My F/tr rig seems to take a while to clean when using Varget. Didn't seem to notice it as much with H4895. Is this normal? I can push patches with solvent through until they are clean and let them soak for a while then run a brush through it for a few strokes and the next few patches will be black. I patch out until they are clean then brush again and the next few patches will be black. I clean the brush between each to get the residue off. I can run a light cleaning with JB in the bore and patch it out until clean and all patches from that point will be clean even after brushing. Would it be ok to use a light jb cleaning every time, seems this would be easier on the bore than brushing and patching for hours.
223 Cleaning
- Thread starter jsthntn247
- Start date
Sounds like your not getting as complete burn with Varget as u were with H4895. Which makes sense seeing as Varget is a tad bit slower burning.
CatShooter
jsthntn247 said:
Every time you run the brush through the barrel, you lay down ANOTHER layer of bronze - it is like putting chalk on a blackboard.
Just brush the barrel once - run it through 5 or 10 or whatever you like, until you have loosend all the powder crud - then use patches only... when it is clean, then it is clean.
If you keep using the brush, you will never stop.
From what I have read in the past jb is a light abrasive and I don't think you want to keep running that through your bore as this would put more wear on your bore in the long run. I agree with CatShooter ...just clean once and call er good. 
CatShooter said:
I was thinking the same thing so I started using a bronze brush first followed by Iosso brush and get the same result.
BoydAllen
Gold $$ Contributor
What solvent are you using? IMO if you are getting out black from brushing, there was powder fouling in the barrel. Solvents vary in their effectiveness in removing powder fouling. Have you tried cycling a nylon brush using Patch Out and Accelerator? Recently, I decided to put the Accelerator in my bore first, and short stroked a patch soaked with it. The patch came out really black, and so I did a couple more. That stuff seems to be really good on powder fouling by itself. After that I added the Patch Out and slowly cycled the nylon brush up and down the full length of the bore perhaps 20 times, and then let it sit. When I use JB in a barrel that is of good quality, and just needs a little help, I work it into a patch that I have applied a couple of drops of oil. After that I take the time to use numerous solvent (Butch's) soaked patches to remove any trace of the JB. This makes the barrel feel very consistent from end to end. If I have a specific hard carbon problem, I use IOSSO in the back of the barrel, on one of the softer nylon brushes. Recently I ordered a couple of these from Dewey.
I use Kg-1 and TM solution for powder and carbon. Patch in and let set for 10-30 minutes followed by brushing. It has to be powder because I don't have this problem in any other calibers. Its a 29.5" Bartlein tube.
CatShooter
BoydAllen said:
I used to believe that... along with the "layer cake" theory of fouling and cleaning...
But, take a brand new un-chambered barrel (obviously, never fired)... run a clean, wet patch through it to get the chips and stuff out of it - CLEAN???
Then run a bronze brush through it 10 or 20 times... and then a patch with bore cleaner.
It will come out black!
If you brush and patch, and brush and patch... you will do that for years and never get clean patches after brushing.
BoydAllen
Gold $$ Contributor
When I brush, and I have for years, with bronze, I follow with at least a couple of wet patches of a solvent that has the ability to work on jacket fouling. This has usually been Butch's. They come out indicating that there was copper in the bore. The reason for this is that the ends of the bristles are ground into fine particles as the brush travels up and down the bore. To better understand this, take close look at a new brush, and then after it has been used for a thorough scrubbing of a barrel. After it has been used, the bristles will be of uniform length and square on their ends. The reason for the wet patches after brushing is so that I will not get a false reading of jacket fouling when I let the barrel soak for a while after brushing. I have known fellows that did not know this that would see the color that they got after brushing as an indication that they still had jacket fouling in the bore, when in fact it was just residue from the brush.
Some years ago, I had shot moly coated bullets for some time in a Hart barreled .222 bench rifle, and came to the conclusion that its accuracy had deteriorated because of the light cleaning practices that I had mistakenly thought would be sufficient because of of the coated bullets. At that point I decided to clean the accumulated powder fouling from the barrel using solvent an a bronze brush. I brushed the length of the barrel many strokes, stopping from time to time to wipe off the rod, clean the brush, run a wet patch through, and apply more solvent to the brush. Each time (except the last) that I wiped off the rod in the area behind the brush, I would get quite a bit of black, but after doing this a number of times, there was no more black on the rod, and I took this as an indication that I had removed the powder fouling. As a mater of fact, I changed to a new brush about half way through the process, because I had started with a used one, and I could feel that it was getting worn to too loose of a fit to be effective. The end of the story was that all of that brushing accomplished my goal, and the accuracy of the rifle was restored to what it had been.
Some years ago, I had shot moly coated bullets for some time in a Hart barreled .222 bench rifle, and came to the conclusion that its accuracy had deteriorated because of the light cleaning practices that I had mistakenly thought would be sufficient because of of the coated bullets. At that point I decided to clean the accumulated powder fouling from the barrel using solvent an a bronze brush. I brushed the length of the barrel many strokes, stopping from time to time to wipe off the rod, clean the brush, run a wet patch through, and apply more solvent to the brush. Each time (except the last) that I wiped off the rod in the area behind the brush, I would get quite a bit of black, but after doing this a number of times, there was no more black on the rod, and I took this as an indication that I had removed the powder fouling. As a mater of fact, I changed to a new brush about half way through the process, because I had started with a used one, and I could feel that it was getting worn to too loose of a fit to be effective. The end of the story was that all of that brushing accomplished my goal, and the accuracy of the rifle was restored to what it had been.
Buy a Hawkeye borescope or get access to one. Learn how to use it. Become familiar with what you are looking at through it. Then, and only then, can you determine what you are doing is actually cleaning your bore.
Stains on patches will give you a guess, a borescope will provide a definitive answer.
It’s expensive, but a borescope is the only way you will know.
And it will help you avoid a lot of BS about bore cleaning you find on the internet.
Stains on patches will give you a guess, a borescope will provide a definitive answer.
It’s expensive, but a borescope is the only way you will know.
And it will help you avoid a lot of BS about bore cleaning you find on the internet.
LawrenceHanson said:
So many tools, so little money
In the end, it may save you money, and time.
Before I owned a borescope I would simply scrub with an abrasive on a patch until the bore felt like it had smoothed out. Then use a bronze brush and solvent saturated patches until the patches started coming out light grey in color. I would let the solvent (Hoppe’s #9 cut with Kroil) remain in the bore over night and then run a dry patch through it to gauge its condition based on the color of the patch. It if came out light grey I considered it clean. If it came out green or blue I would continue cleaning.
Now that I have a borescope I can confirm that my cleaning techniques were adequate. One thing I have learned is that abrasives will always produce a black patch, no matter the condition of the bore.
Best Wishes,
LE Hanson
Now that I have a borescope I can confirm that my cleaning techniques were adequate. One thing I have learned is that abrasives will always produce a black patch, no matter the condition of the bore.
Best Wishes,
LE Hanson
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