Shotgun Cleaning sequence - What do you do?

[SuperstitionCoues]

After the latest round of trap, it took a few hours of scrubbing with Hoppe's and a bore brush to clean my 12 ga 525.   There has to be a better way.

What do you guys do to cut the time and trouble of getting your shotgun bore clean after a session of trap or skeet, or after hunting?

I am open to any and all suggestions, no matter how silly or strange they may seem.

MWA

[SHOOTALL]

first i shoot ammo that burns clean , then a cleaning rod you know the ones that look like they are covered in wool , if alot of plastic builds up i have use carburetor or brake cleaner to get it out , the rest of the gun i use clenzoil (SP) to wipe it off and protect it ! i have a gun snake i use also in the field ! but the bad press it gets here i have not been using it lately ! i don't shoot alot of trap but i do shoot skeet ! most days we shoot 4-5 rounds so the gun does get somewhat dirty .
if you use the carb. or brake cleaner don't let it get on wood or plastic , i remove the bbls. to use it , wear safty glasses also !

[dougk]

I mix a little Kroil in with my cleaning solvent.  Works great.  Also, Flitz works great on the blued parts of the gun.

[Graybeard]

I can't recall but once that it took me over ten minutes to clean a shotgun. That was a Remington 1100 my partner in a skeet range owned. It quit on him in a tournament. I loaned him mine and took his inside to clean it to get it back to him as soon as possible. That was the filthest gun I've ever seen but I had it back to him in about the time it took his squad to shoot a full round.

I use the rod like mentioned already to clean barrels. All it takes is a few up/down strokes and the barrel is usually shining no matter how dirty. These days I use only O/Us on clays and use the rods mentioned for 12, 20 and 28 and wish I had one that would fit a .410 but as far as I know no one makes one. So for the .410 I use Hoppe's on a patch that fits fairly tight and one usually does sit followed by a clean dry one. At most two wet and two dry patches finish the job.

I then use Hoppe's and Q-Tips to clean the inside of action and usually Kleenex or a clean rag to wipe it down afterward. I can usually be done in under ten minutes no matter how long it's been since I last cleaned and I do not do this every time I shoot by any means but perhaps once a month on my skeet guns.

[dougk]

Graybeard you can shoot with me anytime, just allocate 10 mins during the last round. 

[SuperstitionCoues]

I have heard of using WD-40.  Does it help to get rid of plastic fouling from wads?  Is this really a good idea to use on your barrels?

[EVOC ONE]

Here's my method.  I clean at the range pretty much the same as at home. 

1.  Run a good, tight dry brush down the barrel several times.
2.  Run a dry patch down to remove the residue.  Usually most will come out.
3.  Run a patch wet with Hoppes #9 solvent.
Repeat if necessary
4.  Swab the inside of the receiver with a Q-tip and small cotton patches.