Rifle leading removal

[Wolfdog91]

Soooo tried slugging my mosin the other day. Soft lead round ball ,rubber mallet , m4 cleaning rod. Was working well till it wasn't what can ya do lol. Anyhow live and learn but I got some leading now and wanted to know what was eveyone's favorite way to remove leading from rifles ? I tied the copper brush with the copper whool wrapped around it and it worked ok. Bore looks clean.....ish ( it's a $150 bubbaed cut down mosin ,not the best thing in the way of perfect bores lol ) But my patches are still coming out pretty black. What's do y'all use ?

[Thumbcocker]

Did Bubba leave a lot of copper fouling in the bore? Some of those old guns have layers of jacket and carbon fouling that are tough to get out.

I have had to plug the muzzle with a whittled plug and pore the bore full of good solvent for a few days at a time to get them clean.

For lead it's hard to beat Ed's red and elbow grease. If the copper wool on a brush is working I would keep p it up assuming the jacket fouling is out.

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[358429]

For a deep cleaning:
I put synthetic atf (transmission oil) on the chore boy wrapped brass brush barrel mop and scrub. Scrub scrub scrub.

Spray the bore out with brake cleaner and blast with compressed air.

[Mk42gunner]

My favorite way is to con someone else into doing it.

Failing that, try one of the foaming bore cleaners.

If that doesn't work well enough for you, back to scrubbing with the copper chore boy and solvent.

Robert

[JimB..]

I alternate solvents figuring there are layers of lead, copper and carbon.

You may also have an area that’s pitted.

[Sasquatch-1]

When you used the copper "Chore Boy" did you put a patch on the brush first? I use this method with an old worn-out brush and a couple of layers of patches for a tight fit. I then wrap two or three strands of the copper around the patch. I replace the strands after every swipe down the barrel because they are flattened. It is then a matter of how many times you have to do it to get the barrel clean.


There is also the BROWNELLS - LEWIS LEAD REMOVER FOR RIFLES & SHOTGUNS. I have never used it but it is kind of the same idea.

https://www.brownells.com/gun-cleaning-chemicals/patches-mops/lead-remover/rifle-lewis-lead-remover-kit-for-50-caliber-sku516101050-20823-46109.aspx?cm_mmc=cse-_-Itwine-_-shopzilla-_-516-101-050&utm_medium=cse&utm_source=connexity&utm_campaign=itwine&utm_content=516-101-050&cnxclid=16387052834891839095610090301008005

[dale2242]

I have used the Lewis Lead Remover on handgun barrels.
It works quite well.

[25ring]

Soooo tried slugging my mosin the other day. Soft lead round ball ,rubber mallet , m4 cleaning rod. Was working well till it wasn't what can ya do lol. Anyhow live and learn but I got some leading now and wanted to know what was eveyone's favorite way to remove leading from rifles ? I tied the copper brush with the copper whool wrapped around it and it worked ok. Bore looks clean.....ish ( it's a $150 bubbaed cut down mosin ,not the best thing in the way of perfect bores lol ) But my patches are still coming out pretty black. What's do y'all use ?

The best way I've found was shown to me years ago.Take a jag and get a patch that is so tight that you have to tap it through with a mallet,soak the patch in turpentine and if you have any lead it will come out on the patch.It may take a couple of passes. I've converted more than one person to using this method.FWIW

[GregLaROCHE]

Unless you have something against shooting jacketed bullets in a lead boolit gun and a lot of people do, I would first shoot two or three jacketed bullets and if there is still lead, move on the the previous suggestions.

[green mountain boy]

i own two mosins that have made me crazy trying to get the bbls clean. they would always come out black no matter how many times i tried to clean them. one day in desperation i tried simple green ,plugged the the bores ,and they both came out nice and clean. now when i get the bores dirty i wet a patch or two and use the simple green again, brush well, and im again a happy camper. which reminds me that my 30/06 needs a good cleaning......

[zarrinvz24]

Back in the golden days of “cruffling” I would construct an electric bore cleaner to clean up the really nasty rifles. Sounds like this is your ticket. Google electrolysis bore cleaner.

[725]

Electrolsis cleaners work great. As mentioned above, sometimes these problems come in layers. Keep working through the layers of carbon, copper & lead. One of my favorite methods is to use janitorial strength ammonia. Household ammonia is a couple percent ammonia and janitorial strength ammonia is 10 % ammonia. (available the hardware store) I plug the bore and fill it up to the chamber. Let it stand for 5 or 10 minutes and then pour it out and swab it clean with a brush followed by dry patches and then oily patches. Add lots of elbow grease and be sure to protect the bare metal with oil when you're done. The metal will be bare and subject to rust right away.

