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Posted: 1/27/2004 8:31:00 PM EDT
| ok. i've got a bushy shorty. i bought a cheap kleen bore kit to clean it. no chamber brush. what do i need in a high quality kit. do i really need a chamber brush? i have had some failures for the bolt to lock and double feeds. i think the doubles were due to a cracked magazine lip, but the bolt lockup i don't know. recommend a "new guy" some gear to clean with. i want top notch high quality. i am leaning towards a clp, but don't know which one is better. hear alot on here about breakfree. do i need a solvent for intermittent cleaning? i.e. every couple of months in addition to clp? also which cleaning kit? i like the idea behind a boresnke, but is there more effective products out there. what do you use? thanks. |
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Everybody does it different. Here's how I clean my AR's. Field strip, Hoppes #9 down the barrel. I use a .22 cal boresnake for the barrel. Chamber brush. I use some q-tips to clean the lugs. I run a pipe cleaner, lightly sprayed with Breakfree CLP up the gas tube, then a couple of dry ones. Everything else gets cleaned with CLP. I wipe it all down and lube as directed with CLP. I think that's everything. I've got several different cleaning "kits" I've bought over the years. The USGI M16 cleaning kit works pretty well. The bolt is not locking open after the last round? That sounds like a mag problem to me. Try replacing the springs. |
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[b]Needed Chemicals:[/b] CLP - Either Breakfree or FP-10 Solvent - Both Hoppes #9 and Sweet 7.62 [b]Needed Tools:[/b] One-piece, coated, cleaning rod - I believe kleen bore makes one as well as Dewey. The Dewey rods are pretty popular. I own one of both and have found the coating on the kleen bore rod to hold up much, much better than on the Dewey rod. The coating on the Dewey rod started to come off after the second time using it. Patches - Cotton patches work the best. Q-tips - Whatever is available. Pipe cleaners - Whatever is available. Chamber brush - Buy a USGI cleaning kit, since you will need the USGI cleaning rod to properly use the chamber brush. Bronze bore brush - Get one made for a .224 caliber bore instead of for a .22 rimfire bore. The bore brush that comes with the USGI kit will not work due to differences in thread pitch between commercial and military. Brass jag - Used to push out patches. [b]Optional Tools:[/b] Brass patch Loop - This threads into the cleaning rod and holds a patch. Works good for swabing down a bore with solvent, but not as good at getting fouling out of the barrel as using a patch on a jag. Bore guide - JB, Sinclair, Dewey all make bore guides. I don't think you need one on a chrome-lined barrel, but if this is benchrest grade barrel, then it would be useful. Receiver extension cleaner - Sinclair makes one. I use Q-tips, bent to form, instead for cleaning the receiver extension. [b]Manuals:[/b] [url]http://www.ar15.com/content/books/TM9-1005-319-10.pdf[/url] Some people like the Otis cleaning kits, but I personally hate pull through cleaning systems, but if that sounds like a good idea to you, Otis is the way to go. |
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As far as how to use all the stuff listed above, well basically it depends on what works best for you. The two listed solvents are for cleaning out stubborn carbon and lead (Hoppes), as well as copper (Sweets). Should only need to use Sweets maybe once to twice a year on a chrome-lined bore to remove copper. Will need to use it everytime on a unlined bore if accuracy is important. Read the manual for the basics in cleaning. The rest will come with experience. |
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whoa, easy hoss. laymans terms means what. i am ignorant as hell still on the ar topics. please explain this: Bronze bore brush - Get one made for a .224 caliber bore instead of for a .22 rimfire bore. The bore brush that comes with the USGI kit will not work due to differences in thread pitch between commercial and military. are you referring to the threads on the cleaning rod? thanks for the great info, though. exactly what i was after! |
