Time to clean

[dewnmoutain]

In my first posting i had asked about loading my rifle, and included a sub-question about cleaning it.
I havent fired my rifle yet, but wish to take the time to clean it so i can learn the ins and outs of its parts and what not.

Now, i know how to clean a rifle, compliments of the US Army. Yet i am sure that there are some things that i have been taught that one shouldnt do with a muzzleloader.

So with that, here are my questions:

1)Can i use a modern gun cleaning liquid on the rifle, or will that mess things up inside?

2)Is there a special way to clean? Ie pull out plug and clean that area, or from muzzle and down?

3)For the nipple, can i take that off and clean it, or should i just leave it all together and only tear down the rifle in an extreme circumstance?

4)For my WWII and new weapons, i bought a bottle of MILTEC lube, can i use that on the barrel and other parts (nipple, plug) to help prevent rust? Or is that just craziness for this?

5)Are there any specialty tools i should get to help with cleaning?

6)Do you have any tips for cleaning that you could pass along?

 

[necchi]

Modern cleaning stuff don't work.
BP, the Faux BP and all the crud they make is water soluble.
Solvents for modern nitro powders won't touch it and will leave petro residues that also don't mix with BP.
Soapy water is your friend with BP guns.
What's your rifle? It matters a little as there are different techniques

 

[dewnmoutain]

.45 cal Kentucky long rifle.

 

[Drago]

Well these are'nt modern rifles. These are cleaned with water and a little soap. The water neutralizes the burned powder to stop corrosion. Unburned powder is not corrosive. I take out the nipple and pump the barrel with a cleaning patch in soapy water. Do not remove the breach plug to clean, dry with patches then use alcohol soaked patches to get out the water. I like Barracade oil to protect the bore after cleaning. Before shooting I run alcohol patches to remove the oil. Never fire it with petroleum products in the barrel or a sludge can form that is hard to get out. I remove the lock to clean as well, especially on a flintlock. Not really rocket science and probably a lot fewer parts than what you are used to, but necessary after firing to prevent rust. Everyone has their own way of caring for their muzzle loaders so find what works for you. There is a lot of info here and many with more experience than me.

 

[jamesthomas]

Just get ya a little squirt bottle an fill it up with some water an a little Dawn dish soap. Just get the proper size jag and an wet a piece of flannel it. (about 2" square for a .50 cal.) an run it up an down one time, then flip the patch over an do it again, repeat until the patch comes out clean, usually 2 or 3 patches, then run a dry patch or two down the barrel to get everything nice an dry then follow up with a Birchwood Casey Barricade Rust Protectant soaked patch an put it up. I check mine about every 2 or 3 weeks to make sure everything is good, never had any rust develop yet when I follow these steps. :thumbsup: Oh yea, I do the alcohol thing too.

 

[necchi]

.45 cal Kentucky long rifle.

CVA? Jukar? Traditions?

 

[bpd303]

It's cleaned from the muzzle with the cone (nipple) removed. I also use an old toothbrush to get into all the nooks & crannies with the wash water. Put a little anti-sieze on the nipple threads when installing (saves a lot of aggravation)and do not remove the Breech plug. As far as oiling after drying everything. I have used everything from MILSPEC to 3in1 oil and everything in between. Don't try using a tight fitting bore brush (have a tendency to get stuck at the breech) and they are not necessary and will only cause you grief. Ask me how I know. Also before shooting it run a patch moistened with solvent (rubbing alcohol works) to remove any oil in the bore. Oh and before loading snap a couple of caps to clear the cone.

:grin:

 

[dewnmoutain]

.45 cal Kentucky long rifle.

CVA? Jukar? Traditions?

David pedersoli

 

[ohio ramrod]

As stated a lot of warm water and a little soap is all you need. Black powder makes a lot of fouling when it burns so you have a lot of fouling to get out. Warm water is cheap and as effective as expensive solvents which are mostly alcohol and a little soap. Disolving the fouling is just a start once you get it disolved you need to get it out and a good warm water flushing will do it. I recomend a 3/16 plastic tubing over the nipple and a lot of "pumping". It helps if you get an old nipple and drill it out larger to let more water through. Once you get it cleaned and dried(flannel makes a great drying patch ) a little 3 in one oil or G.I. gun oil will protect your bore. Just clean out the petrolium oil with an alcohol soaked patch before you next shooting session.

