Do I need to clean my barrels for storage?

[grizzlyblake]

I have two standard 16" BCM ELW rifles that I bought for my young sons. I have shot each one about 120 rounds to verify function and zero the sights (Fed XM193, Speer GD.) Prior to shooting I field stripped and cleaned/lubed the BCG and wiped the preservative from the exterior (Slip cleaner and EWL.) I did not touch the bores, just visually verified they were clear.

I am not much of a cleaner of my guns, but these two will be sitting for years before being used. Do I need to clean the bores? I have a cheap Wheeler stainless steel multi-piece cleaning rod I could use. I don't want to scratch the chrome lining or damage anything.

[kerplode]

Yes, IMO, you should clean them well if they're going into long term storage.

Unless you're a total spaz with the stainless rod, you're not gonna hurt the bore. Or you could spend a couple bucks on an Otis pull-through.

[Arik]

If you don't live by the ocean or didn't use corrosive ammo then it doesn't matter. Not having a clean barrel isn't going to effect anything unless you're doing some serious long distance precision shooting.

I've got a few rifles sitting since 2014ish.

[MistWolf]

Cleaning & oiling the bore before long term storage is cheap insurance. I came back from overseas (UK) after two years and found the bore of my 6mm looking rough. I hadn't cleaned or oiled it before I left. I thought the bore was destroyed. I ran a couple patches through the bore and it cleaned up in near pristine condition. The patches came out green. The copper in the bore turned to verdigris. Fortunately, home was Southern California and not too near the coast.

I don't know if the verdigris is porous enough to capture moisture or cause corrosion, but it's a simple matter to clean the barrel & oil it against future misfortune and periodically repeat the procedure.

[kirkland]

No. Unless you're using corrosive ammo. Plenty of guns have sat for years and years with dirty barrels and suffered no ill effects.

[markm]

Cleaning & oiling the bore before long term storage is cheap insurance.

This.. running an oil patch in each bore is a no brainer. You don't have to clean to perfection though.

[ReaperAZ]

Cleaning & oiling the bore before long term storage is cheap insurance. I came back from overseas (UK) after two years and found the bore of my 6mm looking rough. I hadn't cleaned or oiled it before I left. I thought the bore was destroyed. I ran a couple patches through the bore and it cleaned up in near pristine condition. The patches came out green. The copper in the bore turned to verdigris. Fortunately, home was Southern California and not too near the coast.

I don't know if the verdigris is porous enough to capture moisture or cause corrosion, but it's a simple matter to clean the barrel & oil it against future misfortune and periodically repeat the procedure.



This.. running an oil patch in each bore is a no brainer. You don't have to clean to perfection though.


As others have said I do the same.

The extra minute it takes to run a patch or two down each barrel before I put my rifles back in the safe is time well spent, IMO.

[Hammer_Man]

Run an Otis rip cord through it, and run an oily patch down afterward. Should only takes a few short minutes.

[GHMann]

You don't have to, but you should. It only takes a couple minutes to run a patch through the bore with some CLP and then follow with a few clean patches.

[Colt Carson]

Do you view your weapons as precision mechanical devices, or metal crap you couldn’t care less about?

[grizzlyblake]

Thanks for the input so far.

I've used this multi-piece Wheeler rod on other ARs before and it feels like it's scraping the inside of the barrel. Right now these barrels are virgin in terms of cleaning.

I was going to get the pull string type but read a bunch of threads here where they've broken inside the barrel requiring burning out and such.

Lots of other threads talking about never cleaning bores, just chambers, etc.

I'll probably keep looking for the nice nylon coated one piece rods, but so far everything seems to be out of stock.



All that aside, what is the technical concern with not cleaning a chrome lined barrel after shooting non-corrosive Federal and Speer ammo? Do copper deposits rust from humidity and pit the chrome barrel lining?

[kirkland]

Redacted

[AO777]

Need to? No. But why not run a patch down the bore to be safe. I imagine there’s a member here who would sell you a rod or bore snake if you post an ad in the EE. I’ve run countless bore snakes down many different barrels and never had an issue with one breaking.

[MistWolf]

Thanks for the input so far.

I've used this multi-piece Wheeler rod on other ARs before and it feels like it's scraping the inside of the barrel. Right now these barrels are virgin in terms of cleaning.

I was going to get the pull string type but read a bunch of threads here where they've broken inside the barrel requiring burning out and such.

Lots of other threads talking about never cleaning bores, just chambers, etc.

I'll probably keep looking for the nice nylon coated one piece rods, but so far everything seems to be out of stock.



All that aside, what is the technical concern with not cleaning a chrome lined barrel after shooting non-corrosive Federal and Speer ammo? Do copper deposits rust from humidity and pit the chrome barrel lining?

If you use a standard 22 caliber Bore Snake, you'll be fine. Stay away from the Viper version. They break easy.

With all the time and effort you've spent on this thread, you could have cleaned the ARs, read your kids The Cat In The Hat and tucked them into bed, firm in the knowledge you did what's best for their futures.