How often do you clean while at the range?

[NC-K9]

So while shooting today I was shooting consistent .50 to 1 moa at 100yds. Then moved out to 200yds. Shoot a couple 1.25 to 1.50" groups. Then my groups started opening up.

In my excitement I realized I had shot like 30 rounds. And also realized I had forgot to grab my Hoppes. But I had CLP. I tried cleaning the barrel with a brush and CLP. But could not get the groups to close.

A buddy came and had some #9. Well, with the barrel cleaned and cooled down the group's went back to sub-moa.

So my question is, after how many rounds do y'all clean your barrel and with what?

 

[kingston]

Never

 

[W54/XM-388]

Cooling the barrel and a bit of recovery time for you is probably more like what it was.

 

[isofahunter]

Never at range.

 

[Steel head]

Clean at the range?

 

[NC-K9]

So it would be perfect fine to fire 100 rounds, like I did today, and not ever clean the barrel? I wouldn't clean a pistol or an AR, but I wasn't sure about a bolt gun.

 

[Engineer260]

every couple hundred rounds is fine for cleaning. I took frank's 3 day class last month, shot a hundred rounds a day, and didn't clean the rifle until after the class ended.

take a look at post #7 here: https://www.snipershide.com/shootin...ed-in-precision-rifle-shooting-guide.6284387/

 

[kingston]

As long as you’re not shooting an excessively overbore chambering prone to developing carbon rings in the throat—the consensus on cleaning regimens span a few hundred rounds to never.

 

[antithesis]

I do it when breaking in barrels. Done it a couple of times when burning down barrels (200+ rounds in a day). Had a few other times when I wanted to but I decided that sanding the inside of the barrel with an oiled patch covered in dirt being kicked up by the wind was not the best idea. If you add it all up, it amounts to some percentage well under 1% of the time.

I do wipe the bolt and blow out the action with canned air on dusty days somewhat regularly.

 

[dirthead1]

I usually clean after 400-500 rounds. By cleaning I mean push a couple patches of Wipe Off down the barrel followed by a few clean patches. That’s about it for me.

 

[Dolomite_Supafly]

I had a Savage barrel that was just the opposite. After buying it used I took it to the range before cleaning it and it shot sub MOA with hand loads loaded for a different gun.

I decided to clean it and the next range session it would not group at all. So I quit shooting it and really cleaned it once I got home thinking it wasn’t clean enough. Next range trip it still would not shoot.

I thinking the barrel was toast I started using it to shoot up some ammo that would not group in an AR. The bolt gun still wasn’t shooting well but after about 25 rounds the group’s started to tighten up some.

I quit cleaning it and the groups kept getting better. It had at least 300 rounds down the tube without cleaning when it started shooting sub 1/2 MOA. I sold it with ~600 rounds down the tube and it was still shooting sub MOA with almost any hand loads I tried.

 

[NC-K9]

Great info! Thanks

My rifle is a Rem 700 P with a 26 barrel. It's a varmint profile barrel, I believe. If somebody has a similar rifle, can you give me an idea of how many rounds I can fire before a cool down is needed.

I know every gun is different and environmental conditions, ECT, ECT, ECT, But do you think I should be about to shoot 12, 15, 18..... Just wondering.

 

[kingston]

When I’m working up loads, I do the following:

At the end of the forend, put the hot barrel between your middle and ring fingers up against the tender flesh that makes up the web. If the barrel is too hot to keep it there, it’s too hot to keep shooting.

This is conservative, but allows for some consistency. Mind you, after shooting a match stage, often it’s extremely uncomfortable or impossible to carry a rifle by the barrel.

I don’t know how many rounds you’ve got through that factory barrel, but it may take some time to settle down/break in. I used to do old fashioned break ins on factory Remington Barrels. If your barrel is copper fouling excessively, you could clean the bore down to bare metal and follow a break in procedure.

 

[pmclaine]

I use Wet Ones towelettes for those times when I think its just a fart but it becomes a shart so 3 or 4 times per trip.

 

[Deleted member 10043]

This isn't the French Foreign Legion where you need to clean all the time because there hasn't been anything to shoot at for France for a while now.

 

[ShtrRdy]

MC-K9 -- were you shotting different types of ammo during that session?

-- Todd

 

[kingston]

I use Wet Ones towelettes for those times when I think its just a fart but it becomes a shart so 3 or 4 times per trip.

For you flat-brimming metrosexuals...

 

[AIAW]

Clean when it says it wants it. My AXSA 260 barrel has over 600 rounds on it since the last time it saw a patch. Still laser-beaming 123's and 140's out of it.

Cleaning at the range though, oh no. I take enough crap with me already!

 

[NC-K9]

MC-K9 -- were you shotting different types of ammo during that session?

-- Todd

No, all Prime 175gr.


Usually I bring 2 or 3 guns to the range, but I wanted to focus on my 308 today. Guess I need to bring more toys. Thanks all.

 

[acudaowner]

for me I do a cleaning after our 3rd trip of the week for rifles , and about the same for handguns .

