So, I took the new 5.45 AK shooting tonight and decided to clean it afterwards.

Long story short, the .22 bore brush was too big for the barrel, at least I tried to ram it down and it got stuck, had to ream it out from the other end.

So, I took a little piece of a swab and soaked it in Hoppes and then reamed that through the barrel with the bare rod, only it never came out the other end, BUT it did clear the barrel.

I think it's actually stuck somewhere inside the muzzle break - i can see clear through the barrel - no obstructions at all - clean as a whistle, so I know it's not stuck in the barrel, but the bit of swab never cleared the brake. Any idea what I should do?

Take off the brake.

Take the brake off and look inside?

How do you take the brake off?

Push the detent pin in on the front sight base, and screw it off.

You need to take it off after every time you shoot it to clean.... if you use  7N6 surplus/corrosive ammo.

Got it - thanks!

Question - if I got the bronze bore brush stuck in the barrel, and then pushed it through (forcefully) to get it out, can that jammed bronze brush damage the inside of the barrel as it's forced out?

Yeah there is a possibility that it could. Get a Hoppes 5.56/.223 boresnake.

Shoot it and it will come out... Its not a stuck round the cloth is pliable and will leave with the round...

I looked down the barrel with a light and all the rifling and grooves look good, so I don't think anything got damaged - I don't know how else I'd be able to tell really, but it looks shiny and clean, no visible damage that I can tell. I mean, the brush is a .22 cal anyway, so I would think that if it did happen to get jammed up, it wouldn't cause any damage. Bronze is used because of that reason, correct? Because it's softer?

Your barrel should be fine, and yes bronze is softer, but this isn't something that you would want to make a habit of. I used a Hoppe's 5.56/.223 boresnake in my Arsenal SGL-31 every time I clean it and have never had a single problem. They're around $9 at Walmart. I highly recommend getting one

I think I'll take your advice and pick up a boresnake - I've heard others say they prefer it as well.

All in all, my first AK cleaning went pretty well, although it was really just a basic cleaning - I didn't completely field strip the rifle. Just took off the dust cover, took out the guts and cleaned them, and then cleaned the barrel.