shooting corrosive ammo

[chudrockz]

Hi guys!

I'm a proud owner of a Mosin Nagant rifle. Thus far, I've only fired new production ammo in it, mostly Brown Bear and Silver Bear. However, my stash of those is running low, and I am down to a mere 800 rounds... of military surplus corrosive ammunition. I could look it up and see what type it is later, I don't recall at the moment.

In any case, I'm nervous about using it, as I'm fairly poor at cleaning my guns.

Therefore, what tips, if any, does anyone have for cleaning a gun immediately after using corrosive ammo? I've heard of people pouring boiling water down the barrel via a funnel, and then doing a normal cleaning. Does that work?

Do NOT wanna wreck my old Soviet banger, as I really really like it! Thanks.

[photogpat]

You can't wreck a Mosin. The "corrosive" component to the ammo is a perchlorate "salt" in the primer. Perchlorates are oxidizers...once fired and deposited on the metal surfaces of the gun, they combine with moisture in the air to form a semi-liquid. The liquid then "oxidizes" the steel, hence, rusting it.

Shoot corrosive ammo to your hearts content -- just be sure once you bring it home, spray liberally with water (or windex), wipe, spray again, wipe, get everything including bolt, magazine, cleaning rod, etc....all metal surfaces need to be sprayed down.

Then proceed with your normal cleaning regime.

Not really a huge pain in the butt...

[heavy metal daze]

I clean with Gunzilla, which I just spritz on the gun (bore and bolt) after shooting, and then clean normally when I get time. I never noticed any advanced rusting or wear, even if I don't get to cleaning for a week afterwards. I think the effects of corrosive ammo is overblown, especially what you read on the internet. Then again, I'm not shooting collector pieces, either, and your mileage may vary.
This is with shooting Mosin Nagants, Mausers, SKS's, and AK's.

[forcefed]

Use Windex. Make sure you get the stuff that has ammonia in it though. That will eliminate the corrosive salts that primers release.

[Stradawhovious]

I scrub the bore with barnes copper solvent (very high ammonia content) and a nylon brush, then patch the bore with hoppes until the patches come out cleanish, then run a few dry patches down followed by one patch with a light coating of oil.

That's as much as I do for the Mosins, and the bores always come out shiny.

On a related note, I don't understand not cleaning guns. To me, that's almost as much fun as shooting them.

[chudrockz]

I scrub the bore with barnes copper solvent (very high ammonia content) and a nylon brush, then patch the bore with hoppes until the patches come out cleanish, then run a few dry patches down followed by one patch with a light coating of oil.

That's as much as I do for the Mosins, and the bores always come out shiny.

On a related note, I don't understand not cleaning guns. To me, that's almost as much fun as shooting them.

Ah, then you need to teach me how to do it right!! (Honestly, as someone pretty new to all things "long gun," no one ever has.)

Part of my problem is I have a wife who is scared of them - though she's taking gun training right now and getting better. The other part of my problem is we have curious cats, who every time I get out oils, solvents, and start taking things apart, they think it's the greatest new cat toy in all of history, and will NOT leave it alone.

[yuppiejr]

I watched my brother in law throw a Mosin in a soft sided rifle case on a 90+ degree /90+ percent humidity day after we collectively shot 200+ rounds of mixed light ball corrosive surplus, and let it sit overnight. The gun was no worse for wear the next day, I took mercy on the poor firearm and gave the bolt/action and barrel a quick blast with Hoppes #9 and run through with a few cleaning patches and the gun was no worse for wear, no signs of rust or corrosion that I could find beyond the usual copper/powder fouling.

I was taught cleaning guns is part of the ritual of shooting them and not only good for their long term function + value, but an important opportunity to check for wear and tear that may not be detected during normal function. If nothing else figure out a 5 minute routine to get the worst knocked out, for a beater bolt action gun like a MN it really should not take more than 5 minutes to pull the bolt and then hit the accessible bits (bolt/reciever) with a toothbrush soaked in Hoppes #9 followed by a few runs through the bore with a bronze brush and some wet/dry patches.

[photogpat]

On a related note, I don't understand not cleaning guns. To me, that's almost as much fun as shooting them.

Plus, its an excuse to hole up in the man cave and drink!

[Stradawhovious]

On a related note, I don't understand not cleaning guns. To me, that's almost as much fun as shooting them.

Plus, its an excuse to hole up in the man cave and drink!

Yep. Very few things are as satisfying as a good burbon, and seeing a clean patch emerge from the muzzle of a rifle after a long day of shooting.

[wrench]

All you need to clean up after corrosive ammo is water, plain old water. Hot water is best, as it evaporates from surfaces quickly.
The ammonia does nothing for corrosive primers, it's the water that washes it away, it doesn't 'neutralize' it.
Shoot all you like, when I get home, I flush the bore with hot water using a solvent bottle to squirt it down the bore. I run two wet patches, and use another wet patch to wipe the bolt face.
Then normal cleaning using whatever you use.
No need to clean the magazine or anything else, IMO, unless you pierce a primer or split a case, and blow gases everywhere.
I have shot lots of corrosive, with no problems.
Fire at will

[yuppiejr]

On a related note, I don't understand not cleaning guns. To me, that's almost as much fun as shooting them.

Plus, its an excuse to hole up in the man cave and drink!

Yep. Very few things are as satisfying as a good burbon, and seeing a clean patch emerge from the muzzle of a rifle after a long day of shooting.

I've never seen a clean patch emerge from the muzzle of a Mosin... which makes it the perfect drinking buddy.

[MNIceMan]

Nothing more than rinsing with plain water and a swab, that is all you need to do before performing a normal cleaning.

[David]

On a related note, I don't understand not cleaning guns. To me, that's almost as much fun as shooting them.

That's because you don't have friends who insist that you bring 50 or so guns to the range at a time!

Seriously though, I clean my guns fairly quickly after I shoot them if I'm not going to shoot them again soon. I go years between some outings. The one pistol, rifle, and shotgun that I shoot regularly don't get cleaned until they stop working, or about once per year, whichever comes first.

[Snowgun]

I clean with Gunzilla,

+1, That **** is AWESOME! I just ordered another gallon.

Between that and KG -12, I can clean anything off or out of anything, and not have to spend all day doing it.

[bigd55433]

I'm no expert on Mossins, but from what I've seen with the AK's I'm more familiar with the real cost of shooting is the ammo, not the gun. I'm guessing the Mossins are the same since I've seen them for under $100. So personally I don't mind shooting corrosive since I shoot 1k rounds a month or so. The cost savings eliminates the worry of a destroyed gun to me since the ammo is the biggest investment. But, if you clean it right your fine anyway and don't need to worry about the rust scare.

I use regular water immediately douse the barrel with a squirt bottle after the last round there's enough heat in the barrel to heat the water draining through it to successfully loosen it up dilute it, after the barrel is cool to touch I follow by a clean dry bore snake. Once I get home I do a thorough cleaning/oiling. I haven't seen any signs of corrosion yet on my gear in years and years of corrosive ammo. Heck to be perfectly honest I shot for a few years not knowing I had corrosive ammo or what it was and did nothing different.