The UK's Finest Independent Forum for Shooters and Gun Owners. Est 2010.

I'm normally very particular about cleaning my guns but I have slipped up with one and it's built up a deposit on the crown.


It's extremely hard and won't come off with a plastic scraper.

Suggestions for removing safely please!

Mike

Mechanically plus a good carbon solvent or re-crown (lathe) it and stop leaving a sound moderator on when not in use.

Ovenpaa wrote: ↑Sun Nov 27, 2022 7:10 pm ... stop leaving a sound moderator on when not in use.

I have never done that!

Mike

Well that level of carbon without a muzzle device is bloody impressive then

I shoot with a moderator then remove it afterwards. Just forgot to inspect the crown when cleaning.

What's the best chemical to attack this with? Bore cleaner? Ballistol?

Caustic soda worked well on my 2-stroke motorbike silencers years ago ...

Mike

Don't let Caustic soda come in contact with anything made from Aluminium. Try Carb cleaner. It looks to me like it needs mounting on a lathe and re crowning.
I don't understand how you could miss that amount of carbon build up.

That’s what AR barrels tend to look like when they’ve had a muzzle brake fitted & never removed. Doesn’t affect accuracy.

Alpha1 wrote: ↑Sun Nov 27, 2022 10:48 pm Don't let Caustic soda come in contact with anything made from Aluminium. Try Carb cleaner. It looks to me like it needs mounting on a lathe and re crowning.
I don't understand how you could miss that amount of carbon build up.

I was joking about the caustic soda but I do hope my barrel isn't made of aluminium (c:

Sheer negligence on my part. I clean the barrel after every shoot but somehow didn't think to inspect the crown. None of my other rifles have this problem but this is the only one I use with a moderator.

I was shooting V bulls at 600 yards all morning on Saturday so it can't be having much effect.

Anyway, lesson learned ...

Mike

A good soaking in paraffin for a few days and gentle scraping should get most of it off, finish with 600 grit emery cloth cut into squares and polish in a circular motion using your thumb as a pad.

Ovenpaa wrote: ↑Mon Nov 28, 2022 4:46 pm A good soaking in paraffin for a few days and gentle scraping should get most of it off, finish with 600 grit emery cloth cut into squares and polish in a circular motion using your thumb as a pad.

Thanks for your advice, which I followed (sort of).

I don't have any paraffin so I soaked the crown in some warm Ballistol moderator cleaner for a day which softened the crud so I could remove it all with a pointed wooden stick.

Rather than using emery cloth (because there is a ridge around the end of the barrel) I put a wad of wire wool on the floor and rotated the barrel on that.

Shiny it is. I promise to look after it better now.

Mike