[Super Sneaky Steve]

Chore Boy and a super tight patch has always worked but the Simple Green method is intriguing.

My black powder method of cleaning is to stick the barrel in a milk jug full of hot water and a touch of dawn then using a patch to make a hydraulic pump. This may also work for smokeless.

[Kraschenbirn]

Day before yesterday, cleaned bore of a really cruddy Long Branch Mk4 #1. Started with good ol' Hoppes #9 and a bronze brush wrapped with Choreboy followed by a couple of dry patches to swab out the sludge . After a half-dozen 'scrub n' swabs', switched to Butch's Bore Shine. Still wasn't getting clean patches, so went to Sweet's 7.62 to clear out any remaining copper then back to Hoppes and Choreboy for a couple passes followed by a lightly oiled patch. Bore didn't come out what you'd call 'pristine' but is now semi-shiny with clean, sharp rifling. Next decent day that comes along, it's back to the range to see how it shoots.

Bill

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

You've been given to good info on various ways to clean a bore. Sometimes, a bore needs multiple cleanings with multiple techniques...maybe leave some Ed's Red or Kroil, soak in it over night. If it's copper fouling with the lead fouling, you'll need to use a copper solvent besides the others I mentioned.

One time, I fouled a 243 barrel with "Brass" fouling. That was a nightmare to clean out. I don't remember all the things I did, there is probably a thread here somewhere, where I mention it and the details? But I do recall that there was more than one "overnight soak" of Ed's Red or Kroil. Those solvents seem to creep between the barrel and toughest metal fouling, if given enough time, to release it enough to come out with a tight cotton patch on a brass jag.

As to the tools, I prefer a Brass Jag on a solid steel cleaning rod, and a cotton patch wrapped with Copper strands from Chore-boy scrubbies...the Chore-boy has flat strips and seems more effective than copper wool or steel wool. In the past, I used 0000 steel wool, until I discovered Chore-Boy.

[zarrinvz24]

I’ve not had to use it yet, but it is possible to order a Lewis Lead Remover for rifles. It’s much the same as the pistol version but comes without the T-handle. I’ve got a .30 cal one in the box. I’m sure eventually I’ll need it.

[gwpercle]

A brass bore brush , wrapped tightly with #0000 Steel Wool and Shooters Choice Lead Remover
(note - for copper use Shooters Choice Copper remover ) Scrub it till your arms get tired .
Replce the steel wool and scrub again .
Finish the job by applying another layer of steel wool and smearing the wool coved brush with J-B Bore Cleaning Compound ... the paste that comes in a jar .
This method will clean the worst , sewer pipe , barrels ... you may have to use some elbow grease but it will not damage barrel .
Gary

[BigAlofPa.]

I cleaned my Mosin with Hopes elite foaming cleaner. What i thought was pits. Turned out to be years of fouling build up.

[Gofaaast]

Soak with Kroil or similar low viscosity penetrant, scrub how you are and repeat. I have a Outers foul out with solutions hanging on my wall if I ever come across something like this but luckily I haven’t needed it. They can be made easily and solution recipes can be found on the net as well. They haven’t been produced for probably 5-6 years now (thanks epa) so unless you come across one off the beaten paths they are quite spendy when one pops up on auction sites. In pistols with minor leading I have had success wrapping lead remover cloth around a copper brush and using them as cleaning patch’s.

[Calamity Jake]

Make yourself an electro chemical bore cleaner, here's how: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DMCEutvhDQ

[358429]

That is an interesting video.

[405grain]

Years ago I had the grungiest take off barrel from a Mauser 98 that I was sporterizing. It was a real sewer pipe: was so black and cruddy inside that you couldn't see any rifling. Since I was going to toss this barrel anyway I decided to try out the electrolysis cleaning just to see how it worked. I plugged the muzzle end and wedged a plastic funnel into the breech. I filled the barrel up with windex (it contains some ammonia), and used a TIG welding rod as the electrode. I'd placed a few pieced of electrical tape on the TIG rod so it wouldn't ground out to the barrel. I hooked everything up to a 9 volt battery. It started to fizz after a couple of minutes so I left it like that all afternoon. Hours later when I pulled out the TIG rod it was all coated in dark goo. I poured out the windex and cleaned the barrel normally. It came out bright and shiny inside. The bore on that barrel was pitted like the craters of the Moon, but they were shiny craters! The electrolysis method will really clean the toughest crud out of a bore. I wouldn't recommend it for a barrel with a gas system though because that could just make a big mess.