Hello all, Total newb question here. After many hours of cleaning and I mean many. If I run my brush through the barrel and then a dry patch it comes up black. After six patches used on both sides it will come clean. Then run the brush through eight times and its back to a dirty patch. I have repeated this process using cleaners as well and the result is the same. I have put 100 patches through this barrel using this method and it still comes up dirty. Help please!! Df
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Help with cleaning??
- Thread starter Dandyfunk
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54ball
62 Cal.
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Forget about the brush. A Brush not only removes fouling it also will deposit it. If you have to brush, do it first then follow with patches until they run clean and oil.
How I do my flint fullstocks.
In the field I may use coffee. First I plug the vent with a tooth pick. Next I pour some coffee or water and if it's really dirty some soapy water down the bore. I plug the bore with my finger and rotate the gun up and down, like a signal flag. I then pour the black liquid out then repeat until the water is clear. Next I set the barrel down to drain. I then remove the tooth pick from the vent and run a series of damp patches up and down the bore changing them when they foul up. After these patches are relatively clean, I start with white less damp to dry patches until they run clean, then I oil a patch run it through a few times. If I brush after I'm through with the damp patches, my white patched would come out dirty.
Then I clean the lock and barrel, if it's wet I'll remove the lock, brush, wipe down and oil it.
It took me longer to nick and peck this out than it does for me to clean a flint full stock.
If yours is a half stock you can easily remove the barrel, place the breech in a bucket and pump water through it with a patch and jag. Then use patches until clean and dry. I like to finish up with dry white patches.
If you get a dry patch stuck, your jag may be too tight or your patch too thick. To get a stuck dry patch loose simply pour some water down the bore, give it a minute and the now damp patch should come out easily.
maybe your not using enough water.
if using a center fire solvent...it may never come clean
even using BP solvents the bore will take a long time to run clean vs using simple water
How I do my flint fullstocks.
In the field I may use coffee. First I plug the vent with a tooth pick. Next I pour some coffee or water and if it's really dirty some soapy water down the bore. I plug the bore with my finger and rotate the gun up and down, like a signal flag. I then pour the black liquid out then repeat until the water is clear. Next I set the barrel down to drain. I then remove the tooth pick from the vent and run a series of damp patches up and down the bore changing them when they foul up. After these patches are relatively clean, I start with white less damp to dry patches until they run clean, then I oil a patch run it through a few times. If I brush after I'm through with the damp patches, my white patched would come out dirty.
Then I clean the lock and barrel, if it's wet I'll remove the lock, brush, wipe down and oil it.
It took me longer to nick and peck this out than it does for me to clean a flint full stock.
If yours is a half stock you can easily remove the barrel, place the breech in a bucket and pump water through it with a patch and jag. Then use patches until clean and dry. I like to finish up with dry white patches.
If you get a dry patch stuck, your jag may be too tight or your patch too thick. To get a stuck dry patch loose simply pour some water down the bore, give it a minute and the now damp patch should come out easily.
maybe your not using enough water.
if using a center fire solvent...it may never come clean
even using BP solvents the bore will take a long time to run clean vs using simple water
jamesthomas
70 Cal.
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- Jan 25, 2009
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The only kind of brush I run through mine is a nylon one. The brass brushes will deposit brass particles that will turn black when you run a cleaning patch down after it. Throw away the brass brush and either get a nylon one, or don't use one at all. I use mine after a day of shooting to get most of the fouling out (you can see pieces of fouling come out when you turn the rifle upside down an give it a bump or two with you hand). It then it takes only 5 or 6 patches to finish cleaning an oiling it up for the next time.
Thanks, I am using the bucket method as you have described. I only have used hot water with dish soap. Breach in bucket, brush, then patches till clean. It just seams that the p.o. never cleaned the rifle and there is a lot of residue still in the gun. I will follow all your advise and keep at it. Thanks Df.
I had your same dilemma when I started shooting. I shoot Pyrodex in percussion rifled barrels. I read all the reports about just a soapy water rinse would clean a barrel. Never worked for me. The patches would come out clean from the detergent/water wash. First patch with cleaning fluid after the wash came out dirty, even when I didn't use a brush. Tried hot water, cold water, different cleaning solutions, longer pumping sessions, same results. It also didn't get the residue around the percussion cap clean.
The "pumping in the bucket" method may get a smooth bore acceptably clean. When you try it in a rifled barrel, its still dirty. Its not copper residue from the brush turning your patches dirty, its spent powder. The soapy water does not get the spent powder out of the rifling.
"Pumping" is a good start but your patch soaked in cleaning fluid will always come out dirty afterward. Just run 5-6 with cleaning fluid thru the barrel until they come out clean. I use patches soaked with Barricade.
I'm sure many on here will dispute this but I challenge them to run a cleaning fluid patch thru after their water wash. They get to a clean dry patch stage and consider it done. Even had a guy on here try to tell me the Barricade was reacting with the metal to give me the black color!?! Then there's the camp that will tell you that its "flash corrosion" that's giving you the black color. Trust me, corrosion doesn't happen that fast and it's not black in a steel barrel. Then there's the purist camp that will say it's the Pyrodex and I should be shooting real black powder and all my troubles will go away. Well I tried that also with the same results.
