best cleaning fluids

[3band53]

Hey fellas,
In you opinion what are the best cleaning fluids to use on you rifles and pistols.
3band53

[Ickisrulz]

I haven't tried them all. But I use Kroil when cleaning barrels used to shoot lead bullets. I wipe down guns (exteriors) with Eezox when putting them away. I have been perfectly happy with these products.

[Moonie]

Eds Red with acetone

[fiberoptik]

Ballistol


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[winelover]

Anything but Hoppe's..............

Winelover

[HeavyHev]

salt water

[DerekP Houston]

Been gifted so many different cleaning products I just use whichever is handy. Currently tring to use up my froglube solvent and paste....then it'll be back to CLP/Hoppes 9 or whatever I grab first.

[sundog]

Best?

Wipe Out for copper removal.
Ed's Red
Ballistol

[Mytmousemalibu]

Ed's Red, and sometimes Kroil (a soaked patch for lead removal), JB bore paste, and Sweets. Mostly Ed's Red and that covers 95% of my cleaning needs.

I may have to try the Bore Tech Eliminator sometime, I have heard nothing but good about it.

For other specialty cleaning needs: Birchwood Casey lead removal cloth (great for burn marks on revo's and other needs) Ballistol, for corrosive's and BP cleanup, I have quite a few other products but I don't use'em much or at all anymore. Ed's Red took over by storm!

[M-Tecs]

There is no one best. It depends on your aplication. For bore cleaners copper, lead, carbon and plastic are some of the types of fouling that needs to be removed.

My favorite for bore cleaning is Boretech Eliminator or Wipe Out. For the exterior Eezox's is the best I have found.

[M-Tecs]

salt water

Been a member of this forum since 2008. That is the most useless reply to a honest question I have seen.

[ole 5 hole group]

Best cleaning fluids - not solvents? aerosol's or pumps containing cleaning fluids such as brake cleaner, acetone, ether etc. Otherwise an ultrasonic cleaner with your choice of cleaner - I've used simple green in an ultrasonic cleaner for firearm parts.

Brownell's use to have a spray that really took out the crud in tight spaces and could be used on gummed up triggers that took off all that Hoppe's varnish. California wouldn't allow it, so I guess they just stopped carrying it.

Hornady's one-shot is pretty good but for a bore cleaner, Boretech Eliminator is really good for removing carbon and copper while the Hornady one-shot HD extreme is right there on top for corrosion and rust prevention.

[LUCKYDAWG13]

Ballistol


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Same thing just about all I use

[ShooterAZ]

I like Sweet's or Butch's Bore shine for quickly removing copper fouling. Kroil works well for cleaning after shooting cast. I will also say that I like Hoppe's #9, It's good for a several day soak when needed. Smells good too.

[HeavyHev]

Been a member of this forum since 2008. That is the most useless reply to a honest question I have seen.

Thank you

[ole 5 hole group]

I like Sweet's or Butch's Bore shine for quickly removing copper fouling. Kroil works well for cleaning after shooting cast. I will also say that I like Hoppe's #9, It's good for a several day soak when needed. Smells good too.

In its day Sweet's 7.62 was one of the best copper removers but it's snail pace slow when compared to some of today's copper removers. Give Boretech a try - Eliminator is excellent for both carbon and copper and CU+2 is outstanding for copper removal only.

[country gent]

For a smokeless bore cleaner shooters choice mixed 50-50 with kroil. For range cleaning black powder firearms windex with vinegar. Ido clean with several solvents. On smokeless firearms I start with the shooter choice kroil mix. Wet and brush good then patch dry. Then a like pass with ballistol water mix. Last if it needs it is JB Bore cleaner. other wise it oil and store.
For black powder its the windex with vinegar at the range. I also do a brushing and path with it before caseing the firearm for the trip home. Dry bore at home and ballistol water mix. I may then run shooters choice kroil to remove any existing leading if needed. Dry good and preserve bore with a patch and SPG or emmerts bullet lube. I save the patches used to clean bases of the bullets for this.
Solvent depends on what type of fouling is needing to be removed and how heavy it is. Different solvents work better on different fouling. Powder fouling, carbon, copper, lead, plastic can all be there needing to be removed. These can be hard to remove with the wrong solvent. I do occasionally use JB Bore cleaner in rifles and pistols. A little on a tight fitting patch and some scrubbing will do wonders.

[GhostHawk]

ATF for me, started with a half bottle of Dextron II, then moved into a full bottle of the Dextron III but I think any of it will work.

It all seems to clean very very well, lubricate well, wipes dry and still leaves a protected lubed surface.

If I am trying to get lead out or old dark rifling I will take a half a shot glass of ATF, add 3-4 squirts of Goo Gone to it and use that. That stuff is super.

Worked better than hoppes for pulling lead. Helps to have a tight patch so you have to work to move it.

