Thread: Cleaning Rods

Hi Team

Am after some advice regarding cleaning rods. Have had two different multi piece cleaning rods snap on me over the years most recent one was a hunting and fishing branded kit one pretty cheap multi caliber kit with a pretty flimsy rod with it. Went to hunt fish yesterday to buy a one piece rod with the idea of using the brushes etc from hunt fish kit I already have. The rods they have in stock are about $170 each and was told would be needing about 3-4 rods to cover all my calibers. This seems really expensive for a cleaning rod. Calibres I have are 22,223,303,7mm rem mag,12 and 20 guage shotgun. Any advice is there one rod I can buy to clean the whole lot or any where I can buy the 3-4 rods I may need without taking out a mortgage.

Happy Hunting
Cheers Blair

I would recommend a one piece carbon fibre cleaning rod. Almost impossible to break and they'll never get bent.
For that suite of calibres I'd go with two; a .22 cleaning rod, and a .27+ cleaning rod with some thread adapters to utilise the bigger shot gun brushes. You could just economise and use a .22 rod only. I just find they're a bit too flexible for the bigger calibres if you get a tight patch or brush.

I use the Tipton rods like these: https://www.deltamike.co.nz/product/...-cleaning-rod/
Just make sure you buy them long enough to service all your rifles/shotguns.

Ive got the popcorn

I run a .22 cal rod for rifles below .308 cal and a .308 for above. Incl 9.3.

Dewey, proshot are also very good. Polished stainless rods.
Specialty rods for .17 rem and the 12 gauge also.


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Yeah, you're right about the popcorn. An old record (broken?) will be pulled out.

This is my experience -
I started out, as most of my generation did, with Parker-Hale coated steel rods. I went thru a few of those changing due to damage to the coating. They were all there was in those days.

Currently I have 3 x Boretech Bore Stix, 1x Triplon CF, 1x Pro Shot bare SS, 1x Anschutz bare SS. (And about 3 discarded PH)

The Boretech ones cover all my calibres, the Tipton my 30 cals and the Pro Shot and Anschutz my smallbore rifles.
I really like the Tipton (yeah, they break and impale your arm and the carbon fibres gravitate to your heart). I have given it hell even hammering the end with a piece of wood when a patch stuck. The metal part of the handle extends right thru the handle and has a knob suitable for hitting. I have detected no markings on the fiber from barrel slap, however it must inevitably happen). I would rate its handle as good with very free spinning bearings.

Boretech Bore Stix are probably the best rods I have used. Coated steel. Coating far superior to the old PH robs. Excellent handle, probably the best there is. Handle free spinning not quite as good as the Tipton. Highly recommend these rods. They also appear to be available in NZ, some times not the case.

I also bought an expensive highly polished stainless steel rod for my 30cal target rifles (cannot remember the brand). I discarded that as after using it for a while as I could see faint marks on it resembling rifle appearing. No doubt all the robs slab the bore that's why it’s important to use a rod as close to bore size as possible. Don't clean a 308 with 22F rod for example.

Not a fan of bare steel rods which I'm sure have their following.

Don't use sectioned rods. The joins end up holding abrasive muck. Sectioned rods are OK however for extended hunts where the need to clean may arise. Just don't use them for routine cleaning at home.

Definitely use a bore guide. Wipe the rod every time before pushing it thru just like you do for other things....

TRY @Hunter2 {Richard} on the forum for resonable priced cleaning gear,

https://www.nzhuntingandshooting.co....pecial-109812/

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/marketpl...9?bof=XZi5F7Z9

Originally Posted by Tedz50

TRY @Hunter2 {Richard} on the forum for resonable priced cleaning gear,

https://www.nzhuntingandshooting.co....pecial-109812/

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/marketpl...9?bof=XZi5F7Z9

X2, highly recommend....hell of a nice guy and full of knowledge.

Kleen Bore do a hardened steel rod with a red plastic coating - possibly one of the longest lasting rods I've used and good from their blurb for .22 to .45. Bearings in the handles are a bit naff though.

The coatings are the weak points, I run a patch over the rod between passes and wipe all the crud off it. Helps stop things getting ground into the coating. One thing with the Kleen Bore rods is that they are too short for a long action, long barrel rifle - top out at I think 24" barrel with a break with the long actions.

The coatings on the rods can get hammered by certain models of rifles with blade ejectors, Mauser 98's are one. A bore guide is a good move, helps limit bore slap as well.

Originally Posted by No.3

The coatings on the rods can get hammered by certain models of rifles with blade ejectors, Mauser 98's are one. A bore guide is a good move, helps limit bore slap as well.

I stuffed a PH rod when I first cleaned a P14. The ejector opened the rod up like a banana for about 1/4 its length. This was before I started using bore guides which push ejectors out of the way.
I tried repairing the damaged section by removing what was left of the coating and replaced it with heat shrink. It wasn't satisfactory so I ended up cutting the rod down to make a chamber cleaner.

I put together a varmint rifle in the late 1990's and bought a .224 polished stainless one-piece rod. Since then I've used it for all my centrefires, but it is a bit bendy for .308 and .357 barrels.

Thanks for all the replies sounds like I’ll get away with two rods think I’ll go down the carbon fibre road they should like the go
Cheers

Size your patches correctly for whatever you use, they need to be firm but not tight. I've seen a lot of people use too much patch, and it can end up between the rod and the bore which I feel is just asking for trouble. At the least it will cause the rod to touch the bore more than it needs to. The patch is there to either put chemical in or take it out, if you have to be more aggressive there are brushes for that. If I'm using a mild abrasive like the bore shine or other carbon cutters I normally use an old worn brush with a wrap or two of patch cotton around it to hold the abrasive. Works for me anyway...

I use a combination of spear or Parker-Hale jags depending what type of cleaning I'm needing to do. If patches are largish and extend beyond the jag onto the rod proper, there's every possibility of either not entering the bore or jamming part way.
I'll jammed many times over the long years. Pushed into the start of the barrel and thought "mmm that's a bit tight". Usually I remove it at that point and cut the patch smaller, but sometimes that little voice in my head says "she'll be right, she'll be right" and I continue and jam a quarter of the way into the barrel.
Wifey then gets summoned and holds rifle whilst I jerk the cleaning rod out. She skids across the floor?

One thing with Tipton rods I mentioned in an earlier post above, jammed patches can be gently tapped thru using a suitable piece of wood as a hammer.

I'll make a tongue in cheek comment that might get the popcorn flowing.
Those that are worried about a cleaning rod touching the bore are either cleaning way too much, or would be horrified to know that you contain an explosion and send a projectile through a bore on firing.

Originally Posted by Makros

I'll make a tongue in cheek comment that might get the popcorn flowing.
Those that are worried about a cleaning rod touching the bore are either cleaning way too much, or would be horrified to know that you contain an explosion and send a projectile through a bore on firing.

Yeah, ha - it's not the bore than concerns me with bore to rod contact, it's the wear and possible damage to the coating on the rod. Uncoated rods are better for this I reckon, but seem to be priced well past what the same type of thing from the Kleen Bore stable is worth. I'll put up with the coating, that way it's not such a loss if I accidentally knock the thing onto the concrete and turn it into a pretzel!