Field Cleaning

[Nuthatch]

For those of you that hunt a ways from roads & such, how do you clean your rifle in the field, if it will be another day or two before you get back to where a more thorough cleaning job can get done?

Looking for ideas for my upcoming hunt. Last year, I shot a buck on the hike out. Other than a few lubed patches down the bore, cleaning was a solid 24 hours from that shot. The fouling wasn't bad. But, suppose I miss on day 1? Should I boil up some water and plan for an in-camp full cleaning? For any of you who backpack in, how do you clean if it will be 24 hours or longer before you can get back home?

 

[Britsmoothy]

Sir, I have kept a gun fouled for two weeks and no issues, but, I do use plenty of natural lube.
I have also just used the natural lube of beeswax and olive oil in a grease consistency on a few patches and rodded the fouled bore. It's been fine for a week. A week later I just loaded it up and shot it again.
Don't panic and don't use mineral oil or anything that sprays from a can!

 

[Grimord]

For years I deer hunted in the N.Y. Adirondacks about 5-10 miles from the nearest road. We cleaned our guns with water warmed over the campfire and lots of cleaning patches. We also had a small kit for removing nipples or a stuck patch and protected the cleaned bore with Barricade. Really isn't that hard, and it is the way our ancestors did it.

 

[Daveboone]

Another upstate NYer here. Lots of wet weather, so it is not a good idea to leave the gun. Worse case you clean it like our forefathers did. Any water in a pinch, keep a zip lock bag of patches in your pack. I have a cleaning jag attached to the end of my cleaning rod at all times. I would (and do) pack one of the miniature Wd-40 spray cans. Really, I can do my normal cleaning routine with no big deal. If you are hunting with a partner, you can double up on some supplies...Wd-40, some gun oil, about covers it.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Rinse, rinse, rinse it out, then swab it. Oxidation needs oxygen so..., some sort of oil or grease helps too.

LD

 

[dkasprzak]

A couple of patches with moose milk followed by a couple of dry patches, using both sides of the patches. Anytime I shoot my gun in the field this is how I ”clean” it before reloading. I don’t do a full on cleaning until i get back home be it one day or five days or…..then it’s hot water….just below boiling followed by Ballistol for storing and stored muzzle down.

I often wonder how did mountain men and those who relied on their gun for protection and food really handle this situation. I cannot imagen them leaving a gun unloaded until they had time to properly clean due to their own protection and or a missed opportunity to take more game. I also so can’t see them “unloading” a gun and wasting powder, and shot or ball just to perform a cleaning task.

I suppose what really happened is all over the map and depends on the circumstances of each individual. A homesteader hunting only for food probably handled it differently than someone in unfamiliar territory where hostiles or perceived hostiles and dangerous game were thought to be.

 

[FishDFly]

I keep one of the small pump/spray bottles with cleaning solution in my bag along with cleaning patches. I get the bottles at Walmart, normally hair spray comes in them.

 

[Africa58double]

Pump top bottle of Tc #13 and patches, lots of patches. Ram rod , maybe a jag….. and then when done Berracade on a patch.

 

[Walkingeagle]

Lol, and I just wet a few patches with water (or saliva) and run them in/out of the barrel then follow up with dry patches and lastly a small greased (mink oil/bear grease type of thing, basically my hunting patch lube) patch. Damp wipe off powder fouling around lock or barrel. Done. No kit required.
Walk

 

[.36Rooster]

For those of you that hunt a ways from roads & such, how do you clean your rifle in the field, if it will be another day or two before you get back to where a more thorough cleaning job can get done?

Looking for ideas for my upcoming hunt. Last year, I shot a buck on the hike out. Other than a few lubed patches down the bore, cleaning was a solid 24 hours from that shot. The fouling wasn't bad. But, suppose I miss on day 1? Should I boil up some water and plan for an in-camp full cleaning? For any of you who backpack in, how do you clean if it will be 24 hours or longer before you can get back home?

I wouldn't even boil the water...just takes extra time and energy handling a scalding barrel and finding a way to hold it without burning your hand.

Use plain water, pretend it is your solvent. Couple of patches to soak the fouling, several brush strokes, squejee the residue out with several successive patches on a jag..., remove your nipple and repeat the same process on the flash channel with a few pipe cleaners. Clean your nipple with your bore brush and a pipe cleaner.

Finish up by putting your nipple on, coating a patch in oil, wringing it out really good, pushing it down your bore, and removing it in a fast continuous motion without stopping to suck air through your nipple to blow out any remaining solvent and oil...

Wipe a light coat of oil on your barrel and external parts, and you are good to go. The rifle is as clean as its going to get. Now, load it, and keep it that way. You don't have to clean it again unless you fire it. Just wipe the old oil off your metal surfaces each morning, and wipe on a new light coat, and this will keep dirt from accumulating.

 

[Spikebuck]

I agree that just plain old water is fine and no need to heat it. When out in the snow, I just put a patch in my hand with a little scooped up snow, then close my hand to melt the snow to make the patch wet.

Flinters without a patent breech are easiest. Guns with a patent breech would require another size jag and cappers something to remove the nipple and perhaps a pipe cleaner for the fire channel.

 

[CapPopper]

Shot my gun during primitive this year on the first day and reloaded. Emptied it that night and spit patched the bore clean followed by a dry patch one patch of barricade and another dry patch patch And reloaded. Didn't clean the patent breach or the lock at all and never had any rust. Probably wouldn't have even needed to do the bore. I would say with a good lube in less than wet weather you would have several days before it was much of an issue.