Lead fouling in cylinder chambers

brundlseth

brundlseth

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I’m very fond of my four-inch Model 63-3. Recently I noticed what appears to be some lead fouling near the ends of the cylinder chambers at the end nearest the forcing cone. It doesn’t seem to have had any effect on the operation or accuracy of the little gun and I’m unsure of what, if anything, I should do about it. Any suggestions will be appreciated.
 
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Completely normal when shooting lead bullet ammunition in revolvers. Just clean the cylinder after shooting just like you should anyway! This is not an issue! The only thing you can "Do about it" is to not shoot lead bullets, and there is no reason to not use them, and this is not a practical solution with .22 rimfire revolvers!
 
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It's not uncommon for cylinders to lead, especially if there is a mismatch between bullet diameter and throat. Normal cleaning methods (patch, brush, patch) will usually do the trick. For stubborn leading at the throat, I wrap bronze wool around a small toothbrush. Enter from the throat side and rotate the toothbrush as much as needed to remove leading. Works every time with no damage to cylinder.
 
Just clean it well . Don't let crud cake and build up .
Clean your gun after every range trip ,
Cylinders and such can be easily cleaned with a brass bore brush , if not tight enough wrap brush with a layer of 0000 steel wool and use J-B Bore Cleaner to remove crud ... it's made to clean barrels and will not damage your gun.

A old toothbrush and gun solvent (Ed's Red Bore Cleaner ... search the recipe and make it yourself) ...soak crud and scrub with brush ... it will come off ...do not let it build up anywhere .
Gary
 
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brundlseth said:
I’m very fond of my four-inch Model 63-3. Recently I noticed what appears to be some lead fouling near the ends of the cylinder chambers at the end nearest the forcing cone. It doesn’t seem to have had any effect on the operation or accuracy of the little gun and I’m unsure of what, if anything, I should do about it. Any suggestions will be appreciated.
Click to expand...

Check out the "Lewis Lead Remover." It uses a bronze mesh "Patch" on a rubberized jag. It'll take care of any lead you manage to build up inside your barrel or chambers.

It's a slick tool.
 
Use a bronze brush, but don't use a rimfire .22 brush for cylinder throats because it will be undersize. Use a centerfire .22 rifle brush. You needn't use the brush often. A patch and solvent (Hoppe's #9 or whatever you have) works fine most of the time. It takes a lot of lead wash/residue to affect chambering or accuracy.
 
Protocall_Design said:
I don't think you're going to get a toothbrush in a .22 chamber.
Click to expand...

Oops, my bad. Missed the caliber. Change to small wood dowel or just go with other good suggestions mentioned.
Not unusual to find tight .22 chambers on revolvers. I always carry Q-tips in my range bag. Won't remove leading, but helps keep the fowling down.
 
smithra_66 said:
Check out the "Lewis Lead Remover." It uses a bronze mesh "Patch" on a rubberized jag. It'll take care of any lead you manage to build up inside your barrel or chambers.

It's a slick tool.
Click to expand...

I could be wrong, but I don't think the Lewis Lead Remover is available in .22 caliber. Leading in a .22 RF barrel or cylinder is generally very soft and much easier to remove than most centerfire leading. A good oversize brush (bronze .22 centerfire brush) is most effective for cylinder throats, while a good quality .22 rimfire bronze brush works best for the bore; the centerfire .22 brush may be too tight for the bore.

I've found few .22 RF bores that are prone to leading, though I do have a couple of Colt Diamondbacks that always lead the bore, though not heavily.
 
The fastest/best way to clean chambers is a bronze chamber brush from Brownell's.
These are larger in diameter, and unlike bore brushes, made of a much stiffer bristle.
Usually one or two passes will remove any leading.

For the barrel buy a Lewis Lead Remover Kit.
This will clean leading out of the bore with no chance of damage.
Also, the Lewis kit has a special tip used to clean leading and carbon off the critical forcing cone.
Even if all you shoot is jacketed bullets, the Lewis kit will remove carbon and copper build up.

BROWNELLS BRONZE RIFLE/PISTOL CHAMBER BRUSHES | Brownells

BROWNELLS LEWIS LEAD REMOVER | Brownells

Some calibers are out of stock right now, but since Brownell's owns the Lewis tool it'll be back in stock soon.
 
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Thanks everyone for your comments and advice. I should have mentioned that the Model 63 is a .22 rimfire. I should also have mentioned that I am of the old school who always clean a gun after every use. I believe my problem obtained from the fact that the .22 caliber phosphor bronze bore brush I have been using for the cylinder chambers is too loose a fit to do an effective cleaning. I solve a similar problem with my .357 and .44 revolvers by using a Tornado brush for the cylinder chambers. (To be clear, I only use the Tornado in the cylinder chambers, NOT the bore.) I was unaware until I discovered it while searching for other alternatives, that a Tornado brush is also available for .22. I got the .22 Tornado brush and performed a regular cleaning of the Model 63 cylinder with that brush and Hoppes No.9 and - problem solved! Virtually all of the fouling is gone.
 
gwpercle said:
Just clean it well . Don't let crud cake and build up .
Clean your gun after every range trip ,
Cylinders and such can be easily cleaned with a brass bore brush , if not tight enough wrap brush with a layer of 0000 steel wool and use J-B Bore Cleaner to remove crud ... it's made to clean barrels and will not damage your gun.

A old toothbrush and gun solvent (Ed's Red Bore Cleaner ... search the recipe and make it yourself) ...soak crud and scrub with brush ... it will come off ...do not let it build up anywhere .
Gary
Click to expand...

This is your best advice, if you shoot a gun clean it, well. I would add just dont over clean your bores with bronze brushes. Ill use one if a bore is really bad or has been neglected but otherwise no. Patches or mops most of the time for me. If your gun leads you dont need a bunch of chemicals just wrap a piece of pure copper choreboy around a nylon borebrush so that you have a good tight fit and the lead will come out with about 10 strokes, then patch it out with a little hoppes, dry patch, then a patch with some oil of your choice, another dry patch and put it away.
Revolvers are much fun to shoot, cleaning not so much but I do it after a shoot nonetheless, and I do it the best I can. Like this,







My chambers and bores are never put away dirty. Another tip that may make cleaning alot easier, and this is what I do, when youre done firing at the range and the gun is still warm, patch out the chambers(if a revolver) and the bore, pull a clean patch through them and the another hoppes patch so it can soak on the ride home. I find that it makes actual cleaning SO much easier.
 
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I agree : Chore Boy is very effective and cheap. It is a good substitute of Lewis lead remover. Wrapped around an old and no more useful bore brush, it works differently from the brush bristles: its effect is similar to a chisel on the lead and carbon deposits, resulting more efficient
 
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rockquarry said:
Use a bronze brush, but don't use a rimfire .22 brush for cylinder throats because it will be undersize. Use a centerfire .22 rifle brush. You needn't use the brush often. A patch and solvent (Hoppe's #9 or whatever you have) works fine most of the time. It takes a lot of lead wash/residue to affect chambering or accuracy.
Click to expand...

for cleaning the cylinder of a .22 revolver, use a .243/6mm rifle bore brush. I use one for .22 chambers.
 
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