[44magmike]

Anybody ever use a bore snake for pistol? Seen them at a gunshop but was reluctant on buying one for 18 bucks till i hear any pros or cons on them? Are they worth the money or just stick with my cleaning rod? Im going to use it for my ruger single action and all i shoot is cast bullets..

 

[rjd3282]

I like them. They work well and you can clean them.

 

[ScottA]

They are all I use. The only time I've used a rod in the last several years was to dislodge a stuck 223 case.

 

[zebramochaman]

I have one for every caliber that I shoot. IMO one of the best investments you can make aside from the Uplula.

 

[vincent]

Agreed with the others. I noticed the prices going up on them too, not what I used to pay and not all that long ago... Get 'em dirty, put 'em in a sock, run 'em through the wash...easy peasy...Gotta be careful with the cleaning rods around the muzzle, no worries with the 'snake...

 

[Vikingdad]

I have one for each caliber I shoot and use them at the range and at home in the loading shed for cleaning. I say go for it!

 

[Rick1967]

I have a bunch of different ones. They work great. I just throw them in the washer every once in a while.

 

[44magmike]

Ok i appreciate everybodys input.. Guess i will go ahead and buy one .

 

[billt]

I've seen 3 people at my local club break them off inside the barrel. They are becoming somewhat well known for this. Two of the guys couldn't get them out, and had to call it a day. One guy and I struggled for the better part of an hour, and used up half a can of WD-40, pushing and soaking it before getting it out of his AR.

If you feel the need to go to a pull through system, the Otis models use a vinyl coated steel cable with threaded tips and brushes, which is far more sturdy and will not break. Most of the Hoppe's Bore Snakes, (including the three I saw break), were older, and obviously beyond their service life. What generally happens is the solvents attack the integrity of the Nylon cord these things are manufactured from. That's generally when they let go.

I don't see a need for them because I clean thoroughly after each range session. I think the whole "pull from the breech" sales angle used with these things is highly overrated. If you use a good, one piece, coated cleaning rod like a Dewey, and know what you are doing, cleaning from the muzzle is not detrimental to any firearm.

Personally, for cleaning a sixgun, I think they would be a total PITA. Trying to run that thing through all six chambers would involve a lot of fumbling around. With a short rod you would be finished with all six chambers in the time it would take you to pull it through one. To me running a brush and patches both ways dislodges far more crud than all of this "pull through only" nonsense they employ to sell these things. This is a case of a company coming up with a product that has some limited use, but has to offset proven methods which have been successfully employed for decades, in order to sell it. I put "barrel break in's" into much the same category.

 

[ScottA]

I've seen 3 people at my local club break them off inside the barrel. They are becoming somewhat well known for this. Two of the guys couldn't get them out, and had to call it a day. One guy and I struggled for the better part of an hour, and used up half a can of WD-40, pushing and soaking it before getting it out of his AR.

If you feel the need to go to a pull through system, the Otis models use a vinyl coated steel cable with threaded tips and brushes, which is far more sturdy and will not break. Most of the Hoppe's Bore Snakes, (including the three I saw break), were older, and obviously beyond their service life. What generally happens is the solvents attack the integrity of the Nylon cord these things are manufactured from. That's generally when they let go.

I don't see a need for them because I clean thoroughly after each range session. I think the whole "pull from the breech" sales angle used with these things is highly overrated. If you use a good, one piece, coated cleaning rod like a Dewey, and know what you are doing, cleaning from the muzzle is not detrimental to any firearm.

Personally, for cleaning a sixgun, I think they would be a total PITA. Trying to run that thing through all six chambers would involve a lot of fumbling around. With a short rod you would be finished with all six chambers in the time it would take you to pull it through one. To me running a brush and patches both ways dislodges far more crud than all of this "pull through only" nonsense they employ to sell these things. This is a case of a company coming up with a product that has some limited use, but has to offset proven methods which have been successfully employed for decades, in order to sell it. I put "barrel break in's" into much the same category.

I've used one on my Model 17, 10 shot revolver for years. No complaints.

You sound like some old codger griping about the internet just being another fad.

 

[KeysKelly]

I have a bore snake for every caliber of gun I own and love them. My opinion is they clean far better than the standard rod and do so in about 1/4 the time. Small enough to keep in any size range bag too. If they get dirty I just soak it in rubbing alcohol overnight and it's almost like new.

 

[billt]

I've used one on my Model 17, 10 shot revolver for years. No complaints.

You sound like some old codger griping about the internet just being another fad.

What does the Internet have to do with Bore Snakes? If you like these things go for it. They are what they are, nothing more than a quick and dirty way around doing something that has been done for decades successfully by other means. Where is the advantage, if it is one, beyond that?

I'm just telling you what I've seen happen with them, that has swayed me from their purchase. Yes, they're a fad, nothing more. They will not replace cleaning rods like DVD's have replaced VHS. I'd love to see you post a video of yourself fumbling around with that thing through 10 chambers and a barrel.

 

[Mosin]

They're the greatest thing since sliced bread. They store compact (hell you can throw it in your pocket), don't bend like rods, clean much better and a hell of a lot quicker too. I have one for each caliber as well. I wouldn't use anything else. The last time I used a cleaning rod was to push out a lodged cartridge.

I don't know anyone who uses anything else.