Carbon ring questions....

[done111]

I have been reading what i can about the carbon ring that can occur in rifles. I don't own a borescope (yet) to check for this. Does anyone have a diagram of where this can occur in the bore? What would be a good cleaning regime specifically for keeping the ring away. I clean my rifles regularly, but haven't optimized my cleaning to address a possible carbon ring.

Thanks,
Don

 

[Dusty Stevens]

With a proper patch you can feel it right at the end of the chamber right where the rifling starts. Best thing for a carbon ring is to not let it happen in the first place- a bronze brush helps here. To get it out use iosso or jb on a properly fit patch and short stroke it

 

[pacificman]

Good advice from Dusty...I have used bore tech carbon cleaner with a patch wrapped around a bronze brush
and that has worked for me too ...but I stay on top of it and always clean the chamber when cleaning my rifles.
If you don't clean the chamber regularly you will have a tuffer time cleaning that dang ring out of there.

 

[GTyner]

I shoot a 6BR in local competition at 2000 + rounds I had 3 inches removed from the chamber end and the barrel rechambered I kept the stub for inspection. That barrel had never seen a brush and I used wipe out only. The rifling was well warn and no sign of carbon ring. but it would take 3 application of wipe out over 3 days get the carbon out.It was a Hart barrel(NY) and never Had any copper fowling

 

[JMayo]

I put a pistol brush on my chamber cleaning tool and spin it to keep neck area clean.

 

[mikecr]

I found a couple pics about carbon ring in front of case mouth with a 28Nosler:
Before:

After cleaning:

On thing to notice here is that his trim length put case mouths a relative mile from chamber end.
This is a big contributor to the buildup, along with high neck clearance, and slow pressure peak.
If you're getting much for carbon sooting down your necks, you're building a carbon ring in chamber front.

 

[Knotwild]

Question - Is a carbon ring less of a threat/problem if you clean frequently as in every 100 rounds or less?

 

[done111]

Good advice from Dusty...I have used bore tech carbon cleaner with a patch wrapped around a bronze brush
and that has worked for me too ...but I stay on top of it and always clean the chamber when cleaning my rifles.
If you don't clean the chamber regularly you will have a tuffer time cleaning that dang ring out of there.

I have been cleaning with bore guides. I'm assuming am not cleaning the chamber properly? What is a good chamber cleaning process and can that be done with the bore guide installed? The rifles I'm cleaning are a Tikka 223 bolt action and a RPR 6.5 creedmoor, not sure what oversized brushes, mops, whatever is recommended to get, if any.

Don

 

[JRS]

Listen to Dusty and use a bronze brush. Trying to remove carbon from the throat with a nylon brush is like trying to remove tartar from your teeth with a toothbrush.

 

[sidecutter]

 

[pacificman]

I have been cleaning with bore guides. I'm assuming am not cleaning the chamber properly? What is a good chamber cleaning process and can that be done with the bore guide installed? The rifles I'm cleaning are a Tikka 223 bolt action and a RPR 6.5 creedmoor, not sure what oversized brushes, mops, whatever is recommended to get, if any.

Don

Look at the picture sidecutter posted and you can see that when using a bore guide you will still be able to run your brush
just ahead of the guide to clean the carbon ring. All you do is run a bronze brush just ahead of the guide and twist and turn
in that area until there is no more carbon ring...it can take more time if left unattended for too long...that's why it's a good
idea to stay on top of it and clean regularly. The brush used would be same as your bore size.

 

[PatMiles]

Good info here.

 

[Delfuego]

That's not the carbon ring I worry about. It's the carbon buildup in the lands and rifling for the first couple inches of the barrel. I think the term "Carbon Ring" is misleading it's should be called the carbon "Skid Mark".

 

[Milo 2.0]

That's not the carbon ring I worry about. It's the carbon buildup in the lands and rifling for the first couple inches of the barrel. I think the term "Carbon Ring" is misleading it's should be called the carbon "Skid Mark".

We need a glossary of terms. lol
Both are real, your skid mark is hard carbon IMO.
A carbon ring represents a whole different issue.

 

[JRS]

It's like anything else. The longer you procrastinate between cleanings, the harder it is to clean it.

 

[Tim s]

Use the Tony B method. A blue IOSSO brush( much stiffer than the black nylon) in 6.5 with IOSSO bore cleaner on a short rod, back and forth a few stroaks......done.

 

[Nature Boy]

For cartridges that are in the .308 win diameter size range I uses these 45 cal ramrodz q tip things to keep the chanber clean and knock out that pesky carbon ring

 

[done111]

So what I am gleaning from the post so far is I need a small rod that i can twist and attach a brass brush (one size larger) coated in IOSSO cleaner/polisher. I can do this after my normal barrel cleaning with the bore guide still installed. Insert the short rod with coated brass brush up around the throat/start of land area and twist round and round and short strokes in and out. Doesn't matter about brush changing direction during these short strokes. I need to do this after every cleaning? Or should i do this with something like Boretech C4?

I'm sure i got something wrong here. Please help me tune this method. Thanks for you alls help.

 

[Texas10]

IMO the best investment you can make right now is either a bore scope, or an endoscope with a 1 to 2 centimeter focal distance. The endoscope will allow you to see the whole chamber, neck and leade to identify trouble areas and confirm your cleaning process, whereas the bore scope gives a more "soda straw" view, a very close look at a small area.

Both have their uses and strong points however, I prefer the broader view so I use the endoscope which I also use to look in the muzzle end and plainly see copper build up where it is more likely to occur.

With that in mind, to clean out carbon rings I put a bronze brush on a section of 3 piece cleaning rod, chuck it in a cordless drill and spin the brush in the neck/lead, then confirm with the camera.

There are many inexpensive endoscope cameras available, some that will bluetooth to your phone or PC (I just bought this one https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MYTHWK4/?tag=accuratescom-20 ), but not many with a focal distance close enough, so choose wisely. NOTE: the one I just bought has a 5 cm minimum focal distance, which is too far for good viewing in a chamber.

I've been using a Snap-On BK5500 like this one https://www.ebay.com/p/Snap-on-BK5500-Visual-Inspection-Scope-Camera-Device/1011864405 for many years with good success.

 

[done111]

IMO the best investment you can make right now is either a bore scope, or an endoscope with a 1 to 2 centimeter focal distance. The endoscope will allow you to see the whole chamber, neck and leade to identify trouble areas and confirm your cleaning process, whereas the bore scope gives a more "soda straw" view, a very close look at a small area.

Both have their uses and strong points however, I prefer the broader view so I use the endoscope which I also use to look in the muzzle end and plainly see copper build up where it is more likely to occur.

With that in mind, to clean out carbon rings I put a bronze brush on a section of 3 piece cleaning rod, chuck it in a cordless drill and spin the brush in the neck/lead, then confirm with the camera.

There are many inexpensive endoscope cameras available, some that will bluetooth to your phone or PC (I just bought this one https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MYTHWK4/?tag=accuratescom-20 ), but not many with a focal distance close enough, so choose wisely. NOTE: the one I just bought has a 5 cm minimum focal distance, which is too far for good viewing in a chamber.

I've been using a Snap-On BK5500 like this one https://www.ebay.com/p/Snap-on-BK5500-Visual-Inspection-Scope-Camera-Device/1011864405 for many years with good success.

What cleaning agent do you prefer when twisting that brush around in that area? Do you move some back and forth also or just purely twist? Can I twist with the drill too fast?

Don