OzFclass

Hi,

Can anyone please tell me if cleaning the barrel with a bronze brush does any damage. I have a new barrel fitted on my rifle so I do not want to ruin it. I was told once that using a bronze brush will remove any glazing that forms in it. I wonder if using a nylon brush is better or maybe a combination of the two.

BC

I use one on my 6mm, it's getting easier to clean as the more I use it. Heck and I think it shoots better aswell.

I use a bronze to clean out the 'soot', wet patch it to clean out any debris, patch it dry then scrub with a nylon brush and Eliminator - then patch it dry.

Nope! I do all the "bad" things like running the brush back over the crown etc etc and havent seen any evidence of reduced accuracy.

BC wrote:Hi, Can anyone please tell me if cleaning the barrel with a bronze brush does any damage. BC

Lengthwise no, radially maybe. Take an offcut of barrel, twirl a copper brush around radially and look with a borescope.

"Lengthwise no, radially maybe"

I am sorry but I do not understand this sentence. Can you please explain. Thanks BC

I do get that either. The steel is the same grade no matter why way it's impacted. The way I see it, if Short Rangr BR shooters are fine using them, then why not us? They require a greater accuracy then us.

you cant see the scratches from copper brushes when used down the bore but you can see them when you twirl a brush radially.
Try it in an offcut of barrel and view through a borescope.

Will the barrel wear out quicker using a bronze brush for cleaning?
BC

James, your posts always seem to be very brief, I know you are very knowledgeable, but at times, your responses dont seem to get your message across.

So, are you saying using a bronze brush, damages the rifling? Who, would rotate a brush radially without moving through the bore. Yes, most would understand, spinning a brush, in one spot could cause damage, but does following the rifling, also cause damage?

Your valuable expertise, in this area would be appreciated.

Cheers
Danny S

BC wrote:Will the barrel wear out quicker using a bronze brush for cleaning? BC

IMO, no.

DannyS wrote:James, your posts always seem to be very brief,
So, are you saying using a bronze brush, damages the rifling? Who, would rotate a brush radially without moving through the bore.

Apologies for being brief, result of being beaten up on forums years ago,,,
Bronze brush doesn't damage the rifling per se but it can scratch it.
This is hard to see because the rifling and scratches are both longitudinal.
Best test is a piece of cutoff barrel one inch long, start by scrubbing with the lands,
borescope with good external light source should pickup the marks if the brush is new.
Otherwise, twirl the brush radially and you will definitely see the marks.
My final experiment was to run-in two new barrels, one with copper brush, one with nylon.
Both barrels were good but I found the latter barrel cleaned easier and I seemed to shoot better with it.
My conclusion was I didn't need the copper brush to keep the barrel clean.
Regarding glazing of the barrel in the leade, I've found cleaning the barrel at the end of each days shooting assists in not letting the glaze build up
and an application of Iosso bore cleaner every 150+ rounds removes the carbon far easier than a copper brush.

Good bore solvent also do a great job with out abrasive brushes let the product do the work more barrels are damaged through over brushing and poor technique with the rod or not using a good bore guide.
RB

Thanks James,appreciate the info.

Cheers
Danny

James,

Thanks for that info. I for one wont beat you up on a forum for your opinion. I used to think that the bronze brushes would harm my bore, and ive started using them and havent seen any issues so far. My barrel has gotten easier to clean since I started using Bronze brushes.