Carbon cleaning

[cohunt]

I have several form 1 builds and I recently opened them up to check internal fouling.

1 came apart ok but required a little shaking and tapping to get the baffles and spacers out--- the others are being difficult. I got 1 baffle and spacer out but the others are kinda stuck in the tube with carbon fouling.

Tubes are titanium , some baffles/ spacers are ti, some are ss-- and the outside is cerakote hi temp.

I'm not sure about soaking the whole thing due to the cerakote-- any one use carbon cleaner to "soak" the inside to loosen up carbon deposits to remove the internals. ???

 

[338weatherby]

I have several form 1 builds and I recently opened them up to check internal fouling.

1 came apart ok but required a little shaking and tapping to get the baffles and spacers out--- the others are being difficult. I got 1 baffle and spacer out but the others are kinda stuck in the tube with carbon fouling.

Tubes are titanium , some baffles/ spacers are ti, some are ss-- and the outside is cerakote hi temp.

I'm not sure about soaking the whole thing due to the cerakote-- any one use carbon cleaner to "soak" the inside to loosen up carbon deposits to remove the internals. ???

I cleaned one 22 takedown can after about 150-200 rounds. It was terrible. I soaked in Hoppes, Ballistol, and scraped with hard plastic. I used 0000 steel wool and got it clean. After that I found an article saying to take can apart and bake in oven at 160. Then place in DOT 5 silicone brake fluid for the night. I did that and now I can wipe it clean with a rag and some elbow grease. Some stuff still sticks but I'd say it was well worth it.

I know that doesn't answer you question about soaking and cleaning, but when you get it clean, try this.

 

[cohunt]

So how long do you "bake" at 160?
Then just soak the whole thing in dot 5 fluid overnight?
If it works , it sounds pretty easy.

I saw in the other thread about using clr in a barrel - don't jave cle but do have lime-a-way.
I ended up spraying "lime-a-way" into the can and soaked for about an hour. Limiting the amount that got on the cerakote outside. Got the internal parts loose enough to get it all apart to clean.
Interesting part was that I have both ss and ti baffles--- the carbon comes off the ti a whole lot easier than the ss.

 

[338weatherby]

So how long do you "bake" at 160?
Then just soak the whole thing in dot 5 fluid overnight?
If it works , it sounds pretty easy.

I saw in the other thread about using clr in a barrel - don't jave cle but do have lime-a-way.
I ended up spraying "lime-a-way" into the can and soaked for about an hour. Limiting the amount that got on the cerakote outside. Got the internal parts loose enough to get it all apart to clean.
Interesting part was that I have both ss and ti baffles--- the carbon comes off the ti a whole lot easier than the ss.

1-2 hours. Keep it all apart after cleaning. Then heat in oven and soak in DOT 5 prior to reassembling.

 

[cohunt]

I did some more research online and see that boiling in vinegar for 10 min seems to be a good cleaner...and the top 2 preventative coatings are the dot 5 and anti-seize.

I use breach plug antiseize on all the threads and it seems to help

 

[VenatusDominus]

CLR will remove blueing from the metal as blueing is a type of "rust", so definitely do not used on blued gun parts. I have tried all sorts of things for removing carbon on my AR-15 and by far the best I have found is Bore Tech C4 Carbon Remover.

 

[shootnpoke]

I have a titanium monocore can with an aluminum cerakoted tube. The core has more curves and crannies than I can remember right now. I do use CLR to soak the core then brush it with a nylon brush to get the gunk off. Afraid to use it on the tube for fear of etching and messing up the serial number. I have found that using window cleaner, non ammonia type works as good as anything I have tried.
I will be trying the Dot5 trick next time I clean it. Thanks for the tip. Besides the initial wait time, cleaning is the worst part of owning suppressors.

 

[DMP25-06]

I don't have any suppressor to clean , but I will tell you what I have used to clean my Shiloh Sharps .45-70 Black powder Cartridge Rifle and brass .
And it did a fantastic job of removing black powder residue from inside the barrel and brass .

Using a mixture of Glycol-ethylene anti-freeze ( green auto anti-freeze ) and water in a 50/50 ratio , same as used in auto radiators , it made cleaning the barrel nearly effortless , and did a much better than the Black Powder liquid solvents marketed by Hoppes and others .
Just soak a patch in the anti-freeze , swab the barrel a few strokes , dry patch 2-3 times , then a lightly oiled patch before storing .
Non-corrosive and does not harm blueing on firearms .
I dropped all of empty cartridge cases into the anti-freeze jug overnight , and it dissolved BP residue inside cases without agitating .

I don't know if it will work on cleaning carbon buildup from inside a suppressor , but it might be worth a try .

 

[Rflshootr]

Might be easier to put it back together, buy a bottle of cheap bore cleaner at Walmart, plug one end and fill it up and let it soak. Then drain it back into the bottle and keep it for the next cleaning. Might loosen everything up to get it apart for a good cleaning.

 

[qotsarock]

I've been wondering the same thing. Some good ideas here to consider.

 

[hydehunter]

I clean mine mine in a sonic cleaner full of white vinegar comes out very nice

 

[cohunt]

I did the steel baffles in my 22 can about a month ago using clr-- it was super easy-- soak/ brush/ dry-- heat baffles/soak in brake fluid- reassemble

I will see how the dot 5 fluid works next time I open it up.

 

[MW204]

This stuff works great in a gun barrel to get carbon to release but read the directions.

 

[JTH]

Be careful with sonic cleaners, solvents and cans that are not titanium or stainless. I cleaned a can in the sonic cleaner, then dried it in the dehydrator I use to dry my brass at about 160 degrees. A couple days later I'm at the range, fired maybe a dozen rounds through the can. Set up to fire another round and the gun violently came out of the lead sled and hit me in the head. I was stunned, got up to check my head and make sure I wasn't injured too badly, thankfully just a minor cut. Then looked to the gun expecting to find a blown apart action or barrel. What I found was the outer sleeve of the can was completely gone. When I walked down range to retrieve targets, I found the can laying in the grass about 60 yards away if I recall correctly. I returned the can to the manufacturer, they promptly repaired and returned it with no explanation (likely concerned about liability). When I pressed them for an answer they said they don't recommend sonic cleaners or solvents. Hot soapy water, that's it.