Cleaning your .22 semi-auto rifle
 

I just started shooting "friendly-competitive" at the gun club with my 10/22.

The experienced shooters do nothing more than run a boresnake through the barrel every 100-200 rounds or so.

The maker of my barrel says to use solvents only rarely when cleaning the bore and they recommend just a boresnake as well for the most part.

This goes against everything I've ever been told, and I've been shooting most of my life.

Also, on the semi-autos like my 10/22 and my Browning take-down, if you were to use a brush and cleaning rod, you would have to go at it from the muzzle end, which doesn't seem right to me.

How do y'all do it?

No way to do a semi-auto but from the muzzle end -- same on a lever gun. I put a large patch in the chamber to try to catch the gunk, but what else is there to do?

The tolerances have always been pretty tight on the 10/22. If yours is a newer model they may be even tighter. I generally exceed manufacturer's recommendations because I believe those recs are tailored for inexperienced gun owners.

Can you get a flex poly-coated steel cleaning cable to run from the chamber out the muzzle end? I don't know if you can do that on a 10/22 without removing the bolt.

I can't get a rod and patch down the bore of my 10/22. So FWIW, I wet a boresnake with solvent and run it through the barrel a number of times. I use a Q-tip with solvent to clean the throat and inside the receiver.

I had a hole drilled in the back of the receiver so I could use a rod the correct way.

However, with .22lr, you are shooting lead bullets ( for the most part ) and not copper, copper clad, brass or something like that.

Copper fouling is what causes the metal intereaction between the barrel and the bullet that can lead to pitting and things that you would normally be "protecting" against.

With a lead bullet, there isn't much inherent damage because there isn't a deterioration factor of lead versus the steel/alloy of the barrel.

That is why you see guys just use a boresnake to get the excess off. It's quick, easy and about all the protection you have to do on a rifle like the 10/22 that isn't easily designed to have a chamber guide and cleaning rod for scrubbing.

Well, there it is. Thanks!

Clean a rimfire what are you nuts?

There is no need to clean the barrel on a rimfire. take some break clean and house out the action and then pour in some mobile 1 and call it good.

I've been called anal. Anal.

I have this odd disorder: I cannot sleep if I haven't done my due diligence and cleaned my guns after firing, even rimfires.

I once heard a rumor that Volquartsen will void the warranty on there rimfire barrels if they can tell that a cleaning rod or brush has been down it, and they suggest you leave the barrel alone and just shoot it.