|
|
|
09-09-2010, 10:17 PM
|
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Near Tallahassee, FL
Posts: 123
Likes: 0
Liked 43 Times in 13 Posts
|
|
Copper wool on a bore brush soaked in "The Dip", a thoroughly nasty concoction made of half hydrogen peroxide and half vinegar. You can leave a cast boolit in a dixie cup of the stuff and the next day there will be nothing but sludge in the bottom! I don't let it sit in the barrel for more than 10 minutes or so at a time and it will remove every trace of lead out of a barrel without hurting the rifling. One time I made up a bunch of 230 grain LRN loads for my 1911 with Bullseye thinking they'd be fine. Nope! Couldn't see the rifling after a magazine full they leaded so bad. I had already loaded them and was doing combat shooting at 10 yds or less and they worked fine for that so I shot prolly 200 of them. Took the barrel out and it looked like a smooth bore from chamber to muzzle. Lead was literally "dripping" off the crown. Took a glass full of The Dip and soaked the barrel for ~10 min. 1-2 minutes with a brass brush wrapped in copper wool had it clean as a whistle. The resulting liquid is NASTY stuff, don't just pour it down the drain
Last edited by LazarusLong; 09-09-2010 at 10:20 PM.
|
09-09-2010, 10:30 PM
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Seattle
Posts: 1,947
Likes: 38
Liked 826 Times in 491 Posts
|
|
Deleading
I have to stand with pownal55, Frank237, Amici, Noah Zark, and chief38.
Lewis Lead Remover with Kroil or #9.
Larry
|
09-09-2010, 11:14 PM
|
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Kansas
Posts: 1,365
Likes: 279
Liked 63 Times in 42 Posts
|
|
I, too, use the 50/50 mix of white vinegar and hydrogen peroxide in stainless guns. It works great.
But I've always heard it's a no-no in blued guns.
|
09-10-2010, 12:53 AM
|
|
US Veteran
|
|
|
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Central New Mexico
Posts: 2,675
Likes: 1,179
Liked 1,117 Times in 409 Posts
|
|
I started out with the Lewis Lead Remover and went to copper/bronze Chore Boy and the tight copper brush. Chore Boy works better and faster. If there is, and it can be, some leading left...the lead remover patches or a cut up lead remover cloth will do it.
I used to think shooting jacketed bullets to clean a leaded bore was okay. I don't think so now. In theory one could get a bulged bore, plated lead, or some other type of bore damage. In reality, is it proven? I have never read of it but why chance it with something as valuable as a firearm?
The Lewis Lead Remover is better at cleaning leading from the forcing cone though. I keep it, and Chore Boy, on hand.
Vinegar will definitely eat blueing.
__________________
Have guns...will shoot'em.
|
09-22-2010, 02:25 PM
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Dec 2009
Posts: 35
Likes: 15
Liked 14 Times in 12 Posts
|
|
Nothing works as well as the Outers Foul Out (OFO)...
I've used all other methods--then the OFO..in all cases teh OFO removed lead from the barrels thet had been "cleaned" by all other methods.
|
09-22-2010, 06:42 PM
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Arequipa, Peru
Posts: 202
Likes: 0
Liked 4 Times in 4 Posts
|
|
Howdy
Brass chore boy works well.... but a properly fitted cast bulet is the best preventative.
|
The Following User Likes This Post:
|
|
09-24-2010, 04:24 AM
|
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Southern AZ
Posts: 496
Likes: 1
Liked 222 Times in 143 Posts
|
|
1) Mercury
2) Outer's Foul-Out
3) Chore Boy copper scrubber
4) Soak in Hoppe's No. 9, back when it still had nitrobenzene in it.
Don't like to use abrasives in my barrels.
|
09-24-2010, 04:36 AM
|
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Southern AZ
Posts: 496
Likes: 1
Liked 222 Times in 143 Posts
|
|
Mercury
Find a Merck Index and look it up.
The main areas of concern (about 10 years ago, at least) are:
1) breathing mercury vapors while boiling to separate gold from the ore
2) organic mercury compounds, such as formed during blocking of hats and such.
I have had gold nuggets brought in that were covered in mercury and had to separate the mercury. No, you don't put gold nuggets in mercury, it is already a nugget.
Thermometers were considered a hazard not because of the mercury, which will pass through your system rather benignly, but the swallowing of the glass.
Almost everyone over the age of 30 or so has, or had, mercury amalgam fillings in their teeth. Never did show any hazard even with the "scare" in the '90s.
