Cleaning Help Please!!

XD-Guy · March 2, 2007, 08:31 AM

OK guys, here's my problem. I just bought a used Marlin 30/30 with Micro Groove rifling. After 2 days of cleaning I think I finally got the copper fouling out of her but the carbon just keeps coming. Are there any tricks or chemicals I can try to get this carbon out? I'd really like to get her clean before I start sending lead down the barrel. Thanx in advance for all your help.

DesertShooter · March 2, 2007, 12:07 PM

Carbon? Or perhaps, is it accumulated lead? Or possibly rust?

If you've used a BRONZE bore brush on the bore, and have solvent-brushed it thoroughly, it might be some tough-to-get-out lead deposits...or worse, some rust that has darkened.

If I were you, I'd try brushing it one last time, run a solvent-wet bore mop through it, followed by some dry mops....until they come out relatively clean. Final stage would be to run an oiled mop through, followed by a dry mop....and take it shooting.

Carbon CAN build up, but it usually turns a bit mushy when solvent is brushed through the bore. If it IS carbon, you might want to plug the muzzle with a piece of rubber, then fill the bore with solvent from the chamber end, and let it set for a few hours before emptying it and brushing out the mushy remnants.

Just DO NOT use a stainless steel "Tornado" bore brush! DO NOT chuck a bore brush rod into a power drill and "roto-rooter" it!

If these suggestions don't work, then you might want to take it to a gunsmith. He'll charge you a few bucks, and PROBABLY do exactly what I've explained!

rwilson452 · March 2, 2007, 12:34 PM

If my pistols get real dirty I soak them in Ed's Red for a couple of hours. Like total emersion man.

Uh, take the grips off first.

XD-Guy · March 2, 2007, 01:00 PM

Grips??? I'm talking about a rifle here. A Marlin 30/30

XD-Guy · March 2, 2007, 01:24 PM

Quote:

Just DO NOT use a stainless steel "Tornado" bore brush!

I had a gunsmith recomend that. Why do you say no?

Eghad · March 2, 2007, 01:26 PM

If you put a lube in the barrel after cleaning you will probably get some stuff on the patch after it has set up a few days.

You want to make sure the brush you use is softer metal than the barrel metal...

rwilson452 · March 2, 2007, 01:46 PM

Ok, for your 30-30 get the bore really wet with #9 and let it set overnight.
Generally when I clean my varmint rifles I use Butch's Bore shine. I let it set for about 15 min after an application. then run 3 or 4 patches. repeat as needed. if I have a lot of copper fouling I use Sweet's I also don't use a metal brush I use a nylon one. safe on the bore and a copper solvent won't eat it up like it will a bronze brush. Bronze has a high copper content, a copper cleaner will eat it too. Getting copper out is a chemical process not a mechanical one. I have never had to take more than 20 strokes ,down and back, to get out all the powder fouling. When I start cleaning, I put 4 wet patches down the bore breach to muzzle, one way only. Then I wait for the solvent to soak in.

XD-Guy · March 2, 2007, 03:20 PM

Wilson, I've been cleaning this gun foe 3 days. I cant get the Carbon out. It just keeps coming and coming. Black patch after black patch. I think I'm screwed on this one

rwilson452 · March 2, 2007, 04:08 PM

What are you using for a solvent?

XD-Guy · March 2, 2007, 05:08 PM

Hoppe's no. 9, Break Free foam, and non-clorinated brake cleaner all with a bronze brush and a jag. Yes, I am letting it soak

ebd10 · March 2, 2007, 06:36 PM

MPro-7 copper solvent and be done with it.

Jeff22 · March 3, 2007, 03:07 PM

A good solvent left to soak in the bore of a dirty rifle will cause carbon to release from the pores of the metal, sometimes for days. It's perfectly normal. Just keep soaking the bore. Just don't use a cleaner formulated as a copper remover that contains ammonia to soak with -- that can etch the metal or something.

March 2, 2007, 08:31 AM	#1
XD-Guy Senior Member Join Date: November 20, 2006 Posts: 102	Cleaning Help Please!! OK guys, here's my problem. I just bought a used Marlin 30/30 with Micro Groove rifling. After 2 days of cleaning I think I finally got the copper fouling out of her but the carbon just keeps coming. Are there any tricks or chemicals I can try to get this carbon out? I'd really like to get her clean before I start sending lead down the barrel. Thanx in advance for all your help.

