Vinegar and Peroxide to clean lead will it damage the Bore??

[Master Blaster]

I was given some good advice on another post about leading use white vinegar, and peroxide from the super market 50 50 mix and plug the barrel(saran wrap and a wet patch) and let it soak for 15 minutes. The lead will bubble away.
Pull the plug see the lead, run a wet patch and the lead oxide will come out. rinse and patch with clp or oil.
It works great and causes no damage to blue or stainless as far as I can tell.


I did some testing on a plain steel wrench and a stainless knife by soaking them in the solution for one hour and notice no daamage or corrosion. The Idea seems to good to be true So any metalurgists who can tell me if this is dangerous long term?

[Fred]

I'd sure like to know the answer to that question as well. Like you, I saw this posted some time back as a good cleaning method. Decided to use it with a Sig P220 that had just had a fair amount of lead reloads through it. Soaked the barrel in this solution for 15 minutes or so. It really seemed to work, and definitely cleaned a lot of lead from the bore.

After I dried off the barrel and began to lube it I noticed some slight discoloration in the chamber. Didn't seem pitted, just stained. Very honestly, don't know if it was like that before I used the solution or not. Sure wish I had the answer to that.

[Mike Irwin]

In certain circumstances, and depending on the type and quality of quality of the steel, yes, SEVERE damage can result.

Unfortunatly, you'll never know until it's already done.

I know people who have used this method for years with no problems. I know others who have virtually destroyed a barrel.

Precision Shooting magazine (I think it was PM) had an article on this method of cleaning some years ago.

I'll stick with manual removal methods, such has the Hoppes lead remover.

[Master Blaster]

From H2o2.com

6. What is peracetic acid?

Peracetic acid (or peroxyacetic acid) is an equilibrium product obtained by mixing H2O2 with acetic acid (vinegar).


H2O2 + CH2COOH <--- ---> CH2COO-OH + H2O
As a product, it is typically sold as a 5% or 15% active solution for disinfection/sterilization purposes, particularly in the food processing industry. While used for decades in the chemical industry as a selective epoxidizing agent, peracetic acid has more recently been considered as a delignification and bleaching agent for the paper industry.

At 6% H2O2 there can be some corrosion of ferrous metals
In most cases, the corrosivity imparted a process water by adding H2O2 is due to dissolved oxygen which is a natural decomposition product of H2O2. Oxygen has known corrosive properties toward ferrous metals, with well documented pH, temperature, pressure and salinity effects. For dilute solutions of H2O2 (< 1%), Perry’s Chemical Engineering Handbook indicates corrosion rates of < 0.02 in. per yr (< 0.5 mpy). In coupon tests involving oil field brine, corrosion rates on 1030 carbon steel were 6 mpy after 30 days exposure to a few hundred mg/L H2O2 – Brine is known to be corrosive when oxygenated and the corrosion rate for most applications of H2O2 will be less. The study developed a model which related corrosivity to (soluble) iron content, pH and H2O2 dose. Iron level and pH were found to be far more significant than H2O2 dose, and when the iron levels were low, there was virtually no effect attributable to H2O2. Still, it is prudent to consider corrosivity when designing injection assemblies, where H2O2 concentrations will be greatest.

Two scenarios warrant special note: applications involving H2S or Fenton’s Reagent. Sulfide-laden waters are typically devoid of oxygen and often provide a protective iron sulfide coating on the submerged portions of the metal (corrosion rates < 1 mpy), while severe corrosion occurs at and above the air-water interface (corrosion rates >20 mpy). While H2O2 use in these applications may increase corrosion below the water surface, corrosion above the water surface is virtually nil. The second special note involves strong catalytic H2O2 processes (especially Fenton’s Reagent) which are very corrosive and should be performed in stainless or lined reactors.

[Mikke]

I tried it first in a S&W 686 and it worked great, got rid of all lead, and couldn't see any damage what so ever.
So happily I decided to do it in my CZ-75 barrel as well that I had shot lead bullets in as well.
Might haveleft in in a little longer this time, but not by much. Almost panicked when I emtied the solution from the barrel, it had turned red...

So, checked barrel, and saw a lot of (very) small craters. Who knows what would have happened if I had let it sit longer?
I was almost ready to get a new barrel for the CZ, but after shooting it some, I can not notice any difference.
Barrel swap is on hold until I'm sure its the gun thats holding me back, not me.

So, don't try it unless you are ready to change barrel, not worth it IMO.

[Southla1]

I think I see something here. First "Master Blaster" tried it on a steel wrench and a stainless steel knife with no problem. "Mikke" tried it on a 686 and it worked fine, but on his CS-75 it seemed to cause a problem. OK first the 686 is unless, I am mistaken, a stainless steel weapon. The knife that "Master Blaster" tested it on was stainless. I am wondering if the wrench that "Master Blaster" tested it on could have been chrome plated or of a high chromium content? Finally the CZ-75 is that barrel stainless or carbon steel? I do not know the answer to this but is it possible that it will attack carbon steel and not stainless? I do know after reading "Master Blaster's" chemical analysis in his last post, and his mentioning oil field corrosion the lights came on in this aged brain(hell they should have come on seeing that I worked 30 years in the offshore oilfields before retiring) and I remembered that corrosion (both internal and external) was about the biggest headache we had out there. The answer if all else failed was high chromium or stainless steel. When it came to sour gas(H2S) stainless was MANDANTORY, that is if you valued your life. It would eat up carbon steel in a matter of days, and it does not take a great amount to do great harm to humans.

[Rezdog]

Vinegar (acetic acid) will attack iron/steel. This is way off in left field but... I used to fill a jar half full of old nails or other iron and cover it with vinegar. Within a few weekes you will have an evil looking brew which I assume contains iron acetate. Applied to tannin-rich woods like oak or walnut it will turn it black, thus the formula was used at one time to make fake ebony. Ammonia (as in some copper fouling removing formulas) will also darken oak.

[bullet44]

My advice is don't use it, I pitted a barrel, so
I have first hand experience with that mix. May not
damage some barrels but why take the chance.

[Master Blaster]

Thanks Guys I have reconsidered and I will not use this method. My stainless sp101 had no visible damage nor did my blued taurus 94 after 1 cleaning, but it could have affected the steel and not be visible, repeated use could cause damage. The problem is we do not know the alloy metals used in a particular barrel. The CZ may have had some nickle which reacts with peracetic acid.
Iron and chrome alloy does not according to what I have been able to find out.

The only place I have a lead problem is in the forcing cone of my revolvers. My 1911 barrel is easy to clean.

I think i'll just go back to a bronze brush and solvent used sparingly (the Brush).

[Monkeyleg]

I guess it sounded too good to be true. Does anyone know of a good lead solvent that doesn't harm the metal? Currently I'm using Birchwood Casey or Kleenbore lead remover cloth patches, but it's a lot of scrubbing.

Thanks
Dick