TexasCHLforum.com

MoJo wrote:

MechAg94 wrote:I have never heard of wetting a brush. Wet and dry patches, but not a wet brush.

I bought a Rock River match stainless barreled upper a while back. They told me there is no break in procedure, just start shooting and enjoy it. Barrel break procedures vary widely. I would think a using a bore snake every so many rounds at first would be the easiest thing to do and would effectively remove any debris from the barrel if needed. I think it all depends on how they make the barrel and how it is treated afterward. I think there are things they can do to the barrels now that effectively remove the sharp edges and such that a break-in might take care of.

I'm an old dinosaur I've been shooting for 60+ years, using a wet bore brush was a common practice years ago. I guess my age is showing.

Not really. On the rare occasions I do send a cleaning rod through my rifles or pistols, I run a wet brush through, to really help break any gunk loose. It's kinda like putting soap on a scrubbie pad while doing the dishes, in my mind. But again, it's rare that I do this; mainly only if I'm putting the gun away for long-term storage, or just pulling it back out.

I know some match-grade and target rifles are recommended to be cleaned on the schedule you posted, but I've just never bothered with that. I'm a fair enough shot, but I'll never be at that level, where a meticulous "break-in" process actually makes a difference visible to me. So I just keep 'em clean enough that they'll work, and I don't worry about the details.

Big +1 on keeping the bolt, locking lugs, etc., clean. The only non-magazine-induced failure I've ever had with an AR was due to this exact thing; too much Wolf ammo had crudded up the chamber, and I started getting stuck shells. I learned my lesson, and started scrubbing out the action and bolt, and I've not had a single failure since (excluding bad magazines, etc).

Gungirl wrote:I love my bore snake for my 45 but they were out for my ar size

I just use a .22 caliber bore snake. The difference in diameter between .22 and .225/55.6 is negligible for cleaning purposes.

If there's a little plastic piece on your cleaning rod that keeps falling down the rod and getting in the way, it's likely the bore guide.

Most of the one-piece cleaning rods I've seen these days, and many of the sectional ones, have a bore guide. It's a little tapered round piece of plastic, normally up near the handle, that is meant to be slid down the rod toward the gun and held at the muzzle while the rod is worked. All it does is center the cleaning rod and prevent the rod from "flexing" around the rifling at the muzzle.

What tears up the rifling isn't the brush, or rags, etc, but the rod itself as it flexes and rattles against the rifling. This is usually -much- easier to do accidentally near the muzzle; for example, many military surplus Russian rifles are "counterbored" at the muzzle to remove rifling damaged by overzealous cleaning. A bore guide, centering the rod in the muzzle, prevents this from being necessary.

The Boresnake is another good option. Being cloth, not steel, it cannot damage the rifling, and so works great from either direction.

A .22 caliber bore brush is the right size. Anything larger than that probably would get stuck, and you'd have a terrible time getting it back out again.

Edited to add: make sure you're using a bore guide, or if you don't have one, that you're cleaning from the breech end, not from the muzzle; the cleaning rod rattling back and forth can damage the rifling, given time and "enthusiasm." Personally, I don't mess with cleaning the barrel very often, as the residue from modern ammunition isn't corrosive, and won't actually damage the gun. I just clean the moving parts in the action to prevent dirt and residue buildup which could jam the gun, with the occasional swab through the bore just to say I did.