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It’s rare I give the bore that aggressive a cleaning.

Mostly use shooters choice and a nylon bore brush.

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Bench rest shooting or like a standard AR?

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Been doing this so long that I’ve never thought to ask if I was doing it right. After time, I can notice an accuracy decrease and I wonder if this is the cause. Am I doing anything wrong?

I clean my ARs every 200-300 rounds

I put a Hollow Possum AR15 bore guide in the upper
I use a Tipton carbon fiber rod

I use a jag a put through a patch of Hoppe’s Elite

Then I put a phosphor bronze brush through three times, and sure to wet the brush with Hoppe’s Elite  (but only forward through the barrel, I do not pull the brush backwards through the muzzle)

Then a dry patch twice to dry

Then a patch of Pro Shot Copper Solvent IV

Then a phosphor bronze brush wet with ProShot through three times (again, forward only)

Then two dry patches

Then a patch wet with Slip 2000 EWL

I usually clean the feed ramp area and the chamber with those long Q-Tips from Brownells.

Then I swab those areas with Slip200 EWL as well.

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So Kroil is OK to use on chrome lined bores?

ETA: Wanted to mention that the DD manual says to use a nylon brush.

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I prefer Butches bore shine, as is does a good job or removing carbon and some copper fouling and is not as strong.

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So Kroil is OK to use on chrome lined bores?

ETA: Wanted to mention that the DD manual says to use a nylon brush.

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I use this too.  My precision rifles never see a brush, only a jag with Butch.  As far as my normal shooter grade AR, I usually pull a patch or three of MPro 7 through with a cleaning cable and finish with a dry patch and one patch of CLP.

Our procedure is to push a cotton patch that is wet with solvent through the barrel. This will remove much of the powder fouling and wet the inside of the barrel with solvent. Next, wet a bronze brush (not a nylon brush) with solvent and stroke the barrel 5-10 times. Follow this by another wet patch and then one dry patch.

Normal cleaning
For a normal cleaning (after a string of 10-25 shots) after break-in, the above procedure should be used, but stop short of soaking the barrel with the strong copper remover. A good rule of thumb is to stroke the barrel with a brush, one cycle for every shot fired.

Do use a bronze brush. Some shooters and gunsmiths have the mistaken idea that a bronze brush will harm a barrel. It will not cause any damage to a barrel and the use of a bronze brush is necessary to remove all fouling. Substituting a nylon brush will not remove fouling as effectively as a bronze brush.

Periodic cleaning
It is probably a good idea to use a strong copper removing solvent every 200 rounds, or so, to check the barrel for copper fouling. We do not recommend the routine use of abrasive cleaners for normal cleaning. However they can be used every 500-1000 rounds to remove the carbon build-up (caused by powder fouling) in the throat area of the barrel. To use, wrap a cotton patch around a worn out brush or a cleaning jag and liberally apply the abrasive cleaner to the patch. Short stroke the abrasive for 6? or so in the throat area and one or two full length passes through the barrel. Do not clean the barrel like this for more than 1-2 minutes.

Suggested equipment and solvents
It is important to use an action rod guide when cleaning. The guide aligns the rod with the bore and helps prevent uneven wear in the throat area. Be careful not to raise the handle end of the rod while stroking. This will put a “belly” in the rod that will wear the barrel. We suggest that plastic coated rods, like the Dewey and Parker-Hale, be used.

Our preferred cleaning solvent is Butch’s Bore Shine. This solvent is excellent at attacking both powder and copper fouling. We recommend it for both break-in and regular cleaning.

For occasional use only, abrasives like J-B paste, Flitz, or RemClean can be used.

Do not use a stainless steel brush in your barrel under any circumstances.

Do use a bronze brush with Butch’s Bore Shine or similar solvents. A nylon brush can be used in place of patches but should never be substituted for a bronze brush. Some shooters mistakenly believe that a bronze brush will harm a barrel; it will not.

Do not apply a strong copper remover, like Sweets, on a bronze brush. It will ruin the brush and give the false indication that the barrel has copper in it. This is a good time to use a nylon brush.