I vote for my Outer's Foul-Out. It is fast and thorough and is not abrasive. I want to keep my lands and grooves with nice sharp edges.
|
09-24-2010, 10:08 AM
|
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Florida
Posts: 7,169
Likes: 3,910
Liked 10,276 Times in 3,870 Posts
|
|
For those who endorse using mercury, based on that they've used it for years and it hasn't messed them up (yet), I can remember my mom driving around with toddler me standing up in the front seat. It never killed me then, but I wouldn't reccomend it today.
|
10-05-2010, 08:06 AM
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Belgium
Posts: 89
Likes: 0
Liked 7 Times in 6 Posts
|
|
An over-sized (as in .45 cal for .44's, "used" .44 for .357 etc..) DRY brass brush & lots of patience & elbow grease.
After that, any decent solvent (or even some gun oils) will lift the last remains.
|
10-05-2010, 09:50 AM
|
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Florida
Posts: 22,255
Likes: 11,003
Liked 15,784 Times in 6,905 Posts
|
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by noylj
Find a Merck Index and look it up.
The main areas of concern (about 10 years ago, at least) are:
1) breathing mercury vapors while boiling to separate gold from the ore
2) organic mercury compounds, such as formed during blocking of hats and such.
I have had gold nuggets brought in that were covered in mercury and had to separate the mercury. No, you don't put gold nuggets in mercury, it is already a nugget.
Thermometers were considered a hazard not because of the mercury, which will pass through your system rather benignly, but the swallowing of the glass.
Almost everyone over the age of 30 or so has, or had, mercury amalgam fillings in their teeth. Never did show any hazard even with the "scare" in the '90s.
I vote for my Outer's Foul-Out. It is fast and thorough and is not abrasive. I want to keep my lands and grooves with nice sharp edges.
|
It's the lead that will kill us all!
Used to "play" with mercury as a kid and didn't wear a helmet on my bicycle or my homemade skate board.
__________________
Still Running Against the Wind
|
10-05-2010, 10:34 PM
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Anchorage, Alaska
Posts: 323
Likes: 148
Liked 124 Times in 76 Posts
|
|
I've had good luck with the 50/50 mix of hydrogen peroxide and white vinegar. I never leave it in the barrel for more than five minutes. Its never damaged bluing either. But I do wipe it off the bluing immediately.
|
10-06-2010, 12:20 PM
|
|
US Veteran
|
|
|
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: West Virginia
Posts: 671
Likes: 0
Liked 30 Times in 17 Posts
|
|
For those of you trying to find some Mercury, try the Clinical Engineering Department at your local hospital, or a medical equipment repair business. Mercurial sphygmomanometers ( Mercury column Blood Pressure measuring devices) are still in use in many hospitals and physician practices and they have to be topped up when someone manages to break or dislodge the glass tube. (I know from personal experience since I've repaired and refilled hunderds of those critters after they have been fumble-fingered) Also, if your local hospital has gone to non-mercury BP meters, where are the old ones they removed from service? Each one had several ounces of Hg in it.
As for de-leading, with the exception of the rimfire types, the last cylinder or magazine through any revolver or pistol I take to the range is FMJ, followed by a few passes of a BoreSnake dampened with Kroil before it cools off. For rimfire, it's just the BoreSnake/Kroil while warm routine.
Of course, prevention is better than cure, so I use Lee Liquid Alox on all the lead bullets I use for reloading.
John
__________________
Age + Treachery = JohnnieB
|
03-31-2022, 06:39 PM
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Feb 2022
Posts: 1
Likes: 2
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
|
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by n4zov
Liquid mercury, but I'm not necessarily recommending it.
|
I was going to say the same thing.
|
03-31-2022, 07:47 PM
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Jul 2001
Posts: 322
Likes: 59
Liked 109 Times in 60 Posts
|
|
When shooting lead I used a Lewis Led Remover. Then Hoppes and a bore brush. Then a clean patch on a proper size barrel jag.
|
03-31-2022, 08:13 PM
|
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: South Texas & San Antonio
Posts: 34,644
Likes: 296
Liked 30,698 Times in 14,719 Posts
|
|
I keep a small bottle of Mercury for just that purpose. It is safe if you take care to not spill any and work outside.
|
03-31-2022, 08:32 PM
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Mar 2022
Posts: 145
Likes: 25
Liked 118 Times in 61 Posts
|
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alk8944
Best, as in easiest? Mercury. Run a clean, new, bronz brush through to abrade and claen the surface of the leading, pour in the Mercury, pour out and set the gun aside 30 minutes or so. Just use a tight patch and most, if not all, of the lead will come out with NO scrubbing at all. If not, just apply some more and wait. Don't recall ever needing more than three applications.
