My usual routine to clean my revolvers' cylinders is to take a .40-caliber bronze brush, put some Break Free CLP on it, and scrub each chamber. I let it sit for a few minutes (usually while I'm cleaning something else on the gun). Then I run dry patches through each chamber until they come out clean.

I used to use lead remover cloth to get rid of the rings on the cylinder face, but I ended up switching to CLP and a bronze brush. The results aren't quite as good, but it does a good enough job that I don't have to worry about the potential for carbon and lead build-up interfering with the cylinder gap.

I used to take the cylinder off every time I cleaned my gun, but I began worrying about excessive wear-and-tear on the yoke screw. Now I leave the cylinder on, but I'll probably take the cylinder off maybe once a year for a more thorough cleaning as long as I don't have any issues with cylinder binding or similar problems.

ETA: Except for a few cylinder-fulls of BB LSWCHP all the ammo I use is jacketed.