Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters do you really want to CLEAN barrel..

Some good info here from guys who clean a LOT of barrels:

well I'm glad to report my somewhat controversial down to bare metal cleaning has resulted in exactly what I hope to see. a rifle that was shooting around an inch and a half group at 50 yards to shooting a half inch group at 50 yards.. now to get the Target down range and get loads dialed in..

another note on extended brush life I use carburetor cleaner to spray out brushes with after being in harsher cleaning solutions.

good stuff .
I'm a fan of just letting the bird tell me what it wants.
and today's affordable horoscope options it's easier to keep track of than ever.

I have been using Wipe out foaming bore cleaner for the past ten years now. It does a really good job. Save a ton on time. Well worth the cost.

I keep a small pump spray bottle of 90% alcohol in my range box and spray the brushes with that. Works good and the brushes last a long time.

I use red can CRC Brakleen for spraying out brushes.

Sounds a lot like "You should not use it", "I'm still going to, I'm just not going to tell anyone".

Glad it worked out!

But a more interesting experiment might have been to shoot before the final carbon-cleaning, and see if there was any difference in group size--especially with more than one group.

Might also comment that I watched the Hornady podcast, and their experience has been my experience: How much cleaning "needs" to be done for the smallest groups depends on the individual barrel, bullet, powder, etc.

Have also visited many pressure labs, including those of ammunition manufacturers who make far more than Hornady, and that's been their experience as well. Oh, and their testing is always done indoors, in very controlled conditions.

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Dave

LOL

You think a bronze brush causes more damage to a barrel than shooting bullets down the bore, that fit so tightly that they engrave, at 60,000 PSI

brush never touch my barrels

I use #9 to get the easy carbon out. Patch out to get the copper and a couple of years ago I got some Marvel Mystery Oil penetrating oil in a spray bottle. It's no longer sold but looking it up on the MSDS reports it's got the same stuff in it as the Marvel Mystery oil you put in your car's gas tank or engine. I put it on a patch and run it through the barrel until the barrel is nice and damp. I let it set for a couple of days and I push a patch wrapped around an old brush through the barrel and I get more carbon. I run the patches until they come out clean and oil free. My bore scope is telling me that at least 99% of the carbon is gone. I shoot a couple of rounds through the gun before I shoot for groups to re-season the barrel.

kwg

Let's just say I'll never use a bronze brush again for any reason.
I agree totally with what Frank says.
And he's got more time behind a scope than any of us.
dave

Nothing wrong with Kroil.
I use KG carbon and KG copper for chemical cleaners.
Thorough flush and thorough clean with a Isso nylon brush for when it starts to get ugly.
And when it really gets ugly witches Brew.
dave

So let's get this straight.

The man that owns one of the most respected barrel companies in the World (that's a capital 'W') and is, himself, an accomplished barrel maker and competitive shooter....is told he doesn't know what he's talking about when it comes to cleaning a barrel?

Pretty weird even for the Campfire.

if you're referring to me I never said nothing like that I was referring to getting some really odly carboned area out of a standard factory barrel..

if you're referring to something else carry on

Bronze phosphor has a Rockwell Hardness of 78 while Stainless steel has an RH of 88

Dan Lilja also plainly states that bronze brushes are fine.

Have talked to John Krieger about some of the same stuff--and other things--and he's in complete agreement.

Wasn’t the concern with bronze brushes and abrasives?

Bingo.

Depending on the alloy and treatment during manufacturing, phosphor bronze will run from the low 20's to the high 90's Rc. Which is why using a high quality looped bronze brushes...Dewey or Pro Shot...makes a difference. That's all I use in my barrels, regardless of maker.

For JBing a barrel, the high quality Iosso synthetic brushes are very good.

Good shootin' -Al