Get the lead out, please!

[kelleyjk]

Picked up a sweet Jonathan Browning Mountain Rifle in .50 looks well cared for bore looked fine at first peek. Then I started wiping it out decided somebody had been shootin them oblong cyclinder shaped projectiles we're afraid to mention on here. Lead fouling really sucks. This rifle has pretty deep grooves too.

Used some Shooters choice and bronze brushes, 3 dozen patches then denatured alcohol so Im down to nothing but dry steel and lead now. No rust not even a speck. Used about half a sheet of the Birchwood Casey lead remover cloth hopin to polish it out (stuffs hard to find these days but it works real good). About 3 dozen more passes with that stuff and its still coming out. Soaked in Shooters Choice overnight, repeated til dry still getting lead on the B/C cloth.

Alternated the B/C lead cloth and dry flannel maybe another 40-50 passes (I'll go broke buying this stuff) still coming out black and gunky.

Anyone know anything faster to try next short of using mercury :barf: I doubt the old lead removal tool with the screen mesh will fill the deep 50 cal grooves and I cant find it anymore anyway.

Home brews? Blow torch? egads! I suspect the lead was deposited from shooting Maxi Balls or similar without proper lube, found this on an Investarms Hawken the guy cast his own slugs for but not this severe and it having shallow grooves cleaned up pretty nice. I guess I could keep dragging it out a few microns at a time with the B/C cloth, 6 hours a day...

Bronze wool still available anywhere? Just not too crazy about using steel wool.

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

You've done everything that I can think of, so as of right now, I'd say MORE ELBOW GREASE!

If I can think of anything else, I'll post it.

Good luck!

Dave

 

[RJR]

Might try some Break Free or PB Blaster soaked over night to see if it can get underneath the lead and lift it. Plug and fill the barrel. Good luck with it.
Ammonia might also work as long as you don't leave it too long.

 

[roundball]

I suspect the lead was deposited from shooting Maxi Balls or similar

If its lead, the thing that will pull it all out in a heartbeat while you're in the comfort of your easy chair, is one of those electro-chemical copper & lead removal units.
Not expensive at all, I bought my "Outers" unit years and years ago using it on all sorts of rifles to pull out copper buildup...and a few handguns I used for some high volume cast lead bullet shooting on weekends.

Plug the breech end, slip a tiny rubber plug on one end of the small diameter stainless steel "collector rod" and insert it into the bore with the little O-rings at intervals to insulate the rod from the bore walls.

Fill the bore with the 'lead out' solution that comes with it, connect one low voltage electrical lead to the barrel exterior, the other lead to the tip of the collector rod, and depending on how much lead there is, it takes anywhere from 30 minutes to a couple hours for all the lead to migrate off the bore walls through the solution over to the collector rod while you're watching a ball game or something.

Every 30 minutes disconnect, pull the rod, wipe off the accumulated lead so far...slide a piece of steel wool up and down the rod to keep a fresh clean surface, reinsert it and reconnect the leads.

Slickest thing since sliced bread.

 

[gordy]

Sounds to me you may have a combination of barrel deposits ? If he was shooting conicals ? he may have also used the "sabot" plastic wrapped projectiles . so you may also have layers of plastic fouling . You seem to be making progress so I"d keep on scrubbing . Elbow grease will win out ! Some one here might have a formula but I don"t , sorry , and good luck ! :thumbsup:

 

[ohio ramrod]

If it is a mixture of plastic and lead from sabots easy off oven cleaner works well. But use care as it is strong stuff. :surrender:

 

[William O.]

It does sound like you've got layers in the bore, a combination of lead and plastic. Steel wool won't hurt your barrel, just polish it and hopefully remove all the left over fouling. You might also want to try JB's bore cleaning compound or a product called "Wipe-out".

 

[kelleyjk]

I thought I remembered something like that havent seen one in 20years. I like armchair compatible techniques if I run out of elbow grease I might try to scrounge one of them up thanks everyone that replied.

 

[paulvallandigham]

Two products you might consider using on some doubled or tight patches is either JB Bore Cleaner, or Flitz. I use flitz to clean the carbon and lead off the face of cylinder revolvers. I use JB Bore Cleaner to go after old lead and COPPER deposits in a variety of rifles.

