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Dealing with less than pristine bores (Read 1190 times)

SteveStevens Participating Member Offline Posts: 29 Location: Fredericktown Ohio Joined: Jan 12^th, 2026	Dealing with less than pristine bores Feb 25^th, 2026 at 11:55am	Print Post
	I'm currently playing around with a non-single shot (sorry) rifle in 25-20 WCF with a so-so bore and cast bullets. I have several molds and sizer dies from 256 to 261 by .001. Just curious what has worked for others dealing with a so-so bores? .Its no match rifle just a plinker/safe queen. Thanks in advance!.


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marlinguy Frequent Elocutionist Offline Ballards may be weaker, but they sure are neater! Posts: 17795 Location: Oregon Joined: Feb 2^nd, 2009	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #1 - Feb 25^th, 2026 at 12:06pm	Print Post
	My best results have come from using Kleenbore or Birchwood Casey's Lead Remover Cloth. I've had more than one bore I thought might need a new liner and after a thorough cleaning with patches came out looking good and shooting well! The key is an extremely tight patch fit, so sometimes I put thin cloth under a Lead Remover cloth to make is very snug in the bore. You want it tight enough that I use a rubber mallet to tap the rod and get it started down the bore. Once they start I can then push it by hand and when it exits the shards of lead built up will come out on the patch in the shape of the grooves. I repeat with 1 or 2 patches until nothing comes out, and then I run one more patch into the bore, stopping before it exits. Then polish the bore by running the patch back and forth about 10 times before removing it. I've had dark crudded up bores that ended up not just shootable, but even shiny and pretty accurate.

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craigster Oldtimer Offline Posts: 809 Location: lost coast CA Joined: Feb 20^th, 2011	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #2 - Feb 25^th, 2026 at 12:26pm	Print Post
	Gum turpentine and tight patches.


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JHand Full Member Offline Posts: 216 Joined: Apr 15^th, 2024	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #3 - Feb 25^th, 2026 at 2:05pm	Print Post
	The "not so nice" bores can shoot good, but i do find tend to lead up quicker. The silhouette rifle i shoot has a very rough bore, to the point that when I got it, I ended up cutting a "patch" of 0000 steel wool and hammering it down the bore (broke my heart on a new to me BPCR). The lead was literally coming out in sheets. Once I finished that, I used No-Lead to get the rest out. After all that, its still about a MOA ish rifle that works great, but I would not recommend that method. My Schutzen has a pitted bore, and a worn out throat. I have still shot in the low 240's with it and I is just about a MOA shooter. I just clean it by patching a 50/50 blend of hoppes and mystery oil, and keep it going til accuracy falls off, then do a heavier cleaning. If you shoot jacketed, its much less of a problem, but need a heavy copper cleaner. My great grandpa's 348 has a very rough bore, but shoots very well. I actually switched to cast, powder coated bullets because it is much easier to clean up after.


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SteveStevens Participating Member Offline Posts: 29 Location: Fredericktown Ohio Joined: Jan 12^th, 2026	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #4 - Feb 25^th, 2026 at 2:59pm	Print Post
	I do a lot of casting but hadn't thought about powder coating because I haven't gone that route. The bore looked unsalvageable when I bought it but HEAVY brushing with a stiff bore brush wrapped with a bit of a Chore Boy made things look a whole lot better. I haven't played with it a whole lot yet but the first couple shots after cleaning it are fliers. Then I can place 6-8 into a decent group at 50 yards then things deteriorate. I shooting an 80G gas check cast hard with Lyman Moly lube. Ive tried .001 and .002 over groove diameter with results being just about the same. It's hard to discribe a bore condition and impossible to photograph. The rifling is planely visable and there are no rings of rust anywhere, pretty much the same from chamwr to muzzle.


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cellargun Full Member Offline Posts: 155 Joined: Feb 28^th, 2022	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #5 - Feb 25^th, 2026 at 3:22pm	Print Post
	JHand wrote on Feb 25^th, 2026 at 2:05pm: The "not so nice" bores can shoot good, but i do find tend to lead up quicker. The silhouette rifle i shoot has a very rough bore, to the point that when I got it, I ended up cutting a "patch" of 0000 steel wool and hammering it down the bore (broke my heart on a new to me BPCR). The lead was literally coming out in sheets. Once I finished that, I used No-Lead to get the rest out. After all that, its still about a MOA ish rifle that works great, but I would not recommend that method. My Schutzen has a pitted bore, and a worn out throat. I have still shot in the low 240's with it and I is just about a MOA shooter. I just clean it by patching a 50/50 blend of hoppes and mystery oil, and keep it going til accuracy falls off, then do a heavier cleaning. If you shoot jacketed, its much less of a problem, but need a heavy copper cleaner. My great grandpa's 348 has a very rough bore, but shoots very well. I actually switched to cast, powder coated bullets because it is much easier to clean up after. The steel wool trick works very well and won’t harm the bore if you oil both the bore and the steel wool. If it doesn’t harm the exterior bluing when scrubbing off rust freckles, it won’t hurt the bore. I salvaged more than one rifle with that method. I have a 40-60 Win highwall with a rough bore that shoots cast bullets quite well and doesn’t lead.


