I shoot my in-line Savage quite a bit. At the end of the hunting year (now) I do a thorough cleaning. I use the normal array of old-school solvents and light brushing. I'm not big on real aggressive chemicals or brushing.

That said I think the sabots are leaving a skid of plastic in the bore that seems to be slowing the cleaning process up. I'm good on the black powder residue cleaning and incorporate the solvent swab, light brushing, let bore sit 'wet' overnight, then repeat the process.

Is there some current solvent that lends itself to dealing with plastic/sabot fouling?

Acetone will soften plastic and make it easier to brush out, but make sure you drop the action out of the stock. Acetone is darned unforgiving on most items, including wood finishes, plastic stocks, etc.

I just use Hoppe's #9 and a brush. That's about all it is really good for, other than the breach plug.

No plastic can withstand a bronze brush. Brownells markets a jelled plastic wad solvent. I tried it in my Savage after a session with the brush. There was no evidence of any plastic removed by the stuff.

It does work. It dissolved the plastic cement holding a cleaning rod together.

I starting using the foaming bore cleaners once a year and am amazed how well they work. I would give that a try if the brush doesn't work for you.

Good luck.

Try the stainless steel sponge from Brownell's.
I use them frequently with no damage to rifling or bluing and it does a very good job of removing the plastic.
Wrap some around a brush and go to town.

I don't use sabots, but chore boy scrubbers wrapped around a cleaning rod work well for lead fouling and I suspect they would clean plastic fouling just as well.

I don't shoot plastic in my muzzleloaders but I shoot a lot of trap, skeet and sporting clays in the course of a year. After a couple of months the plastic build up is noticeable. For years now my method of cleaning it has been to coat the inside of the barrel liberally with Shooter's Choice bore cleaner. Place the barrel in a vise and let it stand 1/2 hour then rotate the barrel 180 degrees to allow the bore cleaner to run to the other side of the barrel. Allow it to stand another 1/2 hour. With a patch over a copper brush push the bore cleaner out. The plastic will come out in stringy globs.

I've used this method for 20 years. It really works well to get the plastic out.

Mart

I think mart is correct, I seem to remember that Shooters Choice is designed to remove the plastic residue from plastic shotgun shell wads.

Thanks, I'll give the Shooter's Choice a go.

quote:

Originally posted by larrys:
I just use Hoppe's #9 and a brush.

Ditto, although I usually do a thorough cleaning on my Inline right after the hunt, and not at the end of the season.

+1 on the Shooters Choice. Have been using it for years to get plastic sabot residue out of both my MLs and my 12ga bolt slug guns. Works better than anything I know of. Also does a bang up job removing powder build up.

There is a cheaper way that works great on cleaning any muzzleloader using any powder. It even removes the crud ring so commom in inlines.

Go to the Dollar Store or any of those places and buy their CHEAPEST windshield washer fluid. Do not buy anything with a rain guard additive.

Put a round toothpick in your primer hole/cap nipple/touch hole. Stand the gun up and pour the barrel full of the cleaner. Stand in the corner for 30 minutes or more. Pour it out and refill the barrel. Let set for 10 minutes and pull the toothpick. Let it drain a bit and then pour out the rest. Run a clean patch down the barrel and then run a patch with Bore Butter or some perservative down the barrel and you're done until the next session.

I agree with Mart, the Shooter's Choice will get the plastic out of your bore without damage. Good Luck.

Polyethylene is so chemical resistant that it is used for implants in human bodies.
There really nothing short of HFL acid that will attack it.

I have not tried this on a Muzzleloader since I don't use sabots, but I do know that the plastic wad in shotgun shells is very effectively removed with Bore Tech's Shotgun Blend cleaner. Might be worth a try.

+1 what youp50 said, if some of the other suggestions do not
work.

Acetone comes in a bottle made of a very similar material in
which sabots are made. Anyone ever see those plastic
containers "melt"??

I shoot black powder for cowboy action shooting. Rifle, pistol and shotguns. I have found windex followed by hot water and a few passes with a brush works wonderfully. I have never tried it on my muzzleloader but expect it would work equally well.

For my shot gun and all of the plastic the wads leave behind I use Shooter's Choice Bore and Choke cleaner.....
Spray in the barrels leave for 5 mins or more push a patch thru and the plastic comes out in strings

Get your self a Lewis Lead Removal kit. The copper mesh patches are too small for a shotgun but work great on muzzle loaders to remove sabot fouling or lead. Much faster than solvents and won't damage bore as some solvents may.

You can't beat Blue Wonder Gun Cleaner for taking everything that's built up in a bore out.
Brush full of it, ten strokes, ten minute break, then ten more strokes and patch it clean.
Make sure you oil it up real good soon as that's done or it will flash rust any place the BWGC has touched.
IT will also take all the finish off wood quicker than you can react. So be careful what it gets on.

If nothing else works ,give this a try.
George