Filth from a clean bore?

[Crashyoung]

Last night, I pulled out my 03 and ran a brush through the bore.
I followed it up with a dry patch, and it looked like dry, black powder
fouling on the patch. It looked like lampblack, it was so black.

The last time I had cleaned it about a month ago, the patches
were coming out gray. So I oiled the bore and put it away.
I used 3 in 1 oil as the final protection, but would the oil
continue to soften old fouling?

Hoppe's #9 and other solvents I use, do not bring out this fouling
when I am cleaning, only when I let it sit with the oil, then I get the
dry, black powdery residue.

I am amazed every time I run a patch down this bore. I keep
wondering about the past history of this filthy bore. I keep
hoping the bore might get brighter someday!

[jgaynor]

Was it a new brush? You might want to invest in a .30 Cal Jag for your rod (not the slotted tip).

Crud has a way of seeping out of the steel but it's also pretty hard to keep a brush clean.

Regards,

Jim

[musketshooter]

Give it a thorough cleaning with JB's bore paste and then finish with a stainless brush and Shooters Choice.

[John Beard]

Steel is porous. Under high pressure, powder residue can be forced into the steel, then gradually migrate back out later. That's why, for example, rifles fired with corrosive ammunition must be cleaned a second time a few days later.

J.B.

[Crashyoung]

I used a stainless brush that was clean when put away.
I used a plastic jag, which was also clean.
This is about the sixth cleaning I have done since firing
it last.
I don't have access to a bore scope small enough for 30 cal,
so it is hard to say what is going on. Perhaps I need to buy a new tool!

[Emri]

Try some Outers Foaming Bore Cleaner. That stuff works quite well. Fill the bore as per instructions and place muzzle down until it all runs out. I use it all the time as the bores almost clean themselves while I do something else. Little manual labor is involved. Extra dirty bores may require repeat applications.

HTH,

Emri

[C5M1]

Don't use steel brushes or ammonia based cleaners any more; Follow emri's advice, its the easiest and its bore friendly.


regards, dennis

[musketshooter]

There is nothing wrong with using stainless steel bore brushes. The rifle bore is a heck of a lot harder than a brush. Using a bronze or copper brush is a waste of time when trying to remove copper fouling. Brushing the foaming cleaner after it works the recommended time will speed up the cleaning process.

[kcw]

After an initial "cleaning" I'll slop the bore up good with whatever cleaner I'm using and then stand the gun on its muzzle in the gun cabinet atop some paper towels. It might stand there for a month or more before I get back too it. I'm always pleasantly surprised at the amount of crud that works it way out of the steel. The first time around it'll likely be mainly the green stuff, but subsequent go-arounds will be black and eventually reduced to gray. I used to be anal about getting ALL the color out of the bore but now I'm resigned to the bore being "clean enough" after a couple scrubbings and let it go at that. I'll give extra attention to those times when corrosive ammo might be used of course, but at some point "good enough" is good enough. On the other hand, if there's nothing better on the Sunday afternoon tube than basketball, the smell of Hoppes still beckons one to the basement.

[Maury Krupp]

All surplus rifles have layers and layers of fouling, both powder and jacket, in the bore. The U.S. military never worried about cleaning copper out. Rifles used with corrosive ammo probably have some rust in there too.

The only way you're going to get through all those layers is with time and elbow grease or one of the electronic gizmos.

It took around a half-dozen cycles with a "Foul Out" before my M1903 came truly clean. Then I knew there was no rust hiding anywhere.

Of course, once it was squeaky clean it took laying down some new jacket fouling before the barrel would shoot well again.

So unless you're concerned about rust, don't worry about whether the barrel is clean - worry about whether it shoots.

Maury

[jonnyo55]

+1 on Maury's advice...and stay far, far away from corrosive ammo. As plentiful as modern .30-06 ammo is, there's just no reason to use it.

[PaFrank]

Try Wipe-out foaming bore cleaner... You will never use a brush again!

[blackhawknj]

IIRC 3 in 1 Oil has some sort of vegetable base-it's not recommended for use on bicycles. Perhaps that's it. Also what is your cleaning technique like ? I like to let the solvent soak in for a while-say 30 minutes, Then I brush and wipe.

[Toulgas]

As J.B. said, Brophy ("The Springfield 1903 Rifles") included a portion of the 1920 dated "Handbook of the Rifles", which details exactly that - several cleanings, and even then inspection for "incipient rust" in the bore is recommended.

[PeteDavis]

Once the process of bore erosion begins it can be slowed but not stopped. Such bores can exhibit shine and still have lots of micro pitting or frosting. The pitted surfaces act as pockets for fouling, copper and lead to reside. You can clean it out with a foaming cleaner but the pits will fill in the next time you shoot. With blackpowder arms this is usually fatal to the barrel, but in milsurp weapons it is common and just makes cleaning a chore.

You can lap a barrel to smooth it but once metal is taken off it cannot be put back.

PD