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marlinguy Frequent Elocutionist Offline Ballards may be weaker, but they sure are neater! Posts: 17795 Location: Oregon Joined: Feb 2^nd, 2009	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #6 - Feb 25^th, 2026 at 5:48pm	Print Post
	craigster wrote on Feb 25^th, 2026 at 12:26pm: Gum turpentine and tight patches. Is there some difference between turpentine and "gum turpentine"? I can't even find anyplace that sells anything called gum turpentine?

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JHand Full Member Offline Posts: 216 Joined: Apr 15^th, 2024	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #7 - Feb 25^th, 2026 at 6:36pm	Print Post
	SteveStevens wrote on Feb 25^th, 2026 at 2:59pm: I do a lot of casting but hadn't thought about powder coating because I haven't gone that route. The bore looked unsalvageable when I bought it but HEAVY brushing with a stiff bore brush wrapped with a bit of a Chore Boy made things look a whole lot better. I haven't played with it a whole lot yet but the first couple shots after cleaning it are fliers. Then I can place 6-8 into a decent group at 50 yards then things deteriorate. I shooting an 80G gas check cast hard with Lyman Moly lube. Ive tried .001 and .002 over groove diameter with results being just about the same. It's hard to discribe a bore condition and impossible to photograph. The rifling is planely visable and there are no rings of rust anywhere, pretty much the same from chamwr to muzzle. A lot of people have luck with mixing the powder in acetone and tumbling the bullets. It never worked well for me. I bought a cheap powder coating setup from harbor freight and use a tester oven to cure. It works great. I now powder coat all my pistol bullets too and it works great. You don't need to lube the coated bullets either


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GunBum Senior Forum Member Offline Posts: 282 Location: SW Missouri Joined: Oct 30^th, 2021	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #8 - Feb 25^th, 2026 at 9:10pm	Print Post
	marlinguy wrote on Feb 25^th, 2026 at 5:48pm: craigster wrote on Feb 25^th, 2026 at 12:26pm: Gum turpentine and tight patches. Is there some difference between turpentine and "gum turpentine"? I can't even find anyplace that sells anything called gum turpentine? Depends how old you are and how pedantic you are… Technically, Gum Turpentine is obtained by steam distillation of crude turpentine collected from live trees. Wood turpentine is extracted from tree parts by destructive distillation. Most of the turpentine you will find nowadays is a byproduct of pulp mills from either the Kraft process or the sulfite process. Most likely what you will find in big box stores is from the Kraft process and will smell very very piney compared to all the other turpentines. Boutique art suppliers usually carry true Gum Turpentine. Colloquially, all of the terms are interchangeable especially for people who remember seeing turpentine marketed as Gum Turpentine a million years ago. As to which is better? I don’t think it matters since the chemical composition of the various turpentines varies greatly according to what types of trees gave up the juice and how it was extracted. Don’t get wrapped around the axles. It’s just fancy paint thinner.


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bullshop Senior Forum Member Offline Posts: 302 Joined: Sep 14^th, 2017	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #9 - Feb 25^th, 2026 at 10:36pm	Print Post
	For me the two things that have helped accuracy with bores that are far less than perfect are to use a fairly hard alloy 15 to 18 BHN and to use a gas checked bullet. Diameter should be not less than actual barrel groove diameter and not more than .001" over. Bullet diameters larger than .001" over actual groove diameter can cause other problem that can affect accuracy. In summary groove diameter bullet BHN 15 to 18 and a gas checked bullet.


