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Revolver cylinder fouling rings.

4K views 22 replies 21 participants last post by  grayman 
#1 ·
A friend called me today looking for help with their .357 magnum revolver. They have always only shot .38spl in the revolver and now with the ammo crunch they were forced to get .357 Mag ammo as they could not find any .38spl.

They shot their last bit of .38spl at the range and went to load up some .357 magnum before they went home. This will be their self defense gun in their home and they feel the need to make sure it is ready during these trying times.

The .357 Mag ammo will not load into the cylinder. Of course they called me from the range and I told them to verify the that the gun is labeled .357 Mag, and it is. After some questioning I found out that they shot around 300 rounds of old dirty Aquila .38spl they had from their dad that he bought in the late 90's and they have never cleaned the barrel or the cylinder. They went and got some cleaning supplies including a .38 caliber brass cleaning brush. No luck in getting the fouling out.

Best I can tell without seeing the gun myself is that the space between the end of the .38spl brass and the cylinder throats is caked with fouling and lead.

What is the best way to remove this 15+ year old fouling? I have a feeling this gun will end up in my hands some time this coming week for some serious cleaning.
 
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#2 ·
Too bad those folks didn't realize that revolvers are filthy-shooting sidearms. Every time I use a revolver, I scrub it clean. And my .357 is the worst!

I'd use CLP and let it work for a while. I mix CLP with mineral spirits and soak AR parts and it cuts the crap pretty well. There are foaming cleaners that seem to work pretty well too.

Again, as you well know Paul, time is our friend when doing a good cleaning. :D
 
#4 ·
Tell'em to buy a 10mm/.40 brush and go to town on it to get the rings out of the chambers.

Soak it down with bore cleaner, let it set for 5 or 10 minutes and start scrubbing (it'll pull easier than it will push). Repeat as necessary until clean.

A Lewis Lead Remover or some bronze wool wrapped around a old bore brush would do it faster, but these guys need a lesson in the importance of upkeep and maintainence of a firearm and the application of a little elbow grease has never hurt anybody but it surely works great as a reminder.
 
#5 ·
They can get it out, but it's won't be quick and it will take a lot of elbow grease. They have to keep cleaning it until it's gone. If they're the type to go: wipe, wipe, oh it's not going to ever work it's too dirty, they will never get it clean. They're going to have to keep at it with brush and chemicals and wear it down over time working at it. I've seen people load a brass brush into a drill and use that to speed up the process.
 
#8 ·
I noticed this years ago with my .357 Blackhawk conversion. The 9mm American eagle was nasty powder. I always ended the range trip by shooting .357. The powder ring would push easy enough as it was fresh. One or two reloads with .357 and it was good to go. Run a spent .357 case in to crape it off after shooting it. But do not let it go home to bake on uncleaned. Speaking of such, i have an AR to clean. The gnats were bad at the range so I didn't do the quick clean on the bench.
 
#9 ·
MMMMMMM I mean I must be an odd-ball It TAKES me a lot of shooting to reach this level of crud in the chambers....My Dad, Fallen Comrades His Comrades, My friends whom have passed, Dads friends whom are gone. Would have risen out of the GRAVE to beat my head in until the weapon or gun was cleaned. Absolute max between cleaning I GO is 100 rounds I have had associates say to MUCH cleaning, Eh I aint calling to get fouling out so the weapon/gun is usable Eh imagine that. However Gun Scrubber Larger Bore Brush and a lot of scrubbing elbow grease is recommended if it is a STAINLESS not a BLUED, has to be STAINLESS Mothers Mag Polish may aide a little.
 
#13 ·
A .375 rifle brush helps. Also as mentioned the .357 case to scrape it off. I expand it a little and sharpen it with a chamfer tool.
 
#15 ·
Yeah, I think elbow grease is the order of the day. I'd start by using some kind of cleaner and a .38 brush and just brush the insides of each hole in the cylinder over and over and over. Then, you can try sonic cleaning and other things like that, but I think it's going to take some work to get it where they're happy with extracting 357 brass from that gun, much less getting it to go in.
 
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#16 ·
Well I appreciate the replies, just talked to him a few minutes ago. He stuffed paper towels in the chambers and soaked them with Hoppe's #9. Let them set a couple of hours and then scrubbed with the brass brush. Repeated several times. Has 4 of the 5 chambers cleaned out and a .357 Mag loads fine. He is still working on the 5th chamber. I did suggest he visit this forum to read the suggestions. He definitely learned his lesson and now knows to clean the gun after shooting it. I'm just glad it did not end up in my hands to clean. Of course if it did I would have helped him.
 
#23 ·
Wow,...thought I was the only one that did that, It also helps get that coating from steel cased ammo off the cylinder wall and chamber on the semi-auto barrels except I do that after every range trip.
I start with the cylinder or barrel first then set them aside for last and I only need a small jar of elbow grease;)
 
#18 · (Edited)
Unfortunately, the old Lewis Lead Remover product is no longer available but I think Outers makes a similar product which consists of a caliber-specific swag-like attachment for your cleaning rod and round brass screens. Using JB Bore compound, take a cleaning patch coated with JB and run that in the chamber to scrub the scorched ring. Leave the JB paste in there and use the attachment with the brass screen in place and run that through 4-5 times. The brass screen should be coated with lead. Then use a normal brass brush with solvent followed by the normal patches to clean out any residue and you MIGHT get it to work. Another thing to try is get a stainless steel bore brush and attach is to a small drill with JB bore compound. JB is a mild rubbing compound much like used in automotive work. You can get if from Brownells. All this may take several tries given the condition you report. If this gentleman waited 15 years to clean his gun, it may be a lost cause. The "fouling" you speak of is most certainly lead but more likely the galling of the metal from the heat of the cartridge discharge ahead of the taper point at the end of the chamber. The inherent result is most likely to be inconsistent dimensions from chamber to chamber. Some chambers will accept .357 easier than others. A competent gunsmith can use a chamber reamer to remove it too. No manufacturer was specified but there are different chamber dimensions between manufacturers from .356 to .358. A last resort if it is a quality gun is to simply send it back to the manufacturer and have a new cylinder installed. Good luck.
 
#20 ·
I made a tool as described above years ago, I also drilled the primer pocket & put a small bolt & nut threw it & it fits on a cleaning brush..
Made one with just a flared open mouth & it's the stuff for getting that crud out of a 357/38 too..
I made sure to use 100% brass 357 cases to make these cleaners Not chrome plated cases..
I've tried the chore boy trick many times as well, Keep a piece around for all kinds of scrubbing..
Maybe I'll get a picture of this.. Works Too Good!!
Gary/Hk
 
#22 ·
Lots of good ideas 👍. I think the key ingredients are effective solvents and "elbow grease" 😉. I'd proceed cautiously with abrasives. Keep in mind that you're only removing built up powder and lead residue ant NOT any metal! I've used the "Chore Boy" method on stubborn build up before with good results. There are other brands of similar products. You must be sure that they are PURE copper and NOT merely copper colored steel 😳. For those with a limited supply of "elbow grease" or time, a brass brush chucked up in a drill can be highly effective. Just make sure that you're not being too effective. As it is often said "the enemy of 'good' is 'better' 😉").
As mentioned early in the thread, revolvers get "dirty" quickly. It's the nature of the beast 😬. I don't always do a "full on" cleaning after every range session but usually run a solvent soaked swab through each of the cylinder bores and the barrel. That's followed by a wipe down of the cylinder face and area of the frame around the forcing cone. That way, when I do the "full on" cleaning, it's a lot less work 😎.
Flex
 
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