cleening 17 hmr to do or not

[strongski]

well iv been told by my r.f.d to use a snake about every 50 rounds

and iv been told not to cleen at all

know im asking all you for your advice

[Dekers]

No doubt you will be told more of the same here as well, everyone will have their own view and EVERYONE will be right of course, so any definitive answer will be impossible.

 

Stands to reason though that copper, etc deposits in the barrel and muck around the action, etc would best be removed!

[Paddy Galore!]

gotta clean out any copper swarf, if this gets damp then it'll oxidize and rot your barrel. at the very least pull a mop or patch with some oil through.

[rad334]

I've started cleaning the barrel and mod after every time I use it, everyone has there own idea's on how often you should clean a 17hmr. Its a dirty round and needs cleaning often.

[Colster]

I never clean my air-rifle barrel and it always look clean, shotgun and rimmie always look mucky after first shot but at the moment I clean the shotgun after every use and occasionally clean the rimmy.

 

Important thing to find out though is whether cleaning affects accuracy (it's likely to) and how many shots it takes to get it back on track. For my cz, a couple of shots will do it but it's worth finding out. That's the thankless thing about cleaning rimmys, you end up with a nice shiny barrel then have to put a couple of shots through it before you dare go hunting with it - then it's all messy again... ah well

[Evil Elvis]

Single pull through with the bore snake after every box(50) but clean the mod every time, i used 20 rounds through my new mod the other day, a dm80 and thank go d its easy to strip and clean because it was filthy!!!! and its it not unusual to use 100-200 rounds in a night rabbiting in the summer.

[Frenchieboy]

You know this question comes up time and time again and the same group of people answer it yet the question never seems to get resolved! We all seem to have different ideas about how often you should clean a 17HMR and it seems that we all think we are right no matter what anyone else says so I can only give my thoughts, which might be totally different from others:

The 17HMR is a very dirty round to fire and even just 4 or 5 rounds can make the bore look a right mess, making it look like very regular cleaning is a must. Another point is that when you clean the bore of a 17HMR it can take a few "fouling shots" to get the rifle back on zero, which may sound like it is defeating the object of cleaning, however I find that this is more so after "Deep Cleaning" i.e. when you use a Jag or a Chemical Solvent to clean the bore with, so here is how I care for my 17HMR.

After each outing first and foremost the bolt and magazine is removed and then the rifles woodwork is whiped down to get any muck or dirt off it and then the entire thing is wiped over with a lightly oiled cloth (Including the scope body) and that is it! I only clean the bore after I have used about a box full (50 rounds) of ammunition since the last cleaning of the bore. To do this all I do is pull a mop through the barrel with just 2 or 3 drops of "Abbey Gun & Rifle Oil" on just the front end of the mop so that the rear half of the mop is removing any possible excess of oil. I pull the mop through about 3 times in one direction only, from breech to muzzle! By doing this I find that my CZ 452 rarely drifts off zero. I usually strip and clean the SAK mod from my HMR at the same time as this!

 

As for "Deep Cleaning" I only do that after about about 500 shots or if the zero seems to start wandering. Then I use "Brunox Turbo Spray"! I allow about half a dozen drops to run down the barrel (with the bolt closed) and leave to soak over night. In the morning I use a jag which I pull straight through about 4 or 5 times. The jag is then followed by a dry mop which is pulled through about 4 or 5 times to remove any surplus "Brunox Turbo Spray" or "gunge" that might be lose in the bore. Once I have done that I pull the "Oil and cleaning mop" through with 2 or 3 drops of oil on it the same as I do every box or so of ammo. I usually find that after a "Deep Clean" like this it takes between 5 and 10 shots to get it back on zero.

I know that this "cleaning regime" will differ from the way others do it but it seems to work fine for me and my rifle has never given me any problems, but I do have to add that there will most certainly be a few people who tell me (And you) that I am doing it all wrong and that their way is the only correct way to clean and take care of a 17HMR.

Everyone to their own!

[Billy.]

It's not that this doesn't get resolved, it's that people have personal preference. Some like to clean it every few shots (which is madness) and others (like me) clean it when the accuracy starts to go (500 or so)

 

You've got to remember that every time you clean the gun, your zero is lost for about the next 5 rounds, so in the case of Evil Elvis, he's potentially missing 10% of his shots. For those who clean it every few, they must be having a nightmare keeping the gun zeroed.

[Evil Elvis]

You've got to remember that every time you clean the gun, your zero is lost for about the next 5 rounds, so in the case of Evil Elvis, he's potentially missing 10% of his shots

 

Speak for yourself young man!!! I will usually re-zero after a clean too, im a bit paranoid about it, i wont point it at an animal if im not happy with my zero and rarely ever miss any, especially if shooting off the pod

Edited February 14, 2010 by Evil Elvis

[Frenchieboy]

It's not that this doesn't get resolved, it's that people have personal preference. Some like to clean it every few shots (which is madness) and others (like me) clean it when the accuracy starts to go (500 or so)

 

Yes mate, I totally agree with you, it's just the way that I worded the start to my post that might have made it read differently from how it was meant. It really is a personal preference thing and all I have done is said what suits me. I am not saying that mine is the "definitive" way to treat a 17HMR, if I did I am certain that there would be literally hundreds of 17HMR owners breathing very heavily down my neck!

I have to agree with you that to clean the bore of your 17HMR after every outing is madness (In my opinion)!

 

May I just add that I too get a little paranoid about accuracy and check the zero on my 17HMR and Scopes very regularly as I do not like the thought of leaving something wounded, I will only pull the trigger if I am confident of a clean kill!

Edited February 14, 2010 by Frenchieboy

[Paddy Galore!]

Jeezuspleezus!