OzFclass

AlanF wrote:

RDavies wrote:...My barrels are all left with Hoppes soaking in them until the next shoot...

Rod,

Do you use standard Hoppes No 9 or the No 9 Bench Rest version? I seem to remember conflicting opinions on a US forum discussion about whether it is safe to leave the Bench Rest version in the bore during storage, and some even said the standard version shouldn't either. If you've been doing it for while without evidence of damage, then that would useful to know. Maybe others can chime in?

I have mainly used the Hoppes 9 and have left it in all of my good barrels for months at a time. It does dry out to a thick gummy consistency but has never caused any issues. I have left the Hoppes Benchrest soaking for a few days or weeks at a time as well without issues when viewed with the borescope.

I have tried leaving some Boretech solvents (eliminator and C4 carbon cleaner) soaking in some old barrels and the barrels rusted and pitted after a few days.

Thanks Rod and Alan. In my opinion barrel cleaning technique is generally underrated as to its importance in our game. It isn't the most glamorous part of our sport but can make a huge difference if you get it wrong.

Barrel cleaning is one of the most misunderstood areas in any form of shooting in my opinion. The amount of ruined barrels that have crossed my bench in 40 years of gunsmithing that have been ruined by neglect would stagger you!!!! Over the years I have used many barrel solvents & oils, most of these I have discarded. These days I do all my cleaning & storing using 3 products, I do use a 4th product on rare occasions. It is often not so much what you use but how you use it too.
Keith H.

Keith you failed to tell us what the products are.

Until just a couple of weeks ago, I didn't take that much regard for cleaning. Just a, what I know now to be a complimentary pass with a spear jag would do. My groups had slowly gone to shit over the last 6 month's until I met up with my brother in law down at Wingham. In absolutely perfect conditions, I was lucky to keep it the 4 ring. I was done with this barrel. I had tried everything else. New sling, new glove, changed position that many times I lost count. Bob had. A look up the barrel with his bore scope, turned around an basically give me a clip around the ears and showed me how to clean a barrel properly. Now, in my defence, this was first brand new barrel, now 18 months old, and I was following the pamphlet that the gunsmith gave me on how he wanted his barrels cleaned.
Now it's boiling water down the barrel to heat it up. We patch of eliminator and then scrub the shit out it with a nylon brush and eliminator until you can short stroke it in the first 6". Clean patch and flush with metho. Then do the same with hoppes until you can get clean dry patches.
My groups have gone from where I going to throw this barrel in the bin, to what you see below. This is the 2nd 10 shot group from a Clean barrel. The first being a possible as well, but this was a lot better group to take a photo of. Remember that this group was shot from a sling and jacket.

I saw over on accurate shooter about using CLR. I happened to have a rifle sitting on the work bench that I was about to use JB to remove a carbon ring so I gave CLR a go. Half a dozen strokes with a wet patch, let it sit for 30min, clean out and carbon ring gone. I should have taken photos from the bore scope....

If you wanted to get ALL the carbon out you could buy a 1m long ultrasonic tank with a heater, unscrew the barrel and place it in some aqueous solution for a few minutes, rinse with boiling water and repeat as needed.

I think a little carbon is ok, personally, and just bronze brush a little to stop a buildup into a carbon ring...

I clean every 50rds. Hoppes and a Bronze Brush then nylon and then let it soak. And then repeat as needed. Letting it go 100 plus rounds I've found it triples thr cleaning time the next time you clean so I dont. And with the use of blow off shots, why wouldn't you clean to ensure repeatability with your barrel.