Carbon in the throat, what to look out for.

[SPQR70AD]

REL BREAK-IN & CLEANING INSTRUCTIONS

Many of our customers upon taking delivery of their new gun or barrel are in a quandary as how to go about breaking-in that new barrel for maximum life and accuracy. With so much written in magazines these days stating use this, don't use that, brush, don't brush...what's a person to do?? At S.G.&Y Precision, we have a unique opportunity to inspect many barrels on a daily basis with our video borescope. Consequently, we see the results of a variety of break-in as well as cleaning procedures, and most of them leave the rifle owners with their mouth agape when they see the fruits of their misinformed labor on our color monitor. We have seen practically new barrels ruined with less than a hundred rounds shot through them by some of the crazy and sometimes humorous break-in methods. Anyway here goes for what it's worth.


Bore guides - If you don't have one get one! Without a good bore guide you are just wasting your time trying to break-in a barrel or cleaning it for that matter. More barrels are destroyed by cleaning without a bore guide than by shooting. There are many types and brands of bore guides available on the market and range in price from $5.00 to $50.00. The only one we recommend is the Lucas two-piece bore guide. They are the best insurance you can buy for that new barrel. All other bore guides in my opinion are only good for keeping the solvents out of the trigger and action.


Solvents - We recommend Sweets 7.62 for copper and a solvent mix of our own (Actually Pat McMlllan gave me this formula) for powder fouling and for cleaning/storing your gun for the next match or season. This Speedy Formula is made as follows: Mix 2/3rds Hoppes # 9 Plus Black Powder solvent with 1/3rd Regular Hoppes # 9 Nitro solvent. Let this mixture set overnight and it will form a sort of gel that adheres very well to the brush and cuts powder fouling to a minimum. Note: Butches Boreshine may be substituted for this Speedy formula.


Procedure for "Break-in"- Before firing that first shot, clean the barrel as if it had been shot by following these simple steps:


Step1 - Insert Lucas bore guide into receiver and chamber. If you don't have one stop here and get one, if not, just shoot your gun and forget trying to take any care of your barrel at all. Lf you do have one, proceed and give yourself an "At-A-Boy" for being astute enough to have purchased the proper tools for the job. Note: One "Aw-Shit" wipes out all your "At-A-Boys".



Step 2 - Run one wet patch of Sweets through the bore and let soak for approximately 30 seconds. Do not patch this out.



Step 3 – Next, run the brush through the barrel only enough to expose the entire brush. Yes, I know that you still have 12 more inches of cleaning rod you could push out the end of your barrel but we want to protect that new crown. Also. if that rod hangs out that far, you will eventually start wearing down the rifling at the crown from about 4 to 7 o'clock. This is very bad "JU-JU" for accuracy. OK, back to our next step. Once the brush is exposed, saturate it well with our Speedy Formula or Butch's Boreshine and SLOWLY run the brush through the bore 10 complete back and forth passes while keeping the rod as straight as possible. This is when the Lucas bore guide really pays for itself. Remember, the key word is slowly. We are not trying to break any speed records. Let this sit a minute or two and proceed to the next step.


Step 4 - After you have let the barrel soak for a few moments, saturate a patch with the Speedy Formula or Butch's Boreshine and pass it through the bore. Follow this with 2 dry patches and then dry the chamber with Brake Kleen or lighter fluid. Next, gently wipe the crown off with a soft cloth and lube your bolt (lets not gall the lugs just yet). Now. your ready to shoot your first shot. Then follow the schedule below to complete your barrel break-in.


1. Clean barrel / lube bolt / 1 shot.

2. Clean barrel / lube bolt / 5 shots.

3. Clean barrel / lube bolt / 10 shots.

4. Clean barrel / lube bolt /10 to 15 shots and clean again.


Additional Cleaning Tips

Each time you clean you may also follow the last dry patch with a patch soaked with LOCK-EEZ. This is a graphite powder suspended in a quick evaporating carrier that coats the bore slightly before passing that first round through a completely dry bore.


We are always asked about powder fouling and how to remove it. The only product that we have seen that really does a good job on powder fouling, especially on the carbon ring that forms just ahead of where the neck ends in the chamber, is IOSSO Bore Paste. This is used with a Pro-Shot nylon bristle brush and worked slowly in the neck and throat areas, then slowly down the entire bore. Follow this up with a few wet patches, then dry the bore as usual. and your ready to shoot.


Follow the outline above for your regular cleaning program and I promise that your barrels will deliver their greatest accuracy and life without a lot of grief and hours of wondering if they are clean.



Good Shooting,

Speedy Gonzalez

I am with you all the way except for the Sweets 7.62. I ruined the gilt edge accuracy of 2 barrels by letting it stay to long in the barrel. I got it when it first came out nobody knew about leaving it in to long. you can revive a dead man with the smell of it. I thank you for a well written informative post

 

[6MMsteve]

I am with you all the way except for the Sweets 7.62. I ruined the gilt edge accuracy of 2 barrels by letting it stay to long in the barrel. I got it when it first came out nobody knew about leaving it in to long. you can revive a dead man with the smell of it. I thank you for a well written informative post

copy paste bro If I wrote it would have some slang lol...the Isso or JB will get the carbon out easy..always clean your barrel when it's hot. tha juice works better...I use a drill sometimes and a plastic brush just be careful not to bend things and start a knocking the walls

 

[SPQR70AD]

copy paste bro If I wrote it would have some slang lol...the Isso or JB will get the carbon out easy..always clean your barrel when it's hot. tha juice works better...I use a drill sometimes and a plastic brush just be careful not to bend things and start a knocking the walls

Yes I used a drill also to smooth chamber. when you get home you can always heat up your barrel

 

[Martin52]

use the Speedy Gonzales method patch will not come off...looks like a button when finished...used the Speedy
method with success for last 5 yrs

This works for me too, .308 FTR every couple hundred rounds. I run hot water though the barrel first.

