Scotch Brite in-bore use

I am working on a .50 cal. CVA rifle that has a neglected bore. Using Fluid Film and getting rust-stained patches - more work to do. Bore light shows good/serviceable rifling and what appears to be many small rust spots or scattered, generalized light pitting.
I have a packet of Scotch-Brite green "heavy duty scour pads" and lots of 0000 steel wool.
Suggestions on using these to improve the bore, please.
TIA.

A few will call me crazy. I've done this with steel wool and valve grinding compound. I used a very mild compound and it worked pretty well. This isn't a quick job, but it will take hours or days.

SingleMalt said:

A few will call me crazy. I've done this with steel wool and valve grinding compound. I used a very mild compound and it worked pretty well. This isn't a quick job, but it will take hours or days.

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Thanks for the reply, but HOW (not shouting) did you use these?

I threaded the steel wool through a slotted cleaning tip and smeared the compound on it and went to work.

Thank you.

Getting the pitting out can involve a more serious approach.
If you think you will have to get serious with it PM me and I'll send you the method I used.

Thinking about it, a jag with a thick patch would work as well.

Scotch/Bright/Brillo pads with oil work fine and won't round off the corners of the rifling. Shooting will also over time remove rust. I have just brillo pad and oil on an English round ball hunting rifle, there are still a couple of small rust patches, tiny really, and some light pitting. You could coat a few patches in valve grind paste then load with ball and shoot, that is called fire lapping. When you clean, just use cold water and you won't get flash rust like you can do when using hot water, especially if rust is present. A good wipe with WD 40, then I use olive oil after, you won't get a crud ring. Eventually you should get rid of the problem. I always check the bore a day or two after cleaning with a dry patch, then re oil the bore.

Have you fired the rifle?

Before steal wooling the barrel and after

Could progressively work through increasing finer grits. Believe green is 600 grit, while light grey 6-800 grit and the white is 1000 grit.

If you want to dissolve the rust, consider using Evapo-rust, but be careful around bluing, as the stuff will wipe it away.

Gun Tramp said:

Have you fired the rifle?

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No, I have not.
I have been shooting and cleaning muzzle-loaders since 1978; never owned another one that had a bore like this one, that needed such effort, hence the question.
I have the time and the materials but I need some information about how others have successfully done this.
This rifle, along with a .50 cal TC Hawken, and all the accoutrements, will be gifts for my TX son when he comes for Thanksgiving.

I much prefer lead lapping to the soft, flexible abrasives like steel wool and Scotch Brite, although it is a more involved process. The soft abrasives will swell into pits and and serve to make them larger, although smoother and less noticeable. The lead lap will slowly enlarge the lands and grooves very consistently and eventually remove the pitting altogether. Properly executed lead lapping can leave you with a bore that's dimensionally consistent within .0002-.0003" along its entire length, at which point one can probably stop wondering about the barrel...

ghostdncr said:

I much prefer lead lapping to the soft, flexible abrasives like steel wool and Scotch Brite, although it is a more involved process. The soft abrasives will swell into pits and and serve to make them larger, although smoother and less noticeable. The lead lap will slowly enlarge the lands and grooves very consistently and eventually remove the pitting altogether. Properly executed lead lapping can leave you with a bore that's dimensionally consistent within .0002-.0003" along its entire length, at which point one can probably stop wondering about the barrel...

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Good suggestion! I know how to do this, but I don't have the ability to do it just now.
I'll coach my son on it so that he can try this when he gets the rifle to his home.
Thanks for this post!

Here’s what I do, MUST Have a good cleaning rod where the rod rotates separately from the handle. Take an 8x32 or 10x32 long 1-1/4” or longer bolt, cut the head off and thread it into the cleaning rod.

Take a minieball sized to the bore and holding it in 2 wooden blocks with a “1/2 hole cut in each” (meaning drill a hole centered where the 2 pieces meet), then drill a hole lengthwise through the minie for then bolt, sized to the tap drill of the thread you are using in the rod. Tap the minie and thread onto the bolt, then cut some grooves into the minie lengthwise.

I have lab grade lapping compounds, but you could probably use a good quality ‘fine’ valve grinding compound. Coat the minie well and start it into the barrel, where I secure just a barrel in a padded vice. No not the barrel carefully, making sure not to pull the ballot mini out of there

Now ‘lap’ the barrel carefully, making sure not to pull the minie out of the barrel and ENSURE that the minie rotates with the rifling. Being careful I have successfully put the minie back into the barrel in the same bore/rifling position.

I find such bore restoration works best with lead roundball guns, as then you can use a thicker patch, if needed.

I buy a new bronze bore brush and wrap it in 0000 steel wool and oil it up.

I'm going to do a terrible job of explaining this, but here goes...

I use a plain steel rod and cut a stout groove about a 1/4" back from one end. I place this in the bore just below flush with the muzzle with some type of packing around the rod about an inch down. I've used steel wool, Scotch Brite, cotton, masking tape, etc. and it all seems to work about the same. Stand the barrel vertically in a vise, melt some lead in a large spoon and pour it right down the muzzle. This will cast a perfect lap both sized to your bore and well-siezed to the lapping rod. I like about an inch in length for most most applications. A little less for small bores, and a little longer for big bores.

The lap will be stuck at first but a little tapping at the rod end with a small hammer will free it. I drive the lap about two thirds the way out of the muzzle and coat it with diamond compound (fine valve grinding compound will do nicely) and then get started with the back and forth. After awhile, you'll need to recast the lap, recharge it, and repeat the process until you're satisfied with the results. If you're going for a match-grade bore and using progressively finer grits, don't forget to clean everything you're using when changing grit sizes! That means a new lapping rod, fresh lead, wash your hands...

Flint62Smoothie and ghostdncr; thanks to both of you - good and useful ideas both. I believe that the lapping will work best for our needs.
Thanks to everyone who responded.