That's me, already had it, no expense, after 3 years no issues. Also seems to work great in between switching lubes. Clean out the old, leaves the bore spotless shiny ready for the new.

Your mileage may vary but I find the stuff amazing and thrifty.

[cuzinbruce]

I am happy with Ed's Red. Equal parts mineral spirits, acetone, kerosene and Dexron ATF with lanolin an optional addition. IIRC The recipe is on the internet if you search.

[porthos]

i too remember when sweets was THE copper remover to use. it has since been proven that it can ruin a bore. the ammonia does it. please, don't anyone reply that you have been using sweets since 19_ _ and your bores are as good as new. keep using it

[Love Life]

Hoppes number 9 does a good enough job on my cast barrels. Butch's bore shine for my jacketed barrels.

[ShooterAZ]

Thank you

REALLY? One more to add to the Ignore List.

[JWFilips]

When I started using cast Especially in revolvers I went by an old Gunsmith formula I found in a book ( for cast bullets)
It is 1/3 hoppes #9, 1/3 Kroil, and 1/3 real turps ( Get at an art store not hardware store kind ) It does remove lead!

Since I have been shooting rifles with Ben's Red and BLL the only real cleaning I do is pass a patch of ATF down my bore Then shoot again!

When I get a new to me rifle It is only Sweets! Until the patches stay white and the copper is gone then a few balistol patches to neutralize Then a few dry patches and then a few atf patches and I then only shoot cast boolits!

[DerekP Houston]

ATF for me, started with a half bottle of Dextron II, then moved into a full bottle of the Dextron III but I think any of it will work.

It all seems to clean very very well, lubricate well, wipes dry and still leaves a protected lubed surface.

If I am trying to get lead out or old dark rifling I will take a half a shot glass of ATF, add 3-4 squirts of Goo Gone to it and use that. That stuff is super.

Worked better than hoppes for pulling lead. Helps to have a tight patch so you have to work to move it.

That's me, already had it, no expense, after 3 years no issues. Also seems to work great in between switching lubes. Clean out the old, leaves the bore spotless shiny ready for the new.

Your mileage may vary but I find the stuff amazing and thrifty.

Right, I'd forgotten about ATF. Still have 2 jars sitting above my desk for soaking whatever parts need scrubbing.

[Silvercreek Farmer]

Recently had a sticky revolver cylinder and was low on solvent. I decided to shoot it with some non-chlorinated brake cleaner. Had it freed up in seconds. I'll probably use it more in the future for removing gunk from actions. Just got to watch plastics and wood finishes.

[jmort]

Copper, hard to beat Wipe Out/Patch Out
Mostly Ballistol otherwise

[ole 5 hole group]

i too remember when sweets was THE copper remover to use. it has since been proven that it can ruin a bore. the ammonia does it. please, don't anyone reply that you have been using sweets since 19_ _ and your bores are as good as new. keep using it

Now that may be true, just I haven't heard of Sweet's 7.62 doing it. Now ammonia will pit a bad barrel fairly quickly - it's the barrel's steel that is somehow bad/poor, if the barrel pits fairly quickly. I don't know that as a fact myself, it was told to me by a match barrel maker and I believe what he told me.

I had a match barrel that pitted using "Blue Goop" and I was the only person that experienced pitting in my shooting area using Blue Goop, which was 28% ammonia with hydrogen peroxide as a catalyst and there was a lot of shooters using that "stuff" for fast copper removal. After cleaning I immediately dried the barrel and oiled it - BUT it pitted in one spot anyway, and it was a very noticeable pit but really didn't affect the accuracy - at least my accuracy.:-)

[ShooterAZ]

Sweets should not be left in the bore for more than 15 minutes, according to the directions. I have never left it in there for that long. A couple of passes with a wet patch, followed by dry ones. A final "rinse" with Hoppe's after that. My bottle of Sweets has lasted more than 10 years, I hardly ever use it. Butch's Bore shine works just as well or better for copper fouling.

[tdoyka]

i used to use(about 30 or so years ago) hoppes gun oil and a nitro solvent. after that i used shooter's choice and remington lube(rem-lube in a spray can).

now i use(about 3-4 years ago) ballistol, gunslicks foaming bore cleaner, shooter's choice mc-7 and sweets. also i'll use kroil once in awhile.

i didn't know that copper could mess up the bore. the first time i ever used shooter's choice, it took me quite awhile to get the patches clean. they came out the bore blue-green, i've wondered if many other guns( using a 3 in 1 oil and a nitro solvent) have been scrapped because the people who used them didn't think that the accuracy went to s!@#. esp the old military rifles.

[ole 5 hole group]

A lot of people think they have a bore that's free of copper - they may be right, but if they want to know for sure - get a bottle of Boretech CU+2, replace your brass cleaning rod jags with plastic, aluminum or what they now call proof positive or similar names that are made of non-brass material that won't give you a false-positive reading for copper. That brass jag will give you false positive readings all day long using CU+2.

