cleaning my gun barrel with fleece....wondering

[sonny]

I have just left a fabric store where the fleece is 50% off. I can't be sure, because the fleece had polyester with it , is it ok to clean the dirty muzzloading barrel with this fleece or looking for trouble??..........sonny

[Daryl]

Cleaning with anything that does the job will work just fine.
 
Shooting synthetics is the bugaboo of those products.

Taylor and I have found flannelette to be the best for cleaning, so we buy it specifically for that purpose. Double thickness of this material on a jag (that was intentionally altered to allow that thickness) is what we use.

[Mike Brooks]

I been using cotton balls.

[bones92]

Mike... that's interesting.  Do they work well?

[sonny]

What the heck is flanellete?

[Maven]

sonny, Take a look:  http://sewing.patternreview.com/SewingDiscussions/topic/3265

[Daryl]

Notably:

"The terms are used interchangebly.  There are 3 basic types of cotton flannel:

1) Flannel.  This is a cotton woven that is brushed on one or both sides.  It is usually $7-10/yd, often called quilter's flannel. Since it's printed on finer cotton wovens before napping, prints can be more detailed.  Used in shirts, expensive sleepwear and quilts.   The face feels sueded, bach may or may not be napped..

2) Yarn Dyed Flannel.  Made with flannelled (fuzzy) multi-colored yarns - always plaids or ginghams.  Usually has a lower fuzz-factor than flanellette making it more suitable for shirts, lounge pants, sheets and jacket linings.  Available in soft (for sheets and shirts) and tough weaves (for lumberjacks and horse tack).

3) Flanelette (of Flette in the trade).  Woven with flannelled  yarns.  This is the low end soft and fuzzy flannel, $2-4/yd.  Used for PJs, pillow cases, rag quilts, diapers, and sheets."

[snapper]

I have been wanting to try some different cleaning patches.  I currently use the US Arsenal 2" round cotton.  The problem is that they are not woven and after I shoot I use a damp patch followed by a dry patch for my long range English Sporting rifles.  The cleaning jag often pushes through the damp patch, at times leaving the circular cut out at the bottom of the barrel.  Not a good thing when you are shooting a match.  I go through a lot of patched when I shoot.

So, today off to Walmart I went with my oldest son.  Asked the lady's where the Flanelette was.  The looked at me funny, so I told them what I was going to do with it.  One of the two looked at me and said, what you want is pillow ticking, that is what she used.

I ended up buying a yard of it.  Got it cut up and now I am wondering if it is any good for cleaning?  I know it is used for RB patches.

Anyone use it for cleaning?

Might go back and see if I can get a yard or two of flannel and give it a try as well.

Fleener

Fleener

[EC121]

Pillow tick is too tightly woven to be soft enough.  It would probably work after washing it, but softer, fluffier cotton like flannel would work better. 

[snapper]

after I typed my post I thought I might as well head back to walmart and see the fabric gals again.  The nice one was gone, but the less than friendly one looked at me and said, "your back".  Just put new tires on the wife's Subaru and wanted to see how they handled the snow and ice.

Our little walmart is going to a super walmart that is being built next door.  They are getting ready for the move so no white flannel.  However I was able to buy some hunter green for $1.97 a yard, much cheaper than the pillow ticking at 7 bucks a yard.  Bought 3 yards, and when I get home with it looks like I have 4 yards.

Currently in Iowa we have a winter storm going on.  Temps are around 10 with wind bringing the wind chill below zero.  Tomorrow is to be around 10 below with higher winds, talking 40 below wind chill. 

Got a brisket ready to go on the smoker tomorrow and about 1300 flannel patches to cut.

Fleener

[snapper]

my mistake, it was 2.97 a yard.

Fleener

[Bob Roller]

Cleaning with anything that does the job will work just fine.
 
Shooting synthetics is the bugaboo of those products.

Taylor and I have found flannelette to be the best for cleaning, so we buy it specifically for that purpose. Double thickness of this material on a jag (that was intentionally altered to allow that thickness) is what we use.

Back in the days when I was really active in BP shooting I used GI patches cut for the Garand and used them both for cleaning and loading.
Also old,badly worn flannel shirts were put back into "service". As Daryl said,cleaning can be done with nearly anything that can absorb
fouling but loading is another thing altogether.

Bob Roller

[Black Jaque Janaviac]

I would think fleece's hydrophobic quality would make it less that desireable for cleaning a ML with water.  Might be excellent for smokeless powder cleaning solvent.

[Daryl]

Fleece might be much like flax/tow, wherein it would be easily cleaned after removing the fouling in a scrubbing manner. As to the lanolin preventing the absorbing of water, this might be a good thing.  It thus would not be of any use for drying the bore.

[Black Jaque Janaviac]

I love this forum!  Anywhere else in the world fleece would mean "polar fleece" or one of its variants.  A synthetic fabric that is hydrophobic.  Here fleece means the hair from a sheep (or getting a raw deal).

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

I'm pretty sure Sonny was referring to "Polar Fleese"....not the skin of a lamb.

[Daryl]

By now, he should perhaps have noted that.  Polar Fleece, fluffy on both sides or fluffy on one side, might work as a scrubber - but like real Fleece, is not a good holder of water. S'pose it would work, but not as good as Flannelette, or Flannel, baby diaper material.