Removing a carbon ring with the reamer ?

[hemiford]

I was thinking about cleaning and just thought of this. I have not tried it.

Thought I would bounce the idea off the brain trust here.

If you were really REALLY careful (somehow), would you try removing a carbon buildup with the reamer for your chamber ?

 

[KyCarl]

can you be that careful? I don't think I would try it some thing will get out of round.. chatter... A brass or copper sized plug from the muzzle
would be safer

 

[Longtine88]

Please don't do that OP.

 

[bamban]

I was thinking about cleaning and just thought of this. I have not tried it.

Thought I would bounce the idea off the brain trust here.

If you were really REALLY careful (somehow), would you try removing a carbon buildup with the reamer for your chamber ?

Along the lines of your idea. We are supporting 18-24 Juniors Texas service rifle shooters on any given year. As you can imagine how varied how they maintain their rifles.

As part of the team equipment manager's duty during the yearly 1 week train up prior to Camp Perry, he runs the special carbide reamer I had asked JGS to make for me.

The reamer is a copy of the custom TX JR reamer I use to chamber their barrel - except the only flutes area honed to cut are the ones forward of the neck area.

Run and spin the carbon ring removing reamer till it bottoms out on the shoulder. You can spin it as much you wish it won't change the headspace. The shoulder flutes are not honed to cut.

 

[Beluebow]

No personal experience .....but I know several Fclass guys that use a reamer to remove the carbon ring.

 

[Longtine88]

No personal experience .....but I know several Fclass guys that use a reamer to remove the carbon ring.

If I were to try it I would do it backwards or counter clockwise so it couldn't cut. The not so experienced with a reamer slightest pressure and twisting could at bare minimum scare the chamber surfaces. F class guys sure they are mostly experienced with the concept but for the new guy I would highly not advise it.

I do like Bamban's post though. Great idea and never really thought about making one.

 

[Phil Rizzo]

Don't go over 18" on the cheater pipe.


I am certainly joking, people.

 

[BillyGoatGruff]

I had a bad one a few years ago in my 6.5 saum once I started shooting suppressed 100% of the time. Took it to my gunsmith and he chucked up the barrel and reamer and spun it by hand. Cut out the carbon pretty quick.

Now that I have a borescope I can keep an eye on it and use thorro clean to remove. I clean just the neck with a one size up ioso nylon brush. Used the borescope to see when the brush got to the end of the neck and put a mark on the cleaning rod so I only work that area. Spin in a drill at low rpm for 45ish seconds

 

[VinceMule]

I was thinking about cleaning and just thought of this. I have not tried it.

Thought I would bounce the idea off the brain trust here.

If you were really REALLY careful (somehow), would you try removing a carbon buildup with the reamer for your chamber ?

The carbon will chip your reamer for sure!

Over size bronze bristle brush used with JB, Flitz should get the carbon out. On one bad barrel, I had to use a slow speed 1/2" drill/handle removed from a cleaning rod with an over sized bronze bristle brush with JB to get the carbon ring out.

 

[X'n Tex'n]

You're not going to reach all of the carbon ring with the reamer. Not a bad idea to "ream" some of it out though. Either by hand with a T-handle attached to reamer or slow roll chuck by hand, in lathe, as billygoatgruff mentioned.
Also, good idea using Thorro Clean on a nylon brush. I don't spin it, although this seems like a good idea, I stroke it about 15 times then flush with Thorro flush on a patch, repeat one or two more times…

 

[Hard H2O]

The Vortex Podcast from April 8th about carbon rings was very good.

I believe the talked about a tool someone had made like a reamer to remove carbon rings.

 

[Dean2]

Along the lines of your idea. We are supporting 18-24 Juniors Texas service rifle shooters on any given year. As you can imagine how varied how they maintain their rifles.

As part of the team equipment manager's duty during the yearly 1 week train up prior to Camp Perry, he runs the special carbide reamer I had asked JGS to make for me.

The reamer is a copy of the custom TX JR reamer I use to chamber their barrel - except the only flutes area honed to cut are the ones forward of the neck area.

Run and spin the carbon ring removing reamer till it bottoms out on the shoulder. You can spin it as much you wish it won't change the headspace. The shoulder flutes are not honed to cut.

If the OP built a special tool/reamer like you did, I would say fine. Using a standard reamer to try to do this, not a chance in heck I would recommend it. Loso and steel wool wrapped brush is slow, but it gets the job done and does no damage.

 

[BRADMOTO]

I use Thorroclean on a very oversized bronze brush. So the brush doesn't get to the leade/lands. I do micro stroked with some spins at first to get the solution spread around the entire ring.

 

[Teri Anne]

I was thinking about cleaning and just thought of this. I have not tried it.

Thought I would bounce the idea off the brain trust here.

If you were really REALLY careful (somehow), would you try removing a carbon buildup with the reamer for your chamber ?

Ummm, not if you like your rifle. Way too easy to damage the chamber/rifling. Cleaning the carbon ring is not that difficult. Actually, it's much easier to prevent with proper cleaning after shooting your rifle, and that means every time, even if you only fire a few rounds. Once the ring has established itself it can be removed simply by soaking it with, in my case Hoppes #9 or Military Rifle Bore Cleaner. Then after soaking for around 15 minutes take a BRONZE bore brush (Never stainless steel) put it on the end of one of those three piece aluminum cleaning rods, chuck it into a drill, soak the brush in your cleaning solvent then insert into the chamber and run the brush over the carbon ring for 10 or 15 seconds. Clean out the chamber and rifle bore and do again until the ring is gone. Make sure to soak with solvent between cleaning procedures. Depending on the amount of buildup, it might take two or three times (or possibly more) to remove the ring, but it will eventually disappear. Please note: use only a bronze brush. The bronze is softer than either stainless or carbon moly barrels and will not damage the chamber or rifling. Stainless steel CAN damage both the chamber and rifling.