cleaning .22

gonbugin · January 1, 2009, 06:11 PM

Hey all,

What do you guys think about cleaning the bore of a .22 rifle. I ran a brush through it; but can't get a cleaning pad to go. Starting reading up on it and to my surprise am finding many say you should not put anything into the bore on a rifle that small.

What do you think and if I should, how?

Thanks

Doyle · January 1, 2009, 06:41 PM

Get a .17 caliber jag and a matching small diameter cleaning rod. In order to get a patch down a .22 with a normal .22 jag you have to cut the patch really small.

sserdlihc · January 1, 2009, 06:46 PM

I just use an old cotton t-shirt cut into strips and a 22 jag. works on my walther p22, Ruger single six, and my 22 rifles.

mikejonestkd · January 1, 2009, 07:04 PM

The last two .22 rimfires I bought mention in the owner's manual to not clean the barrel.

I still run hoppes 9 and a few very small patches through mine after using them, old habits die hard.

bore snakes are nice too for .22 rimfires...

blume357 · January 2, 2009, 06:13 AM

the instructions say the barrel doesn't need cleaning either... I find a 22 bore snake is the easiest way to clean one anyway.... the workings on that glenfield are what really needed cleaning a lubing... I don't think anyone had ever put a drop of oil on it in the last 30+ years.

darkgael · January 2, 2009, 06:42 AM

I use a Boresnake occasionally.
Pete

gonbugin · January 2, 2009, 08:20 PM

I got a bag of very small pads today...will go at it again.

Thanks of the response.

LHB1 · January 2, 2009, 08:30 PM

For .22 caliber pistols and rifles, I run a nylon bristle brush once thru the barrel from the rear (if possible) to remove debris and then use a .22 cal mop or swab to lightly oil barrel. No heavy cleaning required.

blume357 · January 3, 2009, 06:50 AM

you run the rod with the eyelet empty down the barrel and put the cut down pad through it and then pull it back through...

Big Caliber · January 3, 2009, 05:06 PM

I've been cleaning mine after every outing since Santa gave it to me back '68. He said he wouldn't take me out shootin' if I didn't clean it. Never had a problem and still hit what I aim at out to 100yds using CCI Mini-mags.

444 · January 3, 2009, 05:21 PM

I shoot anywhere from 500 to 1000 or more .22 rounds per month.

The only time I ever clean anything is when I start getting malfuctions. Barrel cleaning consists of running a bore snake through the barrel one time every few thousand rounds.

Gun cleaning started out with black powder. The whole thing has been continued with the military in part as busy work.
I am NOT saying there is no reason to ever clean a gun. I AM saying that it is WAY over done and way too much time and effort is wasted on it. I would not "clean" a modern .22LR barrel with anything more than a boresnake every few thousand rounds.
Cleaning the bore on a centerfire rifle that shoots at fairly high velocity, is somewhat important. Cleaning the barrel on .22s, handguns, shotguns,................ is HIGHLY over rated. It is by far the LEAST important aspect of cleaning IF it is done at all. Keeping the action running is the MOST important thing. If you live somewhere with humitity, keeping the metal oiled is important. The bore.....no.

tomh1426 · January 3, 2009, 05:29 PM

All I do to clean the boar on a .22 is run a boaresnake threw it a couple a times with a little CLP on it.
I clean the rest of the gun like I would any other.

Tom2 · January 3, 2009, 07:07 PM

Regular gun patches are about maybe 1 1/2" square? I cut them into four with scissors and then they usually go down the bore better. They do sell .22 cleaning patches that are smaller and thinner than regular patches too. I clean my guns whether .22 or not. I cannot bear to look down the bore and see clumps of crud down there. But folks do get away without cleaning a .22 for a long time, until eventually something goes wrong and they rush to the pawnshop to sell the "piece of #X*$" .

MeekAndMild · January 3, 2009, 07:11 PM

Use more solvent, maybe even the foaming kind, and less elbow grease. Reason is that .22 barrels are often softer steel than centerfire barrels.

Too much brushing and scrubbing will ruin the barrel. I had a Beretta .22 once that I cleaned so much that after a few thousand rounds I nearly cleaned the rifling out of it.

stevelyn · January 4, 2009, 12:15 AM

I used to clean just like Uncle Sam taught me until I started hanging out at THR and later here.

Now if I do any barrel cleaning at all it's mainly the chamber that I concentrate on with a boresnake pulled through every now and then to get the chunks out.

January 1, 2009, 06:11 PM	#1
gonbugin Junior Member Join Date: December 6, 2008 Posts: 7	cleaning .22 Hey all, What do you guys think about cleaning the bore of a .22 rifle. I ran a brush through it; but can't get a cleaning pad to go. Starting reading up on it and to my surprise am finding many say you should not put anything into the bore on a rifle that small. What do you think and if I should, how? Thanks

January 1, 2009, 06:46 PM	#3
sserdlihc Senior Member Join Date: December 10, 2008 Location: S.C. Posts: 1,454	I just use an old cotton t-shirt cut into strips and a 22 jag. works on my walther p22, Ruger single six, and my 22 rifles. __________________ Familiarity breeds contempt, while rarity wins admiration. Aupleius If someone doesn't like you, that's their problem! Milton Childress

January 1, 2009, 07:04 PM	#4
mikejonestkd Senior Member Join Date: January 3, 2006 Location: Brockport, NY Posts: 3,717	The last two .22 rimfires I bought mention in the owner's manual to not clean the barrel. I still run hoppes 9 and a few very small patches through mine after using them, old habits die hard. bore snakes are nice too for .22 rimfires... __________________ You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.

