How dry is your bore after cleaning?

[exMember]

#1 reason I always tell folks to flush their barrels with a shot of alcohol! Doing so, help flush out any left behind moisture or standing water at the bottom of the barrel/breech plug. This barrel had been cleaned with a couple damp patches, then dried. Once "dry" I put my bore camera down to take a look at this is what I came up with.Completely soaked and the face of the breech plug was half clogged with powder fouled which would have caused an issue had I gone out and tried to fire it.

FLUSH it the old fashion way every time you go to clean! Hot soapy water, dry it immediately, a shot of alcohol and let it drain out. Lubricate with your favorite anti rust oil.
Swabbing between shots on the range can easily push in a wet mush fouling directly into the breech plugs flash channel.
When swabbing the bore clean on the range, I push a dry patch down the bore with the ramrod/range rod and fire a couple percussion caps to dry it out completely. You can verify that the breech is dry by inspecting the patch for burn marks.


This was a customers pistol that I worked on and found that the precious owner "cleaned" it by just swabbing the bore with patches rather than flushing it. The drum and breech both were completely packed with a hard fouling.

 

[Okie Hog]

After cleaning and with the nipple out; i give the bore a shot of Break Free Powder Blast followed by a clean patch. This stuff is very volatile, don't light a cigarette.

 

[Fyrstyk]

When I swab between shots (sometimes with some guns after the third shot), I use an alcohol soaked patch on an undersized jag (.50 in a .54 etc.) The idea is to pull the fouling out, not push it into the fire channel or breech plug. Using an under sized jag, the patch rides down the bore loosely and then bunches up on the jag when being pulled out and bringing the fouling with it. Any moisture left by the alcohol in the breech area very quickly evaporates before loading the next round.

 

[user 23626]

Seems like I'm always coming out of left field due to my lack of BP experience. I have only hunted with them and haven't had to use over two shots after sighting in. After shooting my early H&As I swab with hot soapy water then set them about 2' Out from my wood stove muzzle down for a period of time then swab with bore butter then repeat by the stove for a short period, spray with Pledge then wipe down with soft rag. In the warmer months I use the sun on the front porch to dry. Swab the bores once a month if I remember. Mid 70's memory. I live in a dry climate, that helps. My latest UH is a takedown switch barrel and I can have it stripped down in 10 min to the bare barrel, much easier. Out here

 

[Hanshi]

Only one rifle at my house has a patent breech. It's never caused me any trouble whatsoever. I clean it the same as the flat breech guns, by patching. I do take a minute or two to address the fire channel. After wiping with several dry patches I wipe the bore with Denatured Alcohol, dry it and swab with WD40. I leave it like that overnight and use alcohol the next day to remove the WD40. I then wipe the bore with Barricade and store away. If I'm in a hurry I use an old hair dryer to move things along.

 

[afishhunter]

My bore is dry after I clean the barrel.

 

[Renegadehunter]

After cleaning my renegade with room temp water and a couple drops of dish soap (if I use hot or boiling I get flash rust every time), I swab the bore to dry it several times, then pour a capful of denatured alcohol down the bore and let it come out the nipple hole, let it sit a couple of minutes, and then run a patch to the bottom and blast air through the nipple.
A bore scope would be nice for confirmation.

 

[James Cooper]

I am very anal about my ML bores. After shooting, I run a couple patches with Moose Milk (Ballistol and water) down to break up the worst of the fouling. At home, I remove the barrel from the gun and the nipple from the barrel. I flush well with windshield washer fluid (WWF) and Murphy's Oil Soap using the "pump handle" method, changing the patch after each couple of strokes, then one patch for about 20 strokes. After that, the bore is good and clean. I go after it now with a towel and dry patches an keep poking and swabbing until I feel I got it all, even using a small rifle bore brush with a patch around it to poke into the breech and get it all dry. I use Q-tips to clean out the snail/drum. When I am done, The inside is as dry as I can get it, as far as I can reach. I spray a good shot of Fluid Film in the muzzle and run it down with a jag, then do the whole pach thing over again, this time, spreading the protectant through the system, best as I can. Wipe down the outside and put it in the gun cabinet.

 

[White Fox]

My bore care practice has evolved over time, becoming more detailed and thorough.

Before loading storage oils are at least partially removed by swabbing with denatured alcohol or lighter fluid.

When finished shooting I "pre-clean" bores with several very wet patches to get the big chunks out. Bores are left wet for the drive home, then cleaned well at home using warm tap water and dish soap. Scrapers and breech brushes are used. My jags have two notches filed into them so I can twist the patch when it is at the bottom of the bore. After several dry patches a clean dry patch is run down to the plug and then the barrel or rifle with rod in place is stood on its nose for a half hour to encourage water to drain into the patch.

One more dry patch, and then a patch with BC Barricade or WD40 is run down. My very tolerant spouse lets me stand the rifles in the corner of the kitchen for a couple of days, during which time the oily patch is cycled a few times.

