Removing lead

[cdet69]

Any ideas on how to remove lead from a Winchester 1873 in 38-40? I read somewhere you could use gas checked bullets to get it out. Is this true or does it just not work.

[Reload3006]

here is what I would try if you have a badly fouled bore... Go to the auto parts store and get a can of KROIL penetrating Oil and Plug the breach or muzzle either one and fill it up with that and let it soak for a couple of days. It should come out easily if not there are several other lead fouling removers out there I would try some of them. But usually good ole Kroil and elbo grease will get it out.
Good luck Happy shootn.

[waksupi]

Get some copper Chore Boy from the supermarket, take some strands of it, wrap around a bristle brush, and stroke it through the bore about 20 times. The lead should then be gone.

The next thing to do, is slug you bore, and get the right size bullet. That is what caused your problem, undersized bullets. I have rifles with hundreds of rounds of cast through them, with no leading at all.

[Bret4207]

4/0 steel wool will work just like Chore Boy if that's easier to get.

[cdet69]

I inhereted the rifle the lead came as a bonus. I ran some patches of lead remover cloth and they came out black. I did a couple of dozen and the all looked the same way. The gun shop that appraised the rfile said it was a pitted and worn bore. It lowered the value of the gun but I took it anyway. Once I ran the cloth through the rifling started to show. It was completely covered in lead. Just need to finaly finish cleaning it all the way.

[kelbro]

ChoreBoy copper will do it and make quick work of it.

[odfairfaxsub]

just incase you don't already know bout the "copper chore boy wana bees" some of them are really steel coated in copper so be careful or you'll have scratches just in case you didnt know that already

[frnkeore]

The best way that I've found to remove lead from a barrel is, to use Xelene. It penatrates like nothing else that I've vever come across. If it's as bad as I'm thinking, plug it and fill the barrel, leave over night.Then use a bore brush, followed with a tight fitting cotton patch on a jag.

It will do it w/o any metal to metal on the barrel.

Frank

[btroj]

Use the chore boy and move on. The 4 aught steel wool works too. Either one on a snug brush will hog put lead quite nicely. I have never tried getting any solvent or penetrant to work as the chore boy on a dry bore works so well. 5 or 10 passes and you are done.

Waksupi was right- find what size bullet You need for that rifle and then you aren't cleaning lead from it. Prevention is much easier than clean up. It generally is far more accurate too.

[cgtreml]

I think KROIL is the best thing since bottled beer. Use it liberally, let it work and then use a tight fitting dry patch. You will be amazed.

Sent from my Milestone X using Tapatalk

[btroj]

Kroil will work, I have no doubt. I just like the chore boy as it is fast and clean. No oil all over, no letting it work. Wrap on a brush, run thru bore a few times, you are done. I have a few brushes already set so it is as easy as putting them on a rod and running it thru the barrel.

[kelbro]

I do the same as btroj. Keep the choreboy wrapped swabs handy.

[williamwaco]

Ditto to all the above.

A word about the lead removal cloth, It is VERY good. If it is not coming out with streaks of lead, your patch is not fitting tightly enough. You need a jag and a patch size large enough to be very hard to push through the bore.

Note the photo of the patch in the upper left of this page:

http://www.reloadingtips.com/pages/index-leading_problems.htm




Here are some more ideas...

http://www.reloadingtips.com/reviews/lead_fouling_removal.htm


AND YES. Shooting five or six gas check bullets in my experience will scrape out nearly all the leading.
( A lot of people will swear to you that this only makes it worse. All I can vouch for is my personal experience. It works very well for me.)



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[Tumble Bug]

You might wanna try Brownells J-B non-embedding bore cleaning compound.

It is specifically designed to remove lead. It dissolves it!. There are several products out there that do this....... but........ this is the only one that does not have to be quickly and completely removed from the barrel. This is the only product that does not risk eating away at your barrel. The other products are corrosive.

Any way this is a paste. Just stir it up, put it on your swab and keep working it in your barrel until the lead is gone.

Brownells also has a mechanical device for this purpose called a Lewis Lead Remover.....
but it was designed for handguns not rifles. I sorta think you could use it in you rifle with a little creativity.

The Lewis lead remover is a special patch made out of copper screen wire that you scrub the barrel with.

Because I shoot a lot of lead in my handguns I have found the Lewis lead remover to be a God send.

Use both products together.

Yes...... gas checks will likely do the job........ but Don't......... You could experience excessive pressure in the barrel trying to shoot it out! It is possible that you would get a bigger bang than you expected!

[TXGunNut]

Just used J-B's to clean a badly neglected 22lr bore. Pretty awesome. No Idea how long that stuff has been in my cleaning box but I wore out a nearly new brush scrubbing with Hoppe's #9 before I found it.

[williamwaco]

You might wanna try Brownells J-B non-embedding bore cleaning compound.

It is specifically designed to remove lead. It dissolves it!. There are several products out there that do this....... but........ this is the only one that does not have to be quickly and completely removed from the barrel. This is the only product that does not risk eating away at your barrel. The other products are corrosive.

Any way this is a paste. Just stir it up, put it on your swab and keep working it in your barrel until the lead is gone.

Brownells also has a mechanical device for this purpose called a Lewis Lead Remover.....
but it was designed for handguns not rifles. I sorta think you could use it in you rifle with a little creativity.

The Lewis lead remover is a special patch made out of copper screen wire that you scrub the barrel with.

Because I shoot a lot of lead in my handguns I have found the Lewis lead remover to be a God send.

Use both products together.

Yes...... gas checks will likely do the job........ but Don't......... You could experience excessive pressure in the barrel trying to shoot it out! It is possible that you would get a bigger bang than you expected!




I have used both these products and both are excellent.



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[1kshooter]

I had a lot of leading in my 1895 Microgroved before i found the answer was to use bigger dia bullets...I would spend a half hour lead minning the thing and I found that I could get even better results with a boar jag and a patch made from old bluejeans...cut patch to be a tight fit and add a dab of JB compound and I was done in five min....now that I am useing the proper bullets I use a pull through bore snake with a shot of breakfree CLP and put it away!