Cleaning

[CWT]

This may have been discussed and I missed it. Has anyone used Wipe-Out and/or Patch-out? What do you think of it?

Thanks

[Nobade]

I think Wipe - Out is the best thing since sliced bread. It saves so much brushing on your barrel, and chance to damage it with the cleaning rod. Spray in, wait an hour, and run a dry patch through. You're done. I use it in the shop all the time to clean customer's guns, since I can fill the bore and go do something else for a while. I'll check with the bore scope after the first application, usually that's enough. If not, I'll do it again. One thing it will not do is get hard carbon fouling out of the throat area. I still use J-B paste and elbow grease for that. But most guns don't have a problem there anyhow, just ones with a big case relative to the bore size and use slow powder. 

[CWT]

Thanks much. I'll give it a try.

[packerbacker]

i have just invested in 2 h&r ush and a .17 hmr. i am going to trade in my winchester 30-06 for a t/c endeavor as well. i have crap for cleaning supplies (very old, primitive and on the cheap). i would like to upgrade these and do things correct with these new firearms. any suggestion for solvents, oils, brushes, cleaning rods, complete kits or anything else would be appreciated. i know there are many opinions  as to how often they need to be done and the actual process with which it should be done, but i really dont think i have done this to the degree i should have previously. so i would apprecite any feedback or advise on this. thank you

mitch

[mattl]

Mitch

I have always used hoppes #9 solvent, never had any type of fouling that I have not been able to get out with it yet.

As for cleaning rods I have always had good luck with Tipton Carbon Fiber cleaning rods for anything .22 cal and up.  I have tried one in .17 cal and it seemed too small and flexible, some have complained that they break easy.  So I invested in a Dewey 1 peice Nylon Coated cleaning rod.  It works well, the only complaint I have for it it that with my .17 mach 2, which has a Recessed target crown, the crown will shave off some of the nylon coating if it comes in contact.  Other than that they work very well.

For bore brushes, I usually use Nylon, unless the barrel has a build-up of fouling or has rust in it then I go for the Bronze brush.

I use jags designated for the calibre size of the barrel I am cleaning.  I have the complete kit from .17 cal up to .45 cal.  Sometimes a rifle gets so fouled that the correct size jag will not get the patch down the barrel, with the kit you have the ability to use the next size smaller to get some of the fouling out so you can use the correct size.  With the jags, you will need a good supply of patches for the rifles you have.

Other options, a tooth brush to knock out exterior fouling.  Dental picks to get into those hard to reach areas and to remove caked on carbon fouling.  And a good supply of Q-tips and pipe cleaners.

I usually clean my rifles after every time I take them to the range.  I'm not perfect, but I hate to neglect my firearms that I have invested so much in.  When Cleaning the bore I first run a patch saturated with Hoppes down the bore to get all the loose surface fouling out, then I go straight to the bore brush and dunk it in the Hoppes and run it down the bore about 20 times.  Give it a few minutes to sit in the bore and then run a few dry patches down it to get the loose stuff out.  Go right back to the bore brush and repeat until the barrel is clean. 

Make sure that you do not get any oil or solvent on a wood stock, that is terrible for them.

Everything else should be pretty much straight forward.  Use rags, Q-tips, pipe cleaners, and your tooth brush to knock off all the carbon build-up in the action and on the exterior.

For Oil I use Rem Oil, but there are other great oils out there.  apply a LITE coat to keep your rifle from rusting in the gun cabinet.  I usually leave the bore dry unless it's going to br stored for a long period.  Run an oily patch down the bore followed by a dry one, should be enough oil left in the bore to resist rusting.  Make sure the chamber of the rifle is dry, you do not want oil in there when you shoot it.

Hope this helps

Mattl

[packerbacker]

mattl

thanks for the info. i'll add it to my shopping list. any thoughts on the foaming bore cleaners or the wipe-out that was talked about on the previous post ? i guess most of my cleaning involved runinng a bore snake thru the barrell, then spraying the foaming bore cleaner, let it sit for 30 min or so, the run a bronze brush down it a couple times followed by patches. i then applied oil to a patch and ran down the barrell as the final step. lastly, i added a touch of oil to the barrel of the gun. what can you use on the stock and forend ?

mitch

[mattl]

Mitch

I have used the foaming bore cleaners before and I get about the same results as brushing the Hoppes #9 bore solvent into the bore and letting it sit for a while.  Hoppes is a lot easier to clean up and a whole lot cheaper.  The foaming bore cleaners seem to be sticky when they dry and usually require a solvent like Hoppes to remove the residue. 

I have tried many different types of solvents and cleaners (atleast 20) and always go back to the Hoppes.  I do seldomly use Sweets 7.62 copper solvent and Tiptons Truly Remarkable bore solvent on barrels that are badly copper fouled.  They get rid of heavy copper fouling very well but do not get the carbon fouling out any faster, plus they have a very very strong, unplesent amonia smell.  Believe me, you won't want to use it unless you absolutly have to.  Also, make sure you use a nylon brush when applying to the bore, copper solvents will eat away and wear out a bronze brush a lot faster.

For the wood stocks and forends, I usually wipe it down with a dry cloth and maybe a little furniture polish.  I usually don't have to mess with them much.  No not use bore solvents or gun oil on a wood stock, the oil could penetrate the finish and loosen it up and allow it to chip off and leave fadded looking spots.  The only way to fix that is to get it refinished.

In my opinion, bore snakes are good for in the field cleaning.  I have several that I used while I was in Iraq to get the sand and loose carbon from the bore, but did not seem to get it clean enough for a final cleaning.  This is just my opinion on it though, others may have had better results with them.

Mattl