I'm thinking I'm fine but looking for some reassurance. I ran patch out through my barrel with a nylon brush and because of a kitchen remodel and work I didn't make it into my reloading room for 5 days straight (that normally never happens). Needless to say the gun cleaned pretty easy after that soak, had a blue drip at the end of the barrel. Should I be worried that I damaged my barrel?
Can wipeout damage your barrel after a 5 day soak?
- Thread starter Never Forget
- Start date
Geronimo Jim
Gold $$ Contributor
I sure hope not. Been leaving it in my barrel for a week on a constant
basis.
basis.
I think folks get carried away with what harms a barrel because they are competitive shooters.
Ammonia yes, Wipeout no. Wipeout will not hurt steel or most stock finishes. Just don't leave it on your skin for very long or it will start to burn a little. I use Wipeout with their Acceleraor, and the latter plus Patchout at the range. I like to leave Patchout in the barrel for the trip home to get a head start on cleaning.
I had exactly the opposite expierence. I love wipe out foam, have four cans of it sitting on a shelf right now but I have stopped using it.
I follow the instructions to a T. I use the accelerator (which may be the crux of the problem) and foam for an hour, then punch it, flush and start over.
With this method I have a 6BR barrel that has about 1000 rounds on it with visible chemical etching in the first 2" of the throat. I figured maybe it was a fluke until we replaced one of the barrels on an SPR and the stainless steel barrel extension had the exact same damage on the bottom of it where it meets the receiver. That's two pieces of stainless that I pulled out of the box/bag and they were perfect and now have deep pitting.
Before anyone says it's throat erosion, it's not. We scoped the barrel and it's clear that it's chemically pitted.
So, maybe I stop using the accelerator? To be honest, at the price of a barrel and chambering/fitting, I have gone back to Hoppes #9 and a bronze brush.
I follow the instructions to a T. I use the accelerator (which may be the crux of the problem) and foam for an hour, then punch it, flush and start over.
With this method I have a 6BR barrel that has about 1000 rounds on it with visible chemical etching in the first 2" of the throat. I figured maybe it was a fluke until we replaced one of the barrels on an SPR and the stainless steel barrel extension had the exact same damage on the bottom of it where it meets the receiver. That's two pieces of stainless that I pulled out of the box/bag and they were perfect and now have deep pitting.
Before anyone says it's throat erosion, it's not. We scoped the barrel and it's clear that it's chemically pitted.
So, maybe I stop using the accelerator? To be honest, at the price of a barrel and chambering/fitting, I have gone back to Hoppes #9 and a bronze brush.
Thanks for the replies. I figured I'd be ok but wanted some opinions. As quickly as the barrel cleaned I'll be doing a 48 hour + soak from now on vs the 24 I normally did. It seems to make the difference of soaking once instead of twice for my gun.
I bet it is erosion that is now clean and you can see it good. It is impossible to just etch the first two inches and nothing else. The foam would of soaked the whole bore. Matt
Matt,
It may be etched further out. I only checked the first two inches because I can see it with the naked eye.. It's no erosion. I'm on my 12th or 13th 6.5x284, so I am all to familiar. This shows up as dark spots, viable to the naked eye when you look from the breech. Once we put the Hawkeye in, the lands and grooves look good, very little scale or cracking. Pads drag on it a bit in the throat and the area was verified spotless of copper or carbon when we scoped it.
I could dismiss it as bad metal in the barrel if I hadn't seen it on the barrel extension too.
I will add, the damn barrel still shoots great. We pulled the barrel to do a 7.5 twist Dasher. I may knock off .5" and make a 243win out of it.
Without sending the barrel and my chemicals to someplace for testing, I cannot say 100% for sure that the wipe out w/accelerator caused this, but I want shooters to be aware there is a real possibility that this combination could do some damage.
Read the MSDS sheets on both.
Been using patch out and accelerator for several years now. I routinely leave it in the barrel overnight and I own a borescope. I've never seen damage from it. A good friend contacted them and asked about how long it can be left in the bore. The response was that it quit working after I believe it was 30 minutes and that it can safely be left in the bore for long periods.
tjtjwdad
Gold $$ Contributor
Regarding stock finishes, there is a CAUTION or WARNING about not letting it contact wood-stocks. Others such as my HS Precision or McMilian stocks it doesn't phase it, but I keep it away from the wood stocks that I have...HTH
I've been using PO W/Accel for 10-15 years and never had any barrels damaged. Love the stuff. OTOH- it will definitely take the finish off of wood stocks. I have clumsily allowed it to drip on to two stocks finished with Tung oil and it quickly stripped the finish. It's good stuff, but you gotta be careful.
Rick
In one place you said you coul see the first two inches with the naked eye, then elsewhere you said the barrel was scoped. What is that? A high quality bore scope? iMHO your wasting your time examining a barrel without a bore scope.
Brians356
Gold $$ Contributor
I've never used the accelerator, just Patch-Out, and have left it overnight with no issues. They emphasize it's safe to soak overnight, so if a few folks reported otherwise on the forums, they'd have a big hassle on their hands. This is the first I've heard of such a problem. Not saying it didn't happen, just sayin'.
-
-
Last edited:
After cleaning the throat was still dragging so I JB'D it. Even after that there were noticeable dark spots to the naked eye so I took it to my gunsmith and he put a Hawkeye in it. We only checked the first two inches. It's etched NOT fire cracked. This isn't my first rodeo...
Can I explain why it didn't damage the other barrels? No. Like I said, I loved the stuff, but after two instances of it etching/pitting stainless I won't use it again. Your guys do whatever you want.
Edit: attached is the barrel extension. It was 100% perfect when it went into the receiver. The spots circled in red are deep pitting you can feel with your fingernail. The only thing this rifle ever got cleaned with it Wipeout foam and accelerator.
Attachments
If you need to soak a barrel to get it clean, it doesn't sound like it is doing its job. If you get something that cleans the gun between relays you don't need to soak it. If you do have to soak it, use a chamber plug, so it doesn't run where you don't want it to. If you use a bore guide keep the muzzle down ........ Jim
Upgrades & Donations
This Forum's expenses are primarily paid by member contributions. You can upgrade your Forum membership in seconds. Gold and Silver members get unlimited FREE classifieds for one year. Gold members can upload custom avatars.
Click Upgrade Membership Button ABOVE to get Gold or Silver Status.
You can also donate any amount, large or small, with the button below. Include your Forum Name in the PayPal Notes field.
To DONATE by CHECK, or make a recurring donation, CLICK HERE to learn how.
Click Upgrade Membership Button ABOVE to get Gold or Silver Status.
You can also donate any amount, large or small, with the button below. Include your Forum Name in the PayPal Notes field.
To DONATE by CHECK, or make a recurring donation, CLICK HERE to learn how.