Barrel Leading

[ArizonaFlinter]

Seeking suggestions on how to remove lead from an ML barrel.

[fouronesix]

Good cleaning rod. Then a slightly undersized brush wound tightly with steel wool, bronze wool or copper Chore Boy. Elbow grease.

[oldracer]

I use a cleaning rod with an undersized brush and some Chore Boy chucked into an electric drill. I start the drill slowly and then spray or pour some Kroil down the barrel. I run the whole thing in/out for a bit, then wipe with clean dry patches and repeat until the patches show no dark grey colors. Usually I reverse the drill so I get all the corners in the rifling with every pass.

[Omnivore]

...how to remove lead from an ML barrel.

Prime, cock, and pull the trigger.
(sorry; couldn't help myself)

Chore Boy (all copper) has worked very well for me, but that's in a high velocity barrel and not a ML. I've never been able to lead a ML bore. I'd tend to avoid steel wool or anything with steel in it.

[waksupi]

Try a shooting session using patched round ball. I would think it would take a lot of it out. Then stick with the patched round ball!
Save the electric drill for your brother in law's barrels.

[seaboltm]

Good cleaning rod. Then a slightly undersized brush wound tightly with steel wool, bronze wool or copper Chore Boy. Elbow grease.

I wouldn't use steel wool, but the rest of the suggestions are excellent. If you can remove the breach plug you can push the bronze all the way through. Brownell's sells coarse bronze wool for $8. It is a lifetime supply and removes lead in a real hurry when wrapped tightly around a cleaning brush. And I mean tight, like tap the rod through with a wooden mallet tight (not 2 pound sledge hammer tight).

[fouronesix]

I wouldn't use steel wool, but the rest of the suggestions are excellent.

Don't remove the breech plug unless something else more serious is needed! If the surface between the plug and barrel was finished dressed when assembled, it will never match up as perfectly after removal.

The worry about steel wool is an illusion. Steel wool is very soft mild steel and it won't do anything to the bore surface.

[OverMax]

For the heck-of-it. I just checked out the Mrs. (copper) scrubbing pad. >It stuck to my magnet.< I think after seeing that scrubbing pad disappointment I too would spit patch a few tight balls down first to see what happens. Followed up with a good {red brass brush} scrubbing with Ballistol.~~ Can't hurt!!

[ogre]

Is the barrel rifled or smooth?

[Boerrancher]

I have always had great luck removing the lead from my trade gun just by shooting a few patched round balls out of it using spit patches. You will know it is working when the gun gets easy to load.

Joe

[Garyshome]

Chore boy on your brush will do it. Next time check more often and don't let so much build up before cleaning!

[Airman Basic]

Save the electric drill for your brother in law's barrels.

What he said. Ha.

[725]

Chore Boy; Flitz on your patches; Electric plating type lead removal (Outers sells one and there are home made instructions floating around the internet)

[bigted]

i have had a severely leaded MZ barrel given to me as it would not shoot well and i use the same thing as my BP Cartridge rifles ... pure turpentine.

i use a fairly loose patch dripping with turpentine and swab the barrel till very wet and allow to set n soak for 15 min. then with a tight patch wet with turpentine i run it down and back out ... dont scrub it back n forth as this may deposit lead into the breech area ... then swab with the loose dripping turp patch. and again allow to set for 15 minutes to soak in ... then repeat with the tight patch wet with turpentine.

repeat this till there are no grey or any other color on the tight wet patch's ... now take your other rifle cleaning stuff ... Hopps #9 or Shooters choice, or any other substance that is normally used to remove carbon from the bore of guns ... after a few tight patch's with this gun cleaner to coat the bore with the goodies removed with the turpentine ... oil copiously with your rust preventative and re-clean a day or two later with a dry patch to check n see if there are any color streaks on a clean dry patch. re-oil if clean and your done ... if still getting color of any kind on the dry clean tight patch ... repeat the turpentine treatment.

this is as safe a treatment as you will find and it works very well in my experience. i learned this from another shooter here on the forum at another forum section ... would like to take credit for this spiffy fix but alas another ... smarter then me ... found this treatment and passed it on for the rest of us.

[h8dirt]

Good cleaning rod. Then a slightly undersized brush wound tightly with steel wool, bronze wool or copper Chore Boy. Elbow grease.

What he says but skip the steel wool -- and the drill another writer mentions. I found that Chore Boy worked better for me than the bronze wool I got from Brownells -- although either will work. You will be surprised how quickly it will cut out the lead. Push it straight through letting the ramrod follow the rifling.

[docone31]

I cast up some R.E.A.L.s for mine. I used lapping compound as lube. I fired five.
Now, my patched loads go in simply, my R.E.A.L.s hit close together. I never had leading, but I did this prior to firing with a new Traditions Hawken.
I am very satisfied with the results. I suspect, just loading R.E.A.L.s in the leaded up one will start the cleaning. They sure clean mine.
What kind of lube are you using?

[fouronesix]

Unless the steel wool is odd some hardened variety, it won't do a thing to the bore's surface. It just happens to be one of the most effective methods for removing lead. The "thought" of it being harmful is based on myths, imagination or comparing the bore steel to some other softer material and making some kind of extrapolation. But no matter. If I use it in my bore- no one else's will be ruined nor should they have to worry about it. Now that's an absolute certainty .

Bronze wool or copper Chore Boy will work fine. Also, the old Lewis Lead Remover that used an expanding rubber plug covered with brass screen works well if you can find or make an expander the right size for the bore.

Always curious about leading in muzzleloaders. I clean mine often and have no leading from shooting Miniés or traditional T/C Maxis. The few times I really got bad leading in a ML was from shooting (experimenting with) the Great Plains conicals when they first came out. That was a long time ago (20-30 yrs) and I still have that partial box of them laying around somewhere. They leaded like a son of a gun within just a couple of shots and were not very accurate.

Obviously, the likelihood of a paper or cloth patched bullet or ball leading is mighty slim and that recommendation is of no help for an already leaded bore or for a rifle designed to shoot (and is HC to shoot) something like a Minié.

[JSAND]

fouronesix, I had a good friend that tried some Great Plains conicals in his inline .45 and experienced some leading issues with them as well, he gave them to me shortly after to melt down, they have been sitting on a shelf for I guess 8 yrs or so now. Maybe I'll get around to making something useful out of them my next smelt.I have never experienced this problem, knock on wood I guess, but if I did, I don't think I would try the drill recommendation, just me. The Chore Boy would be my first attempt and would progress from there if necessary.

[longbow]

I'm with the guys that have trouble leading a ML. I had a couple of cheap ones years ago and still have nightmares about my old Italian Zouave copy with rough bore. I used to have horrible fouling problems and occasionally got minies stuck at a particularly rough spot. Should have lapped it but just got rid of it.

Anyway, with all the trouble I had, one thing I never did get was leading.

In any case, since you do have leading that doesn't help much. I would give the gun a good hot soapy water cleaning then dry and fill with a good bore cleaner, then use a brass of copper scrubber or fine steel wool if the leading is bad.

Alternately, as mentioned, a few patched round balls may take it out so that might be worth trying first if you have appropriate sized balls (now that sounds rude but you know what I mean).

Good luck!

Longbow

[DIRT Farmer]

I shoot a lot of shot in my trade guns, if I get cought with only the soft forign shot the guns lead badly in the area the shot sits before firing. I tried a lot of things to keep it out and found that a tight fitting patched round ball works well and is a lot more fun than scrubbing the barrel. Other than that a good lube and moderate charges to keep it from happining are the best cure.