I think most people just want to shortcut the tedious cleaning of a black powder weapon.
The "pumping in the bucket" method may get a smooth bore acceptably clean. When you try it in a rifled barrel, its still dirty. Its not copper residue from the brush turning your patches dirty, its spent powder. The soapy water does not get the spent powder out of the rifling.
"Pumping" is a good start but your patch soaked in cleaning fluid will always come out dirty afterward. Just run 5-6 with cleaning fluid thru the barrel until they come out clean. I use patches soaked with Barricade.
I'm sure many on here will dispute this but I challenge them to run a cleaning fluid patch thru after their water wash. They get to a clean dry patch stage and consider it done. Even had a guy on here try to tell me the Barricade was reacting with the metal to give me the black color!?! Then there's the camp that will tell you that its "flash corrosion" that's giving you the black color. Trust me, corrosion doesn't happen that fast and it's not black in a steel barrel. Then there's the purist camp that will say it's the Pyrodex and I should be shooting real black powder and all my troubles will go away. Well I tried that also with the same results.
I think most people just want to shortcut the tedious cleaning of a black powder weapon.
Guest
If you want to get it really clean get a one caliber undersize jag,a sturdy range rod,cut a piece of green scotch brite about 1x1 inch,make about 25 strokes with this and then clean with patches and cleaner of your choice,this gets the barrel clean as possible and will not harm the bore.If you only use real BP you dont need anything other than cold water to clean a bore,I would never use soap in a barrel and always use WD40 afterwards to get rid of any moisture,used this method for 25+ years with no problems whatsoever
Guest
btech said:
Red flash rust will form if you use hot water to clean a barrel within minutes
The very hot water w/o any soap or other
"contaminants" that I use for cleaning has gone through an iron filter and a water softener and never produces "flash rusting". A bucket is filled w/ very hot water and the breech end is dunked.
To start, a bronze wire brush is used followed by a wet patch and after a few strokes, the patch siphons up the hot water in the bore and is left there for a couple of minutes. Then the bronze wire brush is used for a couple of strokes followed by a few strokes w/ wet patches.
The dirty water in the bucket is dumped and a funnel is used to pour hot water down the vertically held bbl until the bbl is nearly too hot to touch. The bbl is then wiped dry and a couple of dry patches are run down and then while the bbl is still very hot,a generous amount of "Oxyoke 1000" lubes the bore and all exterior surfaces of the LR, including the stock.
After this "treatment" , I've stored MLers for yrs w/o any further care and have never had any rust......Fred
"contaminants" that I use for cleaning has gone through an iron filter and a water softener and never produces "flash rusting". A bucket is filled w/ very hot water and the breech end is dunked.
To start, a bronze wire brush is used followed by a wet patch and after a few strokes, the patch siphons up the hot water in the bore and is left there for a couple of minutes. Then the bronze wire brush is used for a couple of strokes followed by a few strokes w/ wet patches.
The dirty water in the bucket is dumped and a funnel is used to pour hot water down the vertically held bbl until the bbl is nearly too hot to touch. The bbl is then wiped dry and a couple of dry patches are run down and then while the bbl is still very hot,a generous amount of "Oxyoke 1000" lubes the bore and all exterior surfaces of the LR, including the stock.
After this "treatment" , I've stored MLers for yrs w/o any further care and have never had any rust......Fred
Guest
Cold water is all thats needed,followed by WD40,I have ML'ers that have been stored for nearly 10 years with this method....no rust to this day
Guest
btech said:
Use the WD40 and this will stop,I would also not use the brush if you been shooting only patched round balls and real BP
I find that even when I am done cleaning, I still get a little bit ofblack stuff on my white patches.. I use the WD-40 to oil the bore, it seems to "neutralize" the acidic effect that BP has on steel. I've not had any rust doing this. I simply spray the WD-40 directly into the bore, just a few squirts, followed by a clean patch.
Works for me.
Works for me.
Warm water in a 5g bucket with a couple drops of liquid dish soap.
Remove the nipple.
Patch and pump. I usually go through 2 or 3 patches like this.
Remove from the bucket and place in kitchen sink. Run cold water to rinse.
Dry outside with soft cotton towel. Dry inside with patches.
Oil inside of barrel with synthetic motor oil or transmission fluid or air tool oil. All 3 have modern additives which contain anti-oxidizers that are specifically designed to prevent rust.
Plug the end of the barrel with a couple patches rolled into a tube. Fold a patch into a small square and place over the nipple. Dry fire the gun and use your thumb to gently lower the hammer onto the cloth on top of the nipple.
Before you shoot it, run a couple dry patches down and fire 2 caps.
Remove the nipple.
Patch and pump. I usually go through 2 or 3 patches like this.
Remove from the bucket and place in kitchen sink. Run cold water to rinse.
Dry outside with soft cotton towel. Dry inside with patches.
Oil inside of barrel with synthetic motor oil or transmission fluid or air tool oil. All 3 have modern additives which contain anti-oxidizers that are specifically designed to prevent rust.
Plug the end of the barrel with a couple patches rolled into a tube. Fold a patch into a small square and place over the nipple. Dry fire the gun and use your thumb to gently lower the hammer onto the cloth on top of the nipple.
Before you shoot it, run a couple dry patches down and fire 2 caps.
