Dark Bore?
Hey,
I was looking at a used gun recently, it was a 1941 Mauser according to the numbers and markings. The gun was is pretty nice condition but when I put a bore light to the chamber and looked at the barrel it was dark. It had good rifling but it was dark. Does this merely indicate fouling or is this a shot out barrel? Thanks
I was looking at a used gun recently, it was a 1941 Mauser according to the numbers and markings. The gun was is pretty nice condition but when I put a bore light to the chamber and looked at the barrel it was dark. It had good rifling but it was dark. Does this merely indicate fouling or is this a shot out barrel? Thanks
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Anyone know of a way to clean a dark bore without further eroding the bore. 0 -
It's difficult to know what a "dark bore" means. Does it just have a lot of burned powder & lead in it, or is it full of pits from corrosive primers & moisture? Gunsmiths use a fiber optic bore scope to get a good look at the bore.
If it's been cleaned with solvent & a brass brush, sometimes an electrolytic solution with chemicals & electric current will sometimes clean up a badly leaded bore; again, usually only gunsmiths have these.
Frosting (light corrosion) can sometimes be removed with an abrasive, such as J-B Bore Paste.
But, bad pitting can't be fixed; what you are seeing are areas where the steel is gone, rusted & corroded away. Nothing can fix that.
Neal0 -
On the assumption you are dealing with a military gun that is corroded from corrosive ammo, there are two methods I have used.
(1) Mechanically - a stainless steel bore brush or a bronze brush wrapped with steel wool. Use a solvent with the brush - mineral spirits, light oil, penetrating oil.
(2) Chemically - a mild acid solution. Plug the bore and fill with the acid solution; let set for 12 hours. Use a bore brush to scrub out. Clean the bore with water. Acids also cause rust. May have to be repeated more than once. Protect the bluing with grease or plastic wrap.0 -
A Loverin style lead bullet oversized and the grease groves filled with toothpaste or JB bore paste, just shoot them.
You might specify the weapon.
I'd start with a wire brush and a good solvent like Shooters choice then a patch followed by inspection. Once or twice for a week.
Rubber cork the chamber, fill the bore and let it soak for a few days.
Some rifles still shoot "good" with a dark bore.0 -
Been using this stuff for years, has cleaned up hundreds of sewer pipe barrels. Its the only gun cleaner we carry here
http://kingarmory.com/Blue-Wonder-Gun-Cleaner_p_109.html0 -
A product that I learned about on this forum years ago is Kroil. I used it on an old .22 that I thought was badly pitted and leaded up, by plugging the muzzle end with a cork stopper, filling it with Kroil, and letting it soak for about a week. I then emptied it and ran a bore brush wrapped with copper strands from a Chore Boy pad and dipped in Hoppes No. 9, followed with running patches through until they came out clean. It worked wonders and I am now repeating the process in hopes that it will continue to clean up and not show any pitting at all. 0 -
fill bore with kriol or ballistal an keep brushing every few days it will clean up most dark mores 0 -
quote:I'd start with a wire brush and a good solvent like Shooters choice then a patch followed by inspection. Once or twice for a week.
Rubber cork the chamber, fill the bore and let it soak for a few days.
DO NOT EVER let the bore soak, filled or wiped on with Shooters Choice(or any other ammonia based solvent), more than 10-15 minutes. It can, and will ruin a good bore, let alone an iffy one.
Soak/fill with Kano Kroil, and wire brush until clean. Repeat as needed.0 -
Clean : Kroil ( soak ) : J B Borebrite !!!!!!! 0 -
And after cleaning with all of the above, you may still have a dark bore BUT it may shoot quite nicely. Will need to be cleaned more often, but accuracy may be fine. Find out before taking more drastic
(i.e. expensive) measures.0 -
Fill the bore with a sleeve reamer and resleeve the barrel.
It may shoot very well as is but you'll have to scrub it for every shooting session.
No free lunch, you've a bad barrel.0
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