Question: does firing a lead bullet foul up the barrel. Is there a best way to clean it. 45/70, shot brass jacketed hornadays and loved em. Got a box of winchester to try lead bullets but wanted to see what others opinions are.
It all depends. Condition of the bore, speed vs alloy used the make the bullets, the lube used, how many rounds fired, and a few more. I shoot almost nothing but self cast lead because it's much cheaper to make my own. Clean the bore very well before shooting lead as copper fouling will lead to lead fouling. I load very fast (for lead) rounds for hunting and have no trouble with leading. However I only shoot a mag or so of these at any one time so leading isn't a problem. If I shot to many more leading would likely occure. For my plinking I shoot wheel weight slugs dropped in water hoping it will make them a tad bit harder. Some of these I push pretty hard, and if I shoot a bunch the guns lead a little. I clean them like normal, but it generally takes more bore work to get them clean. I have had SERVER leading (think lead plated) a few times due to errors I made with lude. They were an absolute mother bear to get clean, and took days of soaking and scrubbing to get clean. I love the stuff due to costs, but they are a bit harder to clean sometimes. Hint: It really helps with cleaning to shoot a few jacketed rounds after shooting a boat load of lead. The jacket material removes the lead fouling.
I have found that spraying the bore with silicone spray, let stand for about 2 minutes then using a tight (new) stainless steel or phosphor bronze bore brush cleans out the leading fairly quickly. I use this technique in my H&R buffalo Classic, Navy Arms Enfield .45-70's, as well as my Marlin .30-30 and .35 Rem when shooting plain base and gas checked cast wheel weight bullets. Works great for me.
Proper fit is important I have a Buffalo Classic 45/70 that won't shoot any cast without leading. Same for my 30-30 single shot. Leading should be simple to remove. I use #0000 steel wool with the fibers pulled out very thin over a wet snug patch. Even better for the bore is bronze wool if you can find it. Pro-Shot Products ,PO box 763 ,Taylorville ,Illinois 62568 (217) 824 -9133 makes a lead-clean gun cloth. Cut off a small patch and it will pick up the lead in 2 or 3 passes . Both of the afore mentioned rifles shoot jacketed with no problems at all. I just got a vintage Marlin 1963 336 30-30 that shoots 170 grain Oregon Trail gas checks without a trace of leading. It is my limited understanding that most all leading is a result of bullet to bore fit is off . Sure hope you get by without the bore leading. I have just learned to live with the 45/70 leading. I can get around 20 shots at clays tossed on a berm 110 yds out before the leading fouls my shots. 15 min. at home and bore sparkles again. Sure gets fustrating though.
More important info. The Pro Shot lead-free gun cloth has note in directions that mentioned it should be used on Stainless or nickel only. I used it many times on my H&R Buffalo Clsassic blued rifle without affecting blueing . I would still be cautious to restrict it to the bore only. It remains the single best method I've used to grab the lead from the bore. It will feel a little rough first pass and perhaps a bit on second, but the third stroke will be smooth and bore will be lead free . The lead will be firmly attached to the patch. Using more patches will continue to come out dark but that is the chemicals. Just run a couple clean regular patches afterward and it is done. Sorry for not bringing this to light on the first response ,as I feel it is important . Enjoy a safe shoot.