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Quoted: whoa, easy hoss. laymans terms means what. i am ignorant as hell still on the ar topics. please explain this: Bronze bore brush There are different materials for brushes (nylon, phosphor bronze, bronze, brass) - Get one made for a .224 caliber bore instead of for a .22 rimfire bore. .22 rimfires and .223 have virtually the same diameter bore(technically .224", hence the .224 diameter brush), but the brushes are a set up a little different (lenght, and bristle patter I think). So as a .22 rimfire brush would WORK (it's the right diamter), get one actually made for a .224 (it will be more effective). The bore brush that comes with the USGI kit will not work due to differences in thread pitch between commercial and military. are you referring to the threads on the cleaning rod? Yes, standard rods use 8-32 pitch, mil is...[:\]I can't even remember[rolleyes]... The point is, they don't interchange although you can get adapters. Hope this helps. |
| I use an Otis Tactical kit for every firearm that I have. Non-Otis brushes can be used with the kit also. For a quick pull thru at the range, I also have bore snakes. CLP is a must have. Like others have mentioned, should not have to use the strong solvents very often. |
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BreakFree-CLP Cleaner Lubricant Preservative. www.break-free.com I use a KleenBore kit similar to the G.I. issue cleaning kit. The KleenBore kit rod sections will accept the G.I. bore brush, G.I. chamber brush, and the G.I. slotted rod section for patches directly. The KleenBore adapter is used for KleenBore and other commercial brushes and slotted patch sections or jag attachments. I purchased a few extra sections of rod to add length to a fully assembled rod for ergonomic reasons. Q-tips. Pipe Cleaners. Rags and paper towels. Toothbrush or G.I. style cleaning brush. Patches .22Rimfire or .223Remington sized Patches. .30 caliber patches to swab out the chamber after scrubbing with a chamber brush. Also to clean the bolt-lug recess; insert a patch partially into slotted patch holder, then wrap remaining length of patch around itself, then rotate this inside the chamber to wipe the bolt-lug recess. G.I. chamber brush. Bore brush. There are plenty of bore brushes out there to choose from. Some solvents which remove copper fouling deposits by chemical action will also act upon bronze bore brushes too. This one of the reasons people buy nylon brushes. Bore brushes are an expendable item. If they become unservicable they can be replaced or downgraded for tasks like scrubbing off stubborn carbon deposits from the bolt. Bore Solvent(s) Remington Bore cleaner pleasantly surprised me. Used according to manufacturer directions, it works better than Sweet's 7.62 in my .30 caliber bores. I haven't needed to use it in a chrome lined bore. Shooter's Choice bore cleaner handles most of my bore cleaning chores nicely. I use BreakFree-CLP for general cleaning and I apply it as a lubricant-preservative at the end of a cleaning session. If you have a kit for use "in the field" I suggest stocking it with BreakFree-CLP. Jason_h supplied you with a link to the cleaning Manual. It should get you started. Hope that helps. Sincerely, Craig P.S. A fishing tackle box makes a good toolbox to hold your cleaning supplies at home. |
| WOW! thanks, everybody! this really helps. one more stupid question. the chamber is where the bullet is after the bolt tears it out of the magazine right. i us .30 cal swabs to wipe up after the chamber brush. heres what i don't understand. the chamber has lug type tabs around it. or is the chamber actually in the barrel past that? i really do need a chamber brush i am told. if a chamber becomes excessively dirty will it cause malfunctions? all this info is really great, guys. thank you very much! |
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Sorry for the brevity of my post, I was trying to cover as much ground as possible in as few words as possible and left out some of the fine points. One thing I forgot to mention, which mrcraigcraig covered, is to get a toothbrush and possibly a brass cleaning brush was well. Some brands only make one type of .22 caliber bore brush, others make seperate centerfire and rimfire brushes. The centerfire bore brushes (.224 caliber) are slightly larger so they will last longer and scrub better. Even if you don't use copper solvent, the brass brushes usually only work for about 10 uses before they get too worn. Nylon bore brushes will last much longer, but I have found they don't scrub as well as bronze ones do. The chamber is beyond the lugs. The space between the lugs and the chamber is called the barrel extension, and is what the bolt locks into ([b]not[/b] the receiver extension, my mistake, the receiver extension is the buffer tube). This area can be difficult to clean and is why it is important to get a USGI chamber brush. |
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