Easy Lead Remover

[Steve]

I have some rounds that lead my 40 S&W pretty bad, but still shoot straight enough to have a good time on the steel plates. I just shoot em too fast but the recoil matches my carry rounds and that is what I want.

Used to have a lot of trouble cleaning the lead out, but for the last couple years It's not been a problem.

When I am ready to quit shooting for the day I get the following ready:
1. Handle with 45 caliber brush on it.
2. Cleaning rod with 40 caliber brush on it.
3. Rag.
4. Small straight tipped screw driver.

This is what I do quickly as I can:
1. Rapid fire a full mag through it. This gets the barrel pretty hot which softens the lead.
2. Field strip the pistol.
3. Using a rag hold the hot barrel and wipe the fouling off the feed ramp and chamber mouth.
4. Spin the 45 caliber brush in the chamber to scrape fouling out.
5. Push the 40 cal bore brush back and forth in the barrel 10 times. (The hot lead comes right out.)
6. Use the small screw driver to scrape the fouling away from the extractor and slide face.
7. Put the pistol back together, wipe it down and load it back up with carry rounds.

The hole procedure only takes about 2 minutes and the pistol is ready to go.

[Fyodor]

I had some nasty leading in my .38 SAAs. I tried everything: boresnake, brass brushes, Lewis lead remover, chemicals...

And then a friend gave me some wonder-rags, that did not only easily clean away the black powder goo and other residue, but also lifted the lead slabs from the rifling, simply wiping them out! I was pretty impressed of that stuff. It actually is just baby wipes from the discounter... worked better than everything I've tried before. Downside is you'll need to treat the gun with WD40 to remove the moisture and oil everything afterwards, because these wipes don't only remove grime and lead, but also every trace of oil.

[Steve]

I had some nasty leading in my .38 SAAs. I tried everything: boresnake, brass brushes, Lewis lead remover, chemicals...

And then a friend gave me some wonder-rags, that did not only easily clean away the black powder goo and other residue, but also lifted the lead slabs from the rifling, simply wiping them out! I was pretty impressed of that stuff. It actually is just baby wipes from the discounter... worked better than everything I've tried before. Downside is you'll need to treat the gun with WD40 to remove the moisture and oil everything afterwards, because these wipes don't only remove grime and lead, but also every trace of oil.

Sounds good, I will give it a try.

[62chevy]

Baby wipes, lol never thought of that one but powder coating stopped the leading for me.

[mr surveyor]

I had some nasty leading in my .38 SAAs. I tried everything: boresnake, brass brushes, Lewis lead remover, chemicals...

And then a friend gave me some wonder-rags, that did not only easily clean away the black powder goo and other residue, but also lifted the lead slabs from the rifling, simply wiping them out! I was pretty impressed of that stuff. It actually is just baby wipes from the discounter... worked better than everything I've tried before. Downside is you'll need to treat the gun with WD40 to remove the moisture and oil everything afterwards, because these wipes don't only remove grime and lead, but also every trace of oil.

Fyodor, now you got me wondering if German babybutts are a whole lot tougher than American babybutts, and your baby wipes have super solvent in them. I had coaches in high school that were always telling me to "get the lead out" .... never woulda thought baby wipes could have done it. I could have won State in the mile run ... if I'd have known what to use to "get the lead out"


OK, yep, you got me curious. You say that whatever to "solvent" is on the baby wipes will make the lead turn loose?

jd

[Fyodor]

Actually I have no idea. I guess it's the mixture of whatever is in there, that creaps under the leading and makes it easy to be lifted off.

I just tear the wipes in half, so they are about as wide as my bronze brushes, and just roll them around the brush. That's all I use as a tool. After a few sheets, they start to come out the muzzle less dirty, but they start carrying lead slabs. Last time it took me about 90 minutes to clean all of my CAS guns (2 SAA, 1866 lever rifle and side by side), and it was the first time I got the leading out of the cylinders and the forcing cone of my revolvers.

[GasGuzzler]

I bet it's baby oil = mineral oil with stink.

[Ranch Dog]

You have my interest as well!

Steve have you tried water quenching your bullets to make them a bit harder so you possible don't have to clean up so quickly. You would need to get the antimony up to 5%.

[RBHarter]

I haven't had a leading problem in a 40 S&W but I had to get to WDWW at .403 for the .401 bbl to stop the tumbling.

I had a 9mm however that after 50 rounds returned lead chunks big enough to put back in the pot. The answer to that 1 was copper fouling . There was a lot of copper ultimately an ultra sonic bath for a couple hours about 20 min at a time got 95% of all the fouling out . Even now without having fired a copper clad round in over 2000 a heavy cleaning will still show up blue stripes from the push side of the lands .

With that said. ....
I will have try the wipes .

[Missionary]

Greetings Steve
I am wondering if your bullets are fat enough.
I shoot several Glocks, a Springfield P9 and a Kal Tec all in 40 S&W with 180 grain PB cast of WW air cooled and near max loads. Hardly no leading. Shoot hundreds when I am north in ILLinois and seldom clean a barrel. But I size at .402.
For rounds that are less pressure I use range scrap. Same bullet but again .402.
Mike in Peru