A carbon steel brush on chrome lined components?

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jdubb16

Bearcat
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Feb 26, 2017
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Darrouzett, Texas
I had some heavy carbon build up on my Ruger 762 rifle. It was on the gas piston and regulator. I soaked the parts in "butch's Bore Shine" and used a carbon steel brush in my dremel (at low speed) to brush the build up off. It worked great...

But my question is- could the steel brush scratch the chrome lining? I believe, I could be wrong, that the chrome is harder than the steel... If that is the case, it would NOT scratch.

Feedback?

Thanks! JBW
 
Joined
Dec 8, 2005
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Lemont, PA, USA 16851
You shouldn't have any problems doing it how you are doing it now. You won't be pressing so hard that the brush will affect the chrome lining. Typically, when they say chrome lining, it is not like the chrome on a bumper (which was actually chrome plating, not chrome lining), it is more at the molecular level. I've never heard of anyone causing any problems cleaning like you are now.
 

jdubb16

Bearcat
Joined
Feb 26, 2017
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Darrouzett, Texas
RoninPA said:
You shouldn't have any problems doing it how you are doing it now. You won't be pressing so hard that the brush will affect the chrome lining. Typically, when they say chrome lining, it is not like the chrome on a bumper (which was actually chrome plating, not chrome lining), it is more at the molecular level. I've never heard of anyone causing any problems cleaning like you are now.


Thank you Sir.
 

DGW1949

Hunter
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Apr 10, 2005
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Texas
A glance with a high power magnifier will answer your question.
Just speaking for myself, I learned a long time ago NOT to use any sort of abrasive on a gas piston or cylinder...not even 000 steel wool. You may get by with it for a while but sooner or later, you'll cause premature wear to a rather critical part.

Just my 02 .

DGW
 

Enigma

Hunter
Joined
Apr 17, 2002
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Houston metro area, TX
I think I would soak the piston in a good carbon solvent and use a bronze/brass brush, myself. It may take slightly more effort to remove the carbon, but I wouldn't be worried about the piston, either.
 
Joined
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Soaking in "Slip2000 Carbon Killer" softens the carbon on the various parts of a semi auto shotgun very effectively in my experience. So effectively that the deposits can be wiped off with a rag.
 

mohavesam

Hawkeye
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Jan 4, 2004
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Rugerville, AZ
jdubb16 said:
... I believe, I could be wrong, that the chrome is harder than the steel... If that is the case, it would NOT scratch.

Feedback?

Thanks! JBW

Asphalt is harder than rubber tires, but it will wear out... from my physics learnin's. why take a chance on expensive parts in this 21st century. Use modern chemistry!
 

Rick Courtright

Hawkeye
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Mar 10, 2002
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7,897
Location
Redlands CA USA
mohavesam said:
Asphalt is harder than rubber tires, but it will wear out... from my physics learnin's. why take a chance on expensive parts in this 21st century. Use modern chemistry!

Hi,

And water's softer than stone, yet it wears away at the rocks.

But that's not the point in my book. The real concern is HOW LONG WILL that take? I doubt I'll be around to see any wear on that rock I put out in the back yard to see how long it lasts, and I also doubt that I'll live long enough to see any of my gun barrels worn out from use of aluminum cleaning rods, the occasional stainless Tornado brush down a shotgun bore, or bronze bristle brushes. That's not to say I don't have barrels with wear: every time I pull the trigger, there's a heckuva lot more terrible stuff happening to my barrel than I could ever do in a proper cleaning session when I'm done shooting for the day. So, yeah, there's throat erosion, rifling wear, even muzzle wear from that blast of "stuff" that comes out behind the bullet. All that detritus IS abrasive. But online wisdom aside, I don't worry about my methods ruining anything.

There's a lot of folklore about cleaning barrels, most of which just doesn't stand up to a good sniff test, but it does spread like wildfire thru the Interwebs. One of my favorites has to do with all those .22 barrels which have been worn out online by over cleaning. I once asked my ol' gunsmith boss about that. He'd been in the biz about 40 years at the time. He suggested I go downstairs to our basement vault and see if I could find one (there were usually a couple hundred or more rifles there.) And when I did, he wanted me to bring it upstairs to show him. He said it would be a first for both of us to see!

So going back to the OP, that chrome lining is there to protect the barrel from wear, the kind that happens each time the gun's fired. I wouldn't worry about damaging it with reasonable cleaning. But IF it's still a worry, use Sam's advice about a chemical solution to the problem: get yourself a can of Kroil and some patches. A competitive AR shooter once showed me a barrel he told me had 1000s of rounds thru it, and had never seen a brush. After shooting, he'd run a patch generously wetted with Kroil down the barrel and let the stuff sit for a while, maybe a half hour or longer. Then he'd run a dry patch thru and see what came out. If it was nasty, he'd repeat the process. If not, he'd run another oiled patch, this time very lightly oiled (again with Kroil), thru the barrel and put the rifle away until the next time he was ready to shoot it, when he'd run one dry patch thru before his first fouling shot. He learned this from other competitive shooters, who seemed to think the Kroil managed to get under the fouling and simply loosened it so they could wipe it out, rather than mechanically removing it. I dunno, but he was happy with his drill.

Everybody's got their "secret" way!

Rick C
 

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