I'm no expert by far but I'll clean mine with hot water when I'm done shooting it for a while. If I go to the range and shoot when I come home I'll clean it with hot water. My Muzzleloader hunting season will be done this weekend and I'll clean it with hot water on Sunday night when I get home form the evening hunt! The hot water gets in those tight spots in the barrel. One thing I did learn is to have all your cleaning patches ready to go before you start the hot water cleaning, the surface rust sets in quickly!