how to clean a Mosin?
- Thread starter mardig88
- Start date
After shooting go home and put a kettle of water on the stove. When it boils you remove the bolt from the rifle, and pour the water carefully down the bore. Then pour some over the bolt whilst it is in the sink. After the rifle cools down, clean as normal. The boiling water will wash the salts out and the boiling water dries instantly.
Plenty of advice here if you do a search.
There are a million ways to clean a rifle after shooting corrosively primed ammo, but most guys just use a funnel to pour boiling hot water down the chamber and down the barrel within a few hours of firing, and then follow that up with a normal cleaning process.
Me, I just forget about the water and use break-free CLP (it's what the military uses), and I have yet to see any corrosion at all in my Mosin or my SKS after hundreds of rounds and long periods of storage. My barrels are still pristine.
There are a million ways to clean a rifle after shooting corrosively primed ammo, but most guys just use a funnel to pour boiling hot water down the chamber and down the barrel within a few hours of firing, and then follow that up with a normal cleaning process.
Me, I just forget about the water and use break-free CLP (it's what the military uses), and I have yet to see any corrosion at all in my Mosin or my SKS after hundreds of rounds and long periods of storage. My barrels are still pristine.
You would do better to use a commercial rod and attachments rather than rely on the rod that comes with it, which is really only suitable in a pinch not least because you will find it's only long enough to use it from the muzzle end (which is what the knurled cap is for). There should also be a tommy bar and a cleaning rod sleeve. No doubt someone round here will come up with a picture of what it all looks like put together.
There is also the WW2 GI Rifle Bore Cleaner which is still around and which will work fine (dry it out afterwards and oil up, though)
http://7.62x54r.net/MosinID/MosinAcc.htm
There is also the WW2 GI Rifle Bore Cleaner which is still around and which will work fine (dry it out afterwards and oil up, though)
http://7.62x54r.net/MosinID/MosinAcc.htm
PerversPépère
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Shawinigan (Quebec)
I would refrain from using the issued cleaning kit: it has ruined more rifle crowns than anything else because the troops neglected using the muzzle cap. Besides, it is quite rudimentary.
Instead, get the longest stainless one-piece cleaning rod you can buy and good 303 British brushes. This should do.
You need a very long rod because it is best to do all your cleaning from the breech end. That way you won't run the risk of the rod contacting the crown.
If you can't do it from the breech end, try at least to use a crown protecting device that will center your rod into the bore.
Corrosive ammo deposits are best disposed of by hot water flushing followed by conventional cleaning.
Always do the boiling water trick BEFORE you clean and oil the bore.
Boiling water will rid your bore of any salts and of some other deposits if you put a few drops of dishwashing detergent in that water.
The hotter it is the fastest it will dry. Just don't forget to clean and oil the parts after that.
It's that easy.
PP.
Instead, get the longest stainless one-piece cleaning rod you can buy and good 303 British brushes. This should do.
You need a very long rod because it is best to do all your cleaning from the breech end. That way you won't run the risk of the rod contacting the crown.
If you can't do it from the breech end, try at least to use a crown protecting device that will center your rod into the bore.
Corrosive ammo deposits are best disposed of by hot water flushing followed by conventional cleaning.
Always do the boiling water trick BEFORE you clean and oil the bore.
Boiling water will rid your bore of any salts and of some other deposits if you put a few drops of dishwashing detergent in that water.
The hotter it is the fastest it will dry. Just don't forget to clean and oil the parts after that.
It's that easy.
PP.
PerversPépère
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Shawinigan (Quebec)
Yes. I too think it's overkill, in a bolt action at least.
Maybe a simple wiping down of the bolt's face with a damp cloth, followed by proper oiling would suffice?
PP.
First off - the supplied cleaning kit is cr@p.
If you get stuck out in the woods and have shot corrosive ammo, and are now looking at 5 weeks without a chance to clean it, then ok, use the milsurp kit. Otherwise, don't bother. You'll most likely damage your gun using that kit, either through damaging the rifling and muzzle, or through not being able to clean the gun properly and having the bore rust and pit.
Using a good commercial kit, I do the following with my nagant when I shoot corrosive.
1) remove the wood stock.
