So how do you clean a 10/22?

[Steerme]

With no hole in the receiver to insert a cleaning rod, it seems the muzzle end is the only way forward (besides an OTIS or Boresnake).

How do you clean your 10/22 and how many of you got the hole drilled into the receiver?

[nokarma]

Get the hole drilled if you want but it is not a big deal to clean it from the muzzle.
It is a 10/22 not a $2000 bench rest gun.
NoKarma

[Mr. Gillious]

go on youtube and find out how to take the barrel off. But first, buy a shooting vise or something to rest your 10/22 on. it'll make your cleaning session a whole lot neater, organized, and faster

[mycrstuff]

You need to take the stock off and pull the bolt out. Otherwise all the junk in the barrel ends up in the bolt and the firing pin will stick. It will still fire but you will have feeding issues as the dirt will make the firing pin stick out and will push the round up at a 45 degree angle and jam the round in the barrel.

If you are having feeding issues you will need to disassemble the bolt completely and clean it. If it is still having feeding issues then you need to polish the firing pin. It is just a flat piece of metal and you can polish it with a dremel and that red polish that comes with the dremel kit.

[sholling]

With no hole in the receiver to insert a cleaning rod, it seems the muzzle end is the only way forward (besides an OTIS or Boresnake).

How do you clean your 10/22 and how many of you got the hole drilled into the receiver?

You can drill it if you like but it's unnecessary. First of all you don't need to clean the barrel more then every couple of thousand rounds. Yes I'm serious. They aren't like a centerfire that should be kept spotlessly clean at all times. They actually shoot better with a dirty barrel. I wipe down my half dozen 10/22s after every outing and clean the barrels every 1000 rounds or so. When I do I use a Dewey muzzle mounted bore guide (factory barrel, 920 barrel) to protect the crown and a Tipton carbon fiber rod, and a SHORT pistol brush and a 22cal jag and some small thin patches. You want to use a pistol brush because they're short enough to clear the chamber before you reverse direction.

[Tracer666]

With no hole in the receiver to insert a cleaning rod, it seems the muzzle end is the only way forward (besides an OTIS or Boresnake).

How do you clean your 10/22 and how many of you got the hole drilled into the receiver?

Nailed it, Boresnake and OTIS cable pull through!

[jbush]

I dont believe in taking the gun apart after each shooting session. Even just removing the gun from the stock everytime can throw it off zero. Hole in the receiver means you have to pull the stock, trigger group and bolt, and removing the barrel to clean it will eventually, IMO, loosen the barrel fit at the receiver. My 10/22s shoot fine running a patchworm through it after shooting and flushing out and lubing the bolt and receiver. You can clean away anyway you want, but it's a 10/22 and don't overkill it. Just my 2 cents.

[uxo2]

Recommended factory field strip for cleaning.

Bore snake and SlipEWL

[NSR500]

I dont believe in taking the gun apart after each shooting session. Even just removing the gun from the stock everytime can throw it off zero. Hole in the receiver means you have to pull the stock, trigger group and bolt, and removing the barrel to clean it will eventually, IMO, loosen the barrel fit at the receiver. My 10/22s shoot fine running a patchworm through it after shooting and flushing out and lubing the bolt and receiver. You can clean away anyway you want, but it's a 10/22 and don't overkill it. Just my 2 cents.

BS...

The sights are mounted to the barrel and if you're running optics, they're on the receiver. Maintaining zero on the 10/22 has nothing to do with the stock.

[sholling]

BS...

The sights are mounted to the barrel and if you're running optics, they're on the receiver. Maintaining zero on the 10/22 has nothing to do with the stock.

Not necessarily correct. There is no pillar around the takedown screw and if the barrel is not free floated the POI can shift depending on how hard you torque down the screw and how deeply the receiver is pulled into the stock. Note that many aftermarket stocks include a pressure pad under the barrel because many 10/22s shoot better when not free floated.

BTW there is a reason that people bed their receivers and often 1" of the barrel and that's to eliminate POI shift. If your theory were correct then no one would ever bed any stock for any scoped rifle.

[dg29]

This^^^^^ spot on.

[erik_26]

The 10/22 will let you know when it wants to be cleaned. It will start to not cycle properly after a few thousand rounds depending on what kind of ammo you shoot and your shooting conditions (clean indoor or dusty outdoor).


Watch the videos on youtube, very easy to break down and clean.


If you are really concerned then boresnake after ever range session and use a silicon impregnated cloth to wipe down the outside.

Then do a deep clean every 1000 rounds.

[Steerme]

I was taught nearly 50 years ago that a clean gun was a safe and reliable gun. I'm in the habit of cleaning all my firearms after shooting. The 10/22 has me perplexed as I was also taught to clean from the chamber end. It seems counterintuative that the rifle will shoot better when it's dirty, but I trust your recommendations.

I own a boresnake so I guess that I will go that route between major cleanings. I run Froglube through my other rifles so that is my planned lubricant. I'm sure the SLIPEWL would be fine as well.

I will break down the rifle to clean the bolt and chamber, and pick up a muzzle bore guide when using a rod and jag on the barrel. I have a silicon towel but normally use the FrogLube everywhere. Any issues using a bore brush from the muzzle end? I have both nylon and brass brushes that I use on my AR.

Lots to learn about this new rifle. Thanks!

[Brandon04GT]

I bought an Otis micro kit from Midwayusa for like $10 and have been extremely pleased with using it through my 10/22 barrel.

[Mike's Custom]

Your supposed to clean a 10/22? Just kidding. But, if you are not shooting some crappy junk dirt ammo then you don't need to clean them very often. I always remove the action from the stock and remove the bolt to clean. Not much of hte bolt runs on any interior surface so they can get pretty dirty and still shoot. For the barrel I will use a rod with the bolt locked open or a bore snake pulling out the muzzle for cleaning the chamber. I do this way more often then removing the action.