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Barrel Cleaning…one more time

Longtrain

Gold $$ Contributor
I know this is a religion, here’s my latest spin.

Patch with Hoppe’s for powder fouling, two, one hour soak with Wipe-out. One or two brushings with a tight nylon brush and ThorroClean, followed by a few patches to clean up.

This is my Hart 223 barrel with 1500 total rounds. Pretty clean and ready to be made dirty again.
 

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The throat is still very nice, not crazy hot loads & slow fire prone helps. Fire cracking will occur down the road, it can look pretty torn up, but still shoot.

That is just about 3 inches up the bore, I’ll get a photo of the throat soon. Generally, I’ll clean like this after a two day match ~ 150 rounds. Bore guide is a given, of course.

My main purpose of writing this post was the elimination of the carbon.
 
My main purpose of writing this post was the elimination of the carbon.

I have a special routine with a short rod and nylon brush with BoreTech carbon remover at the throat / just beyond the chamber.

It works for me

ETA: I do need to start doing an initial cleaning AT the range.
 
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I also use multiple wet patches followed by TWO applications of Wipe-Out Foam (while barrel is still warm). Then dry patch after 3-4 hours.

For the Wipe-out phase I apply the foam from muzzle with guide-rod in place, so foam does not get into the action. I wait 15-20 minutes for bubbles to dissipate, then re-apply foam the second time.

You people would not believe how little brushing my custom, hand-lapped barrels get, so I won't even discuss that here. I will only say that we had one guy at our club with a 6.5-284 who nearly doubled his accurate barrel life by switching from a very aggressive barrel cleaning routine with lots of bronze brushing and use of abrasives. As part of his successful change, he did follow my advice to clean with barrel warm, before the carbon set up.

Some barrels (and powder types/strings of fire) definitely need brushing. No question. But you guys might be shocked by the results if you try brushing less, try cleaning at the range right after shooting, and using Wipe-Out regularly. As with anything, YMMV, and do what you want.

And yes, of course, I know that Hall-of-Fame PPC guys brush a LOT, and often use IOSSO, and they shoot the smallest groups. That cannot be contested. However, they also tend to toss their barrels with a relatively low round count. Each discipline is different, but I suspect many of the shooters here, who are perhaps shooting one 60-70 rd club match a month, can get by with a LOT less brushing.
 
…As part of his successful change, he did follow my advice to clean with barrel warm, before the carbon set up…
This is good advice, I had just returned from the range and surprisingly my barrel was still a bit warm. It does help for sure.
I wish I was more disciplined to do it at the range…maybe next time.
 
I also use multiple wet patches followed by TWO applications of Wipe-Out Foam (while barrel is still warm). Then dry patch after 3-4 hours.

For the Wipe-out phase I apply the foam from muzzle with guide-rod in place, so foam does not get into the action. I wait 15-20 minutes for bubbles to dissipate, then re-apply foam the second time.

You people would not believe how little brushing my custom, hand-lapped barrels get, so I won't even discuss that here. I will only say that we had one guy at our club with a 6.5-284 who nearly doubled his accurate barrel life by switching from a very aggressive barrel cleaning routine with lots of bronze brushing and use of abrasives. As part of his successful change, he did follow my advice to clean with barrel warm, before the carbon set up.

Some barrels (and powder types/strings of fire) definitely need brushing. No question. But you guys might be shocked by the results if you try brushing less, try cleaning at the range right after shooting, and using Wipe-Out regularly. As with anything, YMMV, and do what you want.

And yes, of course, I know that Hall-of-Fame PPC guys brush a LOT, and often use IOSSO, and they shoot the smallest groups. That cannot be contested. However, they also tend to toss their barrels with a relatively low round count. Each discipline is different, but I suspect many of the shooters here, who are perhaps shooting one 60-70 rd club match a month, can get by with a LOT less brushing.

Curious what your using for your first two WET patches.
 
Barrel cleaning is indeed sacrosanct to some. I personally have done it just about every way it can be done, and all methods seem to work. Like with anything, if the approach is thoughtful and systematic it will work.

As for me, I refuse to soak a barrel for any length of time or insist that it's warm. Overall, I refuse to spend a lot of time cleaning.

With a new barrel, I will clean it more frequently for the first 100 rounds or so. After that, my interval is 50-100 rounds.

My heavy cleaning (takes about 15 minutes):

1. A couple patches of Iosso penetrating oil

2. Iosso bore paste on the Iosso hard nylon brushes, short stroking through the barrel, then a dozen or so full length strokes

3. A couple more patches of Iosso penetrating oil

4. Pull the bore guide and patch out the cleaning residue out of the chamber

5. Reinstall the bore guide and push patches of isopropyl alcohol though the bore until they are mostly clean

6. Pull the bore guide and clean the lug recess, then clean the chamber again

7. One careful final pass through the chamber and bore without the bore guide

8. Clean and lube the bolt


My light cleaning (takes about 20 minutes)

1. A couple patches of carbon cutter

2. A tight bronze brush soaked in KG-1 carbon cutter short stroked then full stroked through the bore

3. A couple of alcohol patches

4. Pull the bore guide and clean chamber

4. Reinstall bore guide and more alcohol patches until patches are mostly clean

5. A few patches of KG-1 copper remover

6. A couple more alcohol patches

7. Pull the bore guide and clean the lug recess, then clean the chamber again

8. One careful final pass through the chamber and bore without the bore guide

9. Clean and lube the bolt


My Hawkeye borescope shows that the light cleaning method gets carbon off the lands but leaves a little carbon and copper in the grooves. This is the desired state most of the time and I clean this way most of the time.

My heavy cleaning takes the barrel to bare metal or might leave a tiny bit of copper in some of the grooves near the muzzle. Heavy use of Iosso might increase throat erosion a but, but the barrels shoot well and the throats stay smooth. I clean this way for the first 100ish rounds, then every second or third cleaning, depending.

I shot four 1000 yd IBS screamer groups this year, one from my light gun and three from my heavy gun, so I am satisfied with my cleaning approach. I expect these barrels, and they have been, to be competitive between 1000 and 1200 rounds.
 
I always put the wipe out products is a smaller bottle with a smaller application tube so it doesn't come out so fast. Or a small straw in the wipe out bottle.
 
Well ! I have been putting holes in paper for more years than I can remember .
I liked Jack Kreiger's Barrel Cleaning Article.
I have used almost very product with good results .
I have found Barrels like people not equal . They must be cleaned to there state of readiness .

I do have some interest in the People you can pay to do the Job ?
Call 1-541-647-hope
 
I had to fireform some 6MM AI brass out of 6MM. I started with 10 gr Red Dot then filled with Cream of wheat and shoved the neck into a bar of soap. After about 15 rds I would let it set to cool the barrel off. Thats when I noticed how clean and smooth the barrel was. I had a Rem 700 17 Rem that had a fouled up barrel. I loaded 15 rds of Cream of wheats and shot them. That barrel was so clean its scary.

No patches or solvent to mess with for me.
 

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