As toxic as the greenies want you to think Mercury is, it is amazing anyone born in the 40's didn't die of Mercury poisoning!!!!
|
There's a reason they're called Mad Hatters.
|
03-31-2022, 08:36 PM
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Mar 2022
Posts: 145
Likes: 25
Liked 118 Times in 61 Posts
|
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by ;816273
Do NOT use regular steel wool on a SS gun as this will leave small bits of the wool embedded in the metal and will increase the likely hood of rusting.
|
Important advice. Carbon steel in stainless steel will sure make stainless rust. It only takes a trace amount.
|
03-31-2022, 08:47 PM
|
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Apr 2012
Posts: 4,157
Likes: 1,832
Liked 7,059 Times in 2,585 Posts
|
|
For barrels, a patch cut from lead remover cloth and a brass (not plastic) jag tip. It's been a long time. It's true that a proper matching of cylinder, barrel, and bullet dimensions along with matching the hardness of the alloy to the load will prevent leading.
It sounds complicated but the reality is most of the time the throats are a bit tight. Simply opening them up to bullet diameter tends to solve a whole lot of problems. At least that's been my experience.
|
03-31-2022, 09:37 PM
|
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Central Wyoming
Posts: 1,171
Likes: 3,146
Liked 1,576 Times in 636 Posts
|
|
Played with mercury a lot in school and at home, just don't heat it up to a boiling point, the vapor is very deadly!!!! Friends were retorting gold out of mercury. Killed the whole family! Today I am 83, been through a lot of tests and no mercury present in me. I do have a strong allergy to gravity
|
03-31-2022, 10:22 PM
|
SWCA Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Dec 2020
Location: South Carolina upstate
Posts: 1,752
Likes: 2,670
Liked 3,345 Times in 1,223 Posts
|
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by pownal55
lewis lead remover.
|
I am on the Lewis lead-remover band wagon. I use the brass screens with Hoppes No 9 for a solvent. Quick, easy and effective.
__________________
Kind regards, Heinz
|
03-31-2022, 10:24 PM
|
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: Virginia
Posts: 3,147
Likes: 2,420
Liked 3,594 Times in 1,599 Posts
|
|
Lewis led remover kit. When all else has failed use Lewis
Last edited by Laketime; 03-31-2022 at 10:25 PM.
|
04-01-2022, 01:51 AM
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Oct 2017
Posts: 936
Likes: 24
Liked 2,163 Times in 546 Posts
|
|
Resurrected thread?... Zombie thread! It won't die.
|
04-01-2022, 06:50 AM
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Nov 2020
Location: Texas
Posts: 1,103
Likes: 341
Liked 969 Times in 534 Posts
|
|
Lewis Lead remover!
|
04-01-2022, 07:21 AM
|
|
Moderator
|
|
|
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: SE Michigan
Posts: 18,908
Likes: 8,596
Liked 18,520 Times in 6,013 Posts
|
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dvus
Resurrected thread?... Zombie thread! It won't die.
|
True enough, however it's a problem that new reloaders encounter and need answers to, so it's still relevant.
The overwhelming number of folks here already know what is written below. I include it for the newbie reloaders.
What's important is why one is getting leading in the first place. Causes for leading:
1) Rough barrel finish. If a barrel has a rough finish, not only will it lead badly, copper will foul as well. Polishing, aka lapping can help, depending on how bad the surface is. It can be done by hand (time consuming) or by fire lapping (shooting bullets coated with various progressively finer grits down the barrel). Hand lapping is better (IMHO) as you are lapping the entire barrel. Firing coated bullets tends to lap the barrel unevenly as the compound wears off before the bullet travels the length of the barrel unless you are doing a short barrel, such as a hand gun. Some barrels are beyond lapping, especially if they are pitted or eroded and you're further ahead to replace it rather than expend the time and effort. If you are going to try and lap a barrel, buy or borrow a good bore scope to see what you are dealing with and to your monitor progress.
2) Too soft lead. This is probably the number one thing people blame when experiencing leading problems, yet it's not as common as most believe. With bargain basement reloads or improperly cast bullets, soft lead can indeed be an issue. Knowing what you are shooting is the key. Even soft lead can provide relatively lead free results provided the barrel is smooth and the loads are mild.
3) Too hard lead. People think that hard lead will cure all their leading ills but alas, such is not the case. A rough bore will still lead no matter how hard the lead is. Furthermore hard lead loaded too hot or too light can lead as bad as soft lead loaded too hot. At firing, the lead needs to expand to fully contact the bore and create a seal to prevent gases from escaping and "cutting" or melting the lead as they pass by. Lead melted in this manner will leave streaks down the barrel, starting at the barrel lead-in or forcing cone in the case of revolvers. Loads that are too hot will cause the base of the bullet to melt as well, creating a similar problem that lack of sealing will cause. The key to hard lead is using the proper load - enough to cause the lead to expand and seal the barrel but not hot enough to melt the base.
Early on, someone discovered that putting a piece of copper on the base of the bullet could cure the leading problem. This is called a gas check and when used properly, can indeed allow higher velocity loads with little to no leading. Gas checks have their own problems however. The bullet must be designed to enable their use, and proper installation, aka crimping them in place, requires an additional step in the reloading process as well as the proper tool(s). Improperly installed gas checks can come off during flight and upset the bullet, impacting accuracy.
