When was the last time you had to remove lead from a barrel?

[Cosmic_Charlie]

For me it has been several years. And i have put some good stiff loads down range too. I recently shot some Lee 405 grain boolits over 32 grains of 5744, these should have been over 1,400 fps and they felt like that too. And the barrel of my Henry 45-70 single shot is gleaming clean. Makes me happy!

[nhyrum]

All the cast I shoot is either checked or powder coated, so I don't think I've ever had to clean lead, but I've only been shooting cast for 3 or so years

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[Winger Ed.]

If I shoot about a hundred lubed flat base in .45ACP or .38DEWC at a time, I'll have just a little in the corners of the grooves.
But it's no big deal, and comes out with a few strokes of a nylon bore brush.

I shoot Hornady gas checks in the rifles, and if there is any Leading, I haven't noticed it when cleaning them.

[cwtebay]

I purchased a Winchester 94 a few years ago that was never shot with anything but lead. I knew the fella that owned it for 30 years - he didn't own another rifle that I knew of but killed everything from squirrels to elk with it. It's an Eastern carbine from 1909 in 30 WCF. Came with his supply of brass and lead and mould and everything.
The action was oiled and as smooth as glass as soon as I got it.
It took me the better part of 30 hours of scrubbing and soaking and looking to get that bore free of the lead build up. I honestly believed I had spent my money on a completely shot out bore - could not have been more wrong. It is sharp and shiny! Shoots beautifully!;!
I actually kinda regret doing that now, that rifle had a story to tell about the life of the man that had owned it - I feel like I took part of that away.



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[zymguy]

And the barrel of my Henry 45-70 single shot is gleaming clean.

I don't think I've ever had to clean lead,

I'll have just a little in the corners of the grooves.
But it's no big deal, and comes out with a few strokes of a nylon bore brush.

It took me the better part of 30 hours of scrubbing and soaking and looking to get that bore free of the lead build up. It is sharp and shiny! Shoots beautifully!;!

How are you making these calls ? patches coming clean, puting a flashlight in one end and your eye in the other, borescope ?

[tazman]

Two years ago, about this time of year, I was shooting my S&W 22A-1 and the groups just suddenly got huge, so I knew something was wrong.
I looked down the barrel and it was easy to see the reason. A large smear of lead on one side of the barrel deposited there by a Thunderbolt bullet.

I got lucky though. I was able to use the cleaning kit I always take to the range with me to clean it out. Fortunately, the lead wasn't tightly stuck to the barrel. A little oil and some scrubbing with a brush and it came right out pretty much in a chunk. I was able to finish my practice without even going home first.

[Winger Ed.]

How are you making these calls ? patches coming clean, puting a flashlight in one end and your eye in the other, borescope ?

My auto pistol barrels are so short, you can hold them up to a bright light and look through them as you clean them.
(For cleaning, I do take the barrel out of the slide)

I do wet patch, wet brush, etc. then dry patch and look.
If I see a bit of Lead in the grooves, a wet brush a few more times usually gets it.

For rifle barrels, I have a 'AA' battery bore light--flash light with the little bent piece of fiber optic/plexi-glass on the end.
It isn't anywhere near as good as a borescope, but it works OK for that.

[nhyrum]

How are you making these calls ? patches coming clean, puting a flashlight in one end and your eye in the other, borescope ?

I just use a flashlight every once in a while. I know my gas checks won't lead and can help remove leading, so for my revolver, I stopped checking. I've got a 300 blackout ar that I shoot 230 cast in that's powder coated, and if anything it's the gas system and BCG will probably need attention before lead in the barrel

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[44Blam]

A while back I bought a keg of H335 and decided to ladder up some 45-70 rounds. I was consistently getting about 50 fps per grain as I was going up from a starting load around 1800 fps.

My LAST (what I thought was BELOW max) set of 5 rounds jumped about 200 fps up to about 2150! The first one was like OH WOW and the POI was exactly where it should be. The second was 8" off and I couldn't tell where the third round went...

Then I spent about 3 days with a wad of choreboy working all that lead out of my barrel...

[Winger Ed.]

I spent about 3 days with a wad of choreboy working all that lead out of my barrel...

Another thing I do to keep from having 'issues'.
My pistols run along about 8-900 fps with cast, the .30cal rifles about 16-1700 or so, and the .45-70 around 13-1400-ish.

Accuracy is good, they're pleasant to shoot, and even though our range goes out to 500 yards-
the older I get, the less and less often I want to walk past the 100 yard frames.

[imashooter2]

-
the older i get, the less and less often i want to walk past the 100 yard frames.

AMEN!

It has been some time since I had to clean lead. Years.

[sigep1764]

I get some flakes on the face of the forcing cone of a Colt Official Police when I shoot it. Some antimony wash on pistol barrels. The pistol barrels don't build past a certain point and does not affect accuracy. Ive ran as much as 800 rounds through a Glock 26 in one range trip and accuracy was as good from the start to the end. I leaded up a Ruger P95 barrel when I was beginning my cast venture. That barrel never stopped leading even with a polish and 358 sized boolits. It went on down the line. Too bad, it was a soft shooting pistol.

[Cosmic_Charlie]

How are you making these calls ? patches coming clean, puting a flashlight in one end and your eye in the other, borescope ?

Pretty easy to see down a .45 cal. barrel. I have a bore light that i sometimes use on smaller ones.

[Winger Ed.]

I actually kinda regret doing that now, that rifle had a story to tell about the life of the man that had owned it - I feel like I took part of that away.

Nahh,,, You've added to its story by giving it a good home, and a new lease on life.

[Cosmic_Charlie]

A while back I bought a keg of H335 and decided to ladder up some 45-70 rounds. I was consistently getting about 50 fps per grain as I was going up from a starting load around 1800 fps.

My LAST (what I thought was BELOW max) set of 5 rounds jumped about 200 fps up to about 2150! The first one was like OH WOW and the POI was exactly where it should be. The second was 8" off and I couldn't tell where the third round went...

Then I spent about 3 days with a wad of choreboy working all that lead out of my barrel...

Sounds like the load was too much for your alloy. Think my 5744 load was wheel weights plus some tin. If i am staying close to 1000 fps i use 20/1 alloy. I seldom shoot hot cast loads though. When i do it is usually in .44 mag with H110 or 296.

[ukrifleman]

I tumble lube with LLA and have never had a leading problem across 16 calibres.
ukrifleman

[cwtebay]

How are you making these calls ? patches coming clean, puting a flashlight in one end and your eye in the other, borescope ?

Yes to all of that at one time or another.

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[ioon44]

It haven't cleaned any lead out of my barrels since I started using Hi- Tek coating and that was like 5 years ago. I shoot IDPA & USPAS matches so I put a lot of rounds down range every month.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

When was the last time you had to remove lead from a barrel?

3 times in the last two weeks.
AND...
every other time I have taken my 625-8 to the range.

[Harter66]

I haven't had any significant leading in several years .
I get a lot of antimony wash but a wrapped brush and 3-4 passes gets them pretty clean when needed . I don't worry much about the wash , ,for the most part it's about 99% scuff 1% deposit . Most of the barrels remain eyeball shiny with some grey haze . I have a pistol that leads the corners of the lands but as a rule it cleans up easy too after some very aggressive cleaning early in our relationship , it had a lot of copper fouling and the lead just bonded like a lost puppy to a little boy with a pocket full of jerky .