Cleaning Rods

[Daddio!]

Dumb blonde question. SInce when did using a soft metal such as aluminmum, brass or teflon coated rod cause damage to hardened steel?
Innocent

I really hesitate to get into the great debate but here goes...

The thinking is that the soft metal & coated rods can pick up abrasives that can damage to the bore. I have a Dewey and have used it for years without a problem (that I'm aware of). But I do wipe it off each time I pull it back out of the barrel. I also have a hard stainless rod that I tend to use more often than the Dewey these days for whatever reason. I also use a pull through that I thread through a muzzle protector (like Trent does) for non-bolt action rifles (semi-autos, slide actions, levers etc).

I've been reading Bill Calfee's book lately and he wonders in more than one article how much more accurate position shooter's rifles might be if they cleaned their barrels more often. He's referring to X-count and not necessarily numerical score. I won't get into the big long technical details but he says that even hand-lapped match grade barrels can have small lead deposits in the last several inches of the barrel that can degrade accuracy. This is possibly due to some ammo running out of lube by the time the slug reaches the end of the barrel. He highly recommends at least running a couple of dry patches through the bore immediately after shooting to minimize these minute lead deposits but says once the lead deposits are there, patches won't completely remove them and a good fitting brush and solvent need to be used. Then there's the carbon ring that gradually builds up in front of the chamber and can eventually size the lead slug causing a decrease in accuracy. He says that each rifle is different regarding how quickly the carbon ring builds to the point where accuracy suffers but notes that the ring is already beginning to form after the first shot through a clean barrel.

All that said, I honestly don't know what to think anymore. I've shot my best BR score ever with a barrel that had several hundred rounds of various brands of ammo through it. On the other hand I've also shot some excellent BR scores through a totally clean barrel too. I think it's best for one to determine what cleaning regimen works best for their particular barrel and go with it. I'm sure there are some factory barrels with rougher bores that may shoot better filthy while other match grade barrels may shoot better clean.

Okay, my head hurts now....back to bed!

[Innocent]

The thinking is that the soft metal & coated rods can pick up abrasives that can damage to the bore.

Now here we go...I equate the running of abrasives through your barrel (including ammo that has been dropped or exposed to grit) with P poor planning, like going to the beach on a romantic date without the pinic blanket (at the very least).

Yes if you run abrasives through your barrels you are going to have problems. Although I agree and have observed the same as you Daddio, some great groups through dirty barrels and soem great groups through barrels cleaned at least every 40 shots (back in my prone days I watched some clean between every 20 for record target)...so what ever works best for you and your equipment.

Innocent Mary

[hambone49]

This debate could go on forever. But if you have the appropriate type jag you can use a 17 or 20

Plus Huey's rods get double duty. I once saw him put four hotdogs and seven marshmallows on his at our last cookout.

[atomicbrh]

Hambone49's reply above is the reason I love steelchickens. The most technical, hotly debated issue in Smallbore is quickly reduced to caveman cooking. Thanks Hambone. That was hilarious.

Bobby R. Huddleston

[Jason]

It's obvious here that opinions, even among the best of the games that require more accuracy than ours, differs quite a lot. I shot benchrest before I came to silhouette and learned what I could from those fine shooters before I left. For absolute top notch accuracy, I usually get it between shot 8 or so and about 50 after a complete and thorough cleaning. This depends on barrel and ammo, but that's a good general rule. That thorough cleaning is done with a high quality cleaning rod, jag, bore guide, patches, and solvent. Accuracy can be brought mostly back by cleaning the breech face, bolt face, chamber, and about four inches of the barrel in from the chamber. Only very rarely is a brush needed, and a nylon brush will usually do the job given the right solvent, which is as mild as possible that will still do the job. That said, with the lesser accuracy demands of the silhouette game, I think the mental focus is better left on the targets during the matches instead of on cleaning, even on days with more than one 60-shot match with the same rifle. I have been known to clean between days on multi-day tournaments, though, when I am sure I'll get plenty of sight-in time on the following day.

Opinions vary just as much about cleaning rods as everything else, but I have now gone almost exclusively to carbon fiber rods. Coated rods pick up everything and the coatings come off anything they touch hard metal. Non-coated rods of metals softer than steel bend easily with not a lot of pressure to touch the bore and stay bent if they are bent much at all. Uncoated steel will bend slightly with decent pressure and is too hard to be shoving down a bore, even with a quality bore guide, not to mention the risk of it rubbing the crown (the worst place!) should the jag go half an inch too far and exit the muzzle uncontrolled. The carbon fiber rods don't pick up grit, are easily wiped cleaned, and don't stay bent unless you bend the thing so much (like accidentally dropping a dumbell on it, ugh) that it breaks. While they do bend slightly like steel, it's not so hard as to damage the bore like uncoated steel. My current favorites are Tipton rods, as they are made well with easy grip handles and great bearings for smooth rotation. I'm always open for recommendations if anyone knows of better carbon fiber rods, though. I've probably got at least half a dozen Dewey and Proshot rods still in great shape that never get used if anyone with a different opinion wants to trade, too.

[CZforlife]

Here's another idea, aswell, buy a patchworm. I actually bought one that way I would have a way to clean my gun when I travel.

[Jason]

If you are going to use any sort of pull-through cleaner, be very careful and don't let the cord touch the crown as you are pulling it through. the hard crystallized primer compound getting picked up by the cord and pulled through the bore is abrasive.

[Jerry G]

I agree with you Jason, pull-throughs arn't very good. They should be used in emergencies only. The cloth picks up everything it touches after it has got some oil or bullet lube on it.

[teetertotter]

I don't use a cleaning rod, and substitute using weed eater line. I use a pull through brass brush too. What do you think about my cleaning tools?
I also use Shooter's Choice and synthetic automatic transmission fluid.