Clean Up After Corrosive Ammo
I have never really been into surplus firearms so I never have used corrosive surplus ammo.
I would like to hear from those who shoot corrosive ammo about methods of cleanup.
Thanks
I would like to hear from those who shoot corrosive ammo about methods of cleanup.
Thanks
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I've always used Sweet's 762 solvent followed by Hoppes. I hear tell that boiling hot water is good, too. 0 -
washing bore out with ammonia or windex before regular cleaning is supposed to remove corrosive residue. works so far for me 0 -
Hot water from the sink with some detergent, after a dry cloth through the bore, an oiled cloth. Nothing to it. 0 -
+1 on the hot water & detergent first; then the usual Hoppes/breakfree/whatever I have on hand.
If you can find some old water-based USGI bore cleaner, that'll work as well...but man, it STINKS!0 -
Water in some form is the key. See, the reason it is corrosive is that the primer leaves behind a salt compound. Salt, being hygroscopic, attracts water. If relative humidity is over about 65%, this causes pitting and rust in the gun barrel if not removed.
Some folks talk of 'neutralizing' the corrosive salts, but salt is one of the most chemically stable substances out there. There is nothing to neutralize, you need to remove it though. And what is best for that? Soap and water, the hotter the better. I usually run a brush dipped in water back and forth a few times, then pour about 2 pints boiling soapy water through the barrel with a funnel from the breach to rinse. Then dry and clean as normal. Never had a problem.
Some folks will point out that you never will get ALL the salt out and might still, after many years, cause some microscopic damage, even after oiling which I don't doubt, but to me it is a question of cost. I've got a few Mausers I've shot nothing but corrosive ammo out of for over 10 years now and I don't see any damage, even using a bore scope, so if it happens, it is microscopic indeed. Just clean well, dry, oil, and call it a day. Oh, and be sure to put a dry patch through before next shooting to remove any oil left or you might ring your barrel.0 -
I would say yes use the ammonia but DO not let it sit too long it can actually enter the metal, after using the ammonia it is imperative that you use boiling water to rinse barrell (boiling because it evaporates quicker and will not allow metal to rust, then a patch. I will also tell you I conducted an expierement and after shooting corrosive ammo through a mosin nagant I cleaned the barrel, used ammonia, water and lightly oiled a patch. looks great and clean, a month later I ran a patch it was green! So I cleaned again, apprently more residue had leached out of the barrel? 0 -
I use the old military cleaning technique.
Get a pot of hot water and put a squirt of dish soap in it. Remove the bolt. Put the pot on the floor. Stick the muzzle in there. Put a patch on the cleaning rod and run it up and down the bore ten or twelve times. Bye bye to the salts, and most of the gun powder and other crud.
Dry it with a couple dry patches, then clean as usual.
Good enough for the Marines in WW2, good enough for me.
If you decide to use ammonia, be careful! I used a diluted ammonia mixture one time and a drip ran down the stock of my beautiful M39. Ate the finish off for three inches.0 -
The British actually issued a leather funnel for pouring boiling water down the Barrel to remove the Salts from the Primers of their Ammunition.
I do hear that Windex is also good before regular cleaning.0 -
Gus, from "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" will insist Windex is the sure fire treatment and it does work if followed by a good bit of water to eliminate the ammonia.
The German army method is Ballistol. A mixture of 1 part Ballistol and 10 parts water poured through the bore is a great idea to do at the range where stoves may be in short supply to boil that water.
Then I clean with the same diluted solution before using full strength Ballistol, brushing, a stronger cleaner (Busch's Bore Bright, Sweets etc, more Ballistol and leave some in until the next shoot.
Ballistol is also good for metal, wood, leather and even cuts, burns and bruises just don't drink it which is about all one can not do with the stuff.
It matters not which method one chooses as long as the salt is removed. Once that is accomplished corrosive ammo is fine.
However, the point will be mute as the new UN mandates prohibiting the exporting/importing of milsurp ammo will make the old stuff a thing of the past. Did US ammo makers lobby for that?
Wulfmann0
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