Back when they were using the National Match M1 rifles, the members of the Army Marksmanship Unit rarely, if ever, cleaned their rifles...... I don't know if this is still their practice or not.

"Eventually, it will cause really severe pitting."

How long does this take? I have a number of rifles that still have some copper wash visible in the bore which has been there since the 1960's, and one old (pre-1912) J.P. Sauer 8X60RS double that gives me cupronickel stain on the patches every time I clean it. There are no pits in any of these barrels. Of course, they have all been "cleaned", but rarely is there no remaining copper wash visible if you look into the muzzle from an angel with plenty of light.

[quote]ORIGINAL: eldeguello

Back when they were using the National Match M1 rifles, the members of the Army Marksmanship Unit rarely, if ever, cleaned their rifles...... I don't know if this is still their practice or not.

"Eventually, it will cause really severe pitting."

How long does this take? I have a number of rifles that still have some copper wash visible in the bore which has been there since the 1960's, and one old (pre-1912) J.P. Sauer 8X60RS double that gives me cupronickel stain on the patches every time I clean it. There are no pits in any of these barrels. Of course, they have all been "cleaned", but rarely is there no remaining copper wash visible if you look into the muzzle from an angle with plenty of light.
Believe me, it is also possible to "pverclean" a barrel. No less an expert than Harry Pope once (or maybe more than once) stated"More barrels are ruined with a cleaning rod than any other way."

Do you dry swab your barrel before shooting to remove any leftover cleaning solvents?My own rifles with match grade barrels shoot fine with clean barrels but some of the factory barrels did shoot better after a few fouling shots.

Over cleaning will not hurt a barrel.However improper cleaning methods or the use of improper cleaning tools can damage a barrel.