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to clean or not 22lr barrel

frisky-maddogfrisky-maddog Member Posts: 208 ✭✭
edited December 2008 in Perry Shooter Competition Shooting and Reloading Forum
hello
i have been told by several well qualified shooters to not clean the barrel as this would afect the accuracy of the firearm. i have a high standard victor that i now have put 10,000 rounds through without cleaning the barrel and accuracy has never been a problem at all. the smith & wesson 41 i have put about 1,000 through and never cleaned the barrel. i cleaned the 41 when i started shooting it but the victor i cleaned it at the end of every season except for the last 2 years. my victor has had 35,000 rounds that i put through it and it was used when i got it.
other shooters clean the barrel after everytime they use it. so i am trying that with another one of my victors and it seems to not be as accurate as when i leave it alone.
is there a good rule of thumb for the 22 shooter on how often to clean or not to clean the barrel.
thanks
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Comments

  • perry shooterperry shooter Member Posts: 17,105 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    22 Long RIFLE barrels can be damaged by trying to clean from the muzzle . Bolt action Rifle shooters seldom clean their barrels . However semi auto rifles and pistols IMHO need to be cleaned to properly function . Being they are straight Blow-Back they get a lot of grit/burnt powder in the hammer/sear/trigger area. this also builds up on the barrel and slide Face. and can cause misfire . the Chamber can also build up this same crud . I suggest a 25 Cal bore brush bent so you can clean the chamber with the slide back but pistol not taken down every 200 or so rounds. and a complete cleaning of action every 1000 rounds or as needed Also take Magazines apart and clean the crud out of them. .For the most part no need to clean the bore unless the bore is rough and it leads up. most target grade barrels don't lead unless you use really bad ammo.
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  • frisky-maddogfrisky-maddog Member Posts: 208 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    hello
    i currently pull the barrel off my victor and clean the barrel face and the rest of the frame and gun about every 3 months of shooting. i take the magazines apart and clean them in the winter. its amazing how much junk ends up in the magazines. one of the guys in the club was having problems with his 41 and i looked in his magazine and found about a whole bullet worth of junk in both of his magazines. after the quick cleaning he had no more problems and he cleans his magazines once a month and his 41 ever 2 to 3 nights of bullseye.
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  • BHAVINBHAVIN Member Posts: 3,490 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    Get a "Bore Snake". I run one through mine about once a season just to remove the powder fouling.
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  • mrbrucemrbruce Member Posts: 3,374
    edited November -1
    I clean my rimfires if I get really bored, and my centerfires when they really need it [:D]
    To many folks clean waaaayy more than is ever needed........
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  • dcs shootersdcs shooters Member Posts: 10,870 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I only cleaned the barrel on my Trophy after the winter matches were over. Cleaned the slide and barrel face about every couple weeks.
    I did the same with my 22 silhouette guns.
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  • mondmond Member Posts: 6,458
    edited November -1
    i thoughly clean a cz511-22LR semi-,every 1000 or so & pull though every 500 shots approx, the accuracy is superb, no jams, with magtec.
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  • e8gme8gm Member Posts: 1,277 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Rimfire Bench Rest shooters clean their guns between every target (25 rounds). If it works for them, it'll work for you.
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  • mrbrucemrbruce Member Posts: 3,374
    edited November -1
    Most rimfire BR shooter DO NOT clean their barrels, one championship shooter has not cleaned his with thousands of rounds through it and still wins with it..
    A GOOD 22 rf barrel will not need cleaning unless the transition to the rifling gets clogged up...
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  • JustCJustC Member Posts: 16,056 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    as mrbruce stated, the 22lr competition guys I have seen reply to these questions state that the ONLY time to clean a rimfire barrel, is when accuracy falls off. This could be many thousands of rounds.
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  • PinheadPinhead Member Posts: 1,485 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    If I shoot the plated bullets in 22lr, I clean just the same as centerfire, after each shooting session. If I am shooting the lead bullets, I may go for a year or more before cleaning and then I don't really consider it a "necessary" cleaning. Maybe I'm right and maybe I'm wrong, but it works for me.
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  • e8gme8gm Member Posts: 1,277 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I shot a rimifre benchrest match yesterday morning and this morning. The three top shooters (I'm not one) all cleaned their barrels several times during the match. They don't put bronze brushes down them, just wet and dry patches. Some will brush with nylon bore brush.
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