Somethings not right with this story. Rimfire bores "season" after a few shots and you don't need to clean them. In fact, they shoot worse after being cleaned. And if you're getting strips of lead out of the bore, then the bullets would be tumbling (sound like bees). My 22s shoot Thunderbolts as well as any other uber-cheap 22lr and I clean the bore in my 22lr pistol about once in a never.