 

[[email protected]]

I stole the idea from Pedersoli Turbo Gun Cleaner sold at $800+ and bought a Bissel Steam Shot for $35.00. Took a gun I thought was clean removed the barrel and nipple, and placed the tip of the Steam Shot against the nipple hole and pulled the trigger. In seconds black runoff was coming out of the barrel and decreased to clear. Barrel was hot to the touch so held with a rag and ran a patch came out white not the usual gray. Ran some CLP down it and reassembled. Took it out to a meet shot 30 balls and home for the real test. Same process flushed out fire channel, breech, and barrel. Ran cleaning patches with cleaner patches later coming out clean after 4. Scoped it with a camera down to see was clean to the breech. Fire channel on this TC percussion snail looked great as far as I could see in. Benefit of steam is loosens all the crude in places can't get into, removes the deposits bore butter left behind and the barrel being hot to the touch dries the internals in a minute or less. CLP inside and out and put away until next outing. This is the best way I have found to clean the fire channel, behind the breech, the lower end where the powder burns fouling.

Cleanest my barrels have been since new done easily. Just my two cents and a stolen idea from David Pedersoli.

 

[muzzleloader48]

You know, it is apparent we all have different opinions and different methods of doing things. However, concerning cleaning, bullets, powder, etc.: it's not rocket science. Some guns like a certain bullet & powder better than another gun. Cleaning doesn't involve an 8 hour+ chore. FG is half the age of most of us, he provides a simple cleaning procedure. "Sometimes youth should be heard, they also know things".

 

[yellowlab]

Everyone has a process that works for them. I run a few murphys alcohol patches after shooting and wipe down the breach area as best I can. Then when I get home I remove the barrel and nipple/ liner and or breach plug. Take the parts to the wifes kitchen sink (small parts in a bowl of soapy water to soak) squirt hot water from the dish rinse hose thingy down the barrel till it gets as hot as I can stand, Then scrub the bore with a bristle brush which was stolen from the wifes kitchen gadget drawer and jury rigged to one end of a cleaning rod. Then scrub with jag and soapy patch till I think Ive got everything out. Squirt the crap out of it again and maybe scrub some more, when Im satisfied all the evil has been removed stand it on end to drain while I take a tooth brush to the small parts. Then blow any standing water from the nooks and crannies till Im blue in the face. Next run paper towel or blue shop towel patches till they come out dry (they are cheep,easy and soak up lots of water fast). Run a murphys/alcohol patch and put it all behind the wood stove overnight "muzzle down" to dry. The next morning run an alcohol patch then my favorite gun oil and put it all back together. Usually about midway through the 10 min. cleaning process my wife comes in to inform me that she needs to start dinner and would I kindly remove myself and all of that smelly sh** from her kitchen and clean up after myself. She must think she owns the place.

 

[Hanshi]

What's a "Bissel Steam Shot"?

 

[Fiddler]

I wonder if the hole in the lid of a pressure cooker would provide enough steam to do something useful?

 

[Renegadehunter]

What's a "Bissel Steam Shot"?

It is a small hand held steamer.

https://www.bing.com/images/search?...el+steam+shot&selectedindex=9&ajaxhist=0&vt=0

 

[muzzleloader48]

Reall

Everyone has a process that works for them. I run a few murphys alcohol patches after shooting and wipe down the breach area as best I can. Then when I get home I remove the barrel and nipple/ liner and or breach plug. Take the parts to the wifes kitchen sink (small parts in a bowl of soapy water to soak) squirt hot water from the dish rinse hose thingy down the barrel till it gets as hot as I can stand, Then scrub the bore with a bristle brush which was stolen from the wifes kitchen gadget drawer and jury rigged to one end of a cleaning rod. Then scrub with jag and soapy patch till I think Ive got everything out. Squirt the crap out of it again and maybe scrub some more, when Im satisfied all the evil has been removed stand it on end to drain while I take a tooth brush to the small parts. Then blow any standing water from the nooks and crannies till Im blue in the face. Next run paper towel or blue shop towel patches till they come out dry (they are cheep,easy and soak up lots of water fast). Run a murphys/alcohol patch and put it all behind the wood stove overnight "muzzle down" to dry. The next morning run an alcohol patch then my favorite gun oil and put it all back together. Usually about midway through the 10 min. cleaning process my wife comes in to inform me that she needs to start dinner and would I kindly remove myself and all of that smelly sh** from her kitchen and clean up after myself. She must think she owns the

 

[muzzleloader48]

I rest my case.....2 days is 2 much.

 

[Billy-by-gosh]

It is a small hand held steamer.

https://www.bing.com/images/search?...el+steam+shot&selectedindex=9&ajaxhist=0&vt=0

I might have to get one of these for finishing up my cleaning chores...
https://www.bissell.com/steam-shot-handheld-hard-surface-steam-cleaner-39n7a

 

[Hanshi]

Hmmm...I don't remove a pinned barrel nor do I remove a liner. I remove the lock but it's rarely dirty enough to clean in water; a Q-tip and a pipe cleaner does it for me. Cold tap water and a handful of patches, assisted by denatured alcohol, WD40 and Barricade, is all I use. That hand steam cleaner sounds like great.

 

[[email protected]]

It is a small hand held steamer.

https://www.bing.com/images/search?...el+steam+shot&selectedindex=9&ajaxhist=0&vt=0

Small steamer looks like an over done tea pot. Google it plenty out there I just went with the known name and low price incase it didnt work. Sure did.