22: to clean or not to clean - that is the question….!

[Martiniman]

Would welcome views on cleaning your .22’s? I hear/read mixed views on this topic so look forward to seeing whether there is a consensus here - along with best .22 cleaning rod you have found?

Thank you!

[dromia]

I never clean my .22 barrels unless I notice accuracy dropping off. Or when they stop working, semi autos, greasy ammunition is the death of them.

If the conditions are damp then I will pull an almost dry patch wetted slightly with Ed's Red through just to remove and bits of hygroscopic debris.

I have been doing this for over 50 years now without seeing any reason to change.

I an a devotee of the Pro Shot range of steel rods, jags and patches.

Be aware that if you do scrub your barrel it could take a lot of rounds to get it to settle down again.

[1066]

My .22lr sporting rifles and semi-auto gallery rifles, I never really bother about cleaning the barrel but the action/extractors need to be kept clean for reliable functioning.

My .22lr Target rifles: Back in the '70's I took prone shooting quite seriously and, at the time, a barrel clean once a year seem to be quite acceptable, accuracy seemed fine and as long as my average was in the 96-8 range I was quite happy. I gave up prone shooting many years ago but for the last 4-5 years have been doing a fair bit of .22lr benchrest, mostly NSRA rules. With both my Mk5 International and my Anschutz Match 54 I have found that after a deep barrel clean, it takes around 10-15 shots to get back to best accuracy. It stays on song for around 100-120 rounds then drops off just a little and stays in that sort of 98% condition. Shooting prone, back in the day, I was totally unaware of this, had I been aware there may have been a few points to be had.

This is 10 consecutive benchrest cards for 1,000.45 points.

[Peter Leigh]

I to have an anschutz model. What I have always done is what anschutz have said to do, and that's clean with patch after every shoot,(around 3/4 cards 40 rounds) until the patch is very near to clean (mine takes around 5/10 patches and then final patch through to dry. It takes around 5/10 shots to regain full accuracy. Which means 1 card to get the barrel back again,before the scored cards start.
One of my fellow shooters again with an anschutz never cleans his barrel at all,and his average is only 2/3 points behind me. So who knows whats best??

[Mattnall]

I rarely clean the bores of my rifles unless, as Dromia mentions, the accuracy falls off, or if I'm going to leave them in the cabinet for an extended period, then they get a preventative oiling.
The action of semi-autos do need a bit more attention, and if any of them get damp or rained on then yes, a clean is in order.

[Rockhopper]

I guess it depends on you type of shooting. We have an Olympic team shooter in our club and he does a very thorough clean after every fifty rounds.

[Mattnall]

Ask him why does he do it?

It would be interesting to see what he thinks he gains from it.

Some people do something because it was how it was taught to them and it's the way it was always done, the reason is lost in time.
Some believe it will prolong the barrel/rifle life.
Others say it promotes or keeps the accuracy.
There are other reasons, but I'd like to hear what his reason is.

[Martiniman]

Thank you all for taking the time to post your experiences.

Much appreciated:)

[Rockhopper]

His reason is that’s what he needs to do to keep his place in the Olympic team so accuracy is his only consideration. That’s the only motivation for a competition shooter I’d have thought. There was an article in one of the magazines a few years back, all the Olympic shooters follow the same routine.
He spends a full day at the range each week, he’ll usually spend half a day just dry firing a number of whole competition rounds.

[Mattnall]

Interesting.
Does he fire 'fouling shots' or 'blow-off shots'?

I've always found the accuracy, or rather POA/POI changes for the first few shots after I clean the barrel, and the fouling shots are necessary to stabilise the group. I find this is more critical with my 22LR rifle than with my full-bore rifles.
In NRA matches fouling shots are allowed for this very reason (Rule 103 or 301, I can't be bothered to find it just now), it ensures the first competition shot is fired in the same barrel conditions as the last shot.