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craigster Oldtimer Offline Posts: 809 Location: lost coast CA Joined: Feb 20^th, 2011	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #10 - Feb 25^th, 2026 at 11:39pm	Print Post
	marlinguy wrote on Feb 25^th, 2026 at 5:48pm: craigster wrote on Feb 25^th, 2026 at 12:26pm: Gum turpentine and tight patches. Is there some difference between turpentine and "gum turpentine"? I can't even find anyplace that sells anything called gum turpentine? Gum is pure , "non-gum" has synthetic petroleum additives. (You need to *Login* or *Register* to view media files and links)


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marlinguy Frequent Elocutionist Offline Ballards may be weaker, but they sure are neater! Posts: 17795 Location: Oregon Joined: Feb 2^nd, 2009	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #11 - Feb 26^th, 2026 at 11:10am	Print Post
	craigster wrote on Feb 25^th, 2026 at 11:39pm: marlinguy wrote on Feb 25^th, 2026 at 5:48pm: craigster wrote on Feb 25^th, 2026 at 12:26pm: Gum turpentine and tight patches. Is there some difference between turpentine and "gum turpentine"? I can't even find anyplace that sells anything called gum turpentine? Gum is pure , "non-gum" has synthetic petroleum additives. (You need to *Login* or *Register* to view media files and links) Thanks. I couldn't get any to show in a search. Wife has an Amazon account, so I'll have her buy me some to try.

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Babydriver Full Member Offline Posts: 234 Joined: Mar 22^nd, 2024	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #12 - Feb 26^th, 2026 at 11:22am	Print Post
	Gum turpentine. From what I have read there is a difference between gum turpentine and just turpentine. A few years back I ordered Auson Balsam gum turpentine from Hamilton Marine. It is fantastic. From my perspective there is nothing like it. Regular turpentine is a zero.


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GunBum Senior Forum Member Offline Posts: 282 Location: SW Missouri Joined: Oct 30^th, 2021	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #13 - Feb 26^th, 2026 at 5:43pm	Print Post
	craigster wrote on Feb 25^th, 2026 at 11:39pm: marlinguy wrote on Feb 25^th, 2026 at 5:48pm: craigster wrote on Feb 25^th, 2026 at 12:26pm: Gum turpentine and tight patches. Is there some difference between turpentine and "gum turpentine"? I can't even find anyplace that sells anything called gum turpentine? Gum is pure , "non-gum" has synthetic petroleum additives. (You need to *Login* or *Register* to view media files and links) Not true. Gum turpentine is steam distilled from raw turpentine collected from live trees. Wood turpentine is destructively distilled from pieces of trees. Most of the turpentine you find nowadays is a byproduct of pulp mills. It has nothing to do with being pure or diluted or anything else. It is an artifact of the manufacturing process, not a purity issue. I’ll plant my flag and die on this hill.


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craigster Oldtimer Offline Posts: 809 Location: lost coast CA Joined: Feb 20^th, 2011	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #14 - Feb 27^th, 2026 at 12:31pm	Print Post
	Your hill, not mine. (You need to *Login* or *Register* to view media files and links)
	« Last Edit: Feb 27^th, 2026 at 1:55pm by craigster »

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GunBum Senior Forum Member Offline Posts: 282 Location: SW Missouri Joined: Oct 30^th, 2021	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #15 - Feb 27^th, 2026 at 2:15pm	Print Post
	craigster wrote on Feb 27^th, 2026 at 12:31pm: Your hill, not mine. (You need to *Login* or *Register* to view media files and links) Show me where the all knowing Wikipedia contradicts what I posted. It doesn’t. I’ll stay on my hill with the flag planted and wait to die.


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craigster Oldtimer Offline Posts: 809 Location: lost coast CA Joined: Feb 20^th, 2011	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #16 - Feb 27^th, 2026 at 2:54pm	Print Post
	I never said it did, I probably should have included an FWIW in my reply. Thanks for your reply. FWIW ?
	« Last Edit: Feb 27^th, 2026 at 3:19pm by craigster »

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GunBum Senior Forum Member Offline Posts: 282 Location: SW Missouri Joined: Oct 30^th, 2021	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #17 - Feb 27^th, 2026 at 3:29pm	Print Post
	Well then, FWIW thanks for confirming what I posted.


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craigster Oldtimer Offline Posts: 809 Location: lost coast CA Joined: Feb 20^th, 2011	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #18 - Feb 27^th, 2026 at 3:55pm	Print Post
	It made my day.


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marlinguy Frequent Elocutionist Offline Ballards may be weaker, but they sure are neater! Posts: 17795 Location: Oregon Joined: Feb 2^nd, 2009	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #19 - Feb 27^th, 2026 at 4:05pm	Print Post
	After all this I'll stick with my lead remover cloth.

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craigster Oldtimer Offline Posts: 809 Location: lost coast CA Joined: Feb 20^th, 2011	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #20 - Feb 27^th, 2026 at 6:40pm	Print Post
	Yeah, a lot of drama about gum.


