[QUOTE=BELT_FED;135741141]now ask an olympic target shoot if he will let you near his barrel with a rod and brush..(you may get hit).. bore brushes and patches do a great job of cleaning but you can also damage the crown very easily.

Go to any bench rest match, or the BR Nationals, and you will see the people that are most interested in extreme accuracy cleaning with patch and brush every 10-15 rounds. You will not damage the crown if you use the proper kind of rod and a bore guide. A spotless bore = accuracy. Its true some medicore bores and factory barrels, may shoot better dirty than they do clean, but not a true match grade barrel that has been properly chambered and set up. Now 22 rimfire is a different story all together. 22 RF doesn't need cleaning as oftet as long as you are using the same lot # of ammo.