 

[BullRunBear]

Forget modern cleaning substances. Water will do the job, with or without a few drops of dish soap. You clean from the muzzle only. I use a steel range rod for loading and cleaning and always use a nylon muzzle protector with it. I buy cleaning patch material (no synthetics) from the fabric store when it's on sale and cut my own. It's cheaper and I use a lot of patches.

With percussion guns, I always pull the nipple and clean it with a pipe cleaner inside and out. I make sure I can see light through it after cleaning. Do the same with the threads in the barrel. I lube with a tiny dab of lithium grease on the threads to prevent seizing. This is the same grease I use on the arbor of cap and ball revolvers.

Before leaving for home, I run a couple of wet patches down the bore followed by a few dry ones. I find this makes a thorough cleaning at home easier and gives me some leeway as to how soon I need to clean. But I always clean the same day.

Like the others have said, I finish with a little 3-In-One oil or Rem Oil on a patch (doesn't take much) and clean it out with alcohol before the next session. I wipe the whole gun, stock and metal, down with a silicone cloth, the same I use on fishing reels.

At the next shooting session, pop off a couple of caps with the muzzle pointing at a blade of grass. If it moves, you have a clear channel for ignition. Following my routine, I've never had a blockage.

With the preliminary cleaning at the range, it only takes about 15 minutes to clean a rifle at home.

BTW, even though she hasn't lived there since 1973, my Waukesha-raised wife says hello.

Jeff

 

[William O.]

Warm water and two drops of liquid dish detergent are all you need. If you have a barrel with hooked breech and not pinned then remove the wedge keys and place the breech in soapy water just over the nipple hole. You can remove the nipple as many times as you see fit, just be careful not to overtighten or cross thread when putting it back in. Place a cleaning patch on your cleaning jag and pump the soapy water in and out, then pour out the dirty water and replace with clean, then with a new cleaning patch, do the same pumping action. If your barrel is pinned in place, then you may want to leave the nipple in place to begin with. Place a piece of leather or rubber on the nipple and lower the hammer. Carefully pour an ounce or two of sopay water into the barrel, place thumb over muzzle and tilt back and fourth to get the entire bore clean, empty out dirty water, then put about the same amount of clean water in and do the same. Soak up and water you spilled on the outside after you dump the water, now remove the nipple and place it in a little soapy water to let it soak. Now, get out you ramrod and attach the cleaning jag on, and get it down the bore a few times, changing to a clean patch as needed. When the patch starts coming out clean then run a dry patch down just to be sure it's dry. Put a few drops of your favorite rust preventive on a fresh cleaning patch and run it down the barrel a few times. Do the same to the outside of the barrel and any other metal parts, replace the nipple and you're done. A few days later you might put a drop or two of oil on a cleaning patch and run it down just to make sure you've coated the bore. Now, just before you go shooting again run an alcohol dampened patch down the bore to remove any left over oil/rust preventative and go have fun. One small drop of oil on the nipple threads will keep it from being a hassle next time you remove it but don't overdue it. Hope this helps, you'll get the hang of it pretty quickly and cleaning times will get shorter and shorter.

PS-I'm a big fan of Birchwood-Casey Barricade in the small can with a dropper spout because it makes it easy to get just a few drops exactly where I need it.

 

[George T.]

You have had plenty of advice on cleaning. I thought that I would add that MILITECH is a great lube and friction lowering oil and grease. It's way to expensive for anything other than the lock and trigger.

I guess you have read that the metal needs to be heated to bond. As per their site.

Anyway you need a good cheap oil for the bore and regular gun grease works for long term storage. I use PB Blaster for the barrel inside and out. Carb cleaner to remove the oil before loading.
Geo. T.

 

[Forty Rod]

NOTE: PULL THE BREACH PLUG ONLY AFTER EVERYTHING ELSE HAS FAILED, including the ministrations of a competent 'smith.

 

[dewnmoutain]

Ok, ill bite. Why not remove the breech plug? Its screwed in, and I would assume that I should be able to remove it to help with cleaning....

