Rifle Barrel Cleaning Suggestions

T

TerFisIL

Member
I have a pre-64 Win. in .243 caliber. It's a featherweight model which I'd really like to use more than my 13 lb.+ Rem 700 varmint heavy barrel. At one time it shot pretty good...not a tack driver but plenty good enough for coyotes. Now it just doesn't group like it used to. Some time ago I bought some Hornady factory loads that use 58 gr. moly bullets A friend told me that might be the problem, moly build up. He gave me several cleaning products to use but I'm not sure what the best procedure would be.

He gave me some Kroil, Shooter's Choice Copper Remover, JB Bore cleaner and his own mix of 75% SC Copper Cleaner and 25% Kroil. Before he gave me this stuff, I did a good cleaning with all I normally use, Hoppe's number 9. What would be the best order of use for the cleaners I mentioned. Any other suggestions would be appreciated.
 
If you have used Moly coated bullets then I would suggest a cleaner that deals with Moly. Check out Bore Tech. I've used several of there chemicals and they are great. I haven't used the Moly formula though. I don't know of any other chemical that is designed for Moly.
 
I think I read where Kroil gets under the moly coating and helps lift it to where it can be removed. I just don't know if I should start with that or use the JB or what.
 
Start with the Kroil and brush then let it sit a few then patch it out. Go shoot your gun afterwards and see if it is where you think it should be.
 
Try Butch's Bore Shine, I think that will take it out without even brushing. You couldn't pay me to shoot a Moly bullet, I see no benefit at all.

And hopefully you did a thorough cleaning before shooting moly bullets. If not that will throw the accuracy off.
 
Moly cannot build up on itself.

There's other issues going on here.

Just give it a damm good cleaning, no special techniques required, moly or otherwise.

A borescope would cure a lot of these fallacies that take on a life of their own.
 
I have an Outers Electronic Foul Out bore cleaner. It wouldn't work on the moly issue but boy does it pull copper and rust from what looks to be a spotless bore...
 
Wipe out foam and patches would save you a lot of scrubbing effort and the barrel is clean when it quits showing color on the patches. Try a 2 hour soak, patch and repeat.

By the third time, it should be spotless.

I quit using brushes altogether, other than a chamber brush.
 
This is a big chore, but if you do it, you will see incredible results.

get three Hoppes bore snakes for your caliber of rifle.

get a bottle of sweets 7.62 Copper solvent.

get some 0000 steel wool

get a good powder solvent like hoppes #9.

Get some JBs Bore cleaning compound.

With the first bore snake, saturate a few inches of it with the hoppes and pull it through from bore to muzzle a few times.

With the second bore snake, wrap the bristle area with a good lot of the 0000 steel wool then apply a generous amount of the JBs bore cleaner to it and pull it through several times, 12 or 15 at least. Then do the hoppes snake again for a few pulls and re-do the 0000 steel wool on the other bore snake with fresh steel wool and JBs and pull it through another dozen times.

Then take bore snake #3 and saturate a good length of it with the sweets and pull it through three or four times. Put enough on to make sure the entire length of the bore is coated with the Sweets compound. and wait 10-15 minutes. Then put a white patch on the sweets bore snake and pull it through. It will come out blue. the copper fouling is now being loosened. repeat the sweets treatment and 10 minute wait as many times as it takes until the white patch comes out white.

Dry patch the bore several times.

Now go shoot the rifle for group. You will be amazed.

This process may take several hours, and cost you about $100.00 or so. But the rifle will shoot as good as the day it was made, probably better.

Clean all the bore snakes with brake cleaner and save them for ongoing use.

What you have done is essentially honed the bore and removed all the deep seated copper fouling that had built up since long before you started using the moly coated bullets. You will also have removed and smoothed any old burrs and tool marks from when the barrel was machined and made. And hopefully cleaned up a dirty, fouled, and fire-scorched headspace.

I Must warn you though, by doing this, you have intentionally worn the barrel slightly and taken life off of it. But, if it doesnt shoot well now, it isnt worth a darn anyways.

Am I crazy, if you dont do it you can say I am. If you do do it, I think you'll be pleased.
 
Thanks for all the ideas, guys. Some of these products I've never heard of before, that's why I posted the question. I'm going to visit a local gun shop that the owners are rifle specialists. I'm sure they'll have some of these cleaning products that were mentioned. I know you can buy them at say Midway or Brownells but the UPS shipping costs are unreasonable.

If a good cleaning doesn't improve the rifle's grouping, I won't re-barrel it. I'd like to keep it in the original pre-64 condition. Thanks to all who took time to post.

Terry
 
Sweets 7.62 solvent, give it 4-5 mins in between scrub and patch clean. Repeat until spotless. Also if you happen to have a good parker hale jag, wrap a piece of patch around it, give it a good soaking with sweets and just work the heck out of it. Sweets foams, and gels (to a point) when you do this, it tends to get in all the cracks and crevices better that way.
 
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