Muzzleloading Cleaning

[joliver]

I'm just getting back into MLs after a 20-year absence, and I've forgotten a lot of the basic stuff and have a couple of questions regarding cleaning:

1. I've read that ammonia can cause a barrel to rust, or at least contribute to it rusting. Some people, on the other hand, swear by as one of the best things to clean with. What's the true story?

2. I've been using Bore Butter as a lubricant after cleaning, but have been told that Wonder Lube is better. If this is true, then what is Bore Butter good for--lubing patches, or what? ::

3. I've been running a dry patch through the bore to get rid of the Bore Butter before shooting, but I was just told that you should never run a dry patch through the bore. Is this true.

 

[Bob J]

Joliver -
Don't know about ammonia - never used it.

Believe Bore Butter and Wonder Lube to be the same thing or very similiar. I use Wonder Lube as a patch lube for target and hunting and it works well. However, I clean with Dawn dish soap and water, dry real well, and then use Ballistol for bore protectant and exterior wipe down. Am very pleased with results.

Before shooting, I run a DRY patch down bore to remove any excess Ballistol and shoot with Wonder Lubed patches. :m2c:

 

[Rebel]

1) No, don't use ammonia

2) Bore Butter and Wonder Lube are pretty much the same thing.

3) never run a dry patch down a DIRTY bore or you will most likely wind up with a stuck patch and jag, which is no fun at all. Don't hurt to run one down a clean bore to get the oils and grease out before loading.

 

[Rat]

Oh boy...#3, you can run dry patches through the bore until the cows come home, and Reb stops washing his guns with water. Please shoot the person who told you that. No, on second thought use a rock. Make them die slowly. That is so untrue.

#2, I thought Wonder Lube WAS bore-butter. Wonder lube is good stuff. I just use 3-in-1 oil, or any oil for the after cleaning oil. I did run a Wonder Lube patch down the barrel of my Brown Bess after loading, before I took it turk-hunting yesterday...seems to be fine. I think the important thing about lubing a gun after cleaning is to check it again a day or two after, and re-lube it...don't clean a gun, lube it, and then put it away until next time. I use Wonder lube mainly as a patch lube.

#1: I don't know about ammonia, but it sure sounds like over kill on a ML, and why get something like that on your stock? Or hands? You can clean you gun with Hoppe's #9+ and Kroil, not have to get water on the gun, (water+steel=rust) and not even have to take the gun apart...let alone con-cocktions of ammonia and other weird stuff. I think ammonia is used to clean metal fouling out of a modern cartridge gun's bore. NASTY stuff.

I'm assuming you are using water to clean your gun, just because of the ammonia question. Again you can clean a BP firearm these days with solvents alone, and I've found that Hoppe's#9+ is the best in that regard.

:imo:

Rat

 

[amccall]

In this web site is a lot of interesting information and maybe it will answer your question about different types of lubes to prevent rust. Muzzleloader experiments

This is one topic that many people have their own way of doing things. I use hot water and dish soap then I use something to displace / take out the water from the metal parts that I have cleaned and then I use an anti rust lubricant. Bore butter is a good patch lube I use it and stumpy's moose milk both work well. The dry patch I would not use if you just shot and have not run a wet patch down your barrel first. The reason is that you could get it stuck in the barrel with the jag. After I shoot I run a wet patch down then a dry patch. The wet patch I will use some of stumpy's moose milk on a patch or some bore butter on a patch, it depends what I have to use.
:results: :m2c: :thumbsup:

 

[Rat]

Well yes...a dry patch down a dirty bore could result in a stuck patch, rod and jag. But Joliver said "before shooting".

Maybe ya don't have to beat that guy with a rock...better ask him again.

eace:

Rat

 

[cayugad]

I'm just getting back into MLs after a 20-year absence, and I've forgotten a lot of the basic stuff and have a couple of questions regarding cleaning:

1. I've read that ammonia can cause a barrel to rust, or at least contribute to it rusting. Some people, on the other hand, swear by as one of the best things to clean with. What's the true story?

2. I've been using Bore Butter as a lubricant after cleaning, but have been told that Wonder Lube is better. If this is true, then what is Bore Butter good for--lubing patches, or what? ::

3. I've been running a dry patch through the bore to get rid of the Bore Butter before shooting, but I was just told that you should never run a dry patch through the bore. Is this true.

#1 Ammonia is present in some of the modern cleaners. Birchwood Casey Bore Scrubber which will remove nitro and copper fowling has ammonia in it (or my nose is really gone bad). I use it all the time in the muzzleloaders and there is no rust in my barrels (nor any other kind of fowling). In the modern steel used with muzzleloaders today, I do not think it will hurt it as long as you wipe it out of the bore after it has done its job and then use a quality gun oil to protect the steel.