 

[necchi]

They torque those things in there pretty serious tight. It's a pita to find a vise and wrench big enough to remove it without damage to the barre and/or plug, then you have to get the thing back together.
The plug seats against a faced surface inside the barrel, the end of the plug needs to be flush with the end of the barrel and the barrel/breech flats need to line up properly so that 3 surfaces that have to meet to attain the proper protection for the pressures.

There's simply not a need to remove the plug for cleaning. It's not rocket science to use soap, water and patches to get a job done that's been getting done for 300 years or more.

Easy removable beech plugs is a modern inline design that's an answer for a problem that doesn't exist.

 

[Zonie]

As necchi said, three different things have to happen at the same time.

Removing the breech plug and then reinstalling and tightening it will wear the threads, the face of the breech plug and the shoulder ahead of the threads that the plug tightens up against.

It will also wear the outer face of the plug and the rear of the barrel where it seats.

Wear on any of these features will either make the plug loose or it will have to be tightened past the point where the breech plug lines up with the barrel flats.

Just trust us. Removing the breech plug on a traditional muzzleloader is only recommended when all efforts to solve a real problem has failed.

Cleaning is not a real problem.

 

[nchawkeye]

Not only don't remove the breach plug, don't remove the barrel either, no need...

 

[Billnpatti]

Here is my cleaning method and it has served me well for over 40 years. First of all, forget any of the cleaning products you may have for modern weapons, black powder is different from smokeless powder and needs a different cleaning method to remove the corrosive fouling. If you have a flintlock, just use a toothpick to plug the vent hole. If you have a caplock, you can either use a bolt having the same threads as you nipple and scrtew it into your nipple hole or you can use a piece of small dowell that you have cut a point on to plug the nipple hole after removing the nipple. With the hole plugged, pour some soapy water into your bore and let it stand for several minutes to soak the fouling loose. Pour this soapy water out and refill with more soapy water and let it sit again for another few minutes. After pouring this second filling of soapy water out, use a series of patches that are wet with soapy water to swab out your bore. Then rinse with clear water and run several dry patches through your bore to dry it. It will not be absolutely dry so spray some WD-40 down your bore to remove the last traces of any dampness. Use some more dry patches to remove the WD-40 and any moisture that it has pulled out. Lastly, run a patch with a good gun oil (I prefer Barricade) through your bore and your barrel is clean and ready for storage. Of course, you will also need to clean the outside of your barrel around the nipple area with soapy water and a toothbrush, rinse and spray with WD-40 and finish with Barricade. The hammer face of a caplock will also need cleaning in the same manner. The lock of both a caplock and a flintlock need to be removed and cleaned. It is a simple task to clean a lock. Remove it from the stock, take it outside and spray it with automobile brake cleaner. That stuff really flushes out the crud. Then let it dry and lightly oil the insides of the lock and it is ready to go back into your stock. Do not get any of the brake cleaner on your stock because it is likely to ruin the finish. Also don't get it on your grass, plants, etc. because it is a solvent and will kill plants. Spray your lock over the driveway or in an area where it won't get on any growing stuff that you don't want to kill. When all is clean, give it a good wiping down with a rag with some Barricade on it and everything is ready to go back in your gun safe. If you want, you can use a good paste floor wax on your stock to keep it looking good and protect it from moisture.

 

[Col. Batguano]

Easy removable beech plugs is a modern inline design that's an answer for a problem that doesn't exist.

Like global warming? :shocked2:

 

[M. De Land]

I agree about not removing the plug unless necessary as cleaning threads is way more of a problem than cleaning a plugged barrel the old tried and true conventional way.
I have two modern removable plug competition pistols in percussion and flint. I just decided it's far easier to leave the removable plugs in and clean the conventional way from the muzzle. Threads will grab and hold all sorts of manure from the cleaning process alone that wasn't there before that can only be gotten out to the bottom with a stiff brush augured through. Then they have to be wiped dry the same way and re-greased or anti-seized before reinstalling. A pain in the butt and totally on necessary.
The other thing about lining up flats is that they are usually draw filed with the hooked/patented breech pugs in place that nearly makes the joint invisible. This and the resultant browning/bluing will be disturbed if the plug is removed on such guns. MD