Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Barnes TTSX fouling

So I have to shoot lead free for predator calling here in CA (any hunting). I have been working with 80grn Barnes TTSX in my 25-06's. I have a Weatherby Vanguard S2 and a Remington 700 CDL. Recently I developed two loads that shot half inch in my 700.....61.5 of H4831 and 49.0 of Varget (3,600fps). The loads for my Weatherby, both half inch..... 55.5 of RL17 for 80grn TTSX and 54.5 of RL22 with 100grn TTSX. Yesterday I was on around shot 36 since my last bore cleaning when my 700 groups went to an inch with a different POI, the next group was 2 inches.

My Weatherby seems to open up quicker around 20 shots. It should be noted that the 36 shots were done in two different range trips, I usually only shoot about 15-18 shots in a session (Barnes are pricey), I let the rifle cool completely in between the 3 shot groups. I have never used a copper specific cleaner on these bores, only Eds red and Hoppes 9. I called Barnes and the guy seemed to confirm what I was thinking, that 3,600fps is fouling the bore rather quickly, he recommended Sweets 7.62. It isn't a big deal, these rifles are not for target shooting so I don't mind cleaning them every 20-30 shots. Has anyone else noticed this with high velocity shooting of these bullets?

Side note- All action screws, scope bases/rings are confirmed to be torqued correctly.

I shoot a lot of the TTSX's in my 7 MM RSAUM and the old X bullet in my 257 Roberts. Copper fouling is an issue with the Barnes bullets, but not as bad as the older versions. I don't have anything that shoots to the same velocity as you, but I do notice copper fouling affects the accuracy after a certain number of rounds. I'm not sure what that round count is. When I start to see the accuracy change I clean them thoroughly. I used the Barnes CR-10 for copper removal for a long time and then went to the Sweet's 7.62. I learned on this forum that the 7.62 is water based and can't be left in the barrel over night. Therefore, i have gone to the Montana Extreme Copper Killer since it is oil based and can be left over night.

Thanks for the reply/info. Yeah I have some Sweets coming tomorrow. I quickly learned that 5 minutes is the max you want it to be in the bore.

For copper fouling i have found nothing better than Wipe-Out 👍........Good luck...Hb

Copy that.

Good stuff.

I'm now using Patch Out, the non aerosol version of Wipe Out. I found the aerosol version to be more trouble and messy.

Patch Out is as good and less trouble.

And, unlike Sweets and some harsh cleaners, you can let Patch Out soak for a while without worrying about bore damage from ammonia...

DF

Agree on the Wipe-Out

However, three Nula rifles foul little with Barnes and clean up
quickly. 100rounds plus being normal before cleaning and even then accuracy still is good.

Same with a Douglas rebarreled Montana.

Addition. A Bartlein barrel is much the same.

Dyna Bore Coat helps...

DF

Thank you guys for the replies/info. I just checked my Weatherby and Remmy.........they are indeed fouled. Lots of copper in the rifling in the last two inches of the muzzle.

This^^^

Squirt it in the bore, let it sit overnight and swab it out in the morning. Done.

I shoot a lot of barnes TTSX's but they're all in rifles with custom barrels which foul very little. As said, the TTSX's don't foul nearly as much as the old X bullets but I can see in a rough factory barrel that might be an issue. In any case, just get some wipe-out and leave the sweets on the shelf.

Wipe-out is not messy at all if you use it right.

My Sweets stays on the shelf, good place for it.

I use Patch Out more than Wipe Out. Both work very well.

I use DBC, so don't get heavy fouling. If I did, would probably use Wipe Out and let it soak for a good while.

As is, Patch Out is about all I need. DBC treated bores clean up really well and don't foul that bad.

DF

It's crazy how DBC treated barrels clean so much easier! I'm sold on it.

Razorhog

Wipe out is your friend. I don't have anything that matches your velocity but have found a little polishing (I have used Tubbs Final Finish) helps a lot on the fouling. I generally get 50 or more rounds before accuracy starts degrading.

I “lap” the bores of all of our rifles....except my match grade barrel. During the early ‘90’s, I had a friend that was trying the original X- Bullet. His barrel fouled horribly, and groups were non- existent! I convinced him to lap (polish ) his rifle. It reduced the fouling and groups improved. It’s no where near a bench rest gun, but a decent hunting rifle. A rough bore magnifies the tendency of the Barnes Bullets to foul. My match grade ( polished) can Shot many Barnes Bullets with no significant drop-off of accuracy! memtb

I used to use the Birchwood Casey spray foam copy of Wipe Out. Two weeks ago I switched over to Patch Out and like it so far. For lighter work, I have a little Montana Extreme left.

Montana Extreme is very good.

With DBC, I don’t need that much cleaning power. It’s probably one of the strongest copper cleaners other than those ammonia products.

Patch Out is my current go to cleaner.

As a Loony, I reserve the right to change my mind.

DF

Lots of good info, thanks.

I discovered the concept of copper fouling when I started using X-Bullets 30 years ago.......

Current copper bullets don't foul as badly as the X-Bullets, but they still copper foul quicker than jacketed bullets--at least in my guns.

I use Patch Out or Montana Extreme--they are about the same in time and effort. Sometimes use the accelerator with the Patch Out, but don't really see much difference in time required to get the bore clean.

As an aside, a couple/few years ago I talked to the owner of Wipe Out on the phone (cannot remember his name). Great to talk to. He said when it comes time to test his solvents, he almost always includes 243's, "one of the foulingest cartridges out there" with mono bullets.

I have always had copper fouling with the Barnes bullets. More so with the old originals. Worst was a Sako Finnbear in 6.5X55. Any good copper killer normally works well, the old #9 not so much. The newer ones are much better. I'm a luddite, and clean ever rifle after it is shot, so don't really know when they "foul out" I have gone as far as 20 in a single range trip and noticed no real difference.

Thank you everyone who responded. Seems like we are always learning something new. These bullets, in these bores, at these velocity's are certainly fouling quick.