Mark Pilcher
Member
I'll bet heavy coin it's powder fouling and nothing to worry about.
Lead vapor???
- Thread starter BillBro
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LoboGunLeather
US Veteran
Shooting lead bullets (cast or swaged) in a revolver will frequently result in some transfer onto the cylinder face, breech end of the barrel, forcing cone, and surrounding frame area. I think the most likely cause is the heat of the powder discharge melting a small bit of the bullet base which then transfers (under pressure from the expanding powder gases) onto surrounding surfaces.
Cleaning those deposits away requires only a stiff-bristle bronze brush. I keep my old worn bore brushes (various sizes depending on caliber) and use those to scrub away the "lead wash" transfer. Best done dry, no solvent or other liquid to lubricate the surfaces and allowing the bronze bristles to cut through the soft lead.
Of course, hand washing is required immediately after every cleaning exercise.
For many years American center-fire cartridge primers used lead styphnate in the percussive mixture, which contributes to airborne lead residue, especially in enclosed spaces (indoor ranges). Range backstops of steel plate can also cause airborne particles from fracturing of the bullets on impact. Users of indoor range facilities should always be aware of potential airborne lead, which can be problematic with lengthy exposures. Positive ventilation is an important consideration for indoor shooting ranges, and good personal hygiene is the best practice.
I've been casting my own bullets for 52 years and I regularly shoot at a good well-ventilated indoor range. No problems to report and my blood lab work shows no concerns.
Bullet casting metal alloys typically contain lead, tin, antimony, and trace amounts of other heavy metals such as cyanide. Lots of things are dangerous to health if people are stupid, careless, or lazy.
Cleaning those deposits away requires only a stiff-bristle bronze brush. I keep my old worn bore brushes (various sizes depending on caliber) and use those to scrub away the "lead wash" transfer. Best done dry, no solvent or other liquid to lubricate the surfaces and allowing the bronze bristles to cut through the soft lead.
Of course, hand washing is required immediately after every cleaning exercise.
For many years American center-fire cartridge primers used lead styphnate in the percussive mixture, which contributes to airborne lead residue, especially in enclosed spaces (indoor ranges). Range backstops of steel plate can also cause airborne particles from fracturing of the bullets on impact. Users of indoor range facilities should always be aware of potential airborne lead, which can be problematic with lengthy exposures. Positive ventilation is an important consideration for indoor shooting ranges, and good personal hygiene is the best practice.
I've been casting my own bullets for 52 years and I regularly shoot at a good well-ventilated indoor range. No problems to report and my blood lab work shows no concerns.
Bullet casting metal alloys typically contain lead, tin, antimony, and trace amounts of other heavy metals such as cyanide. Lots of things are dangerous to health if people are stupid, careless, or lazy.
LoboGunLeather
US Veteran
I must disagree. Firearms are made of hardened steel which is considerably harder than any bronze, copper, lead alloy, or steel wool fibers. Bluing is not applied to the surface, it is an oxidation process within the steel surface itself and cannot be abraded away except by sufficient abrasion to remove the steel surface.
Bronze bristle brushes and cleaning pads such as the Chore Boy copper cloth cannot damage a blued steel firearm finish. You may rub your fingerprints off before the steel even knows you are there.
Steel wool is regularly available in various grades from fairly coarse to very fine (0000-grade is extremely fine), and the fibers themselves are much softer than any firearms-grade steel alloys. You can polish the blued finish of your firearms for days on end using 0000 steel wool with no worries at all, but it will easily remove surface corrosion, leading deposits, or copper fouling from bullet jacket material.
I was introduced to 0000-grade steel wool during a few weeks casual assignment at the Fort Benning, Georgia post armory doing regular maintenance on thousands of firearms of US, Allied, and Soviet bloc origins and firing ammunition with corrosive priming and/or steel jacketed bullets that required very harsh cleaning methods in routine maintenance. Commie machineguns might go out for a day of familiarization training and firing hundreds of rounds of garbage ammo, then be cleaned and prepped for the next day's training, no problems at all.
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I normally use my CLP and a nylon toothbrush to clean the lead on the cylinder face. It removes enough lead that it never builds up and never causes any issues. I don't bother cleaning the lead rings off 100% because they will be back again next week. If you are going to turn a revolver into a safe queen and want it pristine, the Lead-away cloths or a white pencil eraser works great as well. Just do not do this routinely on blued guns as it will eventually remove the bluing too.
