Do some rifles hate being dirty?

[wisconsinteacher]

I have read a million times that a rifle might need some rounds fired down the tube before it settles down and shoots well. My question is can a rifle be the opposite and hate being dirty? My 7mmRM shot like crap today with loads that went 1 MOA last time. Today they were 1.5-2 MOA. These were rounds 31-40 down the barrel since the last deep cleaning. I am going to clean it up real good again and retry the load to see what it does. Ever have this happen before?

 

[DrMike]

Yes, I have a couple of rifles that won't tolerate much build-up of carbon and/or copper at all. The first shot out of a cold barrel shoots to the same POI as subsequent shots up to about eight or ten (depending on conditions), after which it must be cleaned. What you describe is not unheard of.

 

[salmonchaser]

My Jarrett doesn't like being dirty, my 06 will shoot accurately as long you can still force a bullet down the barrel.

 

[Guy Miner]

Some barrels also foul much faster than others.

My .25-06 had a fairly rough factory bore, and although accurate, would foul quickly when new. After about 20 rounds, it really needed a cleaning to stay accurate.

Bore must have burnished smoother over the years of shooting, because now it can go about 40 rounds without cleaning, and remain accurate.

On the other hand, the hand-lapped .308 Krieger barrel on my Green Machine rifle will shoot accurately for a couple of hundred rounds with no loss of accuracy and very little fouling. Love that barrel...

 

[HeathSexton]

My 260 has a rough barrel after 50-60 rounds it has to be cleaned to keep accuracy. I have wondered if a Tubbs Final Finish would help it out?

 

[SJB358]

I can't think of any of mine that lose accuracy that quick, but as Mike said, a rougher bore will change stuff up a bunch if it is catching a bunch of fouling.

 

[JD338]

Yes, some might shoot better dirty than clean but I keep my rifle brrels clean. 1-2 fouling shots to confirm zero and then I keep them that way until I am dome hunting.
My 338 RUM shoots to the same POI clean or dirty.
Notice the black oil ring from the first shot below.

This is a 200 yd group from a clean barrel!

JD338

 

[jmad_81]

My 338 WM is like that. 20-30 rounds and it goes to crap. Keep it really clean and it shoots great. Spent a custom barrels worth of powder and bullets fighting it before I figured it out. I'm thinking about trying some of the Tubbs bore conditioning bullets to smooth it out a bit. All my custom barrels easily go over 100 rounds before needing a scrubbing.

 

[Guy Miner]

Re the Tubbs Final Finish kit - I used it on a 7mm Rem mag Sendero some years ago.

That rifle shot GREAT. Very accurate & high velocity. It didn't seem like the Final Finish made it any more accurate, but I believe it did reduce the fouling.

I'd also take a hard look at http://store.dyna-tek.com/Bore-Coat-Kit ... recoat.htm

Some of the guys over on 24 Hour Campfire are very impressed with it. I haven't used it yet myself.

Regards, Guy

 

[SJB358]

Re the Tubbs Final Finish kit - I used it on a 7mm Rem mag Sendero some years ago.

That rifle shot GREAT. Very accurate & high velocity. It didn't seem like the Final Finish made it any more accurate, but I believe it did reduce the fouling.

I'd also take a hard look at http://store.dyna-tek.com/Bore-Coat-Kit ... recoat.htm

Some of the guys over on 24 Hour Campfire are very impressed with it. I haven't used it yet myself.

Regards, Guy

The Dyna Bore Kit is on my list of things to try. Hear a lot of good things about it.

 

[joelkdouglas]

I've used the Dyna Bore Coat on all my centerfire rifles in the last year (2x30-06, 1x25-06, 6BR) and that stuff is pretty awesome. I have essentially stopped cleaning them, and they never shoot worse. Some of them have only had 50 rounds down the tubes, but others a couple hundred. I can't tell any difference.

I think I will clean them once or twice a year now.

 

[balew6254]

I used the Dyna Bore Coat on several of my rifles. Didn't clean well enough on the first try and still had some copper fouling issues. Redid the process after a thorough cleaning with KG-12 and a nylon brush, then alcohol. It definitely works as advertised.

Look up John Barsness method on 24 Hour campfire and do it right the first time around. I will use it and Dynatek on any new firearms in the future and apply it to all my existing firearms that will stay in my stable.

As a 72 year young single male it's time to reduce my collection to a few favorites and pass the rest to someone who will appreciate and use them.

Bruce

 

[jagermeister]

My 222 Remington shoots really well with the cleaned barrel.

Groups start going south after approx. 30 rounds.
Not real bad, but "clover leafing" :mrgreen: is easily obtained when the tube's shining....

Also, no problems with the cold bore shot.
A few times, I've seem to notice the second and third shot may open a bit and then it all comes back on track.

Any of you Guys experienced this ?

:wink:

 

[longrangehunter]

Wow JD,

That rifle of yours does shoot!

I think the rifle will tell you what it wants for when it's time to be cleaned. With that said I don't like leaving my barrels dirty if they're going to be sitting in my gun safe for very long. Reason being is that the moisture in the air is going to attack/attach to the fouling which has always bothered me. I just prefer to leave them in the safe clean with oil because some guns may sit for years until I pick them up again. 458 LOTT, 35 Whelen, etc.

Just got back from the Steel Safari down in Logan NM where I shot about 150 rounds through the gun without any cleaning. I'm going to test it today to see if it still shoots to POA.

 

[PJGunner]

I have a Winchester M70 FWT in 7x57 that had a bore so rough that is made the Rocky Mountains look like a flat plain. One magazine full and the bore would be so fouled that accuracy went down the tube. Groups would open up in five rounds or less. Had the gun glass bed, trigger job and no help. Cleaning the crap AKA copper out of the bore was literally an 8 hour job, sometimes longs. Picked up a Wheeler bore kit and used tight fitting cast lead bullets instead of jacketed bullets and now, while the barrel still fouls I can go at least 50 or more rounds before copper fouling is a problem. I'm giving thought to doing another run of the grits using the two finer media and finishing off with a few coated with JB Bore Paste. Don't want to do too much as I don't want to wear out the throat. The fire lapping did go a long way toward improving the way the rifle shot.
Paul B.