Decoppering a rifle barrel

by Charles, Monday, April 23, 2012, 10:10 (4598 days ago)

Over the years I have decoppered many rifle barrels. Some of these mil-surp rifles has a copper mine inside of them. Old Krags have been the worse, but I am working on a UM Model 1917 now. It is a very good WWII Remington rebuild with a Johnson Automatics barrel. The barrel is bright and shiney, but lordy is it full of copper. Yesterday I have it six doses of Wipe-Out but still got metal out. Today I have switched to Sweets and still the green appears at the end of the barrel on the patch.

I won't give up, but this is proving to be a real chore. The rifle is worth it as it is in very good shape and I got it for a very good price ($400.00). Somebody gave the stock a coat of heavy varnish, that is the bad news. The good news is the varnish will strip off easy and has served to protect the stock from allot of small dings. I suspect it was some American Legion Post or VFW Color guard what wanted to flash up their rifles. I will take the stock back to a military oil finish.

I have a good Winchester 1917 in the back of the safe that was not rebuilt in WWII. I have had it 15 years and have never fired it. I will haul it out and enter into my 1917 phase of shooting.

These 1917 were cheap ($25.00) heavy and clunks rifles when I was a kid and while I owned several, I could not hang onto one. Today, they have become hot items and I will hang on to these two.