Cleaning rods

[PantherPlayer]

Any suggestions on a good cleaning rod??  The threads on my stainless one piece broke off in the handle so I'm on the hunt for a new one.  I'm leaning towards a carbon fiber one piece but I figured I would check out what the rest of you forum junkies had to say

[imschur]

Have you tried a bore snake?

[specopsscout]

Dewey Coated Cleaning Rod

[ripley]

I also use the Bore Snake, but in an actual cleaning rod you can't beat the Tipton. I have 2 (sizes ) they work great.

[dirigoboy]

Yup......I bought a Dewey rod too, teflon coated I believe.  I like it.  Got the chamber rod too.

[SWshooter]

I have Dewey and Tipton. Both are good. If your wallet will handle it, the carbon fiber rods are tops. They are almost indestructible and will not take a set. Buy a really good rod and you will only ever buy one. You will also be surprised how much more you will enjoy cleaning a rifle.

[houdni]

i use a tipton and a bore guide...

[draco41]

Boretech makes some good rods too.

[Dusty44]

I use whatever cleaning rods I can find in a package on the display at Wal-Mart or wherever. 

Most of them work well,  a few have broken at the threaded joins but that is because they  are supposed to be pushed or pulled STRAIGHT and I screwed up. 

I have a thin small steel one that fits in the bottom of the 'Necessary' bag for the BP rifles against emergency need;  an aluminum and a brass one in my range box that are usually the ones that do the work.  Sometimes I have used a long screwdriver to push a patch (wad of paper towel saturated with solvent or oil?) through the barrels of my handguns or to get into crannies of mechanism;  and a needle nose pliers with a long thin very needle nose to pull the patch back out. 

Before anyone jumps down my throat:  I am well aware of the hazard of steel against steel.  I am careful and take precaution.  I have professional experience in other places caring for delicate and sensitive devices.  (Professional operator:  Do not try this at home?? <lmao>)  I have been successfully doing this for nearly 50 years.  50 is not my age,  it is approximately how long I have been shooting and cleaning guns.  :P

The professional  and the serious competition shooters say to only use a one-piece rod and it must be made of brass or,  more recently,  carbon fiber.  Reminiscent of back when brass cleaning rods were new and the purists were arguing about which kind of wood made the best ram rods and cleaning rods and bad-mouthing brass used for that.

My thinking is to use whatever makes you happy.  Mainly,  clean those guns!  They really do a lot better clean,  in every way.  I wince when I hear or read someones statement about his guns not doing well until they accumulate the crud of 50 or 100 or however many rounds.

I read this back to myself and apologize for the hostilities.  I still think it is valid and worth saying.  My mood just needs a good  'fix' of a day at the shooting range that has been delayed too long. ::)

[Dusty44]

For PantherPlayer:  Can the broken off threads of your stainless cleaning rod be extracted from the handle and then the rod be re-threaded? 

I personally would try some Kroil (MidwayUSA,  some gunshops) to loosen the parts and then a cheap easy-out (set?) from the hardware store or other place,  and some time with a threading die.

Sometimes it is not worth the effort,  sometimes it is?

[survivalshop]

I guess I'm old fashioned , I use the so called Wally world type also .

My newest came from Gander Mountain ,one of the nice cases with every size in the world in them . ( a Christmas present from my daughter)

I have a one piece aluminium rod for 22 cal. ( AR's)

I have never liked steel rods. The aluminium ones are inexpensive & will not harm any barrel . IMO

I have a early carbon rod set for my shot guns & one of the brass threaded inserts came unglued . Maybe the newer ones may be better.

[SWshooter]

No one is saying that an aluminum Outers or Hoppes rod won't work. I have used them myself for many years. A lot depends on how much you shoot and how often you need to clean your guns. A jointed rod is much handier to pack than a one-piece. I have a slick little jointed rod that uses a cable and a threaded handle to make an excellent field rod, I carry it in the pocket of my hunting coat to clear snow or mud, or remove a stuck cartridge. A good one piece steel rod, with ball bearing handle, makes cleaning easier on you and the gun. But even a one-piece steel rod can be bent, and it is tough to straighten one if you do. The best rod is a one piece carbon fiber with ball bearing handle. It simply will not take a set. I bought one to clean a 17 HMR and I like it so much I bought the adapter to use for cleaning my 22's as well. I wouldn't buy a one piece steel rod, now that the carbon rods are available, they bend too easy. But if you don't shoot thousands or ten thousands of rounds a year it is probably wasted money to spend that much on a rod you won't use that often.

[TonyW]

On my other ARs I have used Tipton rods - but my OBR came with a micro-OTIS  300 kit - -- the proper tip and the coiled memory flex "rod". This fits in a small Ziploc type pouch with a tube of their oil and a couple of patches. I haven't even used the brass brush that came with it. As per the literature, each patch can be used many times by the different ways of attaching it. This system is very convenient (portable) and easy to use. And since the "rod" coils to about a 3" circle, it is easy to take along with the shooting kit or in the rifle case.

[mrmackc]

I shot with some of the world's best centerfire competitors back in the 1970s one of them was George Tubbs (David Tubbs father) and they used steel cleaning rods because soft rods and coated rods get embedded with small pieces of hard grit that do more damage to the bore and muzzle than slick steel rods. Many of these shooters used rod guides on their service rifles (National Match M1 and M 14 rifles) used at the National matches.

[mineralman55]

I use the one piece surplus cleaning rod purchased from CMP. Screw an extra length onto it and it reaches thru a 20" barrel from the breach. Great item. Think I paid $10.

[unforgiven]

I mostly use a coated cable.

[shibiwan]

I use the Otis kit and a 30-cal Tetra rod if need be.

[jtallen83]

I like the Otis system as well, compact, rugged, and inexpensive on the used market. On the rare occasion I have some serious scrubbing to do I have a one piece Dewey stainless and use a bore guide.

[Malig8r]

I use Tipton carbon fiber rods in conjunction with a bore guide for all my rifles.

[Magwa]

If it is not a coated rod, and if you are not using a chamber guide and cleaning from the breech ONLY you are fooking up..... I would never use a bore snake or any of the rope like cleaners they accumulate grit copper and dirt on them and then you drag that through your bore..... clean only from the breech and use a chamber guide unscrew the jag at the muzzle end and then take the rod out and clean it with a rag rinse and repeat..... do not clean from the muzzle as that wears out your crown and that is the most important part of the barrel....and do not put the brush in and go back and forth one way travel from breech to muzzle....