So it's a matter of first determining if the gun's barrel is smooth enough to not be a contributing factor or main cause, and matching the proper load to the hardness of the lead being used. Sometimes leading can be eliminated and sometimes it can't. When it can't, the various remedies discussed in previous posts can help, but unless the leading is minor, all require additional work - sometimes a lot of additional work! Count me in with those endorsing the Lewis lead Remover. A few pulls can remove the offending lead and leave the barrel clean and shiny.
__________________
So many S&W's, so few funds!!
Last edited by Tom S.; 04-01-2022 at 08:01 AM.
|
04-01-2022, 08:31 AM
|
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Baton Rouge, La.
Posts: 7,193
Likes: 8,295
Liked 8,686 Times in 3,899 Posts
|
|
#1) Lewis Lead Remover - it will get the lead out ...no if's , and's or but's . It mechanically scrapes the lead out using brass screen as the scraper ... works fast .
#2) Ed's Red Bore Solvent / Cleaner - old school , requires a long soak for the solvents to get under the lead and lift it . Ed's Red does not dissolve lead but acts like a penetrating oil getting under and breaking loose the lead like penetrating oil does rust .
This is why a 24 hour soak helps it work .
Ed's Red Bore Solvent / Cleaner applied to a 0000 steel wool wrapped brass brush is a very good way to clean a bore ...soaking first helps speed the cleaning
You can mix Ed's Red from 4 common ingredients from big box store / wally mart , 1 gallon for $20.00 ...search the name for recipe .
Gary
__________________
Certified Cajun
NRA Member
|
04-01-2022, 01:18 PM
|
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: May 2012
Location: S. Orygun
Posts: 2,485
Likes: 2,014
Liked 1,861 Times in 1,005 Posts
|
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve C
For lots of leading a 50/50 mix of hydrogen peroxide and white vinegar in the barrel will remove leading chemically. I use a vacuum plug from the auto store of the right size to plug the chamber, set the barrel vertical and pour in the mix. You need to watch the reaction and when it stops bubbling its time to pour out the solution and rinse with plain water as if left any longer it will attack the barrel and pit it. Its best not to leave it in the barrel for more than 10 to 15 minutes. Clean with patches afterward and oil.
The scum that floats to the top contains the lead and as such is toxic so dispose of where it won't contact food (ie. not down the kitchen sink). While all the cautions eem like a lot of trouble, it does save hours of scrubbing with a bore brush.
|
Yep, this works. But it also will pit the barrel if left to soak! BTDT. Never again. I now have Lewis Lead Removers for all my lead shooting guns...
Last edited by mikld; 04-01-2022 at 01:19 PM.
|
04-02-2022, 12:40 AM
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Pacific NW
Posts: 2,254
Likes: 1,243
Liked 1,526 Times in 919 Posts
|
|
Considering the number of recent posts I would opine it is still a viable topic...?
Times change, as do possible solutions(sic)...
Cheers!
P.S. Was it Lazarus or Yogi that mentioned "...deja vu all over again"?
|
The Following User Likes This Post:
|
|
04-02-2022, 10:44 AM
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Jan 2021
Posts: 216
Likes: 430
Liked 86 Times in 67 Posts
|
|
lead removing
Quote:
Originally Posted by pownal55
lewis lead remover.
|
Hoppes # 9 ; will do the job alone
|
04-02-2022, 06:48 PM
|
|
Moderator
|
|
|
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: SE Michigan
Posts: 18,908
Likes: 8,596
Liked 18,520 Times in 6,013 Posts
|
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by vinn
Hoppes # 9 ; will do the job alone
|
The old formula did, though it took a lot of time. The "new" formula, nope. If you really think it's getting rid of lead, you should look with a bore scope.
__________________
So many S&W's, so few funds!!
|
04-02-2022, 07:10 PM
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: RIC VA
Posts: 12
Likes: 0
Liked 48 Times in 7 Posts
|
|
The best thing I found to clean was a trainee. I’m not sure what he used, maybe Hoppes and a toothbrush?
|
04-03-2022, 09:01 AM
|
|
Member
|
|
|
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Former State Of GA.
Posts: 1,976
Likes: 3,983
Liked 2,870 Times in 990 Posts
|
|
I rarely have to use it these days.
I've successfully cleaned some horribly leaded barrels using a combo of Kroil soaking and Copper Chore Boy.
__________________
GOA
USA Shooting Supporter
|
|
|
Tags
|
1911, 45acp, bullseye, colt, fouling, glock, hardening, rimfire, ruger, sig arms, skelton, solvent |
Thread Tools |
|
Display Modes |
Linear Mode
|
Posting Rules
|
|
|
|
|