How do you all clean your shotgun bores?

[mathman]

I've been shooting a lot of shotgun shells lately...a lot of slugs specifically. The bore gets so darn dirty that it takes me a long time to get the bore clean again. And the funny thing is that it's not the lead fouling (from the slugs) that is the problem...it is the powder residue down by the chamber (darn cheap Fiocchi shells).

I've tried regular brushing, bore snakes, attaching a rod to a Dewalt drill...you name it...still takes me a long time. I'm using Hoppe's No. 9 solvent.

I'm thinking of switching to Hoppe's Elite Solvent since I've been hearing good things about it.

Any suggestions?

[aroundchicago]

Let the Hoppe's soak a little before you start working the bore.

[Lavid2002]

Use the tornado brushes and the proper solvent for the leading. It scrapes it right out. For powder fouling run a bore snake through it and toss it in the safe...

[Chinny33]

1) Borekleen FOAM, let sit until you can see light through the bore
2) Spray any generic brake cleaner ($2.49 each on sale @ auto-parts store)
3) Spray M-Pro 9 and use a brass bristle brush in and out MANY times
4) spray brake cleaner again
5) spray with air from an air compressor
6) swab with Hoppes #9
7) Bore Snake
8) repeat 6 & 7 until patches come out clean enough
9) Brake Free CLP on a swab
10) dry patch through to make sure no residue from anything is left :barf:

sounds simple, but the worst part is the action, not the bore! I take apart my actions EVERY time I shoot more than 25rds through the shotgun.

[the rifleer]

There is no need to get any bore so clean you can eat out of it, you just need to get 90+% out. I just take a paper towel and rip it up and fold it over a barrel jig and feed it through with some oil on it, then some hoppes 9, then a few dry patches, then a light coat of oil and I'm done.

Some people tune their rifles to shoot while the bore is fouled, so then shoot them all day long, clean them, then shoot 2 or 3 rounds through it to foul the barrel, and then put it away.

Like i said, its important to keep it clean, but there is no need to be so thorough about it. You shouldn't need more than about 5-8 patches, even if they are still coming out with a little powder residue on them.

@ chinny33- Even I'm not that critical when i shoot military surplus ammo with corrosive salts. Just a pot of boiling water and hoppes 9 is all you need. Modern ammo is not corrosive and will not hurt the barrel if left to sit for a period of time.

[colostomyclown]

let the inside of the bore soak up a healthy dose of Powder Blast


dip a brass brush in hoppes 9, give it 10 full passes front and back

repsray with powder blast, run patches in hoppes 9 or nitro until they start coming out somewhat clean


use a clean path sprayed with CLP to lube


store

[mathman]

How about the Hoppe's Elite Solvent? Any good experiences with it?

I like the fact that it's safer and has no odor...but does it clean well?

[Willie Lowman]

I clean my Superposed with Clenzoil so it has that smell.

Everything else gets a heavy dose of Hoppe's 9 and the snake.

The elite bore gel is great. I use it on all my rifles. I use it after shooting corrosive ammo in my M48 without any boiling water.

[mete]

Buy a gun that has chrome plated bores .They don't collect that much dirt and are easier to clean !!

[noyes]

Hoppe's for the first 50 -60 % of cleaning

Kroil for the remaining part. Let it soak in .Than see if cleans up easier and faster the next time you go to clean it after using Kroil.

[BigJimP]

shooter's choice ( shotgun and choke tube cleaner ) - spray can ... Let it soak for about 2 min / bore brush / run some patches thru it. I use solid rods ( bore snakes are only for a quick clean in the field ) not for a detailed cleaning.

Last step / I run an oiled patch thru the gun ( break free ) ...

chrome lined barrels are easier / but it shouldn't be a big deal either if you let it soak a little. Take the barrel off the receiver / makes it easier..

[oneounceload]

Shooter's Choice is an excellent cleaner. For cheap, a can of carb/brake cleaner (do this outside), and don't get it on anything except the inside of the barrels, then use your drill/rod/brush combo, followed by a patch or two, then one last one with some oil.

If you have removable choke tubes, remember to take them out and clean the threads inside the barrel and on the choke tube

[zippy13]

I was just over at a black powder thread where they were discussing the merits of tossing your cap and ball revolver in the dishwasher. After that, a shotgun bore seems like a no brainer.

