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Military Firearm Restoration Corner

My New 42 Longbranch Enfield Sporter


jerry

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I just picked up a 42 Longbranch Enfield, fairly cheap, that someone has sportered, polished, blued, and put on a decent sporter butt and forend stock. Looks real nice, at least I think so. I am amazed though that someone would put that much effort in making this rifle the way it is and not clean out the barrel. I started cleaning it out yesterday, for awhile, and the patches were not even close to looking clean when I finished for the day. Still lots of black and brown gunk coming out of it. Looks like I have a lot of work to do. Two issues though, the inside of the barrel has one area with some minor pitting, but real shallow, I think it will clean up nicely. The other minor issue is the buttstck is slightly loose. So I will have figure how to get the rubber buttpad off and see how I can tighten it up and secure the buttstock better. I can't wait to get it in shoot'n shape and see how it performs.

 

If I did not live in the stone age and had a digital camera I would post some pictures.

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I suggest making an eletric cleaner with a rod down the barrel to clean it out. It will get all that copper fouling out quick.

 

Electric bore cleaner - All you need is an electrode, a power supply and some wires and alligator clips. The electrode can be a coat hanger (make sure it is free of any varnish) or a store-bought thin wire rod. Use some heat-shrink tubing at the bottom of the rod and along its length in various places to prevent the rod from contacting the gun at any point in the barrel. (A short Circuit) The power supply consists of 2 `C' cell batteries simply duct-taped together. There is no need for any fancy battery holders. Use only the 2 `C' cells! There is no need for more power than this! The Positive power supply lead is attached to a good contact point of the rifle such as the rear sight. The Negative lead goes to the top of the electrode. Stand the gun upright and lock it into this position. Plug the chamber end of the gun...This can be done by using a fired shell wrapped with some Teflon tape or an automotive tire Valve stem trimmed to fit snugly. Tie a rag around the muzzle end of the barrel to prevent spills!..you can also wrap a layer of duct-tape around the muzzle so you can overfill the bore slightly without it leaking. The barrel is filled with ``Household Ammonia"...You will find this at the grocery store or wherever your wife buys household cleaners...The strength is usually around 10 - 20%, you do not any stronger than that. Don't dilute it, add any other agents to it or substitute anything else for it. Once the bore is filled with ammonia, connect the wires and let the device do its job for ONE HOUR. Keep a close eye on it as the ammonia will foam quite a bit making top-ups needed quite often. After the hour, the gun will need to be thoroughly cleaned with standard bore cleaners and oiled to prevent rust. So what does this thing do and when do you use it? This device is using the actions as a chrome plating shop does but in reverse. The ammonia lifts copper and the electrode attracts it like a magnet. You will see the electrode is quite a mess at the end of an hours use. Just wipe off the deposits though and its ready to use again. This thing is not meant to be used as a regular cleaning tool...There is no need for it after a days shooting inmost cases. It is meant to be used on guns that have not had a proper cleaning in many years...The ones that you can run a patch up and down all day and they still come out dirty! Follow the design and instructions exactly, Use it for what it is and it will save you hours of cleaning time. Try and overpower it, forget that you left it on, or misuse it it any way and you might end up with damage...I have yet to hear of any damage from this when used as I state here.

 

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On the electric bore cleaner I have seen the suggestion to use an old cell phone charger as the power source. I haven't tried this but it might simplify the process. Not my idea so I can't take credit.

 

No matter how, it really does clean that bore out. It's amazing what can hide in an old rifle barrel.

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