Possible to go overboard on cleaning?

[Rocker]

I know that "how often should I clean my rifle" is a bit of a sticking point for some people and I'm sure to get a few different opinions here...

At the moment I give my .308 a modest clean after each use. e.g.

a) Brass brush / solvent
b) A few clean patches
c) Oiled patch

I don't go overboard on it, just pass through each tip 2-3 times to get out the worst of it and leave it at that.

I have been doing it every time I shoot though, whether its 5 rounds or 100. I'm pretty happy with my routine, but the question is... Is it possible to overclean a rifle resulting in something negative?

I wonder that when I'm putting the cleaning rod through the barrel more than I've put through bullets on the day if I'm potentially wearing something out faster than I should.

Would I be better off waiting 50 rounds ( or whatever the magic number is ) between cleans instead of cleaning after every shoot, even if it was only a few rounds?

[Blackened]

As you say, you'll get some divided opinions on this... IMO either way is fine.

You wouldn't be the first person to clean it after every shoot... No worries there. If you don't shoot very often it's not a bad idea to give it a thorough clean/oil before storing it for long periods of time to protect against rust etc. while your not using it for extended periods.

If you're shooting regularly I'd just be giving it a quick clean each time to take out the carbon and worst of the copper build. No need to go crazy though...

RE: Damaging the barrel with your cleaning rod - Assuming you're not doing anything stupid like thrashing the rod around inside the barrel you should be fine.

Someone said before in another topic... How much damage can gently pushing a brush down the barrel do after you've just been spitting blistering hot copper out of it for a few hours?

[Vati]

Without intentionally going crazy on it, no.

Perform your routine till it looks clean, then stop.

[Herdsman]

For piece of mind, you can buy plastic bore-guides which go in the place of the bolt and rest in the throat - They guide the rod into the barrel while protecting the lands from the rod.

Whether or not you need such a thing I'll leave up to you, but from memory they are $40 or something like that if you want one.

[Aster]

I seriously looked for a month for a bore guide and could not find someone with one in stock... In-store or online

[redrum]

Just don't turn into one of those guys who fully strips and cleans his gun after only touching it with his hands.

Don't ask me how oil from your skin gets into the barrel and action if you just pick it up by the stock, but apparently that's a concern for some people

[burnthelies]

Honestly i don't think there is ever such a thing as overclean - i've only been on the civilian firearm scene for a few years and have kept all my military techniques and habits (rightly or wrongly) and i find i clean until such point as i have eliminated any carbon buildup. Start with the big visible bits, get them all off, attention to detail is of course the key but yeah... once you get your technique down its a pretty stock standard procedure that you shouldn't need to worry about other than to keep in mind how many rounds you are putting down range and prepare for the extra carbon buildup.

[John445]

I seriously looked for a month for a bore guide and could not find someone with one in stock... In-store or online

All a bit overrated IMO.

Similar to the bore guide, I've seen a few people recommend cleaning from the muzzle end while using a smaller calibre brass with the base cut off, placing the top in the muzzle and feeding the rod in through there.

But you either use a bore guide from the action end and the rod drops onto the crown, or you clean from the crown end and the rod drops onto the throat.

Meh.

[kram]

Tips from Brad Sauve, 2004 F-TR Nat’l Champion
With my .308, I tried A LOT of different loads in the first 600 rounds, starting with 42.0-44.5 N150 for the first 200 rounds, then moving to 44.0-45.0 Varget for the next 300 rounds. I tried different bullets (Sierra 175 MKs both moly and naked, Nosler 180gr Ballistic Tips, 175gr Bergers), different cases (Lapua, Federal), primers (Rem, CCI BR, Fed Match), and, oh yes, seating depths (on the lands to 0.10″ off, and several distances in between). Even after 500 rounds of testing, I still wasn’t satisfied, and frankly, I was growing weary.

