Cleaning cylinder flutes

rperyam

rperyam

Member
Joined
Aug 6, 2014
Messages
267
Location
Northern California
I have an older S&W model 19 that has been in the back of my safe for a number of years. I took it out yesterday and shot it. Such a nice trigger and so accurate with light loads I wonder why I’ve neglected it. Went to clean it this morning and found a lot of carbon or gunpowder residue filling up the flutes. What do you use to clean up this area. I soaked it with Hoppe‘s and tried a brass brush without a lot of success. Maybe I just need to give it more time to work. Any other magic tricks you’ve tried that works?
 
Dan-O said:
If it’s not the chambers, it’s not worth wasting my time
Click to expand...
Jerry Miculek wrote something to that effect; it's the inside of the gun that
counts, not the outside. Of course he also has admitted that at least with
the stainless steel guns he's used an empty .38 case to scrape out the
crud in the flutes. Saw him years ago at an exhibition in Wisconsin and
his guns were filthy. And I don't think it was just from that day.:):):)

Of course, I think we all do like to see clean guns.
 
Taurus 617 CCW said:
Pick ip a lead remover cleaning cloth by Birchwood Casey. It does wonders not only on the cylinder flutes but the cylinder face as well. Best $8.00I have spent in a long time.
Click to expand...
I thought I read somewhere that that BC lead remover cloth was not good for the blued finished revolvers. Abrasive maybe? Edit: I did a search and one thread on this forum from 2009 stated it's abrasive & made for stainless guns. Another forum's thread confirmed it and stated the package warned about using it on blued guns finish. If you do choose to use it, don't rub hard, it would be a shame to ruin the finish of a blued Model 19. I just happen to have a bag. 20240118_162102.jpg
 
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Taurus 617 CCW said:
Pick ip a lead remover cleaning cloth by Birchwood Casey. It does wonders not only on the cylinder flutes but the cylinder face as well. Best $8.00I have spent in a long time.
Click to expand...

@rperyam don’t use a lead remover cloth on blued gun parts. It WILL remove bluing.

I would coat my cylinder with CLP and leave it overnight. The next day it should come right off.
A trick I use to clean my cylinders including the dreaded cylinder face. After shooting I wipe the entire gun with a silicone cloth. When I clean it, I wipe the cylinder face with a silicone cloth. It seems the carbon crud doesn’t stick so well and makes cleaning it easier.
 
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Just apply a good bore solvent or some Kroil and let it soak a while. Use more on a patch to lightly rub after soaking.

DO NOT USE A LEAD-AWAY CLOTH ON A BLUED GUN......It WILL strip the bluing right off and will also damage nickel finishes.
Use these on stainless or bare steel only.
 
rperyam said:
I have an older S&W model 19 that has been in the back of my safe for a number of years. I took it out yesterday and shot it. Such a nice trigger and so accurate with light loads I wonder why I’ve neglected it. Went to clean it this morning and found a lot of carbon or gunpowder residue filling up the flutes. What do you use to clean up this area. I soaked it with Hoppe‘s and tried a brass brush without a lot of success. Maybe I just need to give it more time to work. Any other magic tricks you’ve tried that works?
Click to expand...
Iosso Gun Brite Polish will clean the flutes and cylinder throat face it is a great product put some on , brush it good wipe it off it’s that good and for very dirty bores try there bore cleaner followed by a patch of the polish.
 
rperyam said:
$6.99 on Amazon. Just ordered one, thanks.
Click to expand...
Pick up some sandpaper while you're at it, just to be sure.

(In all seriousness, heed the warnings about lead cloths and bluing. It's all true.)

A safer bet is to soak the cylinder in something like Kroil, WD-40, or Ballistol, and then gently go at it with bronze wool. I've also used 0000 steel wool, but you do have to go lightly; hard pressure can dull the finish.

I personally would just continue to shoot and clean the gun, paying special attention to the flutes each time. Eventually they will come clean.
 
When shooting revolvers am bring along a water dampened cloth in a plastic bag. If you wipe the outside flutes off while the cylinder is still hot, most the powder/crud comes right off. Heat evaporates any moisture. After the powder cools, it hardens and is a pain. This also works on rifle brass case mouths, if you are slow firing with a brief time between strings and saves considerably on case cleaning time.
 
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zeke said:
When shooting revolvers am bring along a damp cloth in a plastic bag. If you wipe the outside flutes off while the cylinder is still hot, most the powder/crud comes right off. Heat evaporates any moisture. After the powder cools, it hardens and is a pain. This also works on rifle brass case mouths, if you are slow firing with a brief time between strings and saves considerably on case cleaning time.
Click to expand...
“Damp” as in water or something else?
That’s an interesting idea.
 
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