Cleaning - Boring but Critical

A

AlanF

Guest
In my experience at the range, the biggest culprit for poor grouping or poor scores is bore condition - either too clean or needs cleaning. And many other things get incorrectly blamed for it - how many times do you hear a shooter blaming vertical spread on wind or mirage when the magnitude of the vertical is clearly too great to be caused by them. And occasionally in light conditions a shooter just cannot make sense of the wind - this is often due to poor grouping - not poor wind-reading. And scopes, they must be one of the most maligned pieces of equipment on the range - I've done it myself - then found that cleaning the barrel solved the problem. Cleaning is not the most interesting of shooting subjects, but in my opinion of critical importance to success in this sport.

It would be interesting to hear other opinions about the importance (or not) of bore condition.

Alan
 
i've been using a 308 in ft/r recently and just started to get a 223 together for the same. when it come to cleaning the 308 mine will throw shots if it has been cleaned to much or it will start after about 600 rnds. being too dirty to shoot well i do believe is over stated. the 223 on the other hand shoots best if it gets cleaned every 100 to 150 rounds. i think cleaning is all barrel dependent, i have yet to get any copper fouling out of my 223. i've scoped it and there is not any copper fouling to remove. the 308 smears a little copper near the chamber and at the muzzle, for about an inch and a half, but the rest of the bore is clean of copper, just powder fouling. i've had the 308 barrel gaged when i get the barrel and it has about 0.0001 variance in the middle, still good enough for f-class.
 
Now that I am spending more time with quality match pipes, cleaning is not as intense.

I find that my barrels stay accurate for a very long time if I just give them a dry patch or two every 50rds.

I run a dry cotton patch down the bore a few times to get rid of the surface soot. That's seem to be all it needs to get back to shooting its best.

The first or second pass will be black with powder soot. Then they will go grey/light grey - discolour the patch but no visible soot. I am done.

First shots are also right into the group. Where after chemical cleaning, a few to get things settled.

Copper fouling is not an issue either.

Have shot ALOT of rds this way with X ring accuracy. Seems to work fo me.

Jerry

PS I will do a chemical clean after several hundred rds have been fired to ensure there is no build up in the throat, etc. So far after 1000 in one, 1800 in another, no issues.
 
Are you blokes all running moly loads?
My 6BR shoots better "dirty" then totally clean.
I have now adopted a similar method to mysticplayer.
I have a major clean when accuracy seems to have gone off.I seem to suffer one bad relay of scores straight after that clean and then the rifle settles down for a considerable number of rounds(100-300) before another dip in accuracy.
I used to shoot naked bullets and clean religously every stage.That also worked for that particular rifle a 308.
Macca
 
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