as good as any oil and will keep cleaning as well.
Just remember to dry patch the bore and chamber before shooting.
Hoppes what?
#9 gun cleaning solvent or powder solvent
or
Lubricating Oil (1605) or Elite Gun oil or CLP or lube oil (1004)
or
I see this one now that I am looking - Moisture Displacing Lubricant
Hoppes has too many products these days, makes my head hurt.
Thanks
AK owners be like....."what is this silliness talk ....rifle is fine ,clean when piston looks like chia pet or before fearless leader shows up "
is the barrel like a factory ruger or remington barrel? if so, yes clean it. over clean factory barrels especially at first, they're so darn rough. took me like 500-800 rounds to get my savage 22 bore more stable. centerfire take a couple hundred rounds ime.
if it's a custom stainless steel barrel you'll probably be fine but it's always better to clean.
get the boretech products that directly apply to you. listen to the marketing. if you want copper gone, buy the copper stuff from boretech. eliminator will work fine if you just want one. it's not the toughest, fastest acting stuff but apparently people online can't follow directions so buy the idiot proof products.
if you want lube, where it's a bolt action, you really want some sort of grease. research proper grease and get some.
AK owners shoot 5moa groups and are satisfied.
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My barrel, MY CHOICE!!
I clean my Sig 9mm every 100 to 200 rounds. Wet patch with #9, let it sit for awhile while I clean the slide and frame. Run a bronze brush for a few strokes, then another wet patch and dry patches until clean.
I once waited like 400 rounds to clean it and holy cow it was filthy. But it gets a steady diet of dirty Remington range FMJ so what do you expect.
The .223 CTR goes 100 to 150 before a bath, which I guess means I'm cleaning tonight.
It depends on the gun. I clean my 6 Dasher after every one day match most of the time. For 2 day matches I just do light cleaning on carbon with one or 2 wet patches between day one and two. I will foul with a few shots in the morning and check zero. The barrel will get completely cleaned after the 2 day match. Lastly, I'll aways verify with a borescope to make sure there is no carbon ring forming and so on, but that has honestly never been an issue for me.
My Service Rifle barrel gets cleaned every 200-300 rounds with the BCG getting cleaned after every competition/trip to the range. However, I mostly clean it after 2 800 agg matches, which is 176 rounds.
6.5 PRC/300 PRC gets the barrel cleaned every 50-70 rounds.
My Service Rifle barrel gets cleaned every 200-300 rounds with the BCG getting cleaned after every competition/trip to the range. However, I mostly clean it after 2 800 agg matches, which is 176 rounds.
6.5 PRC/300 PRC gets the barrel cleaned every 50-70 rounds.
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To further add, for me, it depends on barrel material too. My old guns: 1903A4, 1903A1, and M1 Garand get cleaned every time they get shot given they are carbon steel barrels.
I do...I'm also not much fun at parties.
I just picked up a case of some cleaner ammo, maybe I'll move my cleaning interval out and see how it goes. Just oil the frame rails.
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Wonder how many of those top dogs pay for their own barrels. And how many will run a barrel longer than a single season.
30 rds 30-06.
Douglas Premium 1-10 carbon steel.
First patch
Second patch
Third
Now it will soak
Douglas Premium 1-10 carbon steel.
First patch
Second patch
Third
Now it will soak
Oh, oh!
Looks like bragging rights go to @Frank Green
Seeing some copper after 2 hours.
Next one cleaned up a bit.
That being the case I’d like to note….same bullets fired - 175 SMK - this rifle and the earlier but this one is sitting on top of 10 grains more powder. Unsure if that is a factor seeing as my .308 and 30-06 are both running at +/- 2600 FPS.
Copper or no…….the rifle shoots.
Looks like bragging rights go to @Frank Green
Seeing some copper after 2 hours.
Next one cleaned up a bit.
That being the case I’d like to note….same bullets fired - 175 SMK - this rifle and the earlier but this one is sitting on top of 10 grains more powder. Unsure if that is a factor seeing as my .308 and 30-06 are both running at +/- 2600 FPS.
Copper or no…….the rifle shoots.
What are you using to clean?
Why Hoppes? What’s your method of soaking the barrel? Why store muzzle down?
Hoppes because it smells manly and it works as far as my patches tell.
Soaking consists of sloppy wet patches with enough shit on them I’m hoping some part defies gravity long enough before drooling out the barrel.
Bore down because if I gots oil draining into something I’d rather it be my bore protector rather than the action, stick or trigger.
That last statement is why I’ve always found it interesting that pretty much every weapon cradle, storage rack, whatever you want to call it, in existence is designed to store with the muzzle up.
Short action cartridges I clean between every 180-250 rounds, suppressed.
