Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Interesting find cleaning the rifle today

I just rebarreled a 300win and needed to get some seasoning done on it....but it's hot here. I decided I'd give the barrel a full load of water to absorb the heat and then proceed with my cleaning regimen.

I let the water soak in the bore for about 3 or 4 minutes and it came out hot, repeated 2x and it was cool. I then pushed a clean dry pat h through the bore to dry it so I could get to cleaning and out came the most powder fouled patch I've ever seen.

I was barely able to get anything more with hoppes and elbow grease.

Repeated this a few times every 6 rounds and was pleased with the results....but this got me thinking,we use dawn dish soap and water in the rotary tumbler and it is excellent on the carbon.

Perhaps good old dawn and water has a place and space on the bench.

Interesting indeed. I’m going to try it.

Osky

Jut a thought..

I would be concerned with having residual moisture in the bore and around the rifle itself after the fact, water has a sneaky way of getting into small gaps like under scope bases and between the stock & metal..

I’m be sure to leave the rifle out in a place it’s by circulating air to evaporate that before I put her up.

I used hot soapy water with Black powder (used to anyway).. but I made sure the water was hotter than the devil, and completely tore things down so they could dry, and then after drying it’d use bore butter, and gun oil to protect the rig from corrosion…. (Stainless), the browned version I used silicon on.

I use a hair dryer after cleaning the BP rifle.

All around, under the sight, under the thimbles for the rod, everywhere. Until I can't hold it with bare fingers.

Should work on a smokeless powder rifle too?

Butches Black powder bore shine.
Good stuff.

It was 97 here so worrying about metal staying wet was a non issue. I hunt in the rain 30 plus days a year so if it's gonna fail, bring on before crunch time.

This particular rifle wears a bedded base in 8-40 screws so I doubt it'll be an issue.

I was a bit nervous about moving the point of impact around due to shrinkage, but it proved to be a non issue.

HOT soapy water is the go-to for cleaning muzzleloaders, you can't even hold the barrel with a bare hand after a half dozen plunges with a bore mop, and you don't need to worry about any water as it will all evaporate due to the heat. The fastest way to be sure it's clean.

Never done on rifle, but will give high volume SA shotguns a hot water and simple green scrub and a rinse. Then use an air compressor to dry the hell out of everything. Guns come out cleaner than they came out of the factory.

Careful. A 308 could shrink to a 243.

We used to clean M-16’s in a hot shower to get all the powder fouling, dirt, and grease out of the innards and bore. 1969

If you are ever bored, put an indicator on a piece of metal and warm it up and then cool it down....it moves....a bunch.

I made a living getting 20' structural steel to be +/- 1/32" in 20 feet with heat and water.

Bore Tech Eliminator contains a water soluble detergent, gets out the stuff soap and water gets out without worry of rust. Carbon as encountered in engines and gun bores is water soluble/hygroscopic.

I use boiling water and dish washing detergent to clean my daughter's SKS.

That stuff sure has strong reviews. Going to get some. 👍

I understand completely. I shoot older soldered combination guns, mostly drillings. They "walk" as they warm up. Depending on the stresses and solder job, it's up and to one side or the other, but always to the same side in a given gun.

I can imagine the necessity of anticipating expansion and contraction and making critical adjustments.


(especially if you like your 308 and have no use for a 243)

I guess, clean is clean.

This is all I use these days. Great stuff!