I only have been using CLP to clean for a long time. I like how it doesn't smell. I became pretty sensitive to stuff after getting lyme disease.

BUT, I'm concerned that if I shoot a lot of lead, it's not completely getting out of there. I don't really know. I did use a brush a little when I cleaned my 442 yesterday. I normally just use a bore snake, but I'm guessing that might be enough for lead.....

I really don't want to be inhaling hoppes, but I guess I could wear a mask and do it outside.

Let me know what you guys do. I don't shoot a lot of lead, but some... I might stop if I have to use some super caustic stuff to clean.

My favorite way to remove lead is wrapping some bronze wool or a few strands of copper chore boy around a tight fit brush. Run it through the bore a few times and you'll be impressed how well it removes lead.

Buy a pack of Chor-Boy copper cooking pot cleaning pads. Pull a little off, and wrap it around a cleaning brush. Several strokes down the barrel will clean out the leading without harming the barrel.

I have never thought of CLP as a lead remover specifically, more an all around cleaner, lube, and protectant, hence CLP.

Larry

I don't consider BreakFree CLP a cleaner. I started using it back in the 70's when I read about it in a gun mag & after the Dept Armorer saw it in action, he bought it in a pump sprayer. You wipe down the gun with a wet patch... everything but the grips, bore, chambers, inside the yoke, exterior... then a dry patch to remove any excess. It leaves a film on surfaces.

The lead & powder residue ends up on top of the film & is much easier to remove.

PS Gawd, the dept used to get low bid swaged bullet reloads that were very dirty!

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NRA LIFE
Reserve Officer 9yrs

If you're sensitive to smells like i am, switch over to mpro7. I use the cleaner in the barrels and scrub. I dont have an issue. And no smell. I think its also biodegradable? But, its a lot better than using anything like hoppes. That strong smell is killer.
I tried using froglube. (Strong minty smell) but, it would gum up when its cold. And leave a film. Nasty.

Look into mpro7

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About the only use I have for CLP anymore is protecting barrels of Guns I am not using. I still use Hoppes solvent, but I use Cano Kroil and a bronze brush after shooting lead. I have used a Lewis tool in the past, but have not needed it in recent years.

Lead has to be removed mechanically. Certain chemicals can do it, but you really don't want to use them. An alternative to Chore Boy pads is the Lewis Lead remover from Brownell's.

Lewis Lead Remover for me as well.

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K & N S&W revolvers

Chore Boy --- no odor no chemicals and it's cheap and easy !

The new Hope's Elite does a decent job without being smelly.
The occasional pass of a Birchwood Casey Lead removing cloth, cut into bore patch's works well too.

Me, I splash a little Hope's No9 behind my ear before I go out. Drives the outdoorsy women crazy :-)

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Dave

CLP does not dissolve lead to the best of my knowledge.

Plated bullets. Problem solved forever.

Ditto on MPRO7.

I put a few drops in the barrel, rotate the barrel so it overs all of the lands and grooves and then sit the barrel aside while I clean the rest of the gun. I lay the gun on one side for about 10 minutes then flip it over to the other side so all of the barrel gets soaked.

I then use a cotton patch on a tight fitting jag and push the gunk out inspecting the patch for lead. I got through about four dry patches with each one stripping out lead. I then inspect the barrel and depending on how much lead is still showing may use some MPRO7 and a brass brush.

I am not real aggressive when it comes to cleaning all of the lead out. I shoot almost lead bullets exclusively so the barrel is going to get lead in it the next time I shoot it.

I use Mobil One Synthetic Motor Oil for lubrication and Tetra Gun Grease on the slide rails of my semi-autos

CLP is mainly used for long term storage and guns that don't get shoot much..

If you're concerned about inhaling the fumes from Hoppe's, I'm surprised you're not concerned with lead exposure.

AFAIK, this is the correct answer. Mechanical, or mercury. I think Outer's once sold an electric (9v) system that had one chemical for lead, another for copper. Otherwise, there are several common chemicals for copper, but for lead? Fageddaboutit.

Hoppe's is a powder solvent - a good one, I believe.