I finally found my “sweetheart” load on February 14, 2000 (Valentines Day), almost seven months after getting the rifle. This is the load I still shoot today and I shot all weekend at the F-Class Nationals. The break-through came when I discovered that slower velocities produced outstanding accuracy. I found that Varget pushing a 175 SMK at about 2610 fps delivered quarter-MOA groups out to 300 yards and half-minute or better groups beyond that distance. Since developing that load, I’ve used Lapua cases and Russian primers, but the core elements, 43.0 grains Varget with 175 MKs seated 0.018″ off the lands, has not changed.

During the first few years I owned the rifle, I was crazy about cleaning. My log shows that I cleaned the barrel 80 times in the first 998 rounds. That works out to cleaning every dozen rounds! No wonder it took me so long to find the right load! Boy, have I changed my habits. I still clean the barrel, but I run a much higher round count between cleanings than before. Now, I shoot 100-200 rounds before I give the barrel a thorough cleaning. This goes with my general thinking–that some folks will benefit from added trigger time more than anything else. Spend more time shooting than loading ‘perfect’ ammunition or cleaning. Squeezing that last quarter-minute out of your groups won’t do you any good if you can’t hold one MOA or you can’t read wind conditions. MORE TIPS from Brad Sauve.

[ebr love]

I still wasn’t satisfied, and frankly, I was growing weary.

I know that sensation, lol.

[ebr love]

This goes with my general thinking–that some folks will benefit from added trigger time more than anything else. Spend more time shooting than loading ‘perfect’ ammunition or cleaning.

God, tell me about it.

I'm so sick of people who spend their whole time at the range talking about how accurate they are, then spend there whole fkn day running patches through and checking there watch to make sure their solvent has been soaking for the exact amount of time required before doing 1 shot and repeating the process

Shutup and put some rounds downrange FFS.

[Herdsman]

Now, I shoot 100-200 rounds before I give the barrel a thorough cleaning.

I reckon I usually put 100-150 through before cleaning and there no appreciable downside to it.

[Rocker]

I reckon I usually put 100-150 through before cleaning and there no appreciable downside to it.

I've been doing more or less the same now. 80-100 rounds for a day at the range then a clean.

So far so good.

[raptor_256]

i clean after every use but i may only shoot once every couple months.

some people reckon a little build up it good for accuracy.

as for touching i keep a can of G96 and a cloth on top of my safe to wipe down after handling

wouldn't worry too much about damaging barrel/chamber with cleaning rod unless its made of a stronger/harder steel than the barrel

[AusTac]

It's my view that the more stuff you shove down your barrel the more its going to wear out, it's all well and good to keep a military gat sqeaky clean but hey, your not the one paying for the barrels.

I clean probably every 80-100 rnds mostly, i could bore you with the details for all my calibers but just develop your own routine, our guns, uses and ammo are all different

[Wylie27]

Stop when the bluing starts to come off

[Supaduke]

It handles copper whizzing by at 2500-3000 fps followed by searing hot gas. A .308 will comfortably do 5000+ rounds.
It's hardened tool steel.
It doesn't give a crap about an aluminium rod moving at 3 fps.
Over oiling will affect accuracy. The bullet won't properly 'bite' into the rifling if over oiled. You can also create hydraulic pressure and bulge your barrel with too much oil.
You can't hurt a rifle with a cleaning rod. When two materials meet , the softest material will yield (not withstanding kinetic energy). If you like to clean your rifle obsessively, go for it. It only gets weird if you sleep with it and get a bit of wood happening.

[Wm.Traynor]

The Bore Guide Thing
It's a nice idea, looking after your pride and joy But if your action and bore are eccentric you might wish you never used one. FWIW, the NSW 'smith who made my target rifle did not recommend a bore guide.

[brett1868]

It only gets weird if you sleep with it and get a bit of wood happening.

Ok, so I'm a weirdo. I've been called worse

[Wylie27]

But Brett we have seen what you have..... we all would sleep with them!

[Gwion]

I give mine only a light clean to remove some powder residue, etc. I only scrub copper when accuracy starts dropping noticeably. This is working on the 'copper equilibrium' theory for first shot POI consistency.

Might be bollocks but it works alright for me.

Also, I might just be lucky but both my 223 and 7-08 barrels show very little copper even after 100-200 rounds between solvent scrubs.