How do you clean your chambers?

[Springfan]

In case there are any folks reading this who are new to the cleaning game, it cannot be overemphasized that one should be extra careful using Hoppe's No. 9 on nickel plated firearms. More than one person has soaked a nickeled cylinder in No. 9 only to find the plating ruined later.

 

[M3Stuart]

How would you test the theory that bronze brushes on a drill would ream a charge hole?

My experience: Awhile back, I was actually TRYING to ream out the cylinder on a stainless Taurus 94 (.22 LR) because the spent casings had to be pounded out. The gun was basically useless. I put brass (ended up using several of them) brushes on a full-speed power drill and went to town on those cylinders. Did it remove metal from the cylinders? Definitely. Did it work on that Taurus 94? No. The casings still stuck. But when you loaded it and then tipped it back (without firing), the shells would fall right out - it was considerably 'looser'.

Moral to the story; I would strongly recommend AGAINST putting a brass brush on a power drill and reaming out a cylinder on any gun that I cared about. However, if the gun is useless because the ammo either won't load, or extract, AT ALL, then you might as well ream away!

 

[Hapworth]

+1 on Hoppes #9 and a copper brush, by hand. For stubborn stuff, I've had good experience using Hoppes Bench Rest 9 and leaving it to soak overnight.

Bore snakes have become a regular part of my cleaning regimen for both the chambers and the bore -- excellent finishers after a solvent and a brush, but before final wipe with patches.

A gentle, professional polishing of the cylinder chambers might also help in reducing the most stubborn build-up, too, and help prevent it in the future.

 

[gwalchmai]

My experience: Awhile back, I was actually TRYING to ream out the cylinder on a stainless Taurus 94 (.22 LR) because the spent casings had to be pounded out. The gun was basically useless. I put brass (ended up using several of them) brushes on a full-speed power drill and went to town on those cylinders. Did it remove metal from the cylinders? Definitely.

How much metal did it remove, and how long did you run the drill?

 

[nipster]

How would you test the theory that bronze brushes on a drill would ream a charge hole?

I absolutely would not use a piece of my equipment to test that theory. If someone else wants to, they are more than welcome to. I'm not about to ruin my stuff. Manually using a brass brush works fine for me.

 

[nipster]

My experience: Awhile back, I was actually TRYING to ream out the cylinder on a stainless Taurus 94 (.22 LR) because the spent casings had to be pounded out. The gun was basically useless. I put brass (ended up using several of them) brushes on a full-speed power drill and went to town on those cylinders. Did it remove metal from the cylinders? Definitely. Did it work on that Taurus 94? No. The casings still stuck. But when you loaded it and then tipped it back (without firing), the shells would fall right out - it was considerably 'looser'.

Why didnt you just send it back to Taurus Miami, their stuff is supposedly guaranteed for life, like S&W's post 1989 stuff. I would imagine by doing what you did, you may have voided the warranty.

Moral to the story; I would strongly recommend AGAINST putting a brass brush on a power drill and reaming out a cylinder on any gun that I cared about.

I absolutely agree with this statement.

 

[gwalchmai]

I absolutely would not use a piece of my equipment to test that theory. If someone else wants to, they are more than welcome to. I'm not about to ruin my stuff. Manually using a brass brush works fine for me.

I didn't suggest you use a piece of your equipment to test the theory. I asked how you would test it.

 

[TNDave]

I recommend Brownell's bronze chamber brushes.

These are not only over sized to fit the chamber, they're made of a extra stiff bristle.
These will usually clean even a really dirty chamber in one pass, and will do so without using a drill.

The way I use them is to "screw" the brush into the chamber until about the front 1/3rd is sticking out the other end, then rotate the brush a turn or two, push the rest of the way through, then pull back out.
That usually removes all fouling.

This is the answer. Bore brushes are a poor substitute for a chamber brush to get lead out of chambers. I wish I had discovered them long before I did.

 

[nipster]

I didn't suggest you use a piece of your equipment to test the theory. I asked how you would test it.

I guess the only way to test is do it, and then stick a round in the cylinder, feel for play. Again, I dont suggest it.

 

[amazingflapjack]

chamfer-lee factory crimp die-clean as you would the bore.

 

[dfariswheel]

I usually hire a chambermaid.

Steve

Hopefully the gun Gods will smite thee for that.