Carbon fiber cleaning rods!
- Thread starter Mark611
- Start date
butchlambert
Site $$ Sponsor
I would buy a metal sleeve to cover your forearm of the arm you push your rod with. When it breaks it will impale your inner forearm!
butchlambert
Site $$ Sponsor
Steve, contrary to some people's view, they are abrasive.
jelenko
Gold $$ Contributor
Good question!
When I bought one I think it was because it was advertised as non embedding. And, of course, it was 'new, improved' - it was made of the miracle material.
Even if there were no chance it could break, they are heavily weighted to the handle. They feel more difficult to handle than metal ones.
SteveOak
Gold $$ Contributor
That is what I was thinking.
I like cf rods and tested the abrasiveness claims and found it to be false with my test. I mean, everything can be abrasive but it was a non-issue and they were actually far better than steel as well as coated in this regard. A coated rod is great so long as the coating is hard enough not to embed dirt and debris into the coating. Cf fits the bill there. I made a video of the test but it's been a long time ago. I'll look for it later but I doubt I still have it. The test was simple enough. Chucked different rod material in a mill, applied equal pressure and speed against the od of a bbl cut off. It wasn't even close. The cf barely left any kind of mark on the bbl but a steel rod galled in only a few seconds. Yes, they can break and it can be ugly. I've toyed with a solution and it worked very well. I might revisit this at some point and make them to sell. Shipping cleaning rods is the crappy part of that. Dirt is the main culprit that makes all of them somewhat abrasive. Keep the rod wiped clean and any of them will do.
The rods I made had a steel core and a cf outside. They're pretty awesome rods, actually. Damn near unbreakable this way, too. Even if it were to break, under EXTREME circumstances, it was intact, not frayed ends. Just very bent before it got anywhere close to breaking the cf outer. Once again, testing is how we know stuff.
The rods I made had a steel core and a cf outside. They're pretty awesome rods, actually. Damn near unbreakable this way, too. Even if it were to break, under EXTREME circumstances, it was intact, not frayed ends. Just very bent before it got anywhere close to breaking the cf outer. Once again, testing is how we know stuff.
I've been using one for about 15 years and I bore scope my bores to monitor erosion and cleaning effectiveness. My bores do not show any signs of abrasive effect. My rifles are both BR and hunting rifles.
I bought because of the constant erosion of the coating on my coated rods. With a good bore guide I doubt you would see any abrasive signs. My opinion.
I bought because of the constant erosion of the coating on my coated rods. With a good bore guide I doubt you would see any abrasive signs. My opinion.
Even with a good bore guide, the rod will come in contact with the bore. It's pretty inevitable when the rod only has a few thou clearance from the bore. All we can do is minimize the pressure it contacts with but yes, every rod will flex a little bit and that's even assuming the rod is perfectly straight. Bottom line is the end result. If it works, it works.
dusterdave173
Silver $$ Contributor
Tipton CF on Amazon around $40 They are great for the $$ Love mine
I like them too. I prefer a different handle and better bearings but all in all, the Tipton is pretty good, IMHO.
I don't know why anyone would want a carbon fiber rod. The few I have seen flex, and I have seen one fracture, maybe the latter just an isolated anomaly.
I have used Dewey coated rods for about a half century. I never had imbedded particles in the rod, or the coating worn off or eroded. I wipe the rod clean after each pass which one should do no matter which type of rod one uses. Of course, I have always used a bore guide.
However, the one area I found where a short carbon fiber rod has value over coated rods is with cleaning 22 caliber revolvers which must be cleaned from the muzzle unless you use a snake. It is very difficult to keep a coated rod from abrading even with a muzzle guard while cleaning a 22 revolver. The Hoppe's Elite pistol rod (carbon fiber) solves this problem quite nicely.
I have used Dewey coated rods for about a half century. I never had imbedded particles in the rod, or the coating worn off or eroded. I wipe the rod clean after each pass which one should do no matter which type of rod one uses. Of course, I have always used a bore guide.
However, the one area I found where a short carbon fiber rod has value over coated rods is with cleaning 22 caliber revolvers which must be cleaned from the muzzle unless you use a snake. It is very difficult to keep a coated rod from abrading even with a muzzle guard while cleaning a 22 revolver. The Hoppe's Elite pistol rod (carbon fiber) solves this problem quite nicely.
Ever checked to see how straight your cleaning rods actually are or aren't? Never seen a straight one yet. Stiller made some rf rods for a while that he claimed were very straight but went through an elaborate process to keep them as straight as possible. I haven't checked one of those but I take him at his word for it.
One Eye Pete
Gold $$ Contributor
I’ve been using the Tipton Max Force carbon fiber rod. It is unique in that the handle can be slid along the rod and clamped down so you don’t have to always use the entire length of the rod. (Yes the rod still rotates when the handle is clamped) Some people don’t like it but I think it’s the greatest thing since sliced bread. It allows you to apply substantial force with minimal chance of bending the rod. I have been using it for years and even rebuilt the handle once. Carbon fiber or coated steel, as long as you keep your rod clean you shouldn’t get any abrasion on the bore. Compared to a bullet, super hot gas and carbon moving down the barrel at 2500+ ft/sec I don’t think a cleaning rod has a major effect unless it gets coated with abrasives.
It's typically pretty tough stuff and will take a bit to break but it can happen. I cringe seeing how some people clean 100 mph and bending their rod like crazy the whole while. Especially so when I did their bbl work. Lol!
No, I never accurately checked. Since I don't visually see any signs of abrasions on the rod, I think I am ok. Also, I don't see any bends or flex when cleaning. I use a possum hollow bore guide which seem to keep things straight without flexing. I also use Pro-Shot patches with a sized jag that provide a firm, but not overly tight patch thus minimizing rod flex.
The one area where I have observed alignment issues is with bronze brushes, even with Dewey high quality no harm bronze brushes. I always check a new brush with a carpenter square for straightness and have had to re-align a few per batch, mostly 22 centerfire brushes.
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