Hard carbon removing, help!

[Steve Donlon]

Frank is definitely not in favor of using abrasive with brushes. Patches only.

That makes sense if you have a premium barrel. I learned the value of a borescope so I can stay ahead of those issues. The AR barrel I was given, I did not think it was possible to get a barrel that black with carbon and not know it. When I got all the carbon out, there was no fire cracking. I guess with a 2 moa $60 barrel maybe the carbon protected the barrel.

 

[JFrank]

I cleaned most of guns that came into the family pawn shop, unbelievable what some looked like.
I start with soaking ( insert your favorite flavor here) then use a new bronze brush and hoppes oil to break up as much carbon as I can before hitting it with abrasives on a patch wrapped around a soft nylon brush.
Most of the time I can get them real clean but never to bare steel on a used hunting rifle.

 

[DShortt]

I cleaned most of guns that came into the family pawn shop, unbelievable what some looked like.
I start with soaking ( insert your favorite flavor here) then use a new bronze brush and hoppes oil to break up as much carbon as I can before hitting it with abrasives on a patch wrapped around a soft nylon brush.
Most of the time I can get them real clean but never to bare steel on a used hunting rifle.

JB Bore Paste has been my friend along with a borescope to monitor progress.

 

[ronemus]

I read somewhere that there is no known solvent that dissolves carbon. You might soften other chemicals that it's mixed with? Sounds like you need an abrasive.

Concentrated nitric acid will dissolve carbon (I'm a chemist by the way), but it will dissolve the bore as well; we're limited by what barrel steel will tolerate.

 

[DShortt]

Sounds like throwing the baby out with the bath water.

But abrasive are bad.

OK then.

We're launching a copper projectile down a rifled bore propelled by a combustible that leaves a residue and expecting it to be exactly the same every time.

Huh.

 

[Longtrain]

You bring up an interesting point. So good on their final day.....why take them off?

You bring up a good point, why take them off? Generally, the throats are pretty ragged around 2500 and they build up copper quite easily. Do they shoot, yes, but the cleaning regime to keep them in tune gets more frequent and laborious. My current barrel is at 1700 and is still competitively accurate. I have been using Tungsten Disulphide (WS2) coated bullets to see if I can extend the barrel’s life. Juries still out in that one for a bit longer. In the past once accuracy starts to go that dispersion will continue to grow and will never return to sub 1/2 MOA consistency. So, if it was a hunting rifle or recreationally banging steel, I’m sure it would go longer, but for F Class or other precision use, it would probably start to falter.

 

[Bora72]

It can be daunting for someone that's never done it before....I remember my uneasiness the first time I used JB to get rid of the hard carbon in my 220 Swift barrel Fortunately, I had a good mentor that walked me through the process. That process is what I use to this day.

Just last week, I JB'd the bore of a used 308W. Via the Hawkeye bore scope, it had been cleaned well of the powder fouling but had plenty of carbon in there. JB corrected the situation easily.

Good shootin' -Al

Hi, you're right, it's actually quite daunting. Doing a difficult job without a guide, knowing you can ruin everything, is daunting.
What I've learned, which goes beyond the classic skills of preparing cases, reloading, cleaning a rifle, etc., I learned by reading the two most important online forums.
Other than that, the basics were taught to me by friends who frequent the shooting range. But only one of them has competed in a few competitions, the range director, but most of the time he's busy managing the range and keeping an eye on what we do...
It's been a few years, exactly three years this October, since I got into this discipline. I started directly with long-range shooting and precision reloading. I still make a lot of mistakes in practice, but I'm happy that I can figure out where I'm going wrong, and when I can't, I come and ask you. I hope to be able to restore this rod to bare steel.
Even in this condition, it has no accuracy issues.
However, fussiness is a quality/weakness that has accompanied me since I was a child, and I always have been, when fishing, on Ham Radio, and in my other hobbies and jobs. There's a saying that "the best is the enemy of the good." In many cases, it's true, but if one manages to do better than the good, one also elevates oneself culturally.
This is just my opinion, of course.

Thanks every one!

 

[Bora72]

When?

When can I order from the dealer

 

[Bora72]

You bring up an interesting point. So good on their final day.....why take them off? So I have been saving good barrels for years until I get old. So now at 78 the last two years I have shot old barrels on my ppc. Both sill shooting great, I have won with both of them. I have a 6BRX barrel with 4000 rounds laying here. I have been told in the past its a hummer. I might get it out next year. So much to learn and do forgetting conventional wisdom...or is it?

You also raised an excellent point.
I read about people who change the barrel after only 1,500 or 2,000 rounds; perhaps they compete with heavy loads, so there's a valid reason.
But another reason is that in the US, it's cheap and easy to change it. In my country, there's a lengthy legal procedure for changing the barrel; it must be tested at a national proving ground and the same serial number must be affixed to the gun.
Then the gun must be shipped via a special courier, which costs a fee.
So, in my country, changing the barrel on a rifle costs around €2,000 on average; with that money, you can buy a great new gun. In our country, we don't change the barrel on a non-competition rifle after only 2,000 rounds

 

[Bora72]

Sounds like throwing the baby out with the bath water.

But abrasive are bad.

OK then.

We're launching a copper projectile down a rifled bore propelled by a combustible that leaves a residue and expecting it to be exactly the same every time.

Huh.

You're right, but the same example applies to some people, even if you don't raise chickens in your car, you commit to cleaning it at least once a year...

 

[Bora72]

Here a video from the barrel:

Also some shoots...