kyska Posted November 22, 2009 Report Share Posted November 22, 2009 I'm not sure if I'm using the search section properly, I've tried and I'm sure there must be stuff on this site about this! I'm looking on line at the minute to get all the cleaning kit I need for my newly aqquired HMR. I've had mixed advice, from boresnaking every session, to barrel solvents, brushes and pull throughs etc. Can someone give me some advice on what i should buy please? I don't want to spend a fortune on bits and sprays, oils etc if I don't really need them. Thanks Kyska Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George1990 Posted November 22, 2009 Report Share Posted November 22, 2009 Get a rod and run some cotton patches through when your groupings start to open up. I am not a fan of boresnakes. One gunsmith likes them as he gets a lot of work extracting them from the barrels when the string breaks off I noticed the rods are stupid money (look on midway UK). I got a Tetra kit with a rod in for £20, which is good. Has a rod, jag, wool mop, patches, brush for cleaning bolt and stuff, oil and a cloth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paddy Galore! Posted November 22, 2009 Report Share Posted November 22, 2009 i had a lot of trouble getting a patch down a .17 barrel, in the end i bought a .177 air rifle kit with mop and phosphor brush. i've never had to use a nitro remover spray as a good squirt of oil with the brush seems to do the trick. might depend on the ammo tho. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kyska Posted November 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 22, 2009 Thanks, would this do everything I need, or would I need to buy other bits? .17-.22 kit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George1990 Posted November 22, 2009 Report Share Posted November 22, 2009 Should be in .17 really, rather than .177. .177 might be a bit tight, as it's hard enough getting stuff down a .17 at the best of times. .177 is the air rifle calibre. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paddy Galore! Posted November 22, 2009 Report Share Posted November 22, 2009 how much?!!!!! got some of those in my local gunshop for £17.95 thats a pull through cleaning kit which are ok but watch you dont damage the threads or it might break in the barrel "mid pull" £ 35 is taking the micheal tho, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kyska Posted November 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 22, 2009 how much?!!!!!got some of those in my local gunshop for £17.95 thats a pull through cleaning kit which are ok but watch you dont damage the threads or it might break in the barrel "mid pull" £ 35 is taking the micheal tho, Oh ok, I'll go to my RFD and have a chat I think. Thanks again guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onlyme Posted November 22, 2009 Report Share Posted November 22, 2009 ive never had boresnake break yet , but i guess it will happen eventually , and then i will just get the gunsmith to rod it out (all of a minute) boresnakes dont fully clean the barrel imho, which is handy as it only takes a few shots to come back on song again after a pull through. i have boresnakes for my .22lr and .172hmr and cant fault them at all and would reccomend them to any one else for rimfires. each to there own though, im sure if you were to give them a deep clean with solvents and brushes you will end up using a lot more ammo to get it shooting right after a clean. just my opion though, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
groach1234 Posted November 22, 2009 Report Share Posted November 22, 2009 I got a rod, jag a brass brush and patches with mine, run it through with brush, solvent on jag, oil on jag, the just a patch on the jag bit O.T.T. but i take pleasure cleaning my guns so am not fussed. George Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robmiller Posted November 22, 2009 Report Share Posted November 22, 2009 Just get a bore snake. Only 20ish. And i do mine every now and again, 20-50 shots. Depends if its been wet etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paddy Galore! Posted November 23, 2009 Report Share Posted November 23, 2009 you do need to clean the barrels properly on a .17 because the deposits left by the copper jackets can erode the metal, a rod is much more thorough than a pull thru as you can give it abit more welly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onlyme Posted November 23, 2009 Report Share Posted November 23, 2009 you do need to clean the barrels properly on a .17 because the deposits left by the copper jackets can erode the metal, a rod is much more thorough than a pull thru as you can give it abit more welly. i disagree , more rifles are damaged by over cleaning than not at all (rimfire) centerfire is completely different , as in you have to have a squeaky clean barrel, throat erosion is caused by excessive heat normally , the hmr isnt exactly going to burn a barrel out super quick . just my opinion, try it a few different ways , see what suits your rifle and take it from there, got to admit its hard not wanting to clean the bore shiney clean after each trip, but whats the point if your eventually going to do more harm than good and take longer to get shooting each time, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paddy Galore! Posted November 23, 2009 Report Share Posted November 23, 2009 i disagree , more rifles are damaged by over cleaning than not at all (rimfire) centerfire is completely different , as in you have to have a squeaky clean barrel, throat erosion is caused by excessive heat normally , the hmr isnt exactly going to burn a barrel out super quick . just my opinion, try it a few different ways , see what suits your rifle and take it from there, got to admit its hard not wanting to clean the bore shiney clean after each trip, but whats the point if your eventually going to do more harm than good and take longer to get shooting each time, what about the copper deposits oxidizing from the jackets of .17hmr rounds then? this is the stuff