 

[Greg Langelius *]

Often after an extended shooting session; I'll run a Hoppe's 9 patch down, wait 2 min, then patch it out. Then one more good soaking with Hoppe's 9, no patching out, pack up and drive home (about an hour, but sometimes we stop off for lunch). Once home; patch it dry, done.

My L-W 260 barrel is the only non-factory tube I own. After round #7 (15 years ago) during break-in (shoot one/clean one) I never saw copper coming out again. Ever.. The Hoppe's is to stay ahead of carbon rings. I try never to do a complete bore strip cleaning.

The factory barrels sometimes get more attention. I just got one of the borescopes reported recently onsite here. I pretty much expect I'll be using it to figure out whether anything should change in my cleaning 'method'.

I never use a metallic brush, but will use a nylon one to spread the solvent thoroughly before an overnight soak for the "end of season" cleaning that precedes my off-season storage.

Brushes trouble me. I was taught to take my time; to let the solvent and time do the work.

Season startup involves some foulers to reseason the bore before the year's shooting. Ten's plenty.

If it sounds like I don't have a really set and solid cleaning regimen, that's an accurate assessment. Mostly, that's because I never had a good handle on what's happening inside the bore. With the borescope, now I'll know more.

My bores had been scoped briefly a few times previously. What I saw at first was alarming, no doubt about it.

But I did what I always do when I have doubts. I shot the rifles, and compared outcomes against the borescope. The rifles all shot fine.

So the conclusion is that information can be interesting, but the target always tells the tale.

The important thing to see is when the bore info changes. Shoot, evaluate, make a conclusion.

Watch the throats. They get checkered. When a checker disappears, that usually accompanies the end of the barrel's useful life. That checkering is the result of the heat cycle from the firing of each shot; and the hotter the load, the more pronounced the checkering.

Keep records; I have too many rifles to keep that stuff in my head.

Actually, I have too many rifles, period. That's what I have Grandkids for...

Greg

 

[TheGerman]

LOL

 

[Greg Langelius *]

Yeah, sometimes I crack myself up too...

 

[McSnipsy291]

when i trip and pack the 4 inches with mud... other than that never. most people (myself included) will see more accuracy deterioration from fatigue, nerves, paralax, barrel temp, etc. just my 2cents the actual condition of the bore from the 2nd shot on has essentially no effect on whether i hit my target or not.

 

[Bugzlife19]

Wipe down my bolt if it’s blowing Colorado moon dust everywhere. But I may clean my barrel every 300 rounds even then not we’ll.

 

[TxWelder35]

Clean at the range? When I'm at the range I'm shooting.

Try going 200-300 rounds between cleanings and see why happens. Not gonna hurt anything. I bet it shoots just at as well at 20 as it does at 120 and 220.

 

[308pirate]

Clean at the range?

 

[padom]

So it would be perfect fine to fire 100 rounds, like I did today, and not ever clean the barrel? I wouldn't clean a pistol or an AR, but I wasn't sure about a bolt gun.

Yep

 

[A&8's]

I only clean at the range during new barrel break in (which I know is controversial, but...)

 

[NC-K9]

The reason I even asked was because a guy shooting with me was saying he cleans his gun/barrel after he shoots. Every time! And that during benchrest comps. he and everybody there always clean in between rounds.

 

[308pirate]

The reason I even asked was because a guy shooting with me was saying he cleans his gun/barrel after he shoots. Every time! And that during benchrest comps. he and everybody there always clean in between rounds.

Benchrest shooters do a lot of things that either have no evidence to support their use, are impractical in field applications, or both.

 

[pmclaine]

Benchrest shooters want every variable to be the same as they were in the last moment.

If your last shot did X off a clean barrel the thought is the way to get the next shot to do the same is with a clean barrel.

Practical shooters dont have that luxury.

 

[Rerun7]

What is this “cleaning” thing you speak of???

 

[jcam]

with the AI, Maybe a bore snake after the range session. Its been a few months since I used the bore snake at the range though. I will plead the 5th when I last used a patch.

 

[Lowlight]

Here is a novel thought,

Clean your rifle, then drive to the range and shoot, record group accuracy when you first arrive and then before you leave. Be sure to record the number of shots fired.

Return to the range, do it again, then keep going until you notice a consistent difference in your accuracy.

When you reach this point where accuracy falls off, note the number of rounds fired and then after you listened to what your barrel has to say, you can understand how often it needs to be cleaned.

In the immortal words of Dr. Noah Bodi,

Cleaning your barrel before accuracy wanes is like wiping your ass before taking a shit.

Don't worry, you won't hurt anything going longer without cleaning, in fact, Gale McMillan said, "More barrels have been ruined by cleaning vs shooting", so that should tell you something.

 

[NC-K9]

That is exactly what I'm doing now. 40 rounds in, sub moa at 100 and 200 yards.

Planned to shoot tomorrow, but building a shooting table instead.

 

[Lowlight]

2 whole boxes,

boy that sounds like a good start

 

[NC-K9]

Gotta start somewhere....