When chambers in the cylinder become a problem, lead or otherwise, a handy tool may be a brass flathead screw of the right thread for your cleaning rod. Use it as a scraper. Very inexpensive at a real hardware store.

Hoppes Elite....take a look / sniff at the Elite line , they are truely low / no odor. If I clean a gun with Ed's Red Bore cleaner or (heavens forbid) US Army G.I. Bore Cleaner , my wife will not let the gun in the bedroom for 3-4 days. She can smell things I can't even come close to smelling.
The Hoppes Elite has gotten no comments from the smell detector, and that's saying a lot !
Scrubbing with a brass/bronze bore brush and just about anything, (WD40 , CLP , kerosene, Marvel Mystery oil, Ed's Red, Kroil , any brand of penetrating oil, etc ) will work just fine....the brush does the work , the other stuff is just for lubrication.
Gary

To the OP's question: No, CLP does not remove lead.

My trick: brass pipe screens. Using your patch-jag, put a pipe screen (brass) in front of a doubled over cleaning patch, then ram it through. It's basically a homemade Lewis Lead Remover, but without any possibility of getting stuck (like the Lewis one does). Works great.

Everything else is that old product 'elbow grease' and a brass brush. The cleaner used doesn't matter - IMHO.

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But then, what do I know?

I am concerned with it. But I don't shoot that much lead. And I'm wanting to clean out what I have. Plus I mostly shoot outdoors. I think that makes it a bit less likely to get over exposure.

There have been times just shooting a gun made me feel lousy. From the blowback or **** in my face. But I'm getting to where it doesn't. But sitting around sniffing some hoppes. Not a good idea for me. I used to like to though.

I gotta work on my .22's also. My kids have put a lot of rounds through the 10/22 and colt huntsman these last few years. I need to give them a good scrub. I didn't know CLP wasn't doing anything........

None of the solvents do anything to lead other than Mercury or the vinegar/hydrogen peroxide mix.A good penetrating oil can help to loosen it though.Chore boy or the Lewis lead remover make quick and easy work of it.

LOL I know what you mean. My wife detects things my beagle would miss. She can tell I 'm cleaning guns from the neighbors house. Ballestol really drives her nuts.

I use CLP as a lubricant.A little goes a long way.As for cleaning lead(that's all I shoot in my handguns and 85% in my rifles)Ed's red formula does a great job but I can't wait to try copper wire.
Qc

I must have married her sister!!!
Qc

I must disagree with my fellow shooters. If you let clp stay in the barrel long enough, it will remove just about everything.
It is not Keystone #1 Penetrating Oil, but it comes close.
Corrosion X works well too.
Once the lubricant works its way below the lead, the lead and other junk just shoves right out.
Not a five-minute cleaning job.

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and what his trumpet saith

Lead exposure is very low risk. Those of us that have worked with hundreds, or often thousands, of pounds of it (smelting and casting) know that it takes very basic house cleaning and a little common sense to bring the risk to near zero. Don't buy what the EPA is selling. I don't even check my blood lead levels anymore as they've always been in the low single digits. Unless you have an exhaust hood, fumes are harder to avoid.

As for lead removal... I don't typically used chemicals; just chore boy wrapped around a brush.

I just use "Wipe Out" that I got from Brownells. Works real good at getting all the fouling out but make sure you wipe clean the muzzle or your accuracy will go to away real fast. I didn't clean the forcing cone and my groups went from 2 inches at 25 yards to off the paper. Cleaned it with a good brush and the accuracy came back.

Short answer is NO CLP will NOT remove lead.

There are a lot of "CLP" products out there besides Break-Free. I don't know of any gun solvents that actually dissolve lead but many loosen and lift lead making it easier to remove. Gunzilla is a CLP and does a good job for me.

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"In God We Trust"

I spray the bore of my S&W 642 with Breakfree CLP after shooting fifty Remington 38 Spl 158 gr rnl rounds. Let sit for thirty minutes and start running through my boresnake. The CLP creeps under the fouling and the numerous pull throughs of the boresnake lifts away both the powder and lead fouling. CLP does not dissolve the lead but creeps under it similar to other penetrating oils.