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westerner Frequent Elocutionist Offline deleted posts and threads record holder. Posts: 12216 Location: Why, out West of course Joined: May 29^th, 2006	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #21 - Feb 28^th, 2026 at 12:10am	Print Post
	This is my latest match rifle. Started out a 40-90 SS now is 45-90. The barrel was cut off at 26 inches. Easy to manage in a pickup cab. The bore is in similar condition to the rest of the rifle. I re-crowned the muzzle and stuck sights on it. Last Saturday it put four out of five shots on a pig swinger. My spotter was not taking the excersize seriously. Looking down the bore first thought would be to scrap the barrel. Has a set trigger however the set screw is broken off. Was to cold and blustery to shoot a match with it this month. Maybe it's a go in March. Bore is now eight groove with narrow lands, 18 inch twist. I used Hoppes bore solvent and steel wool on a tight patch to remove the rust.
	« Last Edit: Feb 28^th, 2026 at 1:15am by westerner »
	A blind squirrel runs into a tree every once in a while.
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jhm Frequent Elocutionist Offline Posts: 1978 Location: georgia Joined: Sep 4^th, 2011	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #22 - Feb 28^th, 2026 at 8:26am	Print Post
	45-90 well no wonder you have a recoil pad on it. I am sure it hurts on both ends. You may have read my post on a 40-70 straight Hepburn I recently purchased and my bore is probably the worse one I have ever had to deal with. I tried everything from Hoppe's #9 to Evaporust to steel wool to no avail. I wanted to keep it original but I am contemplating either a liner or a rebore to 44 cal. Your total appearance pretty much matches mine. Kind of a mottled grey with faint hints of case color. Other than the bore it is in very good mechanical condition. Good luck with yours and the match. Let us know how it went. JMH


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marlinguy Frequent Elocutionist Offline Ballards may be weaker, but they sure are neater! Posts: 17795 Location: Oregon Joined: Feb 2^nd, 2009	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #23 - Feb 28^th, 2026 at 10:25am	Print Post
	Nice old early flat side 1885 Joe.

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calledflyer Frequent Elocutionist Offline Posts: 3912 Joined: Mar 9^th, 2015	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #24 - Feb 28^th, 2026 at 1:16pm	Print Post
	I like it too.


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westerner Frequent Elocutionist Offline deleted posts and threads record holder. Posts: 12216 Location: Why, out West of course Joined: May 29^th, 2006	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #25 - Feb 28^th, 2026 at 3:41pm	Print Post
	jhm wrote on Feb 28^th, 2026 at 8:26am: 45-90 well no wonder you have a recoil pad on it. I am sure it hurts on both ends. You may have read my post on a 40-70 straight Hepburn I recently purchased and my bore is probably the worse one I have ever had to deal with. I tried everything from Hoppe's #9 to Evaporust to steel wool to no avail. I wanted to keep it original but I am contemplating either a liner or a rebore to 44 cal. Your total appearance pretty much matches mine. Kind of a mottled grey with faint hints of case color. Other than the bore it is in very good mechanical condition. Good luck with yours and the match. Let us know how it went. JMH I did read your post. I've got a couple rifles with TJs liners. They shoot very accurate. Yes, the Winchester kills at both ends. Not bad in cold weather, extra layers of clothing help dull the pain. The plan was to use the action to build another rifle. Now I want it to shoot well, but then what? A sewer pipe barrel is a sewer pipe whether it shoots good or not, so it aint worth much. Maybe I'll sell it to Jack.

	A blind squirrel runs into a tree every once in a while.
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Sure shot Frequent Elocutionist Offline Posts: 1127 Location: East central Iowa Joined: Jun 22^nd, 2020	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #26 - Feb 28^th, 2026 at 4:01pm	Print Post
	That's an attractive crusty high wall, I like it too.


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bpjack Frequent Elocutionist Offline Posts: 3659 Location: East Olympia, WA Joined: May 18^th, 2008	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #27 - Feb 28^th, 2026 at 7:10pm	Print Post
	Wes, Did you use the salsa method of metal finishing. Which brand did you use? Chunky I assume.

	IMG_3858.jpeg ( 43 KB \| 0 Downloads ) ASSRA # 11318 Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.
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westerner Frequent Elocutionist Offline deleted posts and threads record holder. Posts: 12216 Location: Why, out West of course Joined: May 29^th, 2006	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #28 - Feb 28^th, 2026 at 8:06pm	Print Post
	Picante sauce I think. New York City?

	A blind squirrel runs into a tree every once in a while.
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craigster Oldtimer Offline Posts: 809 Location: lost coast CA Joined: Feb 20^th, 2011	Re: Dealing with less than pristine bores Reply #29 - Feb 28^th, 2026 at 8:23pm	Print Post
	New York City? Get a rope! (You need to *Login* or *Register* to view media files and links)


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