CLR and Chrome Moly Barrels

[FEENIX]

Ive not used it myself.I do know Erik Cortina uses CLR to clean his barrels.

I have seen his video about it. However, I am still not that desperate to try as I have yet to have a bad enough (yes, I have a borescope) barrel to resort to it. I have a couple of take-off barrels to try it on if I have to, but they, too, are not that bad.

 

[MW204]

From the company that makes CLR.

We do not recommend that CLR products be used on any metals except for chrome or stainless steel. Any 'polished' finish usually has a coating and most nickel materials are combination metals (containing zinc) and CLR products could compromise the finish.

I have been reading where Sodium Bicarbonate could be a neutralizer for CLR.

CLR® Pro Frequently Asked Questions

CLR® Pro Industrial Products Frequently Asked Questions by The Cary Company. Contact CLR direct at (800) 323-5497.

www.thecarycompany.com

 

[TXTrained]

From the company that makes CLR.

We do not recommend that CLR products be used on any metals except for chrome or stainless steel. Any 'polished' finish usually has a coating and most nickel materials are combination metals (containing zinc) and CLR products could compromise the finish.

I have been reading where Sodium Bicarbonate could be a neutralizer for CLR.

CLR® Pro Frequently Asked Questions

CLR® Pro Industrial Products Frequently Asked Questions by The Cary Company. Contact CLR direct at (800) 323-5497.

www.thecarycompany.com

Vinegar should neutralize it as well.I say Should..LOL My barrels have not got that bad where Id use it.I clean them after every match..No matter the round count..Large or Small.

 

[lyle2231]

Friends with respect to you all….
Why in the world would you use a chemical made to clean porcelain, concrete and tile
on a $400 barrel? Use Hoppe's and stiff nylon brush. Your barrel will thank you. Just my 2c.
Best regards, Lyle

 

[swampbug]

Two-part question.

For those of you that use CLR to clean the carbon out of your stainless steel barrels have you ever seen white spots in them?

For those of you that have used CLR have you seen white spots in your chrome-moly barrels like in the pic below? I've used CLR in 3 CM barrels and in 2 of them I cannot get the white spots out of the barrels. If you've had them appear in your barrel and were able to get rid of them what did you use to remove them?

I had the same white spots in a SS barrel when I first tried CLR. Freaked me out. It did not appear to be pitting but more like tiny crystal residue. I scrubbed with Iosso paste and got most out but not all. Actually firing rounds down the barrel got the rest out. The only explanation I could come up was that I did not use alcohol to get all of the CLR out and that crystal residue formed. I stopped using CLR at that point.
A

 

[Teri Anne]

Two-part question.

For those of you that use CLR to clean the carbon out of your stainless steel barrels have you ever seen white spots in them?

For those of you that have used CLR have you seen white spots in your chrome-moly barrels like in the pic below? I've used CLR in 3 CM barrels and in 2 of them I cannot get the white spots out of the barrels. If you've had them appear in your barrel and were able to get rid of them what did you use to remove them?

Back in the Army daze they recommended and issued CLP for use in cleaning our rifles and handguns. I didn't much like it then and don't use it now. To my way of thinking any multipurpose liquid that is supposed to do three things, clean, lubricate and protect most likely will not do all three things well. When the OIC of a few rifle teams we didn't use CLP, we used Hoppes #9 to clean the bore with bronze brushes followed by patches. Lubrication was done with LSA on the bolt Rem Oil on the trigger assembly and if not going to be shot for awhile a light coat of Rem Oil in the bore, which was swabbed out before the next firing. It usually took 2 or 3 fouling shots for the barrel to settle back in to a nice tight group. All of our rifle barrels were chrome-moly and never experienced any white specks in the barrels after cleaning. We did however use the CLP that came in OD Green plastic bottles, not the commercial stuff. Later I learned that there were different formulations of CLP put out by different manufacturers. Not all that is called CLP is the real thing. I don't use it much preferring Hoppe's and Rem Oil.

 

[adam32+P]

Back in the Army daze they recommended and issued CLP for use in cleaning our rifles and handguns. I didn't much like it then and don't use it now. To my way of thinking any multipurpose liquid that is supposed to do three things, clean, lubricate and protect most likely will not do all three things well. When the OIC of a few rifle teams we didn't use CLP, we used Hoppes #9 to clean the bore with bronze brushes followed by patches. Lubrication was done with LSA on the bolt Rem Oil on the trigger assembly and if not going to be shot for awhile a light coat of Rem Oil in the bore, which was swabbed out before the next firing. It usually took 2 or 3 fouling shots for the barrel to settle back in to a nice tight group. All of our rifle barrels were chrome-moly and never experienced any white specks in the barrels after cleaning. We did however use the CLP that came in OD Green plastic bottles, not the commercial stuff. Later I learned that there were different formulations of CLP put out by different manufacturers. Not all that is called CLP is the real thing. I don't use it much preferring Hoppe's and Rem Oil.

CLP is different, it actually seems to work okay.

The thread is about CLR...the stuff made to clean shower heads and toilets.

 

[Willys]

Have used CLR on stainless without issue.

Carbon can be a pain. CLR, FreeAll, C4 , JB's, Losso all are tools to consider. My goto is one of the above then short stroke freebore with a worn bronze brush wrapped with medium bronze wool.

Also usually anyone that mentions nylon brushes usually does not use a borescope.

 

[Gater]

I saw multiple posts from various forums using CLR many years ago, but I cannot make myself do it, as I have not experienced a bad enough barrel to resort to it. What have you done to clean it thus far, so others do not provide you with what you have already tried? Have you tried scrubbing with bronze brass?

Never heard of it and personally wouldn't recommend putting any kind of acid in a rifle barrel

 

[Beluebow]

Also usually anyone that mentions nylon brushes usually does not use a borescope.

 

[swandme686]

I saw multiple posts from various forums using CLR many years ago, but I cannot make myself do it, as I have not experienced a bad enough barrel to resort to it. What have you done to clean it thus far, so others do not provide you with what you have already tried? Have you tried scrubbing with bronze brass?

JB bore paste and Kroil is king for me and the vast majority of F-Class and bench rest shooters

Watch Eric Cortina for the details

 

[FEENIX]

JB bore paste and Kroil is king for me and the vast majority of F-Class and bench rest shooters

Watch Eric Cortina for the details

I am not sure why you are quoting me, I am not the one having an issue.

 

[RuninL8]

How does it shoot?

Borescopes cause more "issues" than they solve.

A "cheap" borescope can cause more problems for sure. Listen I've been there but these flexible plug-in to your phone 30 dollar on line specials won't cut it. This is high dollar custom barrel and you can see before and after hand lapping. You can see where all kinds of lint and little glints from a sub-par borescope.

 

[RuninL8]

Also, CLR is awesome if used correctly, I see people use it and then do not clean with alcohol after. It's also important to remember not all blueing or metal for that matter is created equal. I've seen very benign chemicals take blueing right off, to the point where I have to re-blue, not cool.