Manning Up and Asking for Help: What Am I Doing Wrong?

[The3clipser]

Ok, so long story short, I have a Mosin. I like my Mosin. I repeatedly clean my Mosin using both Windex and Breakfree CLP. I spray, patch 5 times, spray, patch 5 times, and repeat until the patches come out white. Both results work in the short term, but a week later I run a dry patch down the barrel and it comes out filthy. I feel like an idiot, and want to fix this ASAP. What am I doing wrong?

 

[Jimbob2.0]

Filthy or rusty?

 

[The3clipser]

Used to be more grimey but looks more rusty now.

 

[Boondock Saint]

"If you're not using WipeOut, you're working too hard, and your bores aren't clean."

A little goes a long way. Team it up with the Accelerator for faster cleaning times. Patch out gobs of junk you didn't think possible. http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct/?productnumber=784639

 

[Inigoes]

You mention Patching...

You using a .308 Brush, to dislodge the grime, before patching?

 

[august1410]

You mention Patching...

You using a .308 Brush, to dislodge the grime, before patching?

 

[The3clipser]

You mention Patching...

You using a .308 Brush, to dislodge the grime, before patching?

That would be a negative. It's on my list of things to buy ASAP, along with WipeOut. Will anything stop it in the mean time?

 

[Inigoes]

Will anything stop it in the mean time?

Soak it with oil, you might get lucky and the grime will ooooooozzzzee out

 

[Half-cocked]

...after you've cleaned your barrel, do you finish by running a well-soaked oiled patch through it, and swabbing the chamber with oil as well?

I always make a point of leaving the insides well-oiled, then running a dry patch through it next time I take it out to shoot, to remove any excess before the first shot.

 

[Oliveralan]

I use Montana extreme bore solvent. Wipe out foam is pretty annoying to apply IMO. If you get one of the wipeout solutions, get patch out. Boretech eliminator is good too. A bronze brush is a big plus too. Your just wiping the top of the grime off. If you have an aftermarket barrel smooth as glass you don't NEED to brush, but a mosin barrel, scrub away.

 

[Mdman]

to be honest your bore doesnt need to be that clean. its a mosin, it will likely shoot as well a little grimy as "clean".

 

[h2u]

If you're ordering Wipeout, be sure to order stainless brushes.
Wipeout seems to eat up the brass versions.

 

[Oliveralan]

If you're ordering Wipeout, be sure to order stainless brushes.
Wipeout seems to eat up the brass versions.

Brass brushes are cheap, barrels are not. I would not put a stainless brush down a barrel under any circumstance.

 

[h2u]

Brass brushes are cheap, barrels are not. I would not put a stainless brush down a barrel under any circumstance.

Spoken like a true paranoid bench rest/long range shooter

This being a Mosin barrel, I'll bet it does more good than harm. I'm not an expert shooter by any stretch, but I just don't believe the stainless brush "terror".
To each his own. Just know that Wipeout will eat the bronze brush up.

 

[Oliveralan]

Suppose so to each his own I believe. If the bore is real rough nothing will get it completely clean up. An old Remington factory barrel I had, I never once got a white patch out of it. As long as the gun shoots right, what you do doesn't matter. I'd say try the bronze, if it doesn't work, try the steel after.

 

[houserocker]

to be honest your bore doesnt need to be that clean. its a mosin, it will likely shoot as well a little grimy as "clean".

What he said-I've always felt that "Milsurp Clean" is different than "new" gun clean.

 

[h2u]

Suppose so to each his own I believe. If the bore is real rough nothing will get it completely clean up. An old Remington factory barrel I had, I never once got a white patch out of it. As long as the gun shoots right, what you do doesn't matter. I'd say try the bronze, if it doesn't work, try the steel after.

My slight understanding of the continued use of stainless brushes is that they will, over time, round off the sharp edges where the lands and grooves meet. I can see why competition people want to stay away from them if this is true. But I'm betting that decades of shooting corrosive ammo and not getting cleaned immediately have probably already done so for most Mosins

 

[Chaunsey]

definitely scrub with a bronze brush, scrub it a few times, then run a few patches, then repeat till clean, and then run an oil soaked patch down the bore.


remember this is an old rifle though, the bore is probably not pristine, for many old rifles, its completely normal for patches to come out a little dirty always even after a good cleaning, there's just no way you're going to clean every little pit and what not in there.

seeing rust is a bad thing, a little grime is not a problem, just clean as well as you reasonably can, oil it, and put it away.

also, try some foaming bore cleaner, its great stuff old rifles with less than pristine bores.

 

[MikeTF]

Don't worry about it. Mosins are cheap. Treat them like disposable cameras. When they no longer shoot, sell them on gunbroker.com and replace them with a new one.

 

[Garand1957]

If your leaving a light coat of CLP in the bore there is your answer.
The C in CLP is Cleans .
Cleans because it is also a light solvent.
If you leave CLP in a bore for a few weeks I dont care how clean you got it the first dry patch you run through it will show atleast a little dirt.
Not to worry that is normal.
More damage/wear has been done to rifle bores by over cleaning them than you would think.