Rusted bore

[Guest]

I got a project handed to me from a 'friend of a friend' so to speak. I am now in the process of cleaning a rifle that has seen some serious neglect, to determine if it shoots well enough for my friend to purchase it. Not that it matters, but the rifle is a .270, and the overall condition is pretty poor. I managed to clean up the surface rust on the outside of the gun, and disassembled it from the stock and cleaned out plenty of gunk otherwise, and more surface rust. Now comes the hard part. The bore has streaks of surface rust along the grooves of the rifling. Not anything that I think has ruined the gun (in it's deteriorated form, it still supposedly shoots under 2.5" at 100yds, from a poor rest). Anyway, as I said I'd give it my best shot, what do y'all recommend for a gun that has rust streaks down the bore? I've never let one of mine get like this, so I don't really have any experience in the removal process. Should I just hard brush it with Hoppe's #9 until it's gone, or is there something better out there? I haven't ever used JB's Bore Paste, but that was my first thought. Don't have any onhand, so I thought I'd ask before I order stuff, to save on shipping. I appreciate the info, as my friend has already called me twice to see what I am doing with the gun. Some days I hate being the ameteur gunsmith in my gang of hoodlums.

 

[JD338]

I never had this problem so I can't give you expert advice.
I would give the barrel a good scrubbing with Shooters Choice MC#7
and see how it looks. If no better, give the JB's a try.
Let us know how it turns out.

JD338

 

[Guest]

Ever use the JB's? I have scrubbed out so far with two different solvents, got most of the rust out, but there is a stubborn streak along the edge of one of the grooves. I thought about some cannelured bullets to just try to shoot it out, so to speak, but I don't know if I can get any, and then I have to get a bunch of handloading stuff for a rifle I don't even own, or spend $$$ on ammo. Either way, my friend is going to balk at much more in expense than what I am being paid to 'clean' the gun, so I don't want to go too far in expense if I can help it. Will the Shooter's Choice get it out better than other solvents, or should I just skip that step? And is there anything other than JB's that folks would recommend for this bore?

 

[JD338]

dubyam,

What solvents have you used?
The Shooters Choice MC #7 is a good general solvent which is much stronger than Hoppe's #9.
Yes I have used JB's and it will get the bore much cleaner. The down side is that you have to be careful with it as it can damage the edges of the rifling if you are not careful. It is an abrasive paste and a small amount will go a long ways. If you decide to use JB's, follow up with a good scrubing with a solvent and some dry patches, and light coating of oil.
One other thought, the stubborn streak you are seeing. Could it be copper fouling? Maybe some Sweets 7.62 copper solvent will cut through it. I'm just not sure how it would react to rust it that is what the stubborn streak actually is.
Good job on getting the bore back to shooting condition. :grin:

JD338

 

[Guest]

I've used Hoppe's #9, as that is my go-to first pass cleaner. I followed that with the Remington Bore Cleaner solution and patched it dry. Kept getting sirt along one part of the patch, so I took out my fiber optic light, and peered up and down the bore. I believe this is definitely a rust streak, as it is more reddish brown than what copper usually appears. Also, it is at the muzzle, which usually doesn't get the worst of the copper fouling, in my experience. And with the rust on the rest of the gun, I imagine that's what this is.

As for cleaners, I have never used Shooter's Choice, so I don't know if it will work. I am tempted to try the JB's, although I can't get it anywhere around here, so that adds to my time issue. Can't get Shooter's Choice, either, though, so no advantage there. I just don't have anywhere local that carries much more than Hoppes, Outers, and the occasional odd bottle of Butch's or such. I thought about using rubbing compound (I keep some in my shop) but I don't know if it will imbed in the bore or not. I don't want to ruin this gun, but really, I am down to telling them it is either screwed up, or needs a new barrel, or some such, if I can't get this rust out. We'll see what happens over the next week or so. Maybe I will just tell them to try to shoot it out.

 

[JD338]

dubyam,

Sounds like rust. Maybe it will shoot ok. What is the rifle going to be used for? If WT deer in cover, might be ok.. Maybe its best to walk away and find another used rifle that is in better condition.
The other option for you is to have it rebarreled. Get the action blueprinted and a new stock and your friend could have a very nice looking tack driver.
It all boiles down to how much time and money does one want to invest?

JD338

 

[old #7]

You can stop rust with ospho or any other brand of phosphoric acid solution.
I use it to prep metal before paint. It does etch the metal slightly.
I don't know if it would make your barrel any worse. I do know it will stop the rust.

 

[recoil junky]

What about some lapping bullets?

Supposed to work to smooth a rough barrel , might work for a rusty one.

RJ

 

[baltz526]

i think your over thinking it, just run a box of cheap shells through it and see if it shoots fairly good. i have cleaned some old 303 british guns that had black rough bores. after getting the crud out, shot a few boxes of ammo through them and they brightened right up

 

[Britz]

I have a Rem 700 3006 with a rusted barrel. I used Jb bore conditioner and it really helped. There are different kinds of jb products, some for molly removal and others that will work on grinding Rust out. If memory serves, borebright is what you use to get molly out and bore conditioner is what worked better for me to get out bad copper and rust.