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Thread: Mag tube cleaning

  1. #1
    Boolit Man
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    Dec 2015
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    Mag tube cleaning

    I got a view never fired 2018 miroku Winchester 1892 in .45 Colt, shooting tumble lubed cast boolits will eventually crud up the mag tube, so all you guys and gals shootin those boolits out of your leeever guns, how often do you have to clean the mag tube?
    Thanks,
    Paul
    People would rather beleave a lie than the truth
    David Crockett

  2. #2
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    Texas by God's Avatar
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    Two years so far without cleaning the mag tube of my 38-55 Winchester 94, using Lee 379-250 tumble lubed.
    But a Cowboy Action Shooter going through lots of rounds might have a different situation.

    Sent from my SM-A716U using Tapatalk

  3. #3
    Boolit Grand Master Bazoo's Avatar
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    I take the tube off of my winchester 94 for cleaning at least every year or two. It don't see much TL bullets, but sees mostly cast. I also detail strip the gun every couple years. Just the way I run.

  4. #4
    Boolit Master
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    Boy, that's a good question. I don't believe I have ever cleaned any magazine tubes! Now you have me thinking....

    Sent from my Pixel 5 using Tapatalk

  5. #5
    Boolit Grand Master Bazoo's Avatar
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    Once in a while, I'll take a cleaning rod and push in the follower and wipe out a 22s inner mag tube with a dry patch.

  6. #6
    Boolit Man
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    The reason I ask how often ya’ll do it is cuz I have an 1894 Marlin in .44 mag. I bought the gun new and first thing I did was it and clean it, but I didn’t think of the mag tube. The rifle ran real good until about the 500 rnd mark, then she started giving me feeding problems. I took the mag tube cap off, and the spring and follower out and they were really filthy, and so was the inside of the mag tube. The only reason I can figure why it was so dirty is when I tumble lube my boolits I dont wipe it off the nose of the boolits, and after so many of them went into the mag tube, that crap just builds up. That’s when I noticed Marlin uses that crappy red plastic follower, so I replaced it with a brass follower from Bear Tooth Mercantile, anyway the cleaning and possibly replacing the plastic follower fixed the feeding prob. Now I just gotta figure out a good mag tube cleaning schedual for both the Winchester and Marlin
    Paul
    People would rather beleave a lie than the truth
    David Crockett

  7. #7
    Boolit Grand Master Bazoo's Avatar
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    Might be every 500 is a good number, maybe you can stretch it past 1000 now that it's clean. It's a trade off between cheap and easy lube vs gun maintenance. Guns that are shot exclusively with non TL bullets can go longer. Likely a metal follower will scrape some dirt/lube out as it goes up the tube, whereas a plastic follower wouldn't do as much.

    Could be too there was some debris in there from the factory, that mixed with the residual TL.

  8. #8
    Boolit Buddy para45lda's Avatar
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    When I shot Cowboy, I wiped every boolit after loading with a rag. And yes, it sometimes was tedious (or calming depending on I approached it I guess).

    I was using the lanolin/alcohol case lube on my progressive so it cut down on grit sticking to my loaded rounds and reduced the issue you are having.

    Wes
    If you're gonna be dumb, you gotta be tough.
    SASS 17373
    Proud Dad of a USAF Airman

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check