March 2, 2007, 06:36 PM	#11
ebd10 Senior Member Join Date: December 8, 2004 Location: South Dakota Posts: 127	MPro-7 copper solvent and be done with it. __________________ "And how we burned in the camps later, thinking: What would things have been like if every Security operative, when he went out at night to make an arrest, had been uncertain whether he would return alive ...? " Alexander Solzhenitsyn, The Gulag Archipelago

March 3, 2007, 03:07 PM	#12
Jeff22 Senior Member Join Date: September 15, 2004 Location: Madison, Wisconsin Posts: 715	carbon removal A good solvent left to soak in the bore of a dirty rifle will cause carbon to release from the pores of the metal, sometimes for days. It's perfectly normal. Just keep soaking the bore. Just don't use a cleaner formulated as a copper remover that contains ammonia to soak with -- that can etch the metal or something. __________________ You can only learn from experience if you pay attention!

March 2, 2007, 12:07 PM	#2
DesertShooter Member Join Date: September 19, 2006 Posts: 67	Carbon? Or perhaps, is it accumulated lead? Or possibly rust? If you've used a BRONZE bore brush on the bore, and have solvent-brushed it thoroughly, it might be some tough-to-get-out lead deposits...or worse, some rust that has darkened. If I were you, I'd try brushing it one last time, run a solvent-wet bore mop through it, followed by some dry mops....until they come out relatively clean. Final stage would be to run an oiled mop through, followed by a dry mop....and take it shooting. Carbon CAN build up, but it usually turns a bit mushy when solvent is brushed through the bore. If it IS carbon, you might want to plug the muzzle with a piece of rubber, then fill the bore with solvent from the chamber end, and let it set for a few hours before emptying it and brushing out the mushy remnants. Just DO NOT use a stainless steel "Tornado" bore brush! DO NOT chuck a bore brush rod into a power drill and "roto-rooter" it! If these suggestions don't work, then you might want to take it to a gunsmith. He'll charge you a few bucks, and PROBABLY do exactly what I've explained!

March 2, 2007, 12:34 PM	#3
rwilson452 Senior Member Join Date: June 10, 2004 Location: Tioga co. PA Posts: 2,647	If my pistols get real dirty I soak them in Ed's Red for a couple of hours. Like total emersion man. Uh, take the grips off first.

March 2, 2007, 01:00 PM	#4
XD-Guy Senior Member Join Date: November 20, 2006 Posts: 102	Grips??? I'm talking about a rifle here. A Marlin 30/30

March 2, 2007, 01:26 PM	#6
Eghad Senior Member Join Date: May 28, 2005 Location: Texas Posts: 6,231	If you put a lube in the barrel after cleaning you will probably get some stuff on the patch after it has set up a few days. You want to make sure the brush you use is softer metal than the barrel metal...

March 2, 2007, 01:46 PM	#7
rwilson452 Senior Member Join Date: June 10, 2004 Location: Tioga co. PA Posts: 2,647	Ok, for your 30-30 get the bore really wet with #9 and let it set overnight. Generally when I clean my varmint rifles I use Butch's Bore shine. I let it set for about 15 min after an application. then run 3 or 4 patches. repeat as needed. if I have a lot of copper fouling I use Sweet's I also don't use a metal brush I use a nylon one. safe on the bore and a copper solvent won't eat it up like it will a bronze brush. Bronze has a high copper content, a copper cleaner will eat it too. Getting copper out is a chemical process not a mechanical one. I have never had to take more than 20 strokes ,down and back, to get out all the powder fouling. When I start cleaning, I put 4 wet patches down the bore breach to muzzle, one way only. Then I wait for the solvent to soak in.

March 2, 2007, 03:20 PM	#8
XD-Guy Senior Member Join Date: November 20, 2006 Posts: 102	Wilson, I've been cleaning this gun foe 3 days. I cant get the Carbon out. It just keeps coming and coming. Black patch after black patch. I think I'm screwed on this one

March 2, 2007, 04:08 PM	#9
rwilson452 Senior Member Join Date: June 10, 2004 Location: Tioga co. PA Posts: 2,647	What are you using for a solvent?

March 2, 2007, 05:08 PM	#10
XD-Guy Senior Member Join Date: November 20, 2006 Posts: 102	Hoppe's no. 9, Break Free foam, and non-clorinated brake cleaner all with a bronze brush and a jag. Yes, I am letting it soak