How often do you clean your .22 rimfire barrel
 

Just curious as to how often your .22 barrels get cleaned. I have heard of everything from often, to never, and all the variables in between. Thoughts and why you do as you do?

Years ago (1968) as a young shooter at the Nats in Ottawa ,I was talking to a master class shooter about cleaning smallbore match rifles .
I had mention that so and so had stated that he never cleaned his rifle
" how many times have you seen HIM place in the top the 3 of the Grand Agg?"
"Never, why?"
That should answer your question !"
Was all he said:thinking-006:
My smallbore match rifles get cleaned after each day's use.
Cat

I run a boresnake with a little oil on it down the barrel after every camping trip or plinking session. It literally takes 2 minutes. A couple times a year I'll take the bolt out and give everything a solid spray & oil. It's a Henry lever action as reference

After the winter and before the fall, she goes through a lot of shells but keeps on ticking, if she gums up then I will clean the action area other than that not much at all.

It depends on the rifle or pistol. some guns with ultra smooth bores will print nice tiny groups for a long time before they need attention and others get lead fouled fairly quickly. each gun is different, deal with it on your terms.

If I use my firearms, regardless of rimfire, centerfire, pistol rifle shotgun....I clean and oil them. Cleanliness is a good thing. Would you drive your vehicle and never change the oil, belts, brake pads?.....maintenance and looking after what you worked hard to buy just seems smart. Is there some myth that a rimfire doesn't need to be cleaned and can remain accurate and reliable? After 500 rounds or more in a gopher patch, my rimfires are filthy, how could you not clean them?

My 10/22 shoots groups about as big as my thumb nail at 20-30 yards. Good enough to head shoot chicken or hit a gopher. I've had it about 15 years and this fall was the first time I cleaned it. I didn't see many dirty patches come out of it and it didn't improve accuracy so it won't be getting cleaned again in the near future.

It is my understanding ..... that lead is a "natural" lubricant. Many .22 rimfire manufacturers coat lead bullets with wax or grease based lubes. Others use a copper wash. 22's operate at relatively low bore temperatures and pressures. Consequently, lead build-up in the bore is much slower than the copper fouling seen in high pressure/temperature centerfires. Carbon can build up in the "throat" area. At least, that is what I think:)
Good advice would be to run an oil patch after every outing. Personally, I clean the bore if the rifle will sit for an extended period...using a combination of lead and carbon "solvents".
When testing various brands of .22 ammo, I either clean between change-overs or shoot at least ten shots with the "new" stuff before assssing performance. It is my belief that it is necessary to purge the "old" lube type before getting serious about laying down a bore coating with "new" lube. ie: between wax lubed bullets and grease lubed bullets. Hope this makes sense.

What would be a good solvent for this?

Bore-Tech Eliminator.

Spot on like i mentioned above my 10/22 doesn't get pampered about a brick through it sometimes she gums up.

What Muirsy said! For a 2min job with a bore snake and a wipe down of the bolt and a light coat of oil. Its kind of therapeutic after weekend or a day out.

I find that I notice that the chamber gets dirty long before I notice any drop in accuracy. If I seem to have problems with feeding or extraction, then I guess it's time to have a cleaning. Sometimes a spray can of solvent might have to do in a pinch if I'm out shooting somewhere.

I'm the first to admit that cleanings don't happen as often as they should.

For bore cleaning, I use ...Shooters Choice Lead Remover ... Birchwood Casey Gun Scrubber ... G96 complete Gun Treatment. Always follow up with a good thin gun oil (not synthetic). If I remember correctly, Anschutz used to recommend primary cleaning with oil?
For semi-auto action I use the G96. Bolt actions get gun oil.

Mine has seen countless bricks and has never gummed up. The only time it's ever failed to cycle was when I ran worn out plastic lipped mags. With the steel lip magazines it's never failed to feed, fire or eject.

I had a 10/22 that i bought in 1993. Had a qtr of land that was infested with gophers. I shot over 1400 rounds before the action started to gum up and not cycle reliably. Gave it a good cleaning and it worked like a charm. Now that im a bunch older and maybe a little wiser i clean all my guns before i put them away for the day.

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A bore snake will never be used on any of my rifles. If I am going to clean the bore, I use a one piece rod, proper sized patches, and appropriate bore guide and solvents.

Please explain to me your reason for this? I was thinking about picking a boresnake up for quick use after plinking.

He'll likely tell you that a bore snake carries dirt from the previous cleaning job down through your bore. And if he does, I agree.

I agree with that too - nothing a rinse in some warm water can't take care of.

I still use patches and a brush from time to time but the boresnake is super quick and does 95% of the same thing in a tenth of the time.

I was always told not to clean too often, especially after sighting in or practicing, that way all imperfections in the barrel are filled, and does not untill cleaned again.
I tried that, but with minimal success, there is a difference, but who's to say it was not shooter error.

I actually do use a bore snake in my shotguns after an extended clay busting shoot. Like yourself, I clean it with warm water and dish soap upon getting home. Definitely not in Rifle bores though.

Our .22s at the range we cleaned once a year. Most of them were cil 180/190. They would get shot maybe 100-120 rounds a week, and when we cleaned them they would still be punching Xs at 20 yards, so was it necessary? Many of our guns were purchased back in the early 1970s and still work great to this day. We always used target ammo. Having said that, I have used lightning ammo that lead fouled something terrible and wasn't sure if it was the ammo itself or the leading that caused the accuracy to go to the wayside, but I haven't shot cheap ammo in a long time.

I clean my 10/22 every time I use it. I usually do the bore, take the bolt out and clean that too. Trigger group gets taken apart every 3-4 cleaning.

I found the only way to clean my 10/22 is from the muzzle to the chamber. Anyone drilled a hole in the back of the receiver so they could clean the right way? I saw that done before.

Using a boresnake to clean a rifle is like wiping your back side with a hoola hoop!

How do you tell if you've actually cleaned enough with one of these contraptions? Just because you're bore is nice and shiny doesn't mean squat.

There's far more to bore cleaning than removal of loose gunk from the bore.

Borrow a Hawkeye borescope from someone and see what you can't see with your naked eye....you'll keep your boresnake for emergencies only after getting educated.

I did that on my 10/22 makes cleaning the bore much easier removing the barrel changed my POI. After each use I lightly clean muzzle to chamber with a muzzle protector to protect the crown. After a brick or so I disassemble for a complete cleaning with wipeout.

How do you keep the wipeout out of the mechanism of the rifle. I've found it messy to use in a .22 as the plastic nozzle does not fit into the chamber, and I had to put it in from the crown end.

First, a question regarding the use of Wipeout which I believe targets copper fouling. Is it effective for lead fouling?
Second, for 10/22 and clones...a muzzle guide works fine.
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Yes, you keep dragging the same dirt and grit through the bore. and over the crown.

Another very valid reason for using the proper tooling to clean bores.

I also use a bore snake for shotguns, since there is no rifling and the crown isn't nearly as critical as with a rifle.