 

[Mark W]

This works for me too, .308 FTR every couple hundred rounds. I run hot water though the barrel first.

i bought a little steam machine and made up some fittings that attach to a bore guide. Initial tests were very promising when used immediately after returning from the range. I need to mess with it some more.

Edit to add that the bore guide and barrel get very hot in the process. Have to wear gloves and be careful.

 

[Martin52]

A carbon buildup in the throat was jamming the bullets, and this is how a pressure spike can happen.

I removed it with a vigorous application of bronze brush and Slip 2000 carbon remover, but thought I'd post this pic because I'd never run across one like it before.

This process also works well on carbon:

https://docplayer.net/44176607-Benchrest-cleaning-with-jb-bore-paste-by-speedy-gonzalez.html

 

[Texas10]

This process also works well on carbon:

https://docplayer.net/44176607-Benchrest-cleaning-with-jb-bore-paste-by-speedy-gonzalez.html

The VFG weapon care system is much easier to use, IMOP. I have several calibers and grades of pellets. When combined with a bore polish, will do an excellent job of thoroughly cleaning a barrel.

 

[Pawnee Bill]

The VFG weapon care system is much easier to use, IMOP. I have several calibers and grades of pellets. When combined with a bore polish, will do an excellent job of thoroughly cleaning a barrel.

Better than sliced bread and handier than a pocket on a shirt.

 

[Texas10]

i bought a little steam machine and made up some fittings that attach to a bore guide. Initial tests were very promising when used immediately after returning from the range. I need to mess with it some more.

Edit to add that the bore guide and barrel get very hot in the process. Have to wear gloves and be careful.

I've seen that done on a movie set. The armorer had a steam machine and could clean 100+ black powder muskets in a short amount of time. He had a long wand that he'd run all the way up the barrel, steam shooting out sideways at the tip, in a 360 degree pattern. Of course, those were 75 cal barrels, so making it micro miniature wasn't required. The job had to get done asap as those guys work until the wee hours or the morning and have to be back on the set by 6 am. I don't know how they can keep that pace for 6 to 8 months at a time filming a movie. That was for the movie Alamo with Dennis Quaid and Billy Bob Thornton.

Like you said, barrels get really hot. Don't know what temp he ran his rig at, but it was probably way more than 212 F to get good enough pressure for cutting fouling.

 

[butchlambert]

I am with you all the way except for the Sweets 7.62. I ruined the gilt edge accuracy of 2 barrels by letting it stay to long in the barrel. I got it when it first came out nobody knew about leaving it in to long. you can revive a dead man with the smell of it. I thank you for a well written informative post

Young feller, I put a 416R barrel drop in a container filled with Sweets and monitored it for 25 years. After checking it with both a bore scope and the OD with a microscope, I saw nothing wrong. I believe it is another old wife's tale.

 

[jelenko]

I always wondered about the caution on Sweets.

I always wondered why you could only let it sit in the barrel for 15 minutes but, over time, it's sat there multiple hours with all the cleanings. It just didn't seem to make sense.

 

[SPQR70AD]

Young feller, I put a 416R barrel drop in a container filled with Sweets and monitored it for 25 years. After checking it with both a bore scope and the OD with a microscope, I saw nothing wrong. I believe it is another old wife's tale.

I wish I had your luck Pappy but I didnt

 

[sunnyfisher]

By popular demand, I am posting a pic of after a thorough cleaning, which took less than 5 minutes.

View attachment 1176315

Is the checker board pattern in the cleaned area steel or could it be burned on carbon?

 

[Texas10]

Is the checker board pattern in the cleaned area steel or could it be burned on carbon?

Without the ability to look closer using 20x, I'd have to opine that those are fire cracking marks. This 223 aftermarket barrel probably has 2000 or more rounds down it, but still shoots smaller than I can most of the time.

 

[sunnyfisher]

Without the ability to look closer using 20x, I'd have to opine that those are fire cracking marks. This 223 aftermarket barrel probably has 2000 or more rounds down it, but still shoots smaller than I can most of the time.

I think are right, I have the same pattern but I have had pressure issues and can only attribute it to carbon buildup so Im fishing for info.

 

[Texas10]

I think are right, I have the same pattern but I have had pressure issues and can only attribute it to carbon buildup so Im fishing for info.

What are your pressure issues? Does your barrel look like my first pic? All copper and carbon?

 

[sunnyfisher]

What are your pressure issues? Does your barrel look like my first pic? All copper and carbon?

My barrel never had copper like yours, just carbon which is now gone but I am watching very close.
I have that same fire cracking appearance in the first inch or two.

 

[butchlambert]

I wish I had your luck Pappy but I didnt

So, have you found the real reason for your problem?