Rifle Cleaning Question

D

diverdon

Inactive
Hello , I sorta feel like an idiot . I have only a few firearms . 30 cal or bigger so this has never come up before .

I have a new rifle in .223 cal and went to run a patch thru the barrel to see if it was clean. Really hard to push so I stopped . It was the correct size patch holder anyhow I have never used a "jag" allways patch holders as I seem to think these brass things might not be good for the barrel ..

So I then used a .223 jag with a pretty small size patch and it was still hard to push thru. The .30 cal rifle and handguns I have are big enough bore to not have this issue.

Question is ... How hard should it be to push thru the patches ? I don't want to damage the barrel ..
Thanks for helping and I'm sorry to be so unimformed at this age about things like this .. Don
 
The first thought that comes to mind is that you have the wrong sized patch. If you are used to using a certain sized patch with a .30 cal, then you are going to be very surprized at the size patch needed for a .223. It is MUCH smaller.
 
I have a huge batch of bulk .30 patches that I use on all my rifles. But for the .223 and 6.5's I have to trim them down to size otherwise I can't run them down the barrel. For the 223 I probably trim off about 1/3 of the total area of the patch...I have gotten one stuck before by not trimming off enough.
 
As far as "how hard," that might depend upon what type of rod you're using.

I have read of people using rods that "flexed" during use. This "flexing" caused the rod to bend out and contact the sides of the barrel. After extensive use, this constant grinding of rod against barrel literally wore away the rifling.

I don't know if that's true. It's just what I read.

In your case, I'd get a well worn t-shirt and cut some patches. Your cleaning tip is doubtless the correct size, but store bought patches can be too thick sometimes, or too big, or whatever.

Also, buy a one piece rod. That keeps that "flexing" to a minimum, IIRC.
 
Jags are much more finicky about patch thickness than slotted tips are. IIRC Hoppes patches are really thin, (I just miked one it's 0.0075"), regular cotton ones are 0.011" That's a big difference in a small diameter bore! Try some of those & see if that helps.
 
I've never had success with patches and jags,,,

Until I started cutting them down.

By no success I mean I've never been able to shove a 1" square patch through any of my rifle or pistol barrels.

I use a hole punch now and cut a 1/2" round patch from the Remington 1" squares,,,
That I can actually get through my .22 rifle barrels with a brass jag,,,
a 3/4" circle is what I cut for my .38/9mm/etc barrels.

Am I missing some essential technique here?

Aarond
 
I like 'Proshot' jags for my 22s. I had a hexx of a time with them and the proshot 22 which is actually labelled 22/6 mm. My son took it and turned it down about 10 thousands and now the jag and 1 1/8" patches work very nicely. Maybe you have one of those jags.

Jags are so much better than the slotted patch holders.
 
WOW Thanks for the replys

You all have hit it right on the head , The patch needs to be waaaay smaller for 5.56 than 30cal or 40cal smith and wesson .. Even the .380 I have uses a lot bigger patch .

Got the barrel all cleaned and cannot wait to try it now .. Thanks again,Don
 
When ever possible, use a one piece cleaning rod too. Just sounds like you shoulda trimmed your patch down a bit. You might get a little resistance but not to the point that you have to force it though.
 
When I was in the Air Force (weapons section), we ran short of 5.56 patches but had lots of .30 cal patches. All we did was cut the .30 patches into 4 pieces and they fit fine. That makes them almost exactly the same size as the issued 5.56 patches. Be sure to pull the patch from the chamber end back through the bore.
 
Hello, diverdon. Glad you found the right size patch.. I have found the 3/4" round patch to be right fit for the .22 rimfire. Fot the .22 centerfires, I usually go to 1"..but as you have found..the jag dia. has alot to do with this.
Check out Sinclair International..they have a very nice catalog & it's filled with the things we need for shooting.
I like pro-shot or dewey brand jags. You might want to look into a high quality cleaning rod..either a coated one..I use Dewey..but lately I have been using Bore-Tech..and think they are a better rod, or a high quality hardened stainless steel.
You don't want too tight of a fit in the bore..as others have stated..the rod will flex..rubbing one side of bore. But also, if too tight..all the solvent will be squeezed out of patch into chamber instead of onto bore.
The patch doesn't really do the cleaning so much as being a carrier for solvent. I never drag a dirty patch back thru bore..one pass thru & let fall off at muzzle.
Don't forget about a rod-guide to protect the all important chamber leade.
 
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