Perhaps you're thinking of the effect the Hydrogen Peroxide has on steel. It is used in some of the homemade cleaners. It will cause flash rusting if you were to clean the rifle bore and then not put anything in there after to protect the steel.

#2 Bore Butter, Wonder Lube, Wonder Lube 1000, Wonder Lube w/pine smell, all the same stuff as far as I know. What is it good for... I lube conicals with it, and it does lube a patch good. Other then that, I will not even get into that discussion... :shake:

#3 Run a dry patch through a clean bore to remove any trace of oils, grease, dust or dirt before shooting. Just never run a dry patch through a fowled bore or you will have a stuck patch on your hands...

 

[roundball]

I'm just getting back into MLs after a 20-year absence, and I've forgotten a lot of the basic stuff and have a couple of questions regarding cleaning:

1. I've read that ammonia can cause a barrel to rust, or at least contribute to it rusting. Some people, on the other hand, swear by as one of the best things to clean with. What's the true story?

2. I've been using Bore Butter as a lubricant after cleaning, but have been told that Wonder Lube is better. If this is true, then what is Bore Butter good for--lubing patches, or what? ::

3. I've been running a dry patch through the bore to get rid of the Bore Butter before shooting, but I was just told that you should never run a dry patch through the bore. Is this true.

One surefire, time honored, proven method is to use steaming hot soapy water, then a hot water rinse, then bone dry the bore, then heavily cost it with borebutter (wonderlube, natural lube, etc)...works perfectly and promotes minimal fouling.
:redthumb:

 

[jim gray]

One surefire, time honored, proven method is to use steaming hot soapy water, then a hot water rinse, then bone dry the bore, then heavily cost it with borebutter (wonderlube, natural lube, etc)...works perfectly and promotes minimal fouling

Ditto.

I have tried other methods for cleaning, but this is the quickest and the best that I have found.

 

[Stumpkiller]

I run an alcohol soaked patch, then a dry one, to clean the old lube & oil out of a barrel (I lube mine well before storage, too).

You can minimize the chance of losing a patch in the barrel by screwing the jag oo over a corner of the patch.

A clean bore shouldn't grab a patch. Never run a dry patch down a fouled bore. That will lead to a well and truly stuck rod and can spoil your whole day. (Drip something wet down into it before resorting to more drastic removal methods.

 

[Wart]

I'm one of those that use equal parts of murphy's oil soap, alcohol and proxide ... then rinse with hot water or left over hot coffee.
Then I lube with bore butter (same thing as wonder lube) and I run a dry patch before shooting, plus touch off my pan to remove any bore butter that may be in the touchhole.

I know others that use brake cleaner or windex to clean their guns ... can't argue with them as they are my elders (I have to admit, I've never seen any rust on their guns).

Those times that I'm going to shoot at an event a couple days in a row ... I simple run a couple cut patches of baby wipes (yep, baby wipes) down the barrel and over my lock ... then grease up a cloth patch with bore butter, run it over my lock and down the barrel. Works for me ...

:imo:

 

[jimbo15563]

I learned the hard way about the dry patch down a dirty bore. 2 weeks ago, I did that with my TC Renegade and ended up pulling the tip off the ramrod. Fortunately, I made a distress call to this forum and the members told me to remove the touch hole liner pour in a little FFFF and shoot it out. Since then, I've been using TC bore cleaner on a wet patch followed by a dry one between shots.

 

[jdkruger]

three weeks ago when i stuck a dry patch ,jag ,and rod in my rifle i was lucky enough to have about a half inch of play at the breech. so i calmly took it down stairs to the bench and removed the drum. then i took some Slick 50 One greese and a pipe cleaner and smeared some greese on as much of the patch as possible. then began working the rod and patch back and forth . long story short, after 5 or 10 minutes the patch came out.

lesson learned there ::

jim k :winking:

 

[joliver]

Thanks for all the help--I think that answers all my questions regarding bore cleaning, but I have three more:

1. As I understand it, there is a small "chamber" for the powder charge just in front of the breech plug. What is the best way to clean this "chamber"? Up til now, I have been taking the barrel off the stock, siphoning a mix of hot water and dishwashing liquid through the barrel, then siphoning hot clear water through it, making sure it was dry, then lubing with Bore Butter. I wonder if just running patches with whatever on them through the bore is enough to clean this "chamber", or is my method better? I don't see how running a patch with whatever on it could get down into this "chamber" and clean it.

2. When I run the clear water rinse through the barrel, would it help to have rubbing alcohol in it to help dry out the barrel?

3. What about using a moisture displacer like WD40 or something similar after cleaning and drying the bore?

Thanks in advance for your help.... ::