Restore, conserve, or build a shooter?

[Allen]

That's what my results were too. The chemicals, regardless of how strong only removed what is loose. Soaking did nothing regardless of what was used. The actual residue removal is from the brushing. In my case I was able to shoot the rifle along with the brushing, then wipe till all the loose stuff was gone then start over. I don't know if I would recommend shooting a high power rifle though even though the previous owners did so when the bore was worse. I stared off using steel brushes till I could see traces of rifling then I switched over to the brass/bronze/copper which as you know don't last very long.

Like Merc said, as long as you're getting black krap on the mops you're doing good and removing deposits. It just takes a lot of brushing. I spray WD-40 down the bore till it runs out the other end in lui of mopping and cleaning the mop every time.

Good winter project.

[Merc]

Started again with new brass/bronze brushes, the longest I could find. Soaked the bore again with Hoppe's let it sit for about a half hour, then started scrubbing for eight or ten in/out cycles, then patches. Same-same as far as color and general nastiness of the first wipe patch, but the second shows much less, the third almost nothing, however, now I can feel the roughness if I push the patch very slowly. It appears that some of the lands ahead of the breach are coming up stronger, and surprisingly sharp, but there's still an odd looking, straight 'streak' of what appears to be pits. I've got to see if I can get my good camera to focus in the bore.
Had a terrible thought last night right before I dropped off to sleep. I was just dropping the barreled action off to have it bored to .35 Whelen.........

Now that you’ve cleaned out some of the deposits, it might be a good idea to have a gunsmith look at it before going much further. The streak you’re seeing and the roughness you’re feeling could be pitting from standing water that somehow accumulated in the bore when the rifle was stored horizontally. An experienced gunsmith should be able to recognize water damage and tell you if the bore is still serviceable. A borescope camera would come in handy in your situation.

[Darreld Walton]

Now that you’ve cleaned out some of the deposits, it might be a good idea to have a gunsmith look at it before going much further. The streak you’re seeing and the roughness you’re feeling could be pitting from standing water that somehow accumulated in the bore when the rifle was stored horizontally. An experienced gunsmith should be able to recognize water damage and tell you if the bore is still serviceable. A borescope camera would come in handy in your situation.

Indeed, a bore scope would come in handy, however, I think further analysis would be futile. This one's a goner, and at the moment, it's only claim to fame is that it's original to the receiver. I'm seeing a great deal of the bottom of the grooves now, and what is very disconcerting is that the pitting is bad enough on the lands that looking down the bore resembles looking at the cross-hatch tread of an all terrain/mud tire. The only reason to fire the thing now would be, well, there isn't a legitimate reason to put a round through it!

[Merc]

I wouldn’t shoot it either. There’s no way of knowing if the bore is partially obstructed by the pitting so shooting it could be dangerous.

[RC20]

I would still do the checks. If you don't have a GS handy, Lyman makes a nice low cost boroscope.

Its not a Hawkeye but for around $170 its a great addtion.

I got one on sale a few years back, it will truly shock you how rough bareels can be.

My step dads 1903 is the worst (I bought it off him) but it still shoots decently (and the throat is about 5 on the gauge)

Barrel is awful looking. MW is fine.

While I don't push anyone to shoot, pitting in a barrel is not an issue, chamber yes. That is why that end is larger.

If the barrel is well and truly gone, then yes a re-barrel is fine.

but that is a really good looking gun and I would do all I could to ensure it was not just cosmetic.

We shot my dads 1903A3 with pits in it for a long time. Only reason we replaced the barrel was the chamber corroded (it was in salt water for 10 days at one point, believe the sale got into the metal)

[lyman]

check out endoscopes on amazon,

I have a simple one, that works on my cell phone,

install the app,
stick the flexible camera down the bore, and I get a good view of what is down there,

not a good as a hawkeye type, but works fine for what I need

[Darreld Walton]

I did take the barreled action out to the pasture, tied it off to a tire, aimed it at a berm, and fired it with a length of lanyard. Three shots. Cases look perfect, extracted easily, the ammo was LC69 M2 ball. Just the slightest resistance when I turned the bolt down on a chambered round. I didn't think to put a target up, maybe tomorrow. Prior to doing this, I hit it again with a new .303 brush, after I'd plugged and soaked the bore and soaked it overnight. Finally got 'blue' in the Hoppe's and on the patches till they turned 'grey' instead of black. After firing, I scrubbed it again and must have angered something, as what emerged after a wet patch and brush was a black, 'oozy' mess for two patches, then a bit of blue again, and patches till only a light grey showed up.
Contacted Chuck via his facebook link, fairly late, and he asked me to call tomorrow about a new barrel. He didn't mention what the barrel was, I'm assuming a Criterion. I've about decided the replacement barrel is going to be the way to go. I'll hang onto the original, keep it with the rest of the rifle, and if I turn it later, the original barrel can go with it. With ten kids, thirty two grandkids, the likelihood that it'll stay in the family is fairly high, rather than going to 'market'.

[RC20]

I would not give up on the barrel yet. The Lyman Borscope works well. Rough of not it may be fine.



Ask Chuck if he has to cut the barrel to get it off the gun?



Read the following please.

http://www.slip2000.com/blog/precisi...ting-magazine/

The is how I go about it. Firing and getting more crud out is common.

As for cleaning, Carbon Killer 2000 does a great job and a warm barrel cleans faster.

Savage barrels are rough, they don't lap them, so they get dirty fast.

I have found a nylon brush works best as it soaks up the cleaner, I either use an eye dropper to get CK2 on it in the magazine area and or run it through and soak it good out the end and then back and forth 3 or 4 times. Do that two or three times, dry patch, repeat until clean.

Dry patch at the end.

There are similar cleaners to C2K, non haz, non toxic, no odor and very focused on carbon (or copper) - beats the old cleaner all hollow as shown by a boro scope look.

If you get copper then the Bore Tehc Eliminator is very good, it does carbon to, not as good as C2K but good and works for stripping layers of carbon and copper.

It to is a non haz, non toxic and pretty odorless. I think others out there as well but that's the one I have used and settled on.

[Col. Colt]

You need to try Sharp Shooter Products "Wipe Out" and/or "Patch Out" - with or without their "Accelerator" added. I had a black bore M1917, too. I tried regular Hoppe's , old fashioned cleaning - just got black mud. I used Wipe Out - let it set overnight - got a ton of Black goop. Then foamed the bore, got a bunch of copper blue on patch. Then foamed it again - got black goo again - then foamed again - copper...
There were FIVE distinct Layers of fouling black over copper - that responded to Wipe Out - and NOT to regular cleaners. I think Sportsman's Warehouse stocks it. Check Cabelas and Brownells, or order direct from the maker in Kansas.
CC

PS - Brownell's sells a famous paste bore cleaner that is noted for this kind of problem - can't remember the name - look under bore cleaners. CC

[RC20]

You need to try Sharp Shooter Products "Wipe Out" and/or "Patch Out"

I disagree he has to and I believe I have presented some very solid evidence that the CK2k and the Boretech products work better than any of the store available items.

Bore tech works as its a good carbon cleaner as well, you it a layer of hard carbon and then the CK2k. Repeat as needed.