that damages the barrel, where as .22 only leaves a lead deposit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onlyme Posted November 23, 2009 Report Share Posted November 23, 2009 what about the copper deposits oxidizing from the jackets of .17hmr rounds then? this is the stuff that damages the barrel, where as .22 only leaves a lead deposit. its an hmr not a 220 swift running hot ! copper deposits over time will open the groups up yes and depending upon how much you shoot will proberly need a deep clean eventually, but ive shot id say getting on for 2500 shots so far this year and i have managed a sub 1" group at 200 yards with one flyer admittedly ,not just a few weeks ago, and numerous 1" groups at 150 ( so no problems with accuracy) . if i were to deep clean my argument is , it would take 20-30 shots to shoot accurately again. and excessive cleaning can reduce barrel life, id say 99% of hmrs are used for hunting in this country, and i doubt most of us shoot more than 3000 rounds a year in general, so on that generalisation, i reccomend a boresnake over deep cleaning for an hmr... id only deep clean if accuracy went amiss and i knew it wasnt silencer or the setup or ammo. and so far it hasnt . anyways all pretty much each to there own, i know what works for me. and thats my recomendations, until someone recomends a different method of cleaning the hmr for the time benefits without having to waste ammo, im sticking with what i do ... i boresnake mine once only after about 100 to 150 rounds or if its not going to be used for a week . how many hmr users have actually had a problem with copper buildup ? would be interesting to find out from someone who has had problems... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paddy Galore! Posted November 23, 2009 Report Share Posted November 23, 2009 I understand what you mean and i dont mean to teach you to suck eggs but when copper swarf is left to oxidize in a barrel it will cause pitting. regardless of the speed of the round a .17 hmr round has a copper jacket just like most centrefire rounds. however, as you've described that you "clean" yours at least every week or after shooting then at least its getting some oil down the barrel on a regular basis. This of course will inhibit any oxidization before it has a chance to do any damage. I apologize if my posts have caused you any offence as this is not my intention. My only concern is if this young chap leaves his rifle uncleaned for any length of time on someones advice and then finds the barrels are pitted, he will most certainly be royally peeved. I clean my 17 hmr after shooting every time, and have not noticed any change in zero, my .22 gets a patch and nothing more. my 22/250 gets the same treatment as the .17hmr. this cleaning regime was taken on the advice of several friends & gunsmiths who, to be fair, see quite a lot of damaged rifles due to poor cleaning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onlyme Posted November 23, 2009 Report Share Posted November 23, 2009 lol not at all pal, id say well reasoned debate, just what a good forum is about . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paddy Galore! Posted November 23, 2009 Report Share Posted November 23, 2009 lol not at all pal, id say well reasoned debate, just what a good forum is about . PHEW! thats ok then, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kyska Posted November 25, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2009 Great, thanks. I'll go to my rfd and buy what I need then, I'll try cleaning it and see what happens, if it causes accuracy problems I'll work something out. Gram- when you say you clean every time- do you mean slovent, brush the whole lot or a quick pull through? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docholiday Posted November 25, 2009 Report Share Posted November 25, 2009 I have the tetra kit and find the wire brush to big I think it is sized for .177 rather than .17 anybody else have the same problem? doc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kyska Posted November 25, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2009 Doc, how often do you clean, and using what method? Kyska Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docholiday Posted November 25, 2009 Report Share Posted November 25, 2009 (edited) Sounds a bit personal I tend to pull through after a couple of nights shooting, maybe 200 shots and give it a clean with rod about once a month,(I use it 10 times a month on average doc Edited November 25, 2009 by docholiday Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George1990 Posted November 25, 2009 Report Share Posted November 25, 2009 doc, I think my bronze brush from the tetra kit is too thick too. And the wool mop won't begin to go down. Tried it on my .22 air rifle and fits a treat... How annoying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kyska Posted November 25, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2009 Sounds a bit personal I tend to pull through after a couple of nights shooting, maybe 200 shots and give it a clean with rod about once a month,(I use it 10 times a month on average doc And what about the rifle? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docholiday Posted November 25, 2009 Report Share Posted November 25, 2009 George I am sure this must be a commen problem as they are sized for .177, just wish the company would tell you this before they take your money Doc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albob Posted November 25, 2009 Report Share Posted November 25, 2009 i use the outfit below with a copper cleaner and a gun lubricant for after cleaning and the lubricant it is okay for the outside of the gun as well. i only use this if the gun accuracy is bad or if i do not use the gun for sometime and want to store it(this has not been the case at the moment :blink: ). i use a boresnake after shooting. al http://www.cheshiregunroom.com/store/index...roducts_id=3031 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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