Suspect plastic fouling in a Stainless Black powder barrel 1:28 twist Ruger 77/50
Okie743
Member Posts: 2,700 ✭✭✭✭
Seen on line that acetone can be use to remove plastic fouling in a gun barrel,
Rifle has been very accurate for several years and started shooting about 4 inch groups. I installed a Leupold scope in place of the other Leupold and the rifle does the same. When inspecting the grooves in the retrieved sabots some of the groove lands look shallow to non existence..
Before trying acetone on a swab and or bore brush as recommended in on-line searches I did the following.
I took a plastic sabot like has been used in the gun for about 10 years and placed it in acetone for 48 hours and the plastic sabot did not soften or change in any way. The acetone will melt most plastics or soften them, but not these sabots.
This test leads me to believe that acetone is not going to remove the plastic fouling in the rifle's barrel's grooves.
I can plug the bore and do a flooded soak with a good cleaner if that is what is required.
Anyone know of a good plastic fouling bore cleaner or had any experience with such?????
Comments
Probably a different plastic, but I have always used Shooters Choice bore solvent to remove plastic from shotgun wads in barrels and choke tubes. Bob
Can you remove the breach plug if so a lead remover tool should do it
You might try your test with some lacquer thinner. It's pretty rough on plastic.
Yep, best choice, it also works well on removing paint and and powder coating from use of color coated bullets. Do not let it get on your wood or plastic stock.
Maybe try some JB Compound.
It works on powder, lead and copper.
https://www.brownells.com/tools-cleaning/gun-cleaning/gun-solvents-degreasers/j-b~-non-embedding-bore-cleaning-compound/
I seen in a forum at modern muzzleloader where a guy tested some products like I did the acetone test and got the same results with several products. I'm thinking I might do the same sabot melt/soften test with some paint strippers. I'll have to be super careful and remove the stock and breech plug and use gloves and eye protection if I find a paint stripper that will soften a sabot.
Appears maybe most of the plastic bore cleaners on the market are for smooth bore shotguns.
I seen this in a forum at modern muzzleloader where a guy used these products to to see if any would softened/dissolve a plastic sabot. Here is the copy/paste from the forum post.
I did the same thing, but left the sabots in for 24 hrs. Nothing that I tried dissolved (or seemed to touch) the sabots. Here's what was used. I had a bunch of small glass jars, so I put a sabot in each then put in about 1/2" of "solvent".
Methacrolate (spelling?) It's the solvent that is used to melt/bond the flesh colored plastic used to make partials (false teeth)
Brownell's Sabot Solvent
CVA Sabot Solvent
Butches Bore Shine
Shooters Choice plastic/lead/copper remover
Acetone
Lacquer Thinner
MEK
Latest brainstorm to soften the plastic sabot fouling for removal with a bore brush and swab since all of the above seem to be a waste of time and money.
I have a industrial type hot air gun that I use for several things and can easily control the heat.
It has about a 1/ 1/2 inch nozzle output. I can rig a pipe plumbing from that opening to blow hot air into the muzzle end of the barrel and get it just warm enough to soften the plastic.
When using a strong light into the stainless barrel i can see black plastic in the rifling grooves at the muzzle end, so most likely quite a build-up deeper into the barrel.
This is not my rifle, but I have know the gun to be very accurate in the past, but I've know the owner to not give the bore the proper cleaning TLC after a season of hunting.
I've warned the guy for years that the bore on a Black powder gun even though it's stainless requires and good cleaning after season and then couple weeks later do it again and then when clean I wet clean the barrel with Kroil. Been doing such for years and no problems and have very accurate and old black powder guns that have been shot numerous times
I quit telling him how to properly care for his BP rifle due to me just wasting my breath. I seen the breech plug one season just before the opener looked like a lump of black charcoal from the year before, completely clogged with no cleaning. (but it still shot a 1 1/2 inch group at 80 yards after cleaning the breech plug and bore which surprised me)
Might be more issues within the barrel than just plastic fouling. (but a bore light does not indicate any severe pitting)
The only reason that I'm looking at his gun is I'm just curious to see if I can get any restored accuracy by trying to clean out plastic fouling. Another thing, just test firing a Black Powder gun now days averages around $1 a shot not counting the time involved.
As previouly stated I tested his Leupold scope on a centerfire rifle with good test results.
He dropped the gun during this last season and when he went to test to see if still on target is when we noticed the 4-6 inch groups at 80 yards. Gun had not been tested for good groups in quite awhile even though he has shot close range hogs and deer at 30-50 yards as ok.
His neglect has finally caught up with him.
Seems that the best thing for him (and me) is for me to bury a shoe toe in him where the sun don't shine.
Please keep us updated on your success or lack thereof.
One final thought - If none of the solvents dissolve the plastic, perhaps soaking the bore for a while with Kroil will loosen the fouling enough so that can be brushed/patched out. I know bench rest shooters use it to loosen copper and it might work with plastic as well. If you try it, I suggest soaking the bore and then letting it set for a day and then a thorough brushing followed by a tight patch or two. Bob
gotta wonder if shooting a few round balls out of it would push the plastic out.......
I used Bore Blaster for Muzzleloaders on mine, and it came out like brand new. Filled the barrel and left it overnight. Ran a brush threw it and some cleaning patches. That stuff works great.
Oakie,
I run into this problem with rifled shotgun slug barrels here in my shop. The rifling gets full is plastic from the sabots and accuracy is out the window. I have had good sucess using lacquer thinner. Get the bore good and wet. Let it sit for awhile and then go at it with a tight fitting bore brush. It may take 2 or 3 times, but it will come clean.