Help me with my OCD. Cleaning the breech area.

[Docgp]

I am never satisfied that I have gotten all the crud out of the breech area. Seems like every time I look down with a light, I see crud around the breech plug thread area (thin black line). Seems like spinning TOW with a worm has been the best at cleaning the area.

What do you do? Am I being too anal retentive about it?

Thanks
Doc

 

[Juice Jaws]

Its never going be as clean as you got it out of the box. If you give it a good cleaning and then oil good your firearm should be just fine. Or you could just shoot every day and don't have to worry about cleaning it, just wipe be shots.

 

[chawbeef]

I am never satisfied that I have gotten all the crud out of the breech area. Seems like every time I look down with a light, I see crud around the breech plug thread area (thin black line). Seems like spinning TOW with a worm has been the best at cleaning the area.

What do you do? Am I being too anal retentive about it?

Thanks
Doc

There is a gentleman named Bill Slusser that makes and sells breech plug brushes in various sizes. Can be reached at 559 Meals Rd. Gardners Pa. 17324.....................Daniel

 

[Kansas Kid]

Breech plug brush is the way to go. Squirt a little cleaner of your choice with vent or nipple plugged with toothpick and twirl brush a few times and dump it. Repeat as needed. Then cotton swab or pipe cleaner in drum or vent.

 

[Britsmoothy]

If I had OCD about cleaning a muzzle loader I think I would just boil the kettle twice.

Let it go brother, your fear based concerns have no foundations.

B.

 

[Rifleman1776]

Everybody has their own notion about most things. After cleaning I squirt some carburetor/brake cleaner into the vent. Swab. Then rust protect with oil of choice, currently Barricade.

 

[Grumpa]

Muzzleloaders have to be cleaned? OMG, who knew? Maybe that explains why my .58 flintlock now takes .530 roundballs?

Seriously, all the above advice is good, especially that "It's never going to be as clean as you got it out of the box." If you really have OCD, take up fine engraving, and I will buy the first piece that meets your satisfaction.

Now, I'm off to boil the kettle (the second time).


Richard/Grumpa

 

[EC121]

Muzzleloader Builders Supply sells bronze breech plug brushes. After using some cleaner and a bare brush,I put a patch on the brush and twirl away. It will clean the corners pretty well. Just remember to clean the brush or fouling will dissolve the bronze. With enough oil it really doesn't matter. I oil the barrel well and stand it on the muzzle overnight. Excess oil runs onto the paper towel I put under the muzzle.

 

[hanshi]

After I finally realized cleaning perfection was impossible, I just did the best i could do and had no problems afterward. I'm OCD, too, and continue to worry a little over the job I just did.

 

[Rat]

Muzzleloaders have to be cleaned? OMG, who knew? Maybe that explains why my .58 flintlock now takes .530 roundballs?

Seriously, all the above advice is good, especially that "It's never going to be as clean as you got it out of the box." If you really have OCD, take up fine engraving, and I will buy the first piece that meets your satisfaction.

Now, I'm off to boil the kettle (the second time).


Richard/Grumpa

Once upon a time, long ago, when the ML craze first hit, and the first seasons opened up, a friend of mine was at a party, and got to talking to a guy who had just got a ML, and hearing my friend had a ML, and was a ML shootier, asked him if he knew why he could no longer load it. Could no longer get a ball/bullet down the barrel.

My friend asked him if he had cleaned it. Guy says "no, I've never cleaned it". Friend starts to explain that he needs to clean it, often.

Guy became seriously mad, angry, furious, said that cleaning a gun was the stupidest thing he ever heard, and argued that no gun had to be cleaned ever, including ML's and that said friend was giving him a line of bull-pucky, but not in those words. Anger to the point that said guy actually wanted to physically fight my friend, over the disagreement. !!! Luckily, friend walked away.

We laughed about that for years, wondering if that guy ever cleaned his rifle, or got it loaded again, or was still trying to pound a ball down his dirty barrel.

 

[Treestalker]

Once upon a time, long ago, when the ML craze first hit, and the first seasons opened up, a friend of mine was at a party, and got to talking to a guy who had just got a ML, and hearing my friend had a ML, and was a ML shootier, asked him if he knew why he could no longer load it. Could no longer get a ball/bullet down the barrel.

My friend asked him if he had cleaned it. Guy says "no, I've never cleaned it". Friend starts to explain that he needs to clean it, often.

Guy became seriously mad, angry, furious, said that cleaning a gun was the stupidest thing he ever heard, and argued that no gun had to be cleaned ever, including ML's and that said friend was giving him a line of bull-pucky, but not in those words. Anger to the point that said guy actually wanted to physically fight my friend, over the disagreement. !!! Luckily, friend walked away.

We laughed about that for years, wondering if that guy ever cleaned his rifle, or got it loaded again, or was still trying to pound a ball down his dirty barrel.

'It is difficult to free idiots from the chains that they admire' - Voltaire.

 

[Don Steele]

Bill Slusser's breech brushes are the cats azz for cleaning muzzleloaders with a flat breech face. They are caliber specific. When I ordered several from Bill last year he described his technique, and sent me a piece of the rubber he uses for his flintlocks. He clamps the rubber over the touchhole, pours some cleaning solution (choice is yours..) down the barrel, lets it sit a while, then uses the brush on a ramrod to scrub the breech face. Dump...repeat. Bill, his brushes and cleaning technique were discussed with pics in the Muzzle Blasts article "Beyond Friendship" a couple of months back. Bill's phone number is: 717-486-4817