In reply to this thread:

http://forums.accuratereloadin...45100744/m/397105299

Thought I would share my experiences in a new thread. I have spent much time, money and effort on this subject and if it can help someone save some cash and kill better, good.

I first want to add I have not included any mechanical chemicals or household chemicals like ammonia or engine degreaser. Yes, these can work but can also damage the bore.

- Best Solvent?

Many times I see posts like, "Which is the best?" or "Which is safe?"

My experience has been to just go out and buy as many different brands as I can afford and try them.

I quickly came to the conclusion that many solvents can clean very good but don't get all the copper out. The more aggressive ones get out the copper but have warning labels on them to limit bore exposure. This was a concern to me.

After much trial and error, I decided to use a cleaning regime consisting of 3 different brand of solvents:

(In order of use)



1. Butch's Bore Shine: This is what does about 90% of all my cleaning. I use it at the very beggining and just run patch after patch of it with dry patches which produce a good brown residue with some slight blue copper as well. I trust this cleaner because it is a very balanced cleaner and will not dry out the bore.



2. Barnes CR-10: I have found this solvent to be a must. It gets out the last residue of copper quickly. It is a very potent blend of ammonia and I do not use it for long periods of time. I will put 2 saturated patches of it through followed by 2 dry patches and repeat this 2 times.



3. Hoppe's #9: I use this solvent immediately after the Barnes CR-10 to soothe the bore from the high ammonia content of the Barnes product. I then wait a few minutes and study the Barnes CR-10 patches to see if they all have blue on them. If the last ones do not then I finish the cleaning job with a few more Hoppe's #9. If I find any hint of blue on the CR-10 patches I go back to the CR-10 and run a second round through immendiately followed by Hoppe's #9.

Keep in mind that before using the Barnes or Hoppe products, the Bore Shine solvent has been used for many, many patches. Only the last 20 patches or so are the CR-10 and #9. I buy small 2 oz bottles of each of these and they last a long time. The Butch's I buy in a larger bottle.


I have found the Shooters's Choice and Butch's Bore Shine to be relatively the same product. They both have a hint of ammonia in them, much more than Hoppe's #9. They both are kind of the jack of all trades, master of none. They are not quite aggressive enough to get out all the copper. If I wanted to use only 1 solvent for everything, I would pick Butch's Bore Shine.


Worth mentioning is patches. Butch's Triple Twill are the best. I am currently loading for 7mm and I have to cut each patch into 1/4's to use. I get 3000 patches worth from a 750 count bag. Nothing compares to these.


I end the cleaning session with ATF (automatic transmission fluid) for a bore oil. It protects the bore and is red and visible.