Cleaning the Mini-14 Barrel

S

Skorzeny

New member
What is the best way to clean the barrel of a .223 Mini-14 barrel from the muzzle?

I usually use the "bore snake" and then use lots of .22 caliber patches, but then when I look with a light, I still see some fouling in the barrel.

Is there some way to clean the .223 barrel efficiently from the muzzle without damaging the crown of the rifling?

I'd appreciate any info.

Skorzeny

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For to win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the supreme excellence. Sun Tzu
 
Skorzeny,

You need a cleaning rod with a muzzle guide.
This will keep the rod from eventually removing the last inch of rifling in the barrel. Always use a CLEAN cleaning rod.

I use Hope's Copper Solvent in my Mini-14.

Put about 10 or 12 drops down the bore from the chamber end.

Use a loose patch from the muzzle end to distribute the solvent evenly.

Place some good protection on the floor & set the rifle on it muzzle down in a corner for a day or two.

The green stuff leaching out of the barrel is copper fouling.

Run tight, dry patches through the bore till they come out clean & dry.

Run a loose oil-soaked patch through the bore & store.

OPEN OR OUT ;)



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Ralph in In.
 
GreybeardB:

So you do not use a brass/bronze bore brush when you have to clean a .223 from the muzzle, correct?

Skorzeny

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For to win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the supreme excellence. Sun Tzu
 
Pull-through cleaning kits with integral cleaning brush could be used too. Touted as the World's Fastest Bore Cleaner, you apply solvent to the brush portion and the portion of the cord immediately following the bristles, then oil near the end. Drop the guide through the chamber and you pull the cord through the barrel. Voila. Clean.

The problem with those pull-through is that if they pick up any abrasive, which they will, when the cord passes by the muzzle, it can still round off the muzzle.

Here's another way which I do with precision rifles. I use a muzzle guide and insert the cleaning rod in without a brush. Once the rod pops out of the chamber, I screw the brush on. Solvent is applied and then the rod is pulled through the barrel. Scrubbing is one way, slow, and laborious. So, to reduce scrubbing, use a good solvent and do the same but with a patch. Let the solvent soak the barrel and let the barrel sit for 10-15 minutes. After the solvent has done its work, use the brush as described above.

Realistically, the Mini14 is not a tack driver and I won't give it the gingerly care I would a precision rifle. That pull through cord would be good enough for me.

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Vigilantibus et non dormientibus jura subveniunt
 
Gary, you just took the words right out of my mouth. I have a mini-14 and shoot it a lot. But as far as cleaning it, I wouldn't worry too much about affecting it's accuracy. You can't hurt something that doesn't exist. Just use reasonable care when you clean it and it'll be fine.
 
Skorzeny,

I should have mentioned that my "soak" method of barrel cleaning is for "days end"
when there is time to do the soaking.

If you must scrub the bore during a shoot session, then you'll have to substitute the soak method with elbo grease, Hope's Copper Solvent & a Tornado Brush.

And no, you don't have to brush or scrub with the soak method.

However, if your bore is severly fouled (drying patches won't come clean) then you may have to repeat the process.

OPEN OR OUT ;)

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Ralph in In.



[This message has been edited by GreybeardB (edited December 21, 1999).]
 
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