My .300NM around every 150 rounds or so.
My .300NM around every 150 rounds or so.
Most people don’t have muzzle protectors for their rifles, so they store them muzzle up in fear that they’ll screw up the muzzle on the floor of their storage cabinet.
But, I read many years ago that oil running back off of the metal parts can weaken a wooden stock over time. Probably not a big concern for composite stocks or aluminum chassis.
Then again, someone wrote that storing a rifle muzzle up with a suppressor attached can allow for condensation to affect the crown. Idk. Hard for me to rationalize that, but something to think on.
I’ve found that alternating muzzle up and muzzle down allows me to stuff a few more rifles in a storage cabinet.
Aerosol no plug
Sit 24 hours
Push 3-5 patches with patch out on them.
If patches still dirty , repeat from beginning
I’ve got a vault with a system designed to either hang stuff or store muzzle up. Alternating would be nice but it’s solely designed for muzzle up. It’s one of those wall systems with the cradle for the stock on the bottom. You can hang horizontally but obviously you lose a lot of space that way.
Full bore rifles are cleaned every time they are shot, rimfire are cleaned when felt necessary.
Then there are two of us right people in the world. I store muzzle down for the same reason as you. And I am not worried about damaging the brake (all my rifles have a brake, except for the M4 A3 and it has a bird cage.) I buy stuff that is made for men.
Oopsies... did I say that out loud?
I can’t believe this thread has gone on this long and nobody has clarified carbon vs copper. Half are talking about cleaning carbon and the other half copper. I clean the carbon after 250ish rounds. I copper strip the barrel if/when the groups open up.
Full bore rifles (non pistol calibre) are carbon and copper cleaned every time they are shot, Pistol calibre (.38/.357 and 44mag) are carbon cleaned every time they are shot, rimfire are carbon cleaned when felt necessary.
Just did 1000 yard FTR match this weekend. Barrel was squeaky clean prior.
After 75 rounds of 44.5g N150 was a filthy pig. I always get carbon out 1st, then copper. Lastly very slight amount of JB bore paste and then run patches until white.
After 75 rounds of 44.5g N150 was a filthy pig. I always get carbon out 1st, then copper. Lastly very slight amount of JB bore paste and then run patches until white.
A few years ago when I was shooting 6.5 CM (140's at 2880), In 2500 rounds I cleaned that barrel a grand total of 3 times, with maybe 28 patches in total. It shot .5-.8" groups and I was fine with it. Clean after fouling it would shoot .3-.5
Now I've upped my cleaning regimen and I clean about every 300-500 rounds, depending on what's going on. I am definitely not overly anal about cleaning.
Now I've upped my cleaning regimen and I clean about every 300-500 rounds, depending on what's going on. I am definitely not overly anal about cleaning.
A few years ago when I was shooting 6.5 CM (140's at 2880), In 2500 rounds I cleaned that barrel a grand total of 3 times, with maybe 28 patches in total. It shot .5-.8" groups and I was fine with it. Clean after fouling it would shoot .3-.5
Now I've upped my cleaning regimen and I clean about every 300-500 rounds, depending on what's going on. I am definitely not overly anal about cleaning.
I grew up in a family of shooters. The shooting club I used to shoot with when I was young required white patch level cleaning of the .22 LR bolts we used to shoot after each night at the range. We would show up to draw our rifles, sign for them, run a rag through them to verify clean and show white patch level clean. Then we were allowed to purchase the ammo they sold and required us to use, buy their targets, and go shoot. After we were done, we would spend close to the same amount of time (some days longer) cleaning the rifles then we had shooting, then get them inspected and demonstrate clean patches, then run the oil rags for storage, then turn in the rifles and secure them.
This taught me a lot about attention to details, both in cleaning and in procedure adherence.
Oh, wait, I didn’t answer the question on how often I clean my primary rifle system….
800+ rounds in it without running a patch through it.
(Ok, that’s a lie, a bit of an exaggeration, I clean them about 200 rounds or of course after some fouling or such, and I clean them before I rely on them for my own life or for a job.)
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I had an armorer that was at one of the places I worked that bought a jewelry cleaning machine, and would drop the metal parts of his pistol into the basin and would let it clean a large percentage of the grime before going over the rest with a rag. I always wondered what effect if any it had on either the finish or on the grime.
WAIT!! HOLD ON! DON'T KICK IN MY DOOR YET. I GOTTA CLEAN THIS THING BEFORE I DEFEND ME AND MINE WITH IT.
I get it. I really do. But I will NEVER have that problem.
Or you could have joined the USMC..........and they would have taught you how to clean a rifle.........
Funny thing, they don’t let you join when you are under 10 years old- that’s why I said “when I was young.”
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