Cleaning someone's deer rifle

[Adam Helmer]

Gil,

I would have copied cleaning information out of one of my gun books and told him to read and comply. I am sure you will do a fine job cleaning a neglected rifle. Want to bet what it looks like this time next year?

Adam

[Catfish]

In about 1995 I was talking to a cousin of my wife who shot alot of groundhogs with a 788 Rem. in .222 Rem. that he had bought in 1960. He carried it in his pick-up 100% of the timeb ut he told me that he had shot out the barrel and it just wasn`t accurate anymore. I ask if I could take it home and check it out. I ran 50 patches of Sweets 7.62 through the barrel and number 50 was just as blue as the first. I took it out and fired 5 round at 100 yrds. and put them in about 1/2 in. I took it back in put another coat of finish on the stock, gave it a very good cleaning and took it back. I ask if he ever clean the copper out of it and he said yes. I ask what with to which he replied Hoppes number 9. In 35 years he never had the action out of the stock or put any copper soulvent in it. I figured in another 25 yrs. or so I clean the rest of the copper out, but he put it back in the pick-up and srtarted busting groundhogs again.