A fellow showed me a WW1 Springfield that he said was clean of copper fouling. Well, it took me a couple of hours running patches with CU+2 to get it clean of copper & carbon - that's a long time running CU+2.:wink:

Run a couple wet patches, let sit for a minute or two - dry patch, then repeat - that is after you clean out most of the carbon. Once a year is probably enough for most plinkers.

[Outpost75]

REALLY? One more to add to the Ignore List.

Agree. Makes two of us.

[tazman]

Recently I have been using the Hoppe's Elite series cleaners with excellent results. Their Copper Terminator seems to work well and they claim it doesn't/can't hurt the bore. I haven't been using it long enough to know if long term use is a problem but, the Elite series cleaners work very quickly for me. I can usually have a rifle completely cleaned and getting clean patches in just a few minutes per rifle.
I had my gunsmith (using his bore scope) take a look through the barrel of one of my rifles after I cleaned it this way using his bore scope. He said it was one of the cleanest barrels he had seen and had no copper in it at all.

[Lloyd Smale]

another fan of butch's
I like Sweet's or Butch's Bore shine for quickly removing copper fouling. Kroil works well for cleaning after shooting cast. I will also say that I like Hoppe's #9, It's good for a several day soak when needed. Smells good too.

[garym1a2]

I normally use a 50/50 mix atf/Mobile1-5-30 to clean and lube. Tuff stuff gets kroil. Normally my glocks are easy to clean dry with just a bore brush and q-tips. My ARs may get Hoppes #9 or breakfree clp.

[Shiloh]

Ed's Red for me. Sans acetone.

Shiloh

[bullseye67]

Good evening, I am a believer in "ED'S RED" I am using the original formula. The next batch I will use MEK as suggested in Glen's book Ingot to Target. I don't shoot Clays enough anymore to need the plastic removal from the wads......Hmmmm...if I start powder coating?? might need that plastic remover again. I have used BoreTech copper solvent on a couple of used rifles and handguns. I haven't shoot a J-word for years. I don't remember the last time I had real leading, just a light streak or some grey antimony wash, which cleans out in a few wet patches and a good brush out followed by a couple of wet patches. ATF is an amazing release agent. I dropped a set of antique hinges into a jar full. The FIL thought I had bought new ones. The ATF even lifted the layer of old paint after about a week soak.

[54bore]

Boretech eliminator for the bore, and any quality gun oil for the exterior (there are many)

[cheese1566]

I still like sweets and have been using the same personal bottle for 20 years...ya I don't use it everytime I clean....especially with just lead boolits.
Just had AR15/M16 armorer school again and learned to keep using it, but swab the bore with denatured alcohol afterwards. Since then, we have removed it from the cleaning kit at the PD and have reserved its use solely by use armorers.

Nothng reaaly beats Kroil and some JB Borepaste for a good bore scrubbing.

[Lloyd Smale]

ive used sweets on and off for 30 years and it never hurt a thing. Just read the instructions and use it like it suppose to be used. the guys that had trouble with are the type that tend to know more then the person who manufactures things and leave it in there bore for a day or more.
i too remember when sweets was THE copper remover to use. it has since been proven that it can ruin a bore. the ammonia does it. please, don't anyone reply that you have been using sweets since 19_ _ and your bores are as good as new. keep using it

[gwpercle]

I'm an Ed's Red fan , I use it with acetone for heavy duty cleaning and without acetone as a general purpose CLP. If I'm inside the house , the nod goes to Hoppe's Elite , Gun Cleaner and Gun Oil. Only because my wife can smell things I never ever notice and the Hoppe's Elite products are " scent free", ergo myself and a freshly cleaned gun can both sleep in the bedroom that night .
JB Bore Paste is another good one for barrels .
Gary

[Jack Stanley]

I've found that after using any of the cleaners with a lot of ammonia in it patching the bore with denatured alcohol then drying and oiling works well .

As for a favorite cleaner ......... well , not salt water !!

Jack

[Ed_Shot]

Eds Red with acetone

What he said!

[JBinMN]

For a quick clean I just use some spray Brake cleaner. Other than that I use Hoppes #9 mostly & more recently Auto trans fluid or Power steering fluid since it is cheaper & I have never seen an issue with it.

"My choice", anyway. I tend to keep anything composite/plastic away from the stuff I use & just stick to cleaning the metal parts in such cleaners. Hot soapy water cleans the plastic/composites right nicely for me.
:)

.

[flint45]

For black powder it's simple green or Ballistol for smokeless it's Hoppe's, eds red ,1970's vintage army rifle bore solvent and Outer's bore oil. All my tools are in top shape.

[waco]

Put me down for JB bore compound for really fouled up stuff. I use this sparingly.
Bore Tech Eliminator.
Kroil.

[Texas by God]

Hot soapy water and 4 ought steel wool woven into a bronze brush works very well on cruddy bores.