Bore Snake vs. coated cable

[MAG00]

What are y'all's thoughts on a bore snake versus a coated cable with attachments i.e. Otis or similar?

I've heard on take on it....the person liked the coated cable over the bore snake. He said he felt like the bore snake could or would pick up debris/dirt/etc in the fabric cord. The coated cable would not and still give you the a compact portable kit for field use.

What do y'all think? Comments, ideas, etc.

 

[Ring]

Otis is made to clean, a bore snake i would never use to clean, just knock out the chunky's at the end of the day...

but i would still never use a Otis over a rod...


also, NEVER BUY A VIPER bore snake.... i have ripped the cord out of 3 of those.... and there are horror stories of then breaking in the barrel, from both ends and being un removable...

 

[redneckbmxer24]

What are you looking to do? I always make sure I have an Otis or bore snake in truck to clear and obstruction in the bore after a slip in the mud or something. In that scenario I've found it doesn't make a difference, I'll get as much crap out as possible with a stick and bottled water so I'm not pulling mud with abrasive sand out of my barrel. I've never noticed any of my bore snakes picking up excessive debris but I'm sure they would if I didn't first get as much out of the bore as possible. I also keep them in a zip lock bag to keep as much crap off them as possible when not in use. If you're looking for a compact cleaning kit to use in a pinch the Otis is the way to go, in that aspect the bore snake is a fucking joke. There's really no way to apply solvent with one short of soaking it and at that point you well never be able to get your bore dry. You can with the Otis. I personally hate having to use the Otis to clean a rifle with completely, but it's doable.

 

[roggom]

I have a pro-shot cable version, I prefer the t-handle to any bore snake.

 

[redneckbmxer24]

I will also add that I have had my OTIS kit forever and it still works flawlessly. I throw away bore snakes all the time after having a few break. Two were obviously worn and needed replacing but its not like they were hanging on by a thread, they looked like they still had a few uses left in them... Nope they just fucking broke. Then one that had only been used a couple times with no frays or signs of wear broke about 4" inside the muzzle of a 26" barrel so the whole thing was in the barrel. Luckily it was a 30 cal barrel and I was able to find some baby fishing hooks that fit in the bore but it still took hours to pull it back far enough to grab the rope. I hooked myself numerous times and considered driving to their headquarters to shove my rifle butt end first up somebodys ass. One of the others broke in similar fashion but it was undersized (22 cal snake in a 243 barrel) so I was able to push it from the muzzle with a cleaning rod pretty easily.

Keep this in mind with bore snakes.

 

[Hook Creek]

I like the bore snake for potability. I never end up using it, but when I need to one day it will be there

 

[mark5pt56]

I'm with the Otis for field and coated rod in the shop. One would even argue the expandable or sectional brass rods as well for the field. The bore snake is like re-using toilet paper. I've even seen a local shop sell the BS to a customer buying AR15's, telling them it's the only thing they'll ever need.