Cleaning bore in competition

[Lumpy’s guns]

What if any cleaning during a shoot does anyone do. Coming from CF I struggle not cleaning between rounds.
What do you guys do that shoot ARA unlimited do?

 

[Dgd6mm]

Factory class here...I do it between cards. I do it because I believe it helps and at the same time I haven't experienced it hurting me.

 

[TRSR8]

Several forums….search is your friend.

 

[Jayplace]

The general consensus is the 22rf is different from CF. Very little actual barrel cleaning is necessary, except for the carbon ring area. A carbon ring can/will form in the chamber area and needs to removed. Generally that's every 200 or so rounds. Youtube has some pretty good suggestions.

 

[mudduck]

there may be a few that don’t clean after every card but pretty much everyone shooting ARA cleans after a card. In unlimited anyway

 

[doclu60]

Barrel dependent, but most everyone cleans between cards. Not just in ARA either. IR50/50, N50, etc. Both of my primary IR 3-Gun rifles will go two cards before on target performance will take me out of the running. If I stretch it to 3 cards, bad things could happen, so I don't go there. I know of other barrels that won't do that and they get cleaned every card. Knowing your barrel and what it wants as far as cleaning goes is one of those crumbs many leave on the table. Those that do leave crumbs, don't win very often. This testing should be done at the practice range, not on record targets!

Scott

 

[Lumpy’s guns]

Thanks there is so little time available.
But thanks

 

[Rwfish]

For ARA Unlimited I clean between cards. Not a thorough cleaning, more the chamber build up. I have gone 2 cards with no issue if I don’t clean also. The reason I clean each card is more for predictability. I know where those first sighters are going to go (Most of the time, lol) and how many shots it will take to be in that 100 ring. The ARA target is challenging enough, you gotta keep things as predictable as you can..

 

[PWNolan]

@Lumpy’s guns

"Thanks there is so little time available"

The forum won't let me quote your post for some reason. So I did it manually for reference

Are you referring to the time between cards? Most match directors I know are aware that people want to clean and try to allow at least some time. The shooters also have to understand that they need to work fairly quickly too. Most UL shooters I know do a light cleaning between cards. I do two wet patches followed by two dry and that seems to work out ok for me and my rifles. Toward the end of this season I started making a few passes with a bronze brush after wetting the bore followed by two more wet and then the two dry. I'm honestly not sure that made any difference but, other than the extra time, it didn't hurt anything either

 

[Lumpy’s guns]

@Lumpy’s guns

"Thanks there is so little time available"

The forum won't let me quote your post for some reason. So I did it manually for reference

Are you referring to the time between cards? Most match directors I know are aware that people want to clean and try to allow at least some time. The shooters also have to understand that they need to work fairly quickly too. Most UL shooters I know do a light cleaning between cards. I do two wet patches followed by two dry and that seems to work out ok for me and my rifles. Toward the end of this season I started making a few passes with a bronze brush after wetting the bore followed by two more wet and then the two dry. I'm honestly not sure that made any difference but, other than the extra time, it didn't hurt anything either

Yes nobody at this shoot cleaned at all. You can’t get to your gun will changing cards and when you can they are ready start. Guess I need to ask for the time.
Thanks

 

[Dgd6mm]

Yes....ask for time. When you get a regiment down such as two wet patches and 2 dry, five minutes tops is all you need.

 

[MUP]

We usually have 3 rounds of different styles, USBR at 50, then custom 75 and 100 yard targets. I normally clean after every practice session and after every match. Before the match tho, I'll fire a few, usually 5-7, rounds to season the barrel a bit before match time, then a few sighters and I'm able to finish the entire course without cleaning, and without accuracy fall off. As was noted earlier, I do think it may be barrel dependant tho, this is just what works for my CZ 457 VPT.

 

[PWNolan]

We usually have 3 rounds of different styles, USBR at 50, then custom 75 and 100 yard targets. I normally clean after every practice session and after every match. Before the match tho, I'll fire a few, usually 5-7, rounds to season the barrel a bit before match time, then a few sighters and I'm able to finish the entire course without cleaning, and without accuracy fall off. As was noted earlier, I do think it may be barrel dependant tho, this is just what works for my CZ 457 VPT.

In my experience, factory barrels are much more forgiving to shooting dirty. I've tested most of my factory rifles and they seem to shoot the same clean or dirty. I choose to clean them similar to how you do it. When I was using my Tikka T1x for ARA factory class I still cleaned between cards because they shoot fine that way and it's the same for each card. Plus it makes it easier to clean after the match.

 

[10XSHOOTER]

I like to run 4 dry patches thru my bore between cards

 

[ELR LVR]

A quick wet patch of Hoppes or something similar then dry patch out helps
Not enough time to do a complete cleaning, bore brush, etc plus fire foulers
---
but every 20-30 rounds - this helps retain the edge

 

[dusterdave173]

We always seem to have two relays so we are swapping on and off the bench between cards so there is ample time to do a fast clean.
Over time , experimenting with a lot of methods it looks like a clean between cards keeps things even--I do one wet patch and 3-4 dry--when back to the line takes a couple to get going then a couple more to gain confidence then go to it
I only shoot factory barrels
If I let it go past two cards it suffers and perks up fast after a clean - I pay special attention to the chamber and carbon ring after each match I am only using C4 now but observe about every product available being used so I don't think what it is matters that much. I do hear guys talk about Rimfire Blend and not using it--I bet it is only one ingredient different than C4 and we are probably fooling ourselves but I had a rough month when I used Rimfire Blend this summer--Looking back I bet it was me and not that product but since I was not the only one experiencing "trouble" with it I quit and went to C4--again..the guys at that company may read this and laugh saying they are identical etc but...shooters just like racers tend to get very superstitious
This is all shooting ARA Factory

 

[gkgeiger]

One dry pellet after each card for me.

 

[BowChamp]

I shoot ARA Unlimited and have never cleaned during a match. Between matches I will clean the chamber/throat area for carbon ring, not really focussing on the entire bore.

I recommend you try different cleaning procedures and see what works for your rifle.

Keep us posted.

 

[Jerry Graves]

I clean every card if not I will drop a few x’s 1 wet 3 passes with brush another wet then a patch with alcohol then 1patch with trans fluid/ kroil oil. I use Remington 40x cleaner on the patch and brush

 

[DShortt]

Some guy on another thread has 50 yd 22lr targets posted shot with a rifle that reportedly hasn't been cleaned in 20,000 rounds. The targets show .1s