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lead or copper/brass washed bullets

7K views 8 replies 8 participants last post by  Gizzy 
#1 ·
Ive been doing some reading about different 22 ammunition and read in one article where it strongly advises you to NOT USE lead ammo, instead using copper or brass washed ammunition. The reason for this is that the lead is much harder to clean out of the rifleing that the other stuff....I dont know if i believe that to be true. I clean my 22 after every time i shoot it with a little bit of hoppes No.9 and some patches and it comes clean, every time.

I dont know..i dont want to believe that statement because its so easy to shoot bulk 22 ammo...i shoot american eagle solids. cant beat 17.00 per brick.

anyone else have any opinions?
 
#2 ·
I've been stuffing lead bullets down 22 bores now for near 50 years with nary a problem. Your talking about fairly low velocities here and leading has never been a problem. Now cleaning can be. without a bore guide cleaning rod damage destroys more 22's than any amount of shooting.
 
#6 ·
I've actually been thinking of dispensing with cleaning rods for general use and going with bore snakes. To that end I've also been thinking about switching from a solvent/oil setup and going with a product like CLP to make things a bit quicker and easier. CLP on a bore snake with a couple of passes through, and things should be pretty much cleaned out - right? Or, would I be better off going with solvent and oil, but using them with a bore snake?

Either way, I don't like cleaning .22s with a rod due to the close tolerances thanks to the narrow bore - I just think that for my .22s at the very least, I'd be better off using a bore snake.
 
#3 ·
Bob's right. Also, if lead slugs are leading the bore then the bore is too rough and needs a little lapping. The best reason to use copper coated slugs is because they tend to chamber more reliably in semi autos. I have three match grade Anschutz rifles that can each go hundreds of shots without accuracy problems or needing cleaning. And that is using match grade lead bullets.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Ditto the last two responses. I shoot nothing but lead bullets in my target and hunting .22s, rifles and pistols. There is no problem. I wonder what that author of that article was thinking about. In terms of top shelf match quality .22s - I don't believe that you can buy anything BUT lead bullets.
Cleaning - a pull through with a bore snake and a light coat of oil. Done.
Pete
 
#5 ·
Ditto again, sounds like the person who wrote that article either didn't have a clue what he was talking about, or had very limited experience with 22's, maybe had one with a rough bore?

I'm in the group of people who never clean rimfire bores. I clean the action and sometimes the chamber if it gets wax buildup, but I never touch the bore. I've never seen any lead built up in any of my rimfire bores either.

If I was going to clean the bore, it would be with a bore snake as posted above, not a cleaning rod.
 
#8 ·
My Rem 513TX digests just about anything; my Colt Woodsman MT, on the other hand, is finicky. After testing some 2000 rounds of different brands for feed and ignition reliability, I've settled on CCI & Federal copper-plated HV as they went thru the gun with the least hassle.

Bud W
 
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