Cleaning your firelock

I'm going to break this up into two or three parts. First up is rimfires.

Rimfires generally means a .22, though it also covers the 5mmRMF, the .17 Hornady and variations. There may still be some folks shooting Spencer or Henry rimfires, but where they're getting the ammo I don't know.

For the most part, cleaning a .22 is simple, thanks to modern ammo. Non-corrosive priming means you don't have to worry about the barrel rusting out if you don't scrub it clean right after shooting, the lube on most ammo(or the copper plating) keeps the barrel from fouling, and the worst problem(mostly with semi-autos) is powder fouling and unburned powder granules building up in the action.

If at all possible, ALWAYS clean the barrel from the breech end. If you have to clean from the muzzle, use one of the bore guides I mentioned before; if you ding the rifling at the crown, or wear it unevenly from the rod rubbing on one side, accuracy goes away.

Unless your piece has a weird problem like my Sig, or a rough bore, cleaning the barrel out is simple: soak a patch with CLP or bore cleaner, run it through the barrel and let it sit a few minutes. Run a dry patch through to pick up the fouling, then repeat cleaner/dry patch a couple of times. Most of the time, that'll do it. If you've got a really fouled barrel due to the aformentioned weirdness or roughness, you may need to use a brush and a stronger solvent. The best stuff I've found for cleaning out lead fouling is called Blue Wonder; doesn't seem to work as well on copper, but for lead & powder it is a wonder. If you have a real problem, and don't want to scrub with brush to get the lead or copper out, you should check out the FoulOut mentioned in the same post as the mozzle guide. It ain't cheap, but it works, and it'll strip either copper or lead fouling completely, leaving bare steel.

Kim du Toit once mentioned something about the anal tendencies of .22 rifle purists when they get started on ammo selection; you can get the same reaction from asking about cleaning. I've seen people swear by scrubbing hard with solvent and a brush after every match or practice session, and others swear you'll ruin a fine barrel if you use a brush; I've seen a few who insist that unless the barrel is faulty you should only clean it every few thousand rounds, if at all. Generally, at most you'll need the aforementioned patch and cleaner and that's it. Going a couple of thousand rounds without cleaning seems excessive to me, but you don't have to attack it after every fifty either. If accuracy starts to fall off, or you just want to be sure it's taken care of, hit it when you think it needs it, just be gentle.

The rest of the firearm may need thorough cleaning more often than the barrel due to fouling/unburned granules building up. .22 ammo is messy, some VERY messy. It's not unusual to seen an old semi-auto that looks like it had axle grease or something swabbed into the action they're so cruddy. If it's that bad, you'll have to strip it down and clean all the crud out, then lube properly as you reassemble. If you're not sure about taking things down beyond field-stripping, then don't; get the instructions before you try it. Often you can simply use a brush to clean the worst out, add a drop or two of oil where needed, and that's it.

If you have one of the really cruddy ones, one thing that will clean the crud out, or loosen it up enough to come out more easily, is carburetor cleaner. You can get the generic stuff for about $1/can, and it will cut through almost anything. Warnings: very well-ventilated area, wear rubber gloves, and a breath mask and/or goggles wouldn't hurt anything; and take any plastic or nylon parts out- grips, recoil buffers, things like that- because this stuff can melt them. Then you'll get to order new ones. You can use the aerosol gun cleaners too, but the carb cleaner is cheaper. Some of the gun cleaners, I'm told, will flush out the crud and leave a lube behind, so it might be worth it if you don't want to detail-strip the thing.

The stock or grips, unless needing to be refinished, can generally just be wiped out/off. With a wood stock some folks will hit it with a little paste wax for weather protection, but that will also make the wood slick, so I'd stick with wiping it down. Refinishing is a subject for another day.

This is my general .22 cleaning methods. Yes, you will get all kinds of opinions and ideas, and some of the are good. So try things out and see what satisfies you. Just take it easy.

I'll hit centerfires next.