Precision Rifle Cleaning Tips Anyone.

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IwantanM14

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I just picked up my new Remington 700P with a harris Bi-pod I addedd and a Nightforce 5.5x22 scope.

I hope to have a range report up in the next 3 weeks, if I ever get the time to shoot, but before I clean the barrel for the range, I wanted to get some basic cleaning tips that surpass what I know about cleaning my old C7.

So far, the big one I was told was a single piece bore rod. I was told to get one with a rubberized coating to reduce any wear on the barrel, but I picked up a graphite one instead of a rubberized one I was told was as good. Any opinions??

I have been told, and picked up, a guide for pushing the rod down the barrel and can assume still important to be pushing the road the same way the bullet travels down the barrel.

I also have the type of Patch holder that pushes the patch down the barrel, instead of hooking into the brass.

Lastly, do I still want to use an abbrasive metal bore brush to clean the barrel or just Lube?

This is all i really have to go off, if anyone wants to throw any tips my way before I fire my first shot, please don't hesitate. Im not bent on the whole fire clean fire clean method, as there is nothing to prove or disprove this. im just going to zero it and fire my MOA groupings with plenty of time to cool the barrel in between groupings.

The plan is to go out with about 5-10 different types Match grade rounds to see what sort of MOA I get at 100m. Hope to have enough cash to bring a box of each to get a couple 3 round groupings of each type of ammo.

Next, the plan will be to send it in for a Jewel Trigger and Glass bedding once the barrel proves worthy of anymore expendetures.

Any thoughts an opinions appreciated. Pics to come.
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Browning 9mm HiPower
Sig 226R 9mm
Glock 22 .40Cal

CZ SKS
M14S
Rugar 1022
Remington 700P
Rob Arms XCR 5.56 w/ 7.62x39 Conversion kit
 
Get a good bore cleaner/cooper solvent, Shooter Choice , Sweet's 7.62, Barnes etc. Use snug fitting patches with a jag. If you want to use a brush on the bore get the nylon ones. I never put a bronze or stainless bush down my barrel, Stay away from a boresnake.

Since I an rather lazy when it comes to cleaning I like foaming bore cleaners. I also do not believe that you need to clean your bore until the groups open up. Yes I have gone over 800 rounds before cleaning and still won matches.

The bedding screw holes on a Remington come up through the action. Solvent and or oil can creep down between the stock and action. This will cause the rifle to hose the target, make sure this area is clean and oil free.

Good luck finding 10-15 types of match ammo to try out, you will be lucky if you find 3 types of match ammo. That is not to say that hunting ammo will not produce MOA at 100 yards. For the price of about 10 boxes (200 rounds) of match ammo you can set yourself up with a nice reloading kit.

You can also get your Remington trigger tuned for about $50.
 
Good quality 100% cotton patches cut to the correct size should not be over looked. When I'm applying solvent to the bore rather than using a nylon brush I soak a patch in the solvent, then using a bore guide, always use a bore guide, and starting from the chamber I advance the rod in a back and forth motion advancing the rod an inch or so each time I push it forward. This ensures a good coating of solvent on all bore surfaces. If I'm using an ammonia based solvent like Sweets, I plug the muzzle and the bore guide with a wet patch which prevents air flow and prevents the solvent from evaporating and allows the solvent to work a bit longer before patching it out. When an ammonia based solvent evaporates that's when barrel damage occurs, so guard against it by always patching your barrel dry and you might even chase the dry patch with one soaked in alcohol to remove any residue from the solvent. Once your bore is clean, and you are no longer getting color on your patches, use a good grade of gun oil to protect the bore. I apply it the same way that I apply the solvent, then follow with a couple of dry patches and we're done. I tend to clean more often than some guys, every 50 rounds when I can manage it, as cleaning more often means less use of chemical and shorter periods of mechanical cleaning at any one time, so potentially there is less chance of barrel damage through careless procedures if one begins to get frustrated from hours of attempting to get a badly fouled bore back to bare metal. I also champion the use of foaming bore cleaners like WipeOut. Put the stuff in at bedtime, patch it out when you get up and if the bore is not too badly fouled, you'll be good to go. I have noticed though that quite often if I check the bore with Sweets after using WipeOut, I still get color on the patch, so quite often I'll finish up with Sweets.

Lately I've been considering the purchase of an ultra sonic gun cleaning system such as those manufactured by Crest. I bought some of the ultrasonic cleaning solution and lubricant from Brownells and cleaned a few handguns in my small bench top ultrasonic cleaner and the results were fast and amazingly good. These units are very expensive however and I'm dragging my feet a bit because I want to make sure that I can get enough local guns to clean to make it affordable. I figure I need about 100 guns per year at an average of $30 per long gun and $20 per handgun.
 
I like Dewey cleaning rods and Lucas bore guides:
http://www.6mmbr.com/catalog/item/1433308/954882.htm

You'll get a lot of varying opinions of cleaning technique and whether or not you should use a brush. I always use a bronze brush and find it beneficial. Also use KG-2 every 500-1000 rounds. Have not had a need to use a dedicated copper solvent in years and accurate life of my barrels is very high. Like Maynard, I don't clean very often unless I'm doing testing or changing to a load that uses a different powder.
 
A well known quite successful shooter/gunsmith and now an instructor posted this on his website...

S.G.&Y. BARREL BREAK-IN & CLEANING INSTRUCTIONS

Many of our customers upon taking delivery of their new gun or barrel are in a quandary as how to go about breaking-in that new barrel for maximum life and accuracy. With so much written in magazines these days stating use this, don't use that, brush, don't brush...what's a person to do?? At S.G.&Y Precision, we have a unique opportunity to inspect many barrels on a daily basis with our video borescope. Consequently, we see the results of a variety of break-in as well as cleaning procedures, and most of them leave the rifle owners with their mouth agape when they see the fruits of their misinformed labor on our color monitor. We have seen practically new barrels ruined with less than a hundred rounds shot through them by some of the crazy and sometimes humorous break-in methods. Anyway here goes for what it's worth.

