After cleaning a .22 rimfire question

[ARW]

After cleaning my centerfire rifles, as a last step, I always run either a light patch of oil or Lock Ease down the barrel.

Do any of you do the same for your .22 rimfires or leave them dry after cleaning.

Thanks

 

[Hi-NV Shooter]

After cleaning my centerfire rifles, as a last step, I always run either a light patch of oil or Lock Ease down the barrel.

Do any of you do the same for your .22 rimfires or leave them dry after cleaning.

Thanks

After making sure the bore is dry, I run a wet felt (VFG) of Microlon (Gun juice)

Lee

 

[jpx2rk]

I run a lightly oiled patch down the bore if I'm not going to shoot that one for a good while. I do pull them out on occasion to check them tho.

 

[slobhunter2]

3 drops of 3 in 1 machine oil on the last patch for me.

 

[gkgeiger]

4 drops of Hoppe’s after every cleaning. No first shot fliers.

 

[243winxb]

Safariland Group- Break Free CLP military spec. for short term storage. Store muzzle down, dont want excess oil/lubes draining into the action/bolt.

Before firing, best to patch out with #9. Dry & go shoot.

 

[ARW]

Before firing, best to patch out with #9. Dry & go shoot.

You must have read my mind, I was going to ask about patching out the bore to remove oil before shooting.

Thanks

 

[JohnW...ski]

After cleaning both centerfire or rimfire, I run a patch through using a scrubbing motion with Hoppe's oil, or any light oil, then run a dry patch through once. Ready to go whenever I shoot again. The first shot is usually slightly high, like 1/4", then they always settle right in. I find it best not to shoot a bone dry bore.
John

 

[rckendall]

Lock Ease for me. I live in a dry climate and rust isn't a problem. It helps my first cold bore shot be more on POA too.

This practice was recommended by Speedy Gonzalas who is a well know benchrest shooter.

 

[diyj98]

I always put my firearms away with a light coat of oil in the barrel. Before shooting I push or pull a tight dry rag through to remove as much oil as possible.

 

[centershot]

I shot indoor gallery with quite a few gents and they either did not clean at all or just a dry patch. If they used a liquid of any kind, it would take 25 shots to settle the barrel down. Never use a brush. Sporting or hunting rifles use the methods mentioned above.

 

[PracticalTactical]

I have compared my bore scope videos on center fire between just after a cleaning and after the rifle sat for a while (meaning months) and found a remarkable difference.

Dissimilar metals react to each other in the presence of oxygen... we call that oxidization.

What is interesting about the formation of oxidization is that it is greatest near the muzzle, and it gradually decreases going rearward down the barrel....

There's a good reason for this... The barrel breathes as temperatures fluctuate. When the air temperature increases, the air in the barrel expands, then when the air in the barrel cools, the air contracts. This breathing effect repeatedly brings fresh air into the muzzle, but not down deeper into the barrel.

That continual resupply of air causes the oxidization mostly in the first few inches near the muzzle.

Now, I have never done a similar study on 22LR, so I can only speculate as to the severity of this occurrence in rimfire. Further uncertainty may be the presence of wax lube and low temperatures when the round is discharged. That lube may help protect the barrel to a degree.

But I would suggest that you keep an eye on this at the very least to protect your barrels from the eroding effects of oxidization, and at the very least, patch it out before firing the rifle if it has been sitting idle for months.

 

[Tim Slater]

I shot indoor gallery with quite a few gents and they either did not clean at all or just a dry patch. If they used a liquid of any kind, it would take 25 shots to settle the barrel down. Never use a brush. Sporting or hunting rifles use the methods mentioned above.

That's a common approach among older smallbore shooters here in Britain, especially those who shoot indoors (25 yards mostly, occasionally 20). I've always viewed it as a throwback to the immediate post-war period when fully non-corosive ammo became standard, and when barrel tolerances were less strict. Cleaning immediately to prevent rust wasn't required, and barrels had a little space for dirt. It was also when many older shooters learnt, or when their instructors learnt. Old habits can die hard.

At such short ranges, accuracy (at least enough for position targets) can last a looong time. Anecdotally the residue from ammo at that tine seems to have been less aggressive than today*. Throw in an underapreciation of how much cleaning is needed after two or three seasons (no a dry nylon brush really isn't enough), and yes a lot of foulers can be needed.

*Western Supermatch seems to have had a reputation for being erosive, and Eley reference a complaint of erosion back in the early days of Tenex.

 

[Gizmo60]

As Tim says it mainly down to how we were taught in our younger years, whether you served, type of shooting/firearms used and what your coach/instructor drilled into you on day one.

I lightly clean after every outing (my club has cleaning room) while the rifle is still warm, exterior metal parts incl the bolt are wiped down and lightly oiled, clean bolt face but don't oil. Action/Bolt gets stripped down every few months for checking/cleaning and stock gets thoroughly cleaned and waxed at least twice a year.

If you shoot regularly enough and know your rifle/ammo combo you will know when accuracy is degraded and a deep cleaning (bronze brush/solvent) is required. It differs for everyone and depends upon rifle/ammo used and number of rds fired.

If you do oil the barrel after every outing then always run a few light dry patches nad clean any oil off the bolt face.

It’s like skinning a cat; everyone has their own take on cleaning. Normally I leave the barrel dry after cleaning; then again I normally shoot once/twice a week. If I was shooting say only once a month I would definitely lightly oil the barrel.

 

[CharlieNC]

On all rifles, cf and rf, I always do a final patch of Ronson lighter fluid and dry patch the excess. It cleans out the cleaning fluids and leaves a very light lube, and very minimal effect of the first shot poi.

 

[jps2486]

One wet patch with Ballistol followed by one dry patch.

 

[Pareto]

Recently I've been impressed by using Lock-Ease after cleaning. It seems to help with subsequent shots and cleaning.

 

[lb-ft]

Where I live, humidity is quite a problem.
10w30 motor oil soaks all my bores. I clean them with solvent before the next range session. They take a few shots to settle in. I don't like it at all, but anything else I've tried has resulted in rust in the bore. I've tried darn near everything.

 

[ARW]

Recently I've been impressed by using Lock-Ease after cleaning. It seems to help with subsequent shots and cleaning.

I do the same thing with my centerfire rifles with very good results.

I was not sure about my .22 rimfire though.

Thanks for the info.

 

[pascalp66]

I only use match ammo, greased bullet, no copper plated.
After cleaning my .22rf, I prepare the barrel for storage or shooting with a light coat of Wonder lube 1000+ Bore butter TC. one pass with impregnated patch, 1 ou 2 pass of clean patch to wipe the excess. The same product that I was using for my muzzleloader guns.
It protect the barrel and prepare it for next shots. With this method, it doesn't take more than 2 shots for POI and POA to match, the first usually not too far (less than 1 inch at 50y)