January 2, 2009, 06:13 AM	#5
blume357 Senior Member Join Date: August 2, 2005 Location: Greenville, SC Posts: 3,943	I've got a Marlin Glenfield model 60 from the 70;s that the instructions say the barrel doesn't need cleaning either... I find a 22 bore snake is the easiest way to clean one anyway.... the workings on that glenfield are what really needed cleaning a lubing... I don't think anyone had ever put a drop of oil on it in the last 30+ years.

January 2, 2009, 06:42 AM	#6
darkgael Senior Member Join Date: February 9, 2006 Location: Homes in Brooklyn, NY and in Pennsylvania. Posts: 5,473	.22 I use a Boresnake occasionally. Pete __________________ “Auto racing, bull fighting, and mountain climbing are the only real sports ... all others are games.” Ernest Hemingway ... NRA Life Member

January 1, 2009, 06:41 PM	#2
Doyle Senior Member Join Date: June 20, 2007 Location: Rainbow City, Alabama Posts: 7,167	Get a .17 caliber jag and a matching small diameter cleaning rod. In order to get a patch down a .22 with a normal .22 jag you have to cut the patch really small.

January 2, 2009, 08:20 PM	#7
gonbugin Junior Member Join Date: December 6, 2008 Posts: 7	I got a bag of very small pads today...will go at it again. Thanks of the response.

January 2, 2009, 08:30 PM	#8
LHB1 Senior Member Join Date: March 25, 2005 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 1,545	For .22 caliber pistols and rifles, I run a nylon bristle brush once thru the barrel from the rear (if possible) to remove debris and then use a .22 cal mop or swab to lightly oil barrel. No heavy cleaning required. __________________ Good shooting and be safe. LB Last edited by LHB1; January 3, 2009 at 03:58 PM.

January 3, 2009, 06:50 AM	#9
blume357 Senior Member Join Date: August 2, 2005 Location: Greenville, SC Posts: 3,943	I think the way you do it with pads.... is you run the rod with the eyelet empty down the barrel and put the cut down pad through it and then pull it back through...

January 3, 2009, 05:06 PM	#10
Big Caliber Senior Member Join Date: October 10, 2006 Location: S. CA Posts: 421	I've been cleaning mine after every outing since Santa gave it to me back '68. He said he wouldn't take me out shootin' if I didn't clean it. Never had a problem and still hit what I aim at out to 100yds using CCI Mini-mags.

January 3, 2009, 05:21 PM	#11
444 Senior Member Join Date: November 20, 2000 Location: Ohio Posts: 3,968	I shoot anywhere from 500 to 1000 or more .22 rounds per month. The only time I ever clean anything is when I start getting malfuctions. Barrel cleaning consists of running a bore snake through the barrel one time every few thousand rounds. Gun cleaning started out with black powder. The whole thing has been continued with the military in part as busy work. I am NOT saying there is no reason to ever clean a gun. I AM saying that it is WAY over done and way too much time and effort is wasted on it. I would not "clean" a modern .22LR barrel with anything more than a boresnake every few thousand rounds. Cleaning the bore on a centerfire rifle that shoots at fairly high velocity, is somewhat important. Cleaning the barrel on .22s, handguns, shotguns,................ is HIGHLY over rated. It is by far the LEAST important aspect of cleaning IF it is done at all. Keeping the action running is the MOST important thing. If you live somewhere with humitity, keeping the metal oiled is important. The bore.....no. __________________ You know the rest. In the books you have read How the British Regulars fired and fled, How the farmers gave them ball for ball, From behind each fence and farmyard wall, Chasing the redcoats down the lane, Then crossing the fields to emerge again Under the trees at the turn of the road, And only pausing to fire and load. Last edited by 444; January 3, 2009 at 05:26 PM.

January 3, 2009, 05:29 PM	#12
tomh1426 Senior Member Join Date: September 17, 2005 Location: Youngtown Arizona Posts: 1,135	All I do to clean the boar on a .22 is run a boaresnake threw it a couple a times with a little CLP on it. I clean the rest of the gun like I would any other.

January 3, 2009, 07:07 PM	#13
Tom2 Senior Member Join Date: June 23, 2004 Location: Ohio Posts: 5,676	Regular gun patches are about maybe 1 1/2" square? I cut them into four with scissors and then they usually go down the bore better. They do sell .22 cleaning patches that are smaller and thinner than regular patches too. I clean my guns whether .22 or not. I cannot bear to look down the bore and see clumps of crud down there. But folks do get away without cleaning a .22 for a long time, until eventually something goes wrong and they rush to the pawnshop to sell the "piece of #X*$" . __________________ Your gun is like your nose, it is just wrong for someone else to pick it for you!

January 3, 2009, 07:11 PM	#14
MeekAndMild Senior Member Join Date: August 2, 2001 Posts: 4,988	Use more solvent, maybe even the foaming kind, and less elbow grease. Reason is that .22 barrels are often softer steel than centerfire barrels. Too much brushing and scrubbing will ruin the barrel. I had a Beretta .22 once that I cleaned so much that after a few thousand rounds I nearly cleaned the rifling out of it. __________________ In a few years when the dust finally clears and people start counting their change there is a pretty good chance that President Obama may become known as The Great Absquatulator. You heard it first here on TFL.

January 4, 2009, 12:15 AM	#15
stevelyn Senior Member Join Date: May 19, 2004 Location: Fairbanksan in exile to Aleutian Hell Posts: 2,655	I used to clean just like Uncle Sam taught me until I started hanging out at THR and later here. Now if I do any barrel cleaning at all it's mainly the chamber that I concentrate on with a boresnake pulled through every now and then to get the chunks out. __________________ Stop Allowing Our Schools To Be Soft Targets! http://fastersaveslives.org/ East Moose. Wear Wolf.