Hoppes Bore Snake?

[jaceglarek]

Anyone using one of these to clean competition rifles? How well do they work? Any pitfalls? Also, what about using them with solvents like Butch's, Shooter's Choice, etc, that are designed to remove copper fouling, since it looks like these things have a bronze brush incorporated into them?

Thanks,

John

[Dave in NGA]

I've been using bore snakes for something like 10 years. I really like them since they overcome the issue of cleaning rods rubbing against the lands of bore. As you note, the typical bore cleaner will eat up the brush in the snake. It's important you add the solvent to the 'tail end' of the snake to minimize the contact with the brush portion in the other end of the snake. From time to time you should run your snakes through the wash to remove dirt and crud that will build up in the snake. Be sure to enclose the snake in a bag or old sock to keep it from wrapping around the agitator in the washer. If you jamb your wife's washer she really will get agitated!

[joem]

I use the snakes at the range right after I fire the last round. It seems to make cleaning easier once I get home.

[Jeff L]

I got one for my 03s and found it requires a lot more strength to get it through than using traditional brush and cleaning patches.

-Jeff L

[joem]

Jeff, try dropping the weight end down chamber, then put the weighted end around your shoe and lift the rifle.

[S.A. Boggs]

IMHO bore snake, in concept, are a good idea. It is just not real world. The bore snake will get dirty on the first and subsequent passes and need to be cleaned. Otherwise, this is just to reinvest the bore and subsequent bores with dirt and grime. I use the Otis system and it works like a charm. In one very small kit I can carry material to clean ANY bore, including shotgun and it does a great job.
Sam

[Chris F]

I've used a boresnake on my competition rifle. When I switched over to the AR15 Service Rifle, there was still things being learned about loads and what it took to make them work. Lacking time, I found that BlackHills Reman 68's shot good enough to clean the SR Targets. I also found that my rifle shot 80's with Varget well. So I invested what little reloading time I had into handloading 80/Varget for 600yds and I shot BH 68's at 200 and 300.

My first few times across the course, I was suddenly getting off call shots at 600 yards. After getting tired of questioning my hold, I got the idea that it might be a powder incompatibility, so I benched the rifle and shot BH's first then 80's/Varget. Sure enough, Scoped at 100yds, my groups with 80's became patterns when fired followed BH's.

My solution was to boresnake my barrel (dry, no solvent) after the 300yd stage. At our range, there really wasn't a good opportunity to rod and patch the barrel and I was just as concerned about a clean bore zero stepping to the stage most demanding of the rifle's accuracy and zero. Outcome was shots on call again (for better or worse). Long story to tell you that...yes they do work.

Oh yeah, yes they're tight and the brush requires some force to pull through. I finally "made" the time to reload in volume and switched to Reloder 15 across the course and haven't boresnaked since.

[Aligater]

Hoppe's makes two kinds: The Viper and the Regular Bore Snake..........The Viper ain't worth a damn...takes a gorilla to pull it through and then it has a tendency to break with the pulling....now you have a big problem trying to get a stuck snake out of your bore.....happened to me pulling a Viper through an '03.

[John Sukey]

Want to guess what they used to clean Enfield rifles? Only back then they were called "pull throughs"

[S.A. Boggs]

Why is it that shooters will spend a fortune on weapons, ammo and the like. The look for the cheapest way to clean the tube. Bore snakes are cheap and cheap is expensive in the long run. Use the Otis and forget others, always a clean patch, safe to the bore, compact and they work. In over 55 years of shooting I have tried just about all things. Can't tell you how many times I broke a cheap aluminum rod in the bore of my .22 trying to clean it. Where the patch attached is usually where it broke, all kinds of "miracle" cleaners that were a waste of $$. Bought the Otis with Kroil #9 and never looked back. I have a large plastic bin that I keep all of my cleaning supplies I.E. oils, plastilube, Kroi.#9, various patches, Sweet's 7.62. I will never run out of patches as my wife is constantly giving me cotton cloth that she has no use for in her quilts. I sure have some purity patches to use.
Sam

[fguffey]

It seems like years ago; I was at the local gun parts store when the owner was demonstrating a bore snake on a shot gun, I was impressed. It looked like he was pulling a feather duster through the bore. I do not know why but I said something like; "I make things like that but I use them on rifles like 25 Cal., 30 Cal. and bigger bores.

F. Guffey

[dave]

Bore snakes, pull thru's, what ever, were issued by many countries to their troops, for use when a rod was not available. They were and are a secondary cleaning method. But companies have come up with ad's and perhaps slight differences and are making money from people who like something new and get sold a bill of goods! A muzzle guide does away with any muzzle problem, if two fingers do not work!
Never use Alum. or jointed rods, only stainless one piece!

[PhillipM]

Hoppe's makes two kinds: The Viper and the Regular Bore Snake..........The Viper ain't worth a damn...takes a gorilla to pull it through and then it has a tendency to break with the pulling....now you have a big problem trying to get a stuck snake out of your bore.....happened to me pulling a Viper through an '03.

How did you remove it?

Happy OTIS user.

[fguffey]

Bore snakes, pull thru's, what ever...
Never use Alum. or jointed rods, only stainless one piece!

In the old days we ground the joints smooth and or we taped them and then we decided the rod should be pulled not pushed, and then one day a shooter called and complained about his bore snake stuck in the barrel. That was about the time I thought about my bore cleaner outer. It is impossible to lock up, come loose, touch the bore in the middle or either end and if it ever gets stuck I can take it apart in the bore.

Bore snakes, pull thru's, what ever, were issued by many countries to their troops,

But if countries issued whatever to their troops I can understand why there is no interest. I did have a few in the family that came back with aluminum chains and cord with lead weights.

And then there was this picture that won an award, the picture had nothing to do with armorers but I found it interesting.

F. Guffey

[PhillipM]

Want to guess what they used to clean Enfield rifles? Only back then they were called "pull throughs"

I remember when Jim Keenan used to post on CSP. He said in his time in as an armorer he begged the NCOs to instruct the troops to never use a thong because when the jute string breaks, its a serious problem. He went on to say in his position he couldn't officially order them not to be used because they were on the list of approved equipment.