Like my friends, BigJimP and Oneounceload, Shooters Choice is my preferred solvent. I start with a collection of specialized brushes to loosen the crud at the bore, chamber, ports and choke tube threads. That's followed by a succession of fuzzy sticks with the newest one finishing with a light oiling.

FYI: I didn't toss my dirty revolvers in the dishwasher, I did them at the kitchen sink the old fashioned way.

[johnbt]

I use Shooter's Choice or something else that's strong and stinky to cut the wad plastic, etc..

No matter what I use, I wrap a big patch around the proper size bore brush - the patch holds the liquid better (and longer) and it takes less of it.

[RoscoeC]

After every session...Tico Tool.
After about 1000 rounds...Ed's Red. Tornado Brush. 12 ga. bore jag with patch. 12 ga bore jag with oiled patch (Kroil or Rem Oil).

[mathman]

Buy a gun that has chrome plated bores .They don't collect that much dirt and are easier to clean !!

Funny...the gun I'm talking about is a chrome lined Benelli...it's just that I probably fired more than 100 slugs (Fiocchi)...so it was really dirty. I know it's the ammo since the same day I fired several hundred rounds of federal (cheap skeet ammo) through a different Benelli and it was easy to clean.

[Maser]

I start off first by running a bronze brush a single pass from the breech to muzzle. I then attach my rod to my power drill and run a nitro solvent soaked patch slowly up and down the full length of the bbl for about 5 or 6 times at max RPMs. I then do the same with a couple dry patches and finally a lightly coated patch with oil at lower RPMs. If you do it right, you will have a bore that looks like a mirror. There's been times where my bore was so clean looking, I didn't want fire my gun.

[mathman]

This is pretty much what I do too...I think that darn Fiocchi slug ammo is just awfully dirty stuff.

Usually I get the 'mirror finish' as well.

[BigJimP]

My Benelli Super Sport is very easy to clean..chrome barrels ... even with the porting ( I use pipe cleaners ) ....

it only takes about 10 min total - to clean the bore / remove the bolt and trigger group - clean them both and the receiver / wipe the exterior down / lube everything and put it back into battery ....

( I use Rig Spray Oil on the trigger group / a little Break Free oil on the rails and the bolt assembly and the barrel to receiver connection ...) Its an easy gun to take care of in my opinion.

[oneounceload]

JIM!!- you CLEAN those ports??????.... .....(I just clean them out with the next round down the tube......actually, running a rotating brush with a patch onit gets 90% for me)...............

[BigJimP]

Yes, I clean those ports .... ( don't make me come down there and smack you ...) ..... they work better if they're clean / no wonder you don't like ported guns

[oneounceload]

You're right about me not liking ports.....haven't cleaned the ports in my GTI since I bought it new about 17 years ago...........

Actually, I was hoping the crud would clog them up real good so the blast wouldn't be so bad...no such luck!.........

[zippy13]

Yep, only clean those ports when absolutely necessary!
I had a rude awakening at the Zone 7 (western states) Skeet Championships some years ago. I hadn't given much thought to making a special effort to clean my ports. I'd shot a 12-ga event and was about to slip in the tubes for a smaller gun event. I did my typical pre-tube cleaning, but that's when the ports decided to dump their accumulated wad plastic and block the tubes. All I had with me was fuzzy sticks (Tyco tool) and after many tries, I realized they weren't going to cut it. Luckily, my teammate had a brush and Shooters Choice.

[Incognito]

1) Saturate bore with WD-40 & let it soak for a day (pointing down).
2) Run a bronze brush through it a few times.
3) Degrease with brake cleaner (non-chlorinated).
4) Recoat bore & exterior with Birchwood Casey's Barricade.

[noyes]

Funny...the gun I'm talking about is a chrome lined Benelli...it's just that I probably fired more than 100 slugs (Fiocchi)...so it was really dirty. I know it's the ammo since the same day I fired several hundred rounds of federal (cheap skeet ammo) through a different Benelli and it was easy to clean.

That's alittle different. I think it was ShotgunWorld forum ( it was a while back ) some were having the same problem. If i remember right they ended up buffing the bore out to make it smoother or Benelli gave them new barrels ( ? ). Pretty sure it was just 1 type of Benelli shotgun they were having that problem with.