Cleaning question

[devildog999]

Before I ask, please know I have not tried this. That being said, has anyone tried to clean a firearm by taking a cleaning rod and attacking it to a drill? I think it might ruin the rifling, but I could be wrong. The main question I ask is my AR has a small amount of rust in the chamber. I can try and try to clean it but I just can't get the pressure or angle to scrape it off. So I was thinking that if I attached a cleaning rod to a drill and a brush to that, I could get it clean. Any opinions greatly appreciated. Thanks much

[D53]

I don't know about the whole attaching a a cleaning rod to a drill, but I was just turned onto a cleaning Jag, cover that with a patch and solution and you should be able to scrub away.

http://www.cabelas.com/prod-1/0012754224743a.shtml

[SJgunguy24]

I've done that to a 200$ SKS that was packed with cosmo. It took a while to get the bore to shine like I wanted and it shot just fine.

I would go slowly and try to get a brush that has no steel at all. Do you have the tools to take the upper apart and get to the chamber that way?

[Seesm]

For some serious dirt I think it would be ok... (don't do it alot) but to clean a seriously fouled barrel I think it would work great and be ok.

What some would do on there guns, others would never do... So to each his own.

[devildog999]

I've done that to a 200$ SKS that was packed with cosmo. It took a while to get the bore to shine like I wanted and it shot just fine.

I would go slowly and try to get a brush that has no steel at all. Do you have the tools to take the upper apart and get to the chamber that way?

No, but I am going to get them so that I can do so.

[Turbinator]

The great thing about the 'net is that I can do searches of discussions gone by and re-post them for all to read. Check these out from about 1997 and 1998:

National Guard Unit...Somewhere in LA...about 1990. We come back from a weekend drill where we fired our rifles at the range (Camp Beaureguard). When we get back to the unit, someone pulls out a huge footlocker and starts pluggin in electric drills (about 10). Cleaning rod sections with a bore brush at one end are clamped down into the drills. Then we all line up...and one by one the electric drill cleaning rod goes down the bore at full throttle. The last guy has two short sections with the M16 chamber brush. He jams that into the chamber and "vigorously" cleans that end at about 3,000 rpm.

And:

If you get a bore light and look down your barrel (OK, you've gotta unload the gun first ;-) ) you'll notice the spiraling grooves of the rifling. If you chucked a brush into your drill and proceeded to push it down the bore, the bristles probably wouldn't be able to get into the grooves to loosen the fouling in them. I'd also worry about the brush, or the cleaning rod piece you'd have to attach to it, picking up material that might damage the bore. I think that the most harm could be done at the muzzle if the cleaning rod, now spinning at a high speed, contacted the ends of the rifling. It could easily mess up your muzzle making recrowning necessary.


There are probably other issues that I haven't thougt of. But, that doesn't matter. Don't use a drill or dremel tool to drive the bore brush.

And:

The lands of the rifeling will ruin your brush long before the brush
gets anything clean. The brush will simply drag on the high spots (lands) and jump over the grooves. You may even eventualy damage the bore. Just keep on jackin off the cleaning rod.. it aint fun, but its the only way.

And:

I agree, it is the in and out which cleans it. Also, the dremel is both too fast and too weak to do it. An electric drill set to low speed and high torque would be a better tool to spin the brush if this were in order...which I agree isn't.

And:

My feeling is that hand cleaning with a wire brush is best because it can be done gently, where as the power of the motor tool may cause severe scratches in the rifling. I would suggest not doing so.

Looks like our internet gurus of yesteryear say don't do it.

Turby

[B Strong]

Before I ask, please know I have not tried this. That being said, has anyone tried to clean a firearm by taking a cleaning rod and attacking it to a drill? I think it might ruin the rifling, but I could be wrong. The main question I ask is my AR has a small amount of rust in the chamber. I can try and try to clean it but I just can't get the pressure or angle to scrape it off. So I was thinking that if I attached a cleaning rod to a drill and a brush to that, I could get it clean. Any opinions greatly appreciated. Thanks much

NO! never use a powered device to attempt cleaning the bore of any firearm.

This came up with my dad when I was a kid. A guy brought a M1 Garand into the shop and complained that "after cleaning it, the rifle started keyholing at 100 yards" The old man took it down and got the bore light out, and the thing almost looked like a shot-out BMG barrel. You could see the remains of the lands and grooves, but that's what they were - remains. You could also see various scrape marks up the tube from the chamber to the muzzle.

The old man called the guy up and questioned him, and the man admitted that since the bore was slighty corroded and dark, he took a powerdrill and metal polishing powder to it to "clean it up." He admitted that it didn't shoot bad at all before he "cleaned it up."

It worked. The guy pretty much ruined the barrel. The effect of the polish, power and elbow grease killed a perfectly usable barrel.

[SJgunguy24]

Ok well, when I did that to my SKS I used a nylon brush so I wouldn't damage the rifling. Maybe I should've added that to my previous post.

[Jonathan Doe]

I only did it for shotgun barrels. I never used power tool to clean any of my rifled barrels. You may miss corners at the edge of the rifling if you use power tool with circular motion. You need linear motion to clean the rifled barrel.

[Beelzy]

To get that crud in the chamber try using a dental pick.

They sell them in different configurations and usually can be found at Gun
shows.

[MAC USMC]

No drill - never, ever in rifled firearm. The dental pics work well. First, saturate a patch with a quality bore cleaner and insert the patch directly over the bad spot(s). Un-screw the cleaning rod tip, patch and all, leaving it in the barrel. Let it sit 2-3 days horizontally, but not on the wife's mahogany hand-me-down table. Re-attach the cleaning rod. Put on the non-steel brush and count 20 strokes with the rod. Inspect. You will see progress! Use the dental pic on the caked rust in the grooves. Saturate a patch and use it well. Go back to the brush - keep it wet with solvent. Repeat the entire process if necessay. Remember, the rust did not get there over-night, so be patient. It will come out!

[devildog999]

but not on the wife's mahogany hand-me-down table.

I get the feeling you made the mistake of doing this