Cleaning a .223

[SmallBoreSnipers]

I have a Howa 1500 in .223 that I shoot Silver Bear 62 gr. ammo with. It never seems to get that dirty. Accuracy never falls off either. Right now I clean it every 100 - 200 rounds just for the hell of it. Is this specific to the rifle, caliber, ammo, or all of these? How often should I be cleaning it?

 

[SIE107]

Re: Cleaning a .223

My .308 Palma gun, I clean it about every 350-500 rounds.

 

[SmallBoreSnipers]

Re: Cleaning a .223

^ That's about how often I clean my .17 HMR cause that's about when the accuracy start to fall off. Somewhere around 500 rounds. So do I really only need to treat this .223 the same way? Is that when you start to notice a change in your .308?

 

[Radar360]

Re: Cleaning a .223

I clean "as-needed". Depending on the ammo I use.

I run a snake on it regardless. Just to remove the obvious.

 

[SmallBoreSnipers]

Re: Cleaning a .223

I clean the bolt and inside the reciever after every time out. It's obvious and easy to clean. So I guess my next question is, as far as the bore goes, how do I know when it's needed? I've never gone more than about 200 rounds before cleaning it. But like I said, accuracy is still just fine at that point. I don't really wanna clean it more than it needs to be.

 

[Badshot308]

Re: Cleaning a .223

When your accuracy falls off, that's when you'll know that it needs it. That or if you're going to store it for a while and you feel rust may be an issue. The only .223 I have is a Bushmaster A3 which I clean about once a year. While it's not a tack driver, accuracy doesn't degrade and the action keeps chugging along.

 

[SmallBoreSnipers]

Re: Cleaning a .223

^ Cool. Well thanks a lot for your input guys. I guess I'll see how many rounds I can put through her before my groups are opening up. Thanks for the advice!