I called Smith and Wesson and they recommended Breakfree CLP on their J frame alloy revolvers. Current Breakfree CLP passed Mil Spec requirements in 2017 and is back on DOD list of approved CLPs.

I’ve been using CLP since the mid 80s.

I do still use Hoppes 9 on my Ruger Blackhawk 4 5/8 357 Mag and prefer it on steel revolvers...like CLP it creeps under the fouling so you can brush it away.

I switched to Carolina leadcast moly coated bullets. Very little leading. At the end of the shoot I run six jacketed bullets through the barrel no lead left. I’m not sure if Carolina is still in business. I purchased moly spray to coat leadcast bullets.

Shooters tried the rifle coated moly bullets with no instructions. The barrel looks to have a light grey finish after shooting them. That’s the moly in the pores of the metal inside the bores. Don’t wash the barrel. Just mop it orvrun a dry patch. It will clean that easy. You shoot moly coated bullets then we wash the moly out of the barrel they say it’s no good. Just run a mop or dry patch down the barrel starting inside the chamber. What ever residue is in the barrel will come right out. Then it’s ready to shoot again.

Exactly. Also -- lead isn't invisible. If you're not able to see any, it ain't there. May be just a gray smear, or just a bit of material in the corner of the grooves, but a close look will reveal its presence. And usually it's not going to have much if any effect on accuracy until you can see lumps of the stuff.

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Pisgah

You will find that any revolver that has properly sized chambers and barrels that match up with the correctly sized lead bullets that aren't too soft and correctly lubed you will not get any leading to worry about and the minimal cleaning you are doing will keep it under control.

But, if you shoot too soft a bullet and push it faster than it was designed for, you will get leading, then a lot of the above recommendations are good. NOte as a couple mentioned, "after cleaning" run a patch of Break Free through the chambers and barrel and leave it. It coats the surface with a microscopic coating that helps keep leading down and make clean up easier.

I used to shoot a Comp Gun in competition, and after a match of maybe 300-500 rounds that comp chamber had to be scraped out. After coating it with Break Free before shooting the job was much easier.

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H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

In my competition rifles, I use Kano Kroil initially to remove powder residue. Then bore solvent (Shooters Choice, Butches Bore shine) on a brush. Patch this out. Then I will apply JB Bore paste to a tight patch and work the barrel thoroughly. Then patch this out using Kroil on a patch. Last is one dry patch, which will leave a light coating of Kroil in the barrel.

JB Bore paste removes copper and carbon, which is the enemy in rifle barrels. I would think it would remove lead as well. Probably too slow if leading is excessive, but fine for light leading.

AFAIK, JB Bore Paste is a very mild lapping compound. Although I believe that it is generally accepted in BR circles, or at least used to be when I last followed such things, I would be very cautious about "working the barrel thoroughly." Nfa1eab has surely looked into this, and knows what he is doing. Others, however, should perhaps be careful not to be too enthusiastic with JB when safe chemical and mechanical means are available.

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Formerly Model520Fan

As everyone has said, almost nothing that you want to be handling regularly will dissolve lead. Mechanical scraping with a chore boy is the best and cheapest method I have found. Then again my guns almost never lead up to begin with. An ounce of prevention.

I would also caution against JB bore paste as a cleaning agent. Over zealous use is a great way to round off the sharp edges of your rifling


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I got the chore boy and it seems like my barrels have been cleaner. I'm going to keep my lead shooting to a minimum. But at least now I know how to address it somewhat.

Low odor mineral spirits ?

Break Free for the general cleaning (and yes, soak the barrel with wet patches and let sit until last). Lewis Lead Remover for the times I'm not shooting jacketed or plated. Hoppe's works well, but not indoors, ever.

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Heavily armed old man.

Just use a bore snake that has a bronze brush in it.

Won't do a thing to remove lead

LEAD SOLVENTS for removing lead, for me. Swab & brush at the range if odor is an issue. The sooner you clean it, the easier it is. Leave some dirty dishes, pots, pans in the sink for a couple of months & see how easy they are to clean. Same idea.

Two words - coated lead.

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Some collect art; I shoot it!