I often use a plastic handled brass bristle brush from the hardware store to clean lead off, combined with bore solvent application. This is mostly on stainless guns though. I used to have one of those yellow cloths that someone else posted and those seem to be good at removing lead too. For blued guns where you might fear wearing the finish off. But I have not had a fine brass bristle brush do damage yet. The amount of lead may..may also be determined by how hot the loads are, the bullet lube used and the hardness factor. I find lead in bores a bigger PITA than the cylinder face.
I am a shooter, not a collector. Not that there is anything wrong with collecting, in fact I would love to have an unfired example of all of my shooters!
It's a tool, not a jewel. Shoot it. Clean it when needed for function, not for beauty. Then shoot it some more!
It's a tool, not a jewel. Shoot it. Clean it when needed for function, not for beauty. Then shoot it some more!
38SPL HV
Member
If it is an older 586 (not today’s version which bluing is prone to damage from ammoniated solvents)…I would get some Otis bronze brushes…moisten with Hoppes 9 and scrub away… it goes away fairly quickly particularly, if you let the Hoppes 9 stay on it overnight.
Hoppes Elite Gun cleaner is good also and seems to work as fast by just going at it after your range session.
Hoppes Elite Gun cleaner is good also and seems to work as fast by just going at it after your range session.
A small piece of this will remove fouling from the front of the cylinder...
This also works and won't harm the stainless. Don't use it on a blued gun...
I've used NEVER_DULL for over 25 years. Makes knife blades look new and shiny. Burn rings on cylinders mean nothing to me.....Scrub and hour to get them off and next time you pull the trigger they are back. So a non issue to me.........Never-Dull is good stuff. Especially on stainless steel.
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Try Hoppes #9 and a small soft brass brush. May have to remover cylinder to get it all. I use a soft stainless cup brush on a Dremil to clean front of stainless cylinders. Go slow and gently work around cylinder face.
Don’t worry about it. It’s part of the game. It gets to a certain built up point, then that’s it. It doesn’t keep accumulating, nor does it cause any damage to the gun.
So, why waste the time removing it?
It’ll just come back next trip to the range.
But, take that with a “grain of salt”. I like the scent of Alox bullet lube and the smokey soot from burned Unique or Bullseye on my guns and brass, too.
Please tell me you don’t polish the exhaust pipe on your car, do you?
So, why waste the time removing it?
It’ll just come back next trip to the range.
But, take that with a “grain of salt”. I like the scent of Alox bullet lube and the smokey soot from burned Unique or Bullseye on my guns and brass, too.
Please tell me you don’t polish the exhaust pipe on your car, do you?
Last edited:
Patrick L
Member
This^^^^
The reason bullet casters who have elevated lead levels do is NOT because of vapors from casting, it's physical ingestion. DO NOT eat , drink, smoke, rub your eyes, pick your nose, etc. when casting. WASH YOUR HANDS THOROUGHLY when done, preferably with something like DLead soap. Also, watch your indoor range exposure. Some ranges (like the one at my club) are very poorly designed, their safety precautions and protocols leave a lot to be desired.
smoothshooter
Member
Three points:
• Check the barrel cylinder gap wit a feeler gauge. About .004” to .005” is optimal. .008”’ and over is too much.
• Your bullets may be too hard.
Most people think harder bullets are less likely to cause leading. Not true.
• Check the aft end of the barrel to see if it was cut off squarely. I have couple that were cut off at an angle to where the gap was about .0012” on the left side and .002” on the right.
The gun was a S&W .22 LR revolver and was a lead spitting Son of a Gun. Every shot spit lead back on my left cheek so hard that it
Boxed it up and had it sent back to Smith the next day for warranty work.
• Check the barrel cylinder gap wit a feeler gauge. About .004” to .005” is optimal. .008”’ and over is too much.
• Your bullets may be too hard.
Most people think harder bullets are less likely to cause leading. Not true.
• Check the aft end of the barrel to see if it was cut off squarely. I have couple that were cut off at an angle to where the gap was about .0012” on the left side and .002” on the right.
The gun was a S&W .22 LR revolver and was a lead spitting Son of a Gun. Every shot spit lead back on my left cheek so hard that it
Boxed it up and had it sent back to Smith the next day for warranty work.
smoothshooter
Member
Hoppe’s #9’is my go-to for lead fouling. Cotton patch and copper bristled brush with handle too.
I remove the buildup, but don’t worry about discoloration.
Don’t sweat it.