2) brush the bore quickly, and rinse the brush in hot water. Usually this frees up a lot of the crud in the bore.
3)Get a plastic funnel, put it in the bore, pour boiling water down the barrel. Pour as much as you like - the more water the better. Wear oven mits!!!! The barrel gets very very hot (boiling).
4) scrub the bore with both a brass brush, and a cleaning jag with cloth. On a newly bought mosin, it could take a long long time to get the barrel clean. Having several brass brushes and lots of paper towels and small pieces of cloth to swab the barrel out with will help a lot.
Remember, with a brush, push it ALL the way through, then reverse direction when it is out of the bore. If you push the brush half way, stop, then pull it back it can jam up in there, and possibly damage the bore... or at least just get really really stuck.
5) If you want, scrub the bolt assy and reciever with hot water in case any corrossive salts have gotten on them.
6) re-oil the bolt, trigger assy, bore, and all exposed metal surfaces to avoid rusting.
DONE!
I may be overly cautious, but I like cleaning my guns, so I don't mind.
If you get stuck out in the woods and have shot corrosive ammo, and are now looking at 5 weeks without a chance to clean it, then ok, use the milsurp kit. Otherwise, don't bother. You'll most likely damage your gun using that kit, either through damaging the rifling and muzzle, or through not being able to clean the gun properly and having the bore rust and pit.
Using a good commercial kit, I do the following with my nagant when I shoot corrosive.
1) remove the wood stock.
2) brush the bore quickly, and rinse the brush in hot water. Usually this frees up a lot of the crud in the bore.
3)Get a plastic funnel, put it in the bore, pour boiling water down the barrel. Pour as much as you like - the more water the better. Wear oven mits!!!! The barrel gets very very hot (boiling).
4) scrub the bore with both a brass brush, and a cleaning jag with cloth. On a newly bought mosin, it could take a long long time to get the barrel clean. Having several brass brushes and lots of paper towels and small pieces of cloth to swab the barrel out with will help a lot.
Remember, with a brush, push it ALL the way through, then reverse direction when it is out of the bore. If you push the brush half way, stop, then pull it back it can jam up in there, and possibly damage the bore... or at least just get really really stuck.
5) If you want, scrub the bolt assy and reciever with hot water in case any corrossive salts have gotten on them.
6) re-oil the bolt, trigger assy, bore, and all exposed metal surfaces to avoid rusting.
DONE!
I may be overly cautious, but I like cleaning my guns, so I don't mind.
Pouring boiling water down the barrel works, but is largely unnecessary. You're just sweeping out salts left behind from the primer. The water will do this, of course, but so will running a couple of wet patches with your favorite cleaning solvent.
I find a bottle of solvent and a boresnake or a few patches to be a bit more convenient than using the stove, but that's just me.
I find a bottle of solvent and a boresnake or a few patches to be a bit more convenient than using the stove, but that's just me.
As others have said hot water with a funnel works best.
It gets into every grove in the bore and flushes the salts right out of the barrel.
I then dry the parts down with a cloth and patches through the bore using the original cleaning kits rod, brush and jag (with the muzzle cap).
And then use G96 spray on all the parts or I'll use Ballistol instead if I have any left.
It gets into every grove in the bore and flushes the salts right out of the barrel.
I then dry the parts down with a cloth and patches through the bore using the original cleaning kits rod, brush and jag (with the muzzle cap).
And then use G96 spray on all the parts or I'll use Ballistol instead if I have any left.
"...so will running a couple of wet patches with your favorite cleaning solvent..." No it won't. Regular solvents are for carbon, copper and sometimes lead. They won't clean the primer salts out of the wee cracks in the barrel. The water doesn't have to be boiling hot either though.
Mind you, the CF issued nothing but regular motor oil to clean everything, for eons. Up until the early 80's, CF Cadets used W.W. II vintage .303 ball ammo(fabulous stuff too. Much better than the IVI issued after about 1982.). Motor oil worked just fine.
Mind you, the CF issued nothing but regular motor oil to clean everything, for eons. Up until the early 80's, CF Cadets used W.W. II vintage .303 ball ammo(fabulous stuff too. Much better than the IVI issued after about 1982.). Motor oil worked just fine.
