I've had my 10/22 for over 40 years. For much of those years I infrequently cleaned the barrel and when I did it was from the muzzle at first and then later I used a boresnake. I recently put on a Feddersen match barrel and installed a Kidd Trigger. The rifle went from shooting minute of tin can to minute of angle and so I wanted to protect and maintain that level of accuracy. I then had the cleaning hole drilled in the back of the receiver. Before the upgrade it didn't matter but now it does. I now clean it every couple hundred rounds.