Shooter's choice will work, but you should consider leaving the barrel soaking with the stuff for at least several days before going at it with a bore brush. I use bore brushes to get down into the corners of the grooves, and knock loose any lead or carbon fouling stuck down there. They are a lot cheap than those chemically treated patches, and you can really scrub the grooves with them. :thumbsup:

 

[roundball]

I thought I remembered something like that havent seen one in 20years. I like armchair compatible techniques if I run out of elbow grease I might try to scrounge one of them up thanks everyone that replied.

http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct/?productnumber=243419

This is the latest & greatest Outers Foul Out III.
You can also find used Outers Foul Out I and II systems on various auctions and Ebay for less...just have to be sure all the parts are there

 

[kelleyjk]

cool thanks

picked up some Kleenbore version of the cloth today looks and smells even more toxic than the B/C!

also found some Shooter Choice lead remover $9 for a half pint size we'll soak'er down in this stuff and give it Hell with the spensive felt stuff

 

[nkbj]

Wonder if a 50 minie wouldn't be of use. Anybody got a 50 sizer that would let aluminum window screen be pressed into the outside of a fifty minie to make a scraper bullet? Could work like the barrel cleaners the army packed one to ten in minie boxes.

 

[longcruise]

I thought I remembered something like that havent seen one in 20years. I like armchair compatible techniques if I run out of elbow grease I might try to scrounge one of them up thanks everyone that replied.

You can make one for a few bucks. Check out the URL below and then note my additional instructions following.

Electo cleaning device

Ok, first off, no flashlight is needed! Go to radio shack and get a "D" cell battery holder with leads attached. Lengthen the leads and attach the alligator clips. You can use a rifle cleaning rod as suggested or any polished steel rod.

Here is the main thing you do different for a ml gun. Squeeze a small cork (home depot or lowes) onto the end of the rod before dropping down the bore. This is your insulator. To insulate the rod from the sides of the barrel, you can use a similar cork sliced into discs with a hole in the center to fit the rod and then slide them over the rod. Or, you can just take some rubber bands and wrap them around the rod in about three places so as to prevent contact of rod and barrel.

Mix the liquid as in the above instructions. Run this set up for about 30 minutes then pull it and drain the barrel. Wipe the rod clean and do it again with new liquid for about 15 minutes. Should be clean by now.

Total investment should not exceed about $15 to $20.

Have done this on ml and modern barrels with success every time.

 

[SgtSchutzen]

I agree with roundball on the electronic bore cleaner concept. I`m cheap though, so I built one of these.
http://www.surplusrifle.com/reviews/copperout/index.asp

Never tried it in a muzzle loader barrel, but can`t see why it wouldn`t work. Worked wonders removing crud and old bullet jacket remains from a couple of my old Mausers.

 

[SgtSchutzen]

Darn it Marmotslayer, ya beat me to the post :grin: I`m always a day late and a dollar short :surrender:

 

[tiger955]

What I use in my centerfire handguns is some strands of COPPER "Chore Boy" pot scrubber wrapped around a snug-fitting bore brush, scrapes the lead out in chunks and won't hurt the bore if you be sure to use the copper pads, not the cheap plated steel ones. Available in most grocery stores.

 

[kelleyjk]

awesome thats what I was thinkin of I see the crackheads on TV use that stuff for their pipes!

used the Lead Reomover by Shooters Choice it got a lot out patched came out clean after 4 alterntatin with dry, then used the lead cloth guess what, still some left

I may rig up one them electro unplatin devices gonna shoot it tomorrow anyhow maybe I can burn the rest out!

 

[RedFeather]

LOL, I'd give you a couple of Williams wiper Minies if I thought it would help. They have a flat zinc base. Have a few unfired but it would be a shame to waste them. Me, I would go with the electrode system.

 

[kelleyjk]

thanks man 'preciate the offer

we'll see how she looks after 30-40 prb today

 

[matt denison]

..."I bought my "Outers" unit years and years ago using it on all sorts of rifles to pull out copper buildup...and a few handguns I used for some high volume cast lead bullet shooting on weekends."


Me too. Best investment I ever made. I've found that even on barrels that I thought were "clean" that this electronic gizmo would still get more $*&%!! out. If you cast your own lead bullets or Minnies for modern guns or muzzleloaders and maybe get the bullets a little too soft or juice them up a little too fast this thing will get the lead out with minimal effort. Shooting shot in your smoothbore can and will leave lead deposits in the bore and since you can't just pull the breechplug at will to scrub it then I recommend one of these. :thumbsup: