Revolver Muzzle end leading

['ol shooter]

I have been using Oregon Trail bullets in various calibers for a few years, and they shoot very clean compared to most lead bullets. In my .32 Spl and .30-30 94's they don't lead at all, and very clean in .44 and .45.

http://oregontrailbullet.com/

[Win231]

My bad. I wasn't clear. I'm not reloading. I purchased reloads from Load-X up here in the Bay Area. Steve has a good reputation locally for his reloads and been using his stuff for a few years. The rounds are 200g TMJ rated at 1250 fps. Is this hot enough to strip copper jackets? Guess it makes sense since it's happening at the muzzle end. (Thanks for the tip Dutch)

I'll have to find some Shooters Choice on the net to see if I have better luck removing lead (Thanks Lumpia)

Several possibilities:
It's possible the reloads are called "Total Metal Jacket" but the bullet is plated instead of jacketed. Also, some TMJ bullets have exposed lead at the base & the plating or jacket is crimped around it.
If the ammo is roll crimped & there is no cannelure on the bullet, the crimp may be cutting into the plating. I handload plated 44's for my Marlin carbine & I use a taper crimp die because the bullets I use "Berry's" have no cannelure. Also, plated bullets are only suitable for medium velocity loads; at high velocity, the plating can come off during firing. I keep them around 1,100 fps.

[cwilliams]

Like others have suggested you need to pick up some copper scrubbers. Here's a link to what I found at Walgreens - http://www.walgreens.com/store/c/o-c...550456-product

Cut off a small chunk and wrap it around a nylon bore brush and simply pull it from forcing cone to muzzle. I bought a used Ruger Blackhawk made in 1968 that hadn't seen a good bore cleaning in a while and was seriously leaded up at the forcing cone to the point where I thought the rifling was worn. After a couple passes with the modified brush it looked like new. I used the same technique on a black powder revolver and the results were just as excellent.

[QXSOUP]

I have been using the copper pan scrubbers that you can buy in any grocery store for years to clean the lead out of my revolvers. Just be sure it is 100% pure copper- most in the stores today are simply copper coated steel.

I am gonna pick up some bronze wool though, that sounds like a good idea.

['ol shooter]

Be aware that some copper pot scrubbers are actually copper plated steel. Plus, they have a rather large strand size compared to Bronze wool.

[cwilliams]

I have been using the copper pan scrubbers that you can buy in any grocery store for years to clean the lead out of my revolvers. Just be sure it is 100% pure copper- most in the stores today are simply copper coated steel.

I am gonna pick up some bronze wool though, that sounds like a good idea.

Be aware that some copper pot scrubbers are actually copper plated steel. Plus, they have a rather large strand size compared to Bronze wool.

Agreed. The scrubbers I linked to are 100% pure copper. The easy way to weed out the posers is to take a magnet to it.

[TVV]

Brilliant! Can't thank you all enough! I've ordered the bronze wool and Shooter's Choice from Amazon and will report results as soon as I get a chance to try them out. You guys/this site ROCKS!!

[MrOrange]

Never tried bronze wool or Chore Boy crackhead supplies, but from the old school there's the world-famous Lewis Lead Remover.

At Brownells

[Whiterabbit]

I have a dumb question. Have you tried starting from a clean gun, shooting, and verified that groups open up over time?

Or does round 200-206 shoot the same as round 1-200? Arbitrary numbers.

['ol shooter]

Never tried bronze wool or Chore Boy crackhead supplies, but from the old school there's the world-famous Lewis Lead Remover.

At Brownells

I have a Lewis for .38, .44, and .45 calibers. They work great on forcing cone build-up, the wool is much better on bore cleaning.

[TVV]

From a clean gun, groups open up over time

[MrOrange]

I have a Lewis for .38, .44, and .45 calibers. They work great on forcing cone build-up, the wool is much better on bore cleaning.

Putting it on my shopping list!

[Whiterabbit]

From a clean gun, groups open up over time

well shoot, that's a problem. I was hoping it was untested. My guns for eample will wash or sometimes minor lead. The new round blows out the old lead and group size (even at 100 yards) appears to not suffer at all. So I just don't worry about it.

Seems like you don't have that luxury.

So, one solution documented by gun writers is fire lapping. For a less severe form of polishing, you could consider hand lapping. I have never done either one, though I have "polished" all my revolver barrels with JB paste, if you consider that a form of hand lapping (I do not).

The motivation behind fire lapping is typically to eliminate barrel restriction at the frame, however gunwriters invariably document an improvement (elimination) of barrel leading as an additional side effect to their fix.

So I suggest you take a look at that, and since you are looking heavily at buying cleaners, to also look heavily into proper barrel lap compounds, and purchase some tight fitting jags and hand lap your barrel to improve things.

-----------------------

Next question, you said the crown cakes up. I assume then that you have a crown that is recessed? that the material blows out, deposits on the "lip" of the barrel where the recessed profile meets the outer shelf, and slowly builds its way up toward the crown itself in a star shape?

If that is the case, have you considered re-crowning the barrel to a flat profile or an 11 degree target crown without a lip, to let the lead spit and not deposit?

[Win231]

Brilliant! Can't thank you all enough! I've ordered the bronze wool and Shooter's Choice from Amazon and will report results as soon as I get a chance to try them out. You guys/this site ROCKS!!

The copper mesh works best dry. I got that info from a video from Wilson that came with my CQB. After trying it, I couldn't believe how effective it was.

[cwilliams]

The copper mesh works best dry. I got that info from a video from Wilson that came with my CQB. After trying it, I couldn't believe how effective it was.

It really is an excellent example of simple ingenuity. I too had looked at the lead removing tools out there and for a fraction of the cost you get the same results with the mesh.