What cleaning solvent.

[12ptdroptine]

I am getting prepared to go th the range with 3 slug guns to sight them in... And fine what ammo they like the best.(also taking a lead sled dft) How many time's would you fire it between cleaning? and what work's the best to remove the plastic fouling from the barrel?  Drop

[eye shot]

I have fond nothing better than Hoppe's Bench Rest-9 for plastic fouling. It will loosen the plastic and it will come out in long black strings. Let it set in the barrel about 10 min. and just swab it out.

[12ptdroptine]

OK Now how often should it be cleaned...I mean how many shots before? While sighting in ? Drop

[eye shot]

Not knowing what gun- barrel- ammo you are using I would recommend every five shots. Some barrels foul alot less than others. It's easy and the 10 min. you wait helps cool the barrel down.

[Graybeard]

I sure wouldn't clean that often. Clean them before you go. Fire a couple fouling shots then begin shooting for groups. Alternate guns/barrels so they don't over heat. Shoot what you plan to shoot and then if you absolutely must clean again but only those you won't be using this season. If you plan to use it this season wait until season ends to clean the barrel.

[cgoff]

  I clean the gun when I change brands of ammo, That way I know the gun was basically in the same condition for each brand.

[12ptdroptine]

Thats a good Idea...CGOFF....Thanks Drop

[Graybeard]

Personally I think it's a rather poor idea. The facts of life are few guns of any sort shoot their best completely clean. So in effect you are not getting a true picture of how it shoots with anything by doing that. The one exception in my experience is rimfires. Even there cleaning isn't the answer but rather firing a box of ammo thru it with whatever you wish to test then and only then shooting it for groups.

If you really want to know what a centerfire rifle or slug gun can do clean it good then foul it and shoot your groups.

[12ptdroptine]

One or two fouling shott's? should be ok shouldnt it?

[Graybeard]

After cleaning a bore I shoot two fouling shots before shooting a group but realize that few barrels are going to shoot their best until a few groups not shots have been fired.

[NYSdeerslayer]

Not to trail off the subject but there has to be a significant difference
between how much fouling effects a smoothbore vs. a fully rifled barrel.
My expierences to date at the range show after about 5 clean bore shots the groups
start opening up. That was what I found with my Remingtons ammo didn't matter too much.
Never bought a rifled barrel for the one weekend of "shotguns only" that I get out for around here.

            NYSdeerslayer

[Graybeard]

You might be right about a difference between smooth bore and rifled bore shotguns. I don't use slugs anymore so have no recent experience in that regard to fall back on. But many years ago when we were using them my wive's was a smooth bore with a rifled choke tube screwed in and mine a fully rifled barrel. Neither of them developed fouling sufficienct to affect grouping during range sessions. I did as noted above with them same as I do with rifles or handguns.

I shoot EXTENSIVELY on the skeet range with shotguns and only clean my barrels after a thousand or more rounds down them on average. I realize that's with shot not slug but can't see why slugs would foul more than shot. I think folks get carried away and over clean most of the time.