cleaning a very dirty barrel

[PCPShooter]

Maybe just let some Parker Hale 009 or Napier Gun Cleaner or bore solvent sit in barrel for a bit
I do not think you want a brush in there yet, if that will be required at all

Firearms cleaning products will shift anything out of any barrel ...

[isobar]

cheers for all the replies,i will give it a soak in wd40 because that has been suggested and i have some.i have never tried a pull through,what string would you use or would fishing line tied to some cotton cloth do the job?

[Peter Dunkley]

Make sure the line is strong. I use fly line. There is a very good you tube on making a pull through out of twisted fly line.

[bighit]

How to use it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdOF-x-Brw8

[WebleyWombler]

cheers for all the replies,i will give it a soak in wd40 because that has been suggested and i have some.i have never tried a pull through,what string would you use or would fishing line tied to some cotton cloth do the job?

Do yourself a favour and throw the WD40 in a bin where it belongs. I know it's a reasonable glue remover but that's about all it's fit for. Use some form of solvent

[isobar]

fair enough,soaked the rifling in wd40 for a couple of hours and pulled through a tight wad of cotton,it cleaned the peaks of the rifling to a shine but the grooves still have black residue in them.no harm done.
thanks for all your comments and advise

[silva]

For seriously crudded up barrels on rifles that have been stored in sheds or not shot for decades, that show no rifling or are totally brown inside. I have a drum of waste diesel / petrol mix that I submerge the barrel in over night then draw a bronze brush up and down, whilst the barrel is still submerged in diesel. You could use a 2 litre pop bottle. That will clear a lot away, then if there are still deposits, then might squirt some brake cleaner down, though be careful with bluing. Finally use Hoppes or Forrest bore foam, and run patches through until they come out clean. Its amazing how well even barrels that look like ploughed fields will clean up. Getting a proper cleaning rod with a rotating handle is well worth it as the brush will naturally follow the twist of the rifling.
Need to be careful with the crown of the barrel, so mark your cleaning rod with a bit of tape, where say half the brush exits the bore. So when you are vigorously scrubbing, you don't let the ferrule on the base of the brush exit the barrel and potentially damage the crown on the return stroke. I wouldn't use a bronze brush on slightly dirty modern rifle, but on a veteran its necessary and not damaging.
Make sure you shoot a goodly number of pellets after doing this or run a patch soaked in Hoppes through, as you will have removed any protective oil or wax from the bore, an it can rust if left without being seasoned again.

[PCPShooter]

cheers for all the replies,i will give it a soak in wd40 because that has been suggested and i have some.i have never tried a pull through,what string would you use or would fishing line tied to some cotton cloth do the job?

I use whipping twine, and proper patches - make sure you keep it clear of crown and pull through middle of bore.
If you need to use anything other than wrapped around fingers - your patch is too big and you risk snapping it
You'll get a harmonic sound or squeak when size is spot on, better too small a patch at first than too big
Pull through til clean generally
WD isn't really the best thing, treat yourself to a tin of Napier Power Oil for all your air gun uses, and some proper bore solvent for clearing out barrels

[isobar]

i think i've managed to clean it (good enough) now,i soaked it with wd40 just because thats all i had and pulled through and pushed through until it shined.i must have got into the rifling as on the push through with cotton cloth the rod i was using was twisting it's way down.
i completely stripped the rifle down this morning guessing it have not been done,probably since new and it was well worth it,the tiny gauze that sits over the transfer port had become embedded in the piston seal(can't see a way of putting it back so left it out) and overall everything was black and dry.thoroughly cleaned the thing up and regreased sparingly,job worth doing i think.fires with plenty of power this one,more than others i have owned

thanks for all the help,might have saved me some bother and time if i had suitable brushes but there you go.

[Mr.C]

THE best solvent for removing lead that I've found is Phillips Gun Barrel Cleaner. I use it to remove stubborn shot smears from 12G barrels and it works a treat.