The 10/22 belonging to my sister-in-law hasn't seen a lot of use but hasn't been cleaned in about 25 years or so. I talked her into letting me clean the poor thing. I also discovered that the magazines have been left full up for the same amount of time...4 standard 10 rounders and a lone 25 rounder.
Everyone has their own preference and beliefs....it's great being American!!! I'm a clean and light oil after a day of shooting kind of guy.....in my mind...taking this kind of care and maintenance just protects something I enjoy so much....I have the same goofy belief about my cars. Plus...for me, I enjoy the process...I'll take any reason to handle my Shootin Irons.
I recall my buddy bringing me an old 22 semi. Don't recall the particular make/model. He said it won't eject, and it won't feed properly, would I mind having a look at it...
Took that rifle apart, and OMG! It hadn't been cleaned.
Ever.
I scraped a pound of crap out of that action. Under a lot of the build-up, I found serious pitting.
Clean your rifles, gents.
And I like molybdenum disulfide dry lube. Similar to graphite. Dry, but keeps things sliding.
You just proved you didn't shoot it enough! Accuracy should improve. I would clean every 500 rounds just as a good habit, but I would run a brush and wet patch down the bore more often to avoid problems with a few drops of oil in critical areas like the inside of the receiver and down the trigger slot so it can get to the hammer.
The Romans had that idea perfected several millennia ago. The 90 degree angled head is a nice ergonomic touch though. They called theirs the tersorium or xylospongium.
My 80's era Ruger 10/22 never jammed until I started shooting Steel Challenge which is a rapid fire timed event shooting hundreds of rounds and the gun started jamming because I did not clean the bolt or breech.
Lost precious seconds added to my score time clearing the jams so I now clean it after every match.
I think it also depends on the ammunition.
The best kept secret, (not really that well kept), in the rimfire world is that the barrels actually shoot better when a little dirty, that's why some of us leave the barrel alone and instead clean the bolt face and chamber often. Also, not using oil keeps the innards a lot cleaner, so One Shot cleaner/dry lube is the order of the day. It's way more fun to shoot than clean.
Back in the early-mid 60's when i was on an Army ROTC smallbore rifle team in college, shooting Win 52's and Remington 40-x we never cleaned them, never.
Just cleaned the 10/22 belonging to sis-in-law...wasn't near as bad as I thought. Didn't realize Ruger used all metal trigger assemblies at one point in time either but her carbine has one.
Do your own laundry, and you’ll soon realize why wiping your but each time is worth it. If you are a regular person , and eventually the one who has to clean up your own mess, you’ll find that job easier if you do it along the way rather than at the end.
I'm wondering how one would wipe his butt "along the way" rather than "at the end"? Do you use a cleaning rod and patches?
Back in the early-mid 60's when i was on an Army ROTC smallbore rifle team in college, shooting Win 52's and Remington 40-x we never cleaned them, never.
the amount of dirt and debris caused by using a blow back operated semi auto compered to bolt action rimfires is massively different...here's a little experiment you can try...see how many rounds you can put through your 10/22 (with a match chamber) before you start to get malfunctions
Couple of old guys (older than me) set up next lane to me at the range. They're shooting a variety of 22's and 30-30's etc. One gets out this old Marlin 60. Says it used to shoot great but now all it does is jam! This poor thing had apparently never been cleaned, much less lubricated! I told him I think I can fix it. Took a can of Break Free CLP and hosed it out real good. Turned it on its side with the ejection port down to allow the ooze to run out. After about 5 mins I told him to try it. He filled it full of 22 Lr's and proceeded to fire every one without a hiccup! Big smile and a "thanks!" "What's that stuff you sprayed in there?" Don't think he understood the concept of cleaning a firearm but he now knows how to fix his Marlin 60!
Chris
If you are a regular person , and eventually the one who has to clean up your own mess, you’ll find that job easier if you do it along the way rather than at the end.
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