ghostz,
What you're talking about is a Bore Snake. I use one on all my rifles, and they work great. A few drops of cleaner ahead of the brush, drag'er through a few times, and you're good to go. The only time I use the rod etc. is for cleaning heavy copper out of the bore. The snake is super for a lever gun too, as you don't need to pull the bolt to clean the bore. When it gets dirty, you can clean it with solvent, or wash it and let it dry.