Bore guides - If you don't have one get one! Without a good bore guide you are just wasting your time trying to break-in a barrel or cleaning it for that matter. More barrels are destroyed by cleaning without a bore guide than by shooting. There are many types and brands of bore guides available on the market and range in price from $5.00 to $50.00. The only one we recommend is the Lucas two-piece bore guide. They are the best insurance you can buy for that new barrel. All other bore guides in my opinion are only good for keeping the solvents out of the trigger and action.

Solvents - We recommend Sweets 7.62 for copper and a solvent mix of our own (Actually Pat McMlllan gave me this formula) for powder fouling and for cleaning/storing your gun for the next match or season. This Speedy Formula is made as follows: Mix 2/3rds Hoppes # 9 Plus Black Powder solvent with 1/3rd Regular Hoppes # 9 Nitro solvent. Let this mixture set overnight and it will form a sort of gel that adheres very well to the brush and cuts powder fouling to a minimum. Note: Butches Boreshine may be substituted for this Speedy formula.

Procedure for "Break-in"- Before firing that first shot, clean the barrel as if it had been shot by following these simple steps:

Step1 - Insert Lucas bore guide into receiver and chamber. If you don't have one stop here and get one, if not, just shoot your gun and forget trying to take any care of your barrel at all. If you do have one, proceed and give yourself an "At-A-Boy" for being astute enough to have purchased the proper tools for the job. Note: One "Aw-####" wipes out all your "At-A-Boys".

Step 2 - Run one wet patch of Sweets through the bore and let soak for approximately 30 seconds. Do not patch this out.

Step 3 – Next, run the brush through the barrel only enough to expose the entire brush. Yes, I know that you still have 12 more inches of cleaning rod you could push out the end of your barrel but we want to protect that new crown. Also. if that rod hangs out that far, you will eventually start wearing down the rifling at the crown from about 4 to 7 o'clock. This is very bad "JU-JU" for accuracy. OK, back to our next step. Once the brush is exposed, saturate it well with our Speedy Formula or Butch's Boreshine and SLOWLY run the brush through the bore 10 complete back and forth passes while keeping the rod as straight as possible. This is when the Lucas bore guide really pays for itself. Remember, the key word is slowly. We are not trying to break any speed records. Let this sit a minute or two and proceed to the next step.

Step 4 - After you have let the barrel soak for a few moments, saturate a patch with the Speedy Formula or Butch's Boreshine and pass it through the bore. Follow this with 2 dry patches and then dry the chamber with Brake Kleen or lighter fluid. Next, gently wipe the crown off with a soft cloth and lube your bolt (lets not gall the lugs just yet). Now. your ready to shoot your first shot. Then follow the schedule below to complete your barrel break-in.

1. Clean barrel / lube bolt / 1 shot.

2. Clean barrel / lube bolt / 5 shots.

3. Clean barrel / lube bolt / 10 shots.

4. Clean barrel / lube bolt /10 to 15 shots and clean again.

Additional Cleaning Tips

Each time you clean you may also follow the last dry patch with a patch soaked with LOCK-EEZ. This is a graphite powder suspended in a quick evaporating carrier that coats the bore slightly before passing that first round through a completely dry bore.

We are always asked about powder fouling and how to remove it. The only product that we have seen that really does a good job on powder fouling, especially on the carbon ring that forms just ahead of where the neck ends in the chamber, is IOSSO Bore Paste. This is used with a Pro-Shot nylon bristle brush and worked slowly in the neck and throat areas, then slowly down the entire bore. Follow this up with a few wet patches, then dry the bore as usual. and your ready to shoot.

Follow the outline above for your regular cleaning program and I promise that your barrels will deliver their greatest accuracy and life without a lot of grief and hours of wondering if they are clean.

Good Shooting,

Speedy Gonzalez
 
I find it humerous reading everyones magic methods of do this don't do that. It's fun to read the superstitious b.s. sometimes. I suppose I even have my own that others would laugh at.
First I hate spending any more time cleaning than I absolutely have to , i'd rather be out getting it dirty.
When I go to clean it (rifle) I tilt the barrell down a bit and secure the rifle so it,ll sit on its own. The bolt is removed and I squirt a foaming cleaner in, usually a white and yellow can of Barrell blaster and I go up stairs.
The next day I go back down stairs to finish the job. I have a one piece carbon, rod and a piece that holds patches. Specific sizes for the different calibers. I soak the patch with Hoppes 9 and push it down the barrell (only down), remove the patch and put a clean one through, remove the patch and put a wet one through, then a clean one. Usually doing this 5-6 times gets me a very clean barrell, not perfect but I don't plan on cleaning it to death and have no intentions of putting more patches down the barrell than bullets.
I only want the dirt, carbon, crud, shavings, what ever going out the far end of the rifle I don't want anything coming back in the direction of the action and depositing garbage in my action. I realize some people clean till they're perfectly clean but I like my "almost clean" barrell I get good results for me this way.

This pic the result of 5 shots from a new barrell "almost" clean.
over 100 shots under 150 through it.

Reloader17groupA.jpg


M.
 
Thanks for all the tips guys. Its funny to think that when I have at least one core belief to go off, such as of course Im going to use CLP, everyone else starts talking about solvents and others stuff I have never thought about, thus putting me back 3 feet after gaining 1!

Ill go read up on some gun lubes tonight and should be good to clean my barrel out for this weekend. Thanks again, its good to be able to post a topic with some good results!
 
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