Have you ever typed in a question online and left more confused than when you started? As with many facets of firearms, rifle cleaning is a complicated and often divisive topic. Like religion, it seems like everyone has their own way of doing it and everyone else is going to ” “. In police academy we constantly had to clean our weapons to exacting standards. This is over the top and unnecessary. Read on to learn what you actually need to do to keep your firearm accurate and in good working order.
Why Do We Clean
In order to know how to clean our rifles we need to know why we are cleaning our rifles. Shooting modern, non-corrosive ammunition there are two main reasons to clean. The first is to prevent accuracy drop off from an overly fouled barrel, and the other is to prevent rust. Also, maintaining function is another important reason to clean. However, most manual actions require a great deal of fouling before function is reduced. Copper fouling can be an issue with rough bores or very high round counts, but in general is not a common concern with hunting rifles. Also, maintaining function is another important reason to clean. however
First of all, the most common issue with neglected firearms is rust. Water from the outdoors, condensation and your hands can accumulate on a firearm and cause the surface finish to rust. Interestingly, the degree to which this can occur varies wildly depending on your climate and the type of finish on your firearm. For example, a traditional blued firearm is very susceptible to rust while modern finishes like cerakote are virtually impervious.
Secondly, cleaning is important to maintain accuracy. Too much carbon fouling in the bore from spent gun powder can degrade the accuracy of your firearm. Cleaning out this fouling returns accuracy to its original state.
Preventing Rust
Rust prevention is key to rifle cleaning. Rust can sneak in quickly if the firearm is not maintained. Fortunately, preventing rust is as simple as applying a thin coat of oil to the steel surfaces of a firearm. my favourite is Hoppes #9 gun oil. As a side note, be sure to use an oil with a high combustion temperature. Low combustion temperature products like WD-40 can burn off when your rifle becomes hot during firing. Taking 30 seconds after each time afield to wipe down the exterior of your rifle will make a huge difference in the longevity of the firearm.
Wiping down the outside of the rifle with an oily rag prevents surface rust, however sometimes water may get in your bore. It is imperative that you remedy this quickly as rust on the bore is a surefire way to destroy accuracy. The easiest way to do this is to put some oil on the end of a Boresnake and run it through your barrel a couple of times. Boresnakes are cheap and excellent for a quick clean in camp between days of hunting.
Cleaning Your Bore
To be perfectly candid, most people clean their bores way too often. This stems from traditional bench rest wisdom of cleaning the bore every twenty shots or so. While this does increase short range accuracy it doesn’t have an appreciable affect on sporting rifles.
Hunting rifles are better treated in the same manner as PRS shooters treat their rifles; Clean them when accuracy drops off. PRS shooters do this because a fouled bore produces more consistent velocities which lead to better long range accuracy. Oftentimes a rifle can go several hundred rounds between cleaning before accuracy drops off. For many hunters that may be several years of service. Unless there is a reason to believe that there may be water in my bore or accuracy is decreasing, I won’t clean my rifle bore.
As far as the cleaning process for a rifle bore, it is reasonably simple. First, run a patch soaked in a solvent through the bore from the chamber to the muzzle. There are a ton of them on the market such as G96, Hoppes #9, and MC-25. Next, give the solvent 5 minutes or so to soak. If fouling is particularly heavy you can run a bronze or nylon brush through the bore to help loosen the carbon deposits. Finally, run a brass jag with patches on it until the patches come clean. Repeat the process until the bore is clean.
It is best to use a cleaning rod that is made of carbon fiber or at least coated with a polymer coating. However, if all you have is an aluminium or brass rod it is not the end of the world. Rifle steel is very strong and you won’t damage it with soft aluminium or brass.
Side Notes
Cleaning the Action
Cleaning the action can be done periodically if heavy carbon build-up is affecting function. It is as simple as wiping down with solvent to remove the carbon build up. Then, with the carbon gone apply a thin coat of oil to lubricate the action. This is very rarely required with bolt-action rifles.
Copper Fouling
Infrequently, copper fouling can degrade accuracy. There are a variety of ammonia based solvents that can remove copper from the bore much the same way traditional solvents do carbon. However, it is essential that the ammonia based solvents are completely removed from the bore within 30 minutes of application. If left in the bore these solvents will eat away at the steel and destroy the barrel.
Clean Bore Shooting
Something to be aware of is that many sporter profile barrels will shoot to a different point of impact on a perfectly clean bore. I always try to take my rifle to the range and put one or two fouling shots through it after a good cleaning before I take it afield. While the change in impact may only be a couple inches at a hundred yards that can translate to a much bigger difference three or four hundred yards. For the cost of a couple of shots the consistency is always worth taking the time to foul the bore. Accuracy is why you cleaned the bore in the first place after all.
Closing Thoughts
In closing, rifle cleaning for hunting rifles is far less complex than most people think. Bolt action hunting rifles are simple and durable tools and modern finishes are making them even more resilient. As long as you keep the exterior surfaces coated with oil, and remove the carbon fouling from the bore when accuracy suffers your gun will last a very long time.