Jump to content
SASS Wire Forum

Cleaning Brass Carrier for ‘73 what works best


Recommended Posts

Cleaning the bottom the first time can take a while as it is lacquer coated to keep it shiny. At least mine was. Otherwise Brasso works as good as anything.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I use my ultrasonic. Clean as a whistle in 5 minutes without touching it. 

 

JEL

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have cleaned a sticky carrier with some hot coffee dumped on it and ran the lever a few times. Shirttail told me after the next stage that was the best that rifle ever ran. Sometimes the simplest things work the best, my guess would be the acid in the coffee worked pretty well.

kR

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I close the lever and spray Break Free CLP in the action. It foams up and I work the lever and watch the black stuff drop out. I repeat a few times until what drops out is clean.  WELL lubed. Dry patch the bore once, wrap a towel around the action and put it in the case. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, John E. Law said:

I use my ultrasonic. Clean as a whistle in 5 minutes without touching it. 

 

JEL

I put mine in the Ultrasonic & it removed the gold anodizing. Now, it looks like a titanium carrier. Still works fine, so I guess that didn't screw anything up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Max Payne said:

I put mine in the Ultrasonic & it removed the gold anodizing.

Yeah, an aluminum carrier like you have has to be cleaned a little more carefully.  Most acidic cleaners and even some basic ones will attack anodizing.

 

good luck, GJ

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Max Payne said:

I put mine in the Ultrasonic & it removed the gold anodizing. Now, it looks like a titanium carrier. Still works fine, so I guess that didn't screw anything up.

I guess I won’t be buying a gold carrier like the upper crust does! B)
 

Kajun

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hoppes #9 takes smokeless residue right off of brass or aluminum carriers; especially if you soak the carrier for a minute or two beforehand.

 

Spray carburetor cleaner also cleans them up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, Kid Rich said:

I have cleaned a sticky carrier with some hot coffee dumped on it and ran the lever a few times. Shirttail told me after the next stage that was the best that rifle ever ran. Sometimes the simplest things work the best, my guess would be the acid in the coffee worked pretty well.

kR

 

 

Nope, it was the caffeine!!! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

While in the gun Hornady one shot (not the case lube). Spray, run it a little, wipe off inside. Quick and easy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

In my sordid past, I admit to loading that Fad Heathen Smokeless Stuff.  My "Go To" powder was Tight Group.  When the carrier got gummy, I pulled it out, gave it a soak in Break Free then scrubbed it up with brass brushes.

 

Now that I've seen the light, I toss the Carrier Block in the Vinegar water with the fired cases and when dry I toss it in with the cases in the Lizard Litter.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

41 minutes ago, Colorado Coffinmaker said:

...Now that I've seen the light, I toss the Carrier Block in the Vinegar water with the fired cases and when dry I toss it in with the cases in the Lizard Litter.

This is a Smith Shop carrier, right?  No problem with grit from the cleaning media getting into the spring loaded gate?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I throw it and all the other parts in my ultrasonic cleaner and let it run thru two cycles. While that’s running I clean the rifle & bore. 
 

The smokeless cleaner I like best is M-Pro 7. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Clean... after shooting smokeless?    Okay, at least once a year, I clean.  Hoppe's #9, a brass brush, dry, then lube... lightly.... VERY lightly!  Reassemble, repeat a year later.  I'm a little more aggressive after shooting BP, when the match is over I disassemble, clean with Hoppe's #9, dry, make sure ALL the fouling is removed...  sometimes after a 3-day match I have to scrap off some of the more burned-on fouling.  Do NOT lube, and reassemble.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

13 hours ago, Max Payne said:

I put mine in the Ultrasonic & it removed the gold anodizing. Now, it looks like a titanium carrier. Still works fine, so I guess that didn't screw anything up.

Yeah,  you need to be careful what cleaners you're using in the ultrasonic. Simple green "green", which is what a lot of people recommend,  is actually pretty acidic and will effect anodizing. It'll really mess up those T.i.N coatings,  don't ask me how I know.  The best cleaner I have found is the Simple Green's Extreme Aircraft and Precision. I mix it 50/50 with water and it works great. It's much more milder than the original stuff and half the price of MPro 7. Also,  MPro 7 goes bad after awhile and at $75 a gallon you can't afford to throw it away. 

 

JEL

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, John E. Law said:

Yeah,  you need to be careful what cleaners you're using in the ultrasonic. Simple green "green", which is what a lot of people recommend,  is actually pretty acidic and will effect anodizing. It'll really mess up those T.i.N coatings,  don't ask me how I know.  The best cleaner I have found is the Simple Green's Extreme Aircraft and Precision. I mix it 50/50 with water and it works great. It's much more milder than the original stuff and half the price of MPro 7. Also,  MPro 7 goes bad after awhile and at $75 a gallon you can't afford to throw it away. 

 

JEL

Yep. It was Simple Green that removed the anodizing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Abilene :)

 

Yes. and. No.  Halfway carriers are Smith Shop carriers.  Have to take a toothbrush to the spring assembly after cleaning.  No biggie.  The other half are OEM.  No worries there either.  Couple drops of Mobil 1 on reassembly.

 

OOPS:  I forgot.  Since seeing the light, my ammunition runs clean enough I only need to pull the Carrier Block about once every six or eight matches.  Guns run VERY clean.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 5/12/2022 at 1:48 PM, Kid Rich said:

I have cleaned a sticky carrier with some hot coffee dumped on it and ran the lever a few times. Shirttail told me after the next stage that was the best that rifle ever ran. Sometimes the simplest things work the best, my guess would be the acid in the coffee worked pretty well.

kR

 

I did that once and my rifle was up all night!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 5/12/2022 at 2:11 PM, John E. Law said:

I use my ultrasonic. Clean as a whistle in 5 minutes without touching it. 

 

JEL

Me too. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dawn dishsoap hot water and the Wife's  toothbrush that's all you need :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Howdy

 

Why in the world do you need to clean a carrier that has Smokeless residue on it? Does it need to be really shiny?

 

My 44-40 1860 Henry has never seen anything but Black Powder ammo. It has a nicely stained patina. Remove the carrier to clean it? That's a lot of unnecessary work, particularly on a Henry which is not as easy to take down as a '73. All my carrier gets is a little scrubbing with my favorite water based BP solvent on some Q-Tips wherever they can reach, followed by a little Ballistol to make sure it stays nice and slippery.

 

pnkWaJtUj

 

 

 

pnvy2lwXj

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 5/12/2022 at 1:48 PM, Kid Rich said:

I have cleaned a sticky carrier with some hot coffee dumped on it and ran the lever a few times. Shirttail told me after the next stage that was the best that rifle ever ran. Sometimes the simplest things work the best, my guess would be the acid in the coffee worked pretty well.

kR

 

 

I would’ve thought the cream and sugar would make it stickier ;) :lol:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.