Bore brushing--yes or no?

[specweldtom]

I stopped using bore brushes awhile back to protect the crowns, but am not sure it was a good move. I just wet and dry patch now. The barrel makers I have checked on have brushing in their recommended cleaning procedure.

What do shooters on this site think? Tom

 

[johnnyk]

Spec,
I used a under-sized, nylon brush with a patch wrapped around it. For .284 cal barrel I'd use .264 brush. I run 3-4 through (chamber to muzzle) to get most of the fouling out and the rest "lubed" up. Then I use the brush/patch combo with copper remover as necessary. With the copper remover I work the brush/patch back and forth the length of the barrel, usually about 10 passes per patch. This is done until the patch stops "blueing".
This is probably more work than most folks like to do, but it works for me. Some barrels take longer than others depending on their internal smoothness. With my "worst" barrel I use 3-4 for powder fouling and then 10 with copper remover. My best barrel takes half that many. Hope this helps. JohnnyK.

 

[Bravo 4]

I use an undersized brush with a patch as well for just routine cleaning after a shooting session. Every once in a while I run a brush through it, it seems to get a little more out then just patching.

 

[Lightvarmint]

I stopped using bore brushes awhile back to protect the crowns, but am not sure it was a good move. I just wet and dry patch now. The barrel makers I have checked on have brushing in their recommended cleaning procedure.

What do shooters on this site think? Tom

I put muzzle brakes on almost everything now so that the crown is protected when the rifle is barrel down in a vehicle during transport. Additionally, most muzzle brakes keep the bore brush centered with the barrel bore and prevent crown damage during cleaning.

James

 

[Varmint Hunter]

I don't own a bore scope but some of the shooters that do have claimed that the hardest area of the bore to get clean is the 90 degree corner where the lands meet the grooves. If this is true, it would seem that using a stiff brass/bronze brush would be the most effective method of attacking the fouling in such a tight crevice.

 

[scsims]

I haven't had to use a brush since I began using Wipe Out.

 

[Moman]

I used to struggle with different solvents and copper cleaners, and burned through many bronze and nylon brushes trying to keep bores clean. Recently I started using Wipe Out and that seems to work great. No more brushing, just soak barrel and push a couple patches with a jag. It's amazing the gunk that this gets out of a barrel. One thing I have noticed is that it does take a couple of days to get clean. Another member suggested to use the Wipe Out Accelerator along with this. I have some on order and apparently this will decrease the cleaning time.

 

[Varmint Hunter]

I use Wipe-Out and WO Accelerator from time to time. A buddy that has a borescope told me that when you leave Wipe-Out in the bore overnight that the foam settles in the bottom half of the bore and cleans the bottom half of the bore much better than the upper half.

He suggested that I always foam the bore twice, and that the rifle be inverted for the second application. Makes sense but who would have thought of that?

 

[Lime Dawg]

If you go on over to www.6mmbr.com, look down the left of the homepage for the barrel heading and then click on that. There is a lot more info on there than you could ever want from top shooters and barrel makers. It seems as though opinions differ greatly and there is no definitive answer.

 

[Armed in Utah]

Nylon brushes

Are all I use...use 'em wet...Butches or BR9......Pac Nors...Tikka & Savage barrels are what I shoot....

 

[specweldtom]

Good stuff. Thanks to all.

Dawg, thanks for the link.

Tom

 

[Moman]

He suggested that I always foam the bore twice, and that the rifle be inverted for the second application. Makes sense but who would have thought of that?[/quote]

Varmint Hunter. That's great info. My 15 year old son suggested this to me the other day. He asked me why I didn't rotate the gun while cleaning and told me I was probably only cleaning half of the bore. I'll try this next time.

 

[Rimfire]

I also use wipe out on a regular basis BUT It is not the cure all. If you only use wipe out you will run into problems at some point. CARBON will creep up and bit you. For wipe out only users, when you start to get FPS gains along with pressure you can bet there will be a carbon ring forming. At that point a brush and Tech or similar product is the only solution. I limit brushing But use it every so often. I have also noticed carbon problems come quicker with Reloader powders.

 

[scsims]

I also use wipe out on a regular basis BUT It is not the cure all. If you only use wipe out you will run into problems at some point. CARBON will creep up and bit you. For wipe out only users, when you start to get FPS gains along with pressure you can bet there will be a carbon ring forming. At that point a brush and Tech or similar product is the only solution. I limit brushing But use it every so often. I have also noticed carbon problems come quicker with Reloader powders.

I don't have a bore scope so I can't speak from experience but I talked with the guy at wipe out the other day because I had white residue left in the barrel, turned out it was just dried up wipe out that I left in too long. But he said that carbon is the most difficult type of fouling to remove but wipe out is supposed to remove it. But like I said I can't say from experience.