Strange Experience Today At The Range

[HenryFan]

I do not have deep pockets so I make (or at least try to make) things that I buy last for a long time. I think that, and military experience, cause me to clean firearms after every range visit. My hunting rifle(s) get a thorough cleaning after the end of deer season before they go into the gun safe. If I anticipate rain while I hunt, I take a stainless-steel finish rifle but I always prefer blue steel/walnut as my first choice.

I have used Hoppe's #9 bore solvent and Hoppe's gun oil for probably 60+ years with one exception. I use Breakfree CLP for my one black rifle, a Colt AR15A4. Somehow, I never found rust, corrosion or cancer on my firearms. At 75, I doubt I will change my current habits. Right or wrong, I refuse to let science, technology or miraculous innovations change my superstitious habits.

Others may disagree and they may be right. One of my hunting buddies has an old Remington Model 700 and I doubt it ever receives TLC but it always works, taking deer every year.

I admit I may be compulsive, maybe overly compulsive, about firearms cleaning but I'm too old to change my ways.

[Hatchdog]

Back to your original results with different bullet weights what is the twist of your barrel? Must be 1-9 or faster if it’s shooting those 77 grain bullets that accurate.

[HenryFan]

Hatchdog -

I had to go to the Henry website and it says the Henry single-shot rifle in .223 Rem./5.56 NATO rifling is 1:9.

One thing I just thought of is that the IMI ammunition is 5.56 NATO whereas the other ammunition is all .223 Rem. If I had thought of it yesterday, I would have included it in my original post.

I would have thought that .223 Rem. would generally be more accurate than 5.56 NATO.

[HenryFan]

Another thing I noticed this morning while cleaning is that there is some amount of play between the buttstock and the receiver. Not much but if I can figure out how to remove the recoil pad, I will tighten the stock to the receiver in hopes it improves accuracy.

Any tips on this procedure?

[HenryFan]

I found a tutorial on the Henry website and tightening the stock to the receiver is a piece of cake. Remove the recoil pad with a #2 Phillips head screwdriver and use a 5/16" allen wrench to tighten the buttstock screw.

When I tightened the stock to receiver screw, it took maybe 3/4 of a turn at most but now there is no looseness between the stock and receiver.

[Mags]

... a little cooper could go a long way.

I agree with that.

[GFK]

... During WWII it was a Court Martial offense to have pits in your bore. If you were issued a rifle with pits it was stamped with a P and sometimes R for rust...

I admit that a pitted barrel is not ideal. But, my Henry barrel seems to be rougher than either of my Marlins. I guess that is where lapping a barrel may help. After shooting my Henry, I typically have noticeable copper fouling. After shooting my Marlins, I don't notice any copper fouling. My Henry is a 30-30; I also have a Marlin in 30-30. I shoot the same ammo in both. I do know that the rifling are different, Marlin has a microgroove rifling. Does that make a big difference? Don't know. I just know that I have more copper fouling in my Henry than I do my Marlin, which mean more work for me. Yet, I have found that my Henry seems to shoot tighter groups, with a little copper in the barrel though.

[Mr. Neutron]

My H009BG (brass frame, octagon barrel) 30-30 doesn't seem to mind a bit of copper in the rifling at all with regards to accuracy. My steel receiver/round barrel H009G 30-30 seems like it's a bit more sensitive to that. The brass framer is the more accurate of the two, so it's what gets taken hunting.

Honestly, I don't mean to stir up any sort of a Hornet's Nest or heated debate here. But I have to kinda side with GunBlue490's philosophy on getting rid of the carbon & gunk, and that a bit of copper fouling in the rifle grooves doesn't actually hurt anything. Like a few here, if the gun might be a safe queen for awhile, I do feel better with a deep clean beforehand. But really, if it's put away with my normal cleaning cleaning and well oiled, it works for me.....

Added in EDIT: Sorry for veering off-course in the discussion about cleaning philosophies. I hope the OP can get all the accuracy he can outta his rifle. By any chance do you reload, or have you tried some more "premium" factory loads, like something from Federal, or othe companies like that? If I do my part, my 30-30 H009BG will sometimes shoot fairly equal groups with Winchester or Federal factory stuff compared to what I've gotten with my handloads (so far). For myself, I'd look at my ammo and my own personal shooting on that day than cleaning habits.

[Mags]

To be honest, most of the time my cleaning philosophy is clean when gut feel tells me it's probably time. Even seldom used guns on occasion, get at least an oil patch through the bore to keep the copper from corroding into that green fluffy stuff. The Pacific NW is very damp fall to spring, so even though the guns are stored in a cool dry safe, the humidity still gets in. Not good for the steel or the copper.

[HenryFan]

Mags -

Do you use a Golden Rod or the equivalent? Silica gel packs?

I use both since it is so humid most of the time in South Carolina.