barrel cleaning

[tinbird]

hi guys, I have a SB2-204 Ultra Varmint with synthetic 'dragunov style' stock.
I reload 28.0 of H4895 nosler brass, rem 7 1/2 primer and 39 SBK.
did the o-ring over the forearm stud trick. pretty well have it sighted in, but without a good 'n steady rest (haven't shot for groups yet) although I think'll hit a coyote .
My question is what are you good people using to clean your barrels.
So far, and I will say, the rifle is basically new (only about 120 rounds down the tube), the patches keep coming out black.
 This is over a half dozen cleaning 'sessions'.
I've used Shoot-r-choice Carb-Out and Wipe Out. I've also used Hoppes Elite Cleaner, swabbing the barrel and leaving it for an hour to overnight a couple of times.
 I have used approximately 100 patches (2 at a time to get a tight fit) and although the first couple of passes they're really black, the remainder keep coming out medium to dark gray.
I'm guessing I have a barrel with 'rough' rifling, and need something super aggressive to dissolve and draw out the powder fouling.
I haven't contacted the company yet as I'm betting that the experience of the group here will be better than anywhere else.
thankyou in advance for your help

Rod

[necchi]

I use Gunslick Foaming Bore Cleaner and follow the instructions, no problem. And I do use Sierra bullets and H4895.
 Are those SBK bullets lubed with black stuff?
One tip; If the stuff your using is/has a copper solvent and your using a brass brush the patches will always be blue to black, the solvent takes the copper out of the brush 
 I switched over to synthetic tips for a jag and patch holder. (use a bore guide)
 
Ask ten guy's how they clean and you'll get 9 completely different answers 

[OldSchoolRanger]

I use Hoppes #9, the regular stuff, sometimes I use Ballistol.

necchi gave you a great tip when he mentioned:

One tip; If the stuff your using is/has a copper solvent and your using a brass brush the patches will always be blue to black, the solvent takes the copper out of the brush
 I switched over to synthetic tips for a jag and patch holder. (use a bore guide)
 
Ask ten guy's how they clean and you'll get 9 completely different answers 

[cwlongshot]

I am waiting for the " I NEVER clean mine cause everyone knows Handis shoot best dirty" comments...
 
WELCOME Tin Bird!!
 
For me it depends on how long since last, the caliber and bullet construction and how many rounds down the tube. 
 
Buy and large Reg Shooters Choice for my RF's with lead bullets. Sweets or Butches for the CF calibers that will see copper fouling. I also like the foaming or gel cleaner better then the liquids as I feel the foam and gel stays in contact longer allowing it to work better then the liquid that either simply runs off or evaporates too fast. But all get a  couple wet patches with ClenZoil once clean. The EZOX on the outer metal surfaces.
 
Thats a good tip many overlook. The bronze pospher fo the brushes will give you black/grey patches! As many solvents will eat them!
 
CW

[max1138]

after that many patches I cant see any powder fouling remaining, gotta be a brass brush/ copper solvent interaction.
go with synthetic jags and butches,sweets or barnes cr-10 to remove any remaining  copper, prolly isnt any there by now anyway after that many passes but any of the above will remove copper fouling more easily than standard  cleaners.

[keith44]

the last time I had a barrel that new that just would not clean up I :


1) soaked it with kroil overnight


2) used synthetic cleaning jag to wipe out the bore


3) used nylon bore brush (new) to scrub the bore (still using Kroil)


4) fire lapped the barrel


after that I used (and still use) Hoppes #9

[tinbird]

thanks for the quick and informative tips guys, I'm getting hardly anything for 'blue' copper, it's mainly black, which by the Shoot-R-Choice info means powder fouling. Now I realize that each brand has their own special 'witches' brew' so the chemical reaction(s) can be different.

In any case, I'm going to switch to synthetic jags and tips (makes good sense).
I have ballistol and never thought to use it (homer simpson DOH time  ) so will soak the barrel overnight and give 'er a go in the morning.

BTW, the SBK are regular copper jacket, I don't trust moly coating (I hear that once it's in the barrel it is really hard to impossible to remove),  although a friend of mine who's won several F class competitions to a 1000, swears by Berger 105 grain 6mm.

all the best in the new year gang from a grateful Canadian!!!

TB

[ratdog]

i tried a lot of different cleaners swabbed the barrel till the patches were clean the i tried some metal polish with a metal brush on cleaning rod did about 50 strokes you would not believe the crap that came out had to clean brush out with carb cleaner or throw it away did not improve accuracy at all . tried all the tricks barrel was junk this was my 357 sent it back to remington they put a new barrel on it now i really got a shooter. i have quite a few handy's this was the only one i could not get to shoot good.

[LaOtto222]

I had a barrel that would shoot .5" - .6" for five shots then would slowly go bad. By the fourth group I was shooting over 1" MOA. I polished it a lot - over 800 full length strokes. I ended up with a gun that would shoot very well...see picture below.


Not too bad for a gun that was under $800 for everything including the scope and mounts.

As far as cleaning - there is no wrong way, just make sure you use a bore guide and clean from the breech to the muzzle. I also found that every gun is different as far as to what it likes. Some like a squeaky clean bore and some like it very dirty, most like some where between those extremes.

BTW all that polishing made it much easier to clean too.

Good Luck and Good Shooting

[bikerbeans]

tinbird,
 
I have never shot or seen a 204 Handi but I have used H4895 a lot.  In a 223 Rem, either Handi or black gun, it is by far the worst powder for barrel fouling (small dia. barrel) I have ever shot.  H4895 behind a 55 grain FMJ will pretty much shutdown an M-4 about halfway through the second magazine. 
 
BB

[tinbird]

quick follow up, I did as suggested with the synthetic jags etc and then wet the barrel and let it sit overnight with ballistol. Seems to have done the trick as I  finally got clean patches after a while, so tried some CR-10 to see if there was any hidden copper, nothing, so it seems that all the above did the trick. Thanks guys. Now I'm going to try a different powder as suggested by bikerbeans, I do have some benchmark on hand, so may give that a go.

take care guys

TB

[keith44]

ballistol is a good penetrant for gun maintenance, I use both Ballistol and Kroil, depending on the situation.  Glad you found a solution.