Hoppes Boresnake

[MrBane]

A new review has been created: Hoppes Boresnake

There are some times when you look at a piece of kit and wonder why it's not been done before and you can't help but think you've been wasting your time on something that's just been made so much simpler.

Enter Hoppes Boresnake Viper, a quick and very effective method of cleaning the barrel of the SA80.

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"We've got something that does that already, it's called rag on a rope."

True, but how many times have you sat there, fiddled about with ripping a square off, threading it through the eye, pulling through and then doing it again, and again, and again? Can that piece of cloth really get it spotless? Yes, it can, or we wouldn't have it, but it's just a big, whopping pain in the ass.

The Boresnake Viper is an obvious answer to the problem. Instead of one piece of fabric a few millimetres squared it's a long length of material that when pulled through carries out a constant cleaning motion by the virtue of both its length, width and its design.

The Viper is essentially made in three sections: the head of the Viper which incorporates bronze threads that scrub and loosen as the pass is made, the body which catches and pulls along the now loose debris and the tail which is coloured orange and is where you apply any cleaning substance you may use and which swabs the barrel clean. The entire area of the Viper is 200x larger than the standard square of cleaning rag you'd normally use so you can see how much more effective it is compared to standard methods.

As far as using the Viper is concerned it doesn't get much easier. Simply cock the weapon and hold open, then thread the pull-through cord down the barrel (the brass weight lets it drop down easily enough), grip and pull. It's ideal for use in the field when the barrel gets contaminated with dirt and other crap that could have numerous effects on the way the weapon fires (Any SASC out there?)

Hoppes say that the Viper is not designed to get the barrel clean to an inspection level standard and when you have a peek up you may find that towards the breech end there is a few small particles still remaining. In fairness to the Viper I couldn't get rid of these with a standard pull through either and it required the use of cleaning rods. The important factor here is that it will keep the weapon combat ready without having to strip down or mess around with it.

The Viper is machine washable which means once it's become clogged and full of carbon you can simply...

Read the full review here...

 

[lacrabat]

I imagine armourers up and down the land are putting their wizard porn to one side in anticipation of having to remove these things from countless barrels......

 

[Effendi]

Use the correctly sized boresnake and you will have no problems.

 

[Roadster280]

Use the correctly sized boresnake and you will have no problems.

Well, yes, but that was also true of the move from 4x2 flannelette to 50x50.

"DO NOT USE 4 x 2 with SA80". Couldn't have been any clearer, really.

Didn't stop it happening though

 

[TXSapper]

I have a few, very handy little things.

 

[anglo]

I have a few, very handy little things.

Say what

 

[Himmler74]

Say what

Personalities.

 

[TXSapper]

Say what

9mm and .308 boresnake

 

[Egg on Leggs]

I imagine armourers up and down the land are putting their wizard porn to one side in anticipation of having to remove these things from countless barrels......

used these on my AR 15-22 and Mauser 7.62 Kannonen without a problem. Convenient and effective.

 

[MostlyBollocks]

There's a big debate about whether you should ever clean the barrel of some air rifles - basically, springers & CO2, yes, PCP, no is the usual wisdom, as springers will inevitably have bits of grease etc going into the barrel, whereas a PCP is supposed to be a completely clean system. I've always done a full barrel clean on my FT rifle every thousand pellets, with the inevitable settling down period and re-zeroing (barrel and scope need to be removed to do it properly)

However, on the advice of a far better FT shot than I am, I started using a boresnake on it - one pass through every hundred pellets. Has it made a difference? Dunno. I think it has, but that could be psychological. But it has made me more meticulous about my cleaning routine, which can only be a good thing, and reduced the number of times I have to take it apart - now just for its annual service.

Although my massive roll of 4x2 isn't going down as quickly now

 

[Bubbles_Barker]

I doubt it passes the 'boresnake vs flannelette' VFM argument. Frankly I never found tearing off a wee bit of cloth and attaching it to a pull-through a 'pain in the arse' but maybe that's just me. I'd rather my taxes were spent on other things than replacing a tried & tested method of cleaning a rifle barrel.

 

[Bris]

I doubt it passes the 'boresnake vs flannelette' VFM argument. Frankly I never found tearing off a wee bit of cloth and attaching it to a pull-through a 'pain in the arse' but maybe that's just me. I'd rather my taxes were spent on other things than replacing a tried & tested method of cleaning a rifle barrel.

And, if in a pinch, a sufficient quantity of 4x2 can be used as loo roll substitute.

 

[vampireuk]

Squaddies have been cleaning the rifle incorrectly for years anyway. Contrary to popular belief the rifle is not supposed to be chrome.

 

[furious_styles]

I'd rather my taxes were spent on other things than replacing a tried & tested method of cleaning a rifle barrel.

I've used one (a bore snake) for years and it really does cut down on the time. Even if it is just a few minutes, add that up every time, multiply by the section who all want to use it then you will have made quite the efficiency saving for what is a cheap bit of kit. Won't make the armoury open any quicker though so maybe it doesn't make a difference...

FS

 

[vampireuk]

The 338 comes with a boresnake so issuing decent cleaning gear is not a first.

 

[ExREME..TECH]

I doubt it passes the 'boresnake vs flannelette' VFM argument. Frankly I never found tearing off a wee bit of cloth and attaching it to a pull-through a 'pain in the arse' but maybe that's just me. I'd rather my taxes were spent on other things than replacing a tried & tested method of cleaning a rifle barrel.

But but but sometimes you have to do it more than once

 

[medwaymud]

I use them in .17, .22 and 6.5.
Still have to wrack my brain about how much of a slice of 4x2 to tear off and oil for that last pass up the barrell.

 

[lacrabat]

used these on my AR 15-22 and Mauser 7.62 Kannonen without a problem. Convenient and effective.

That may well be the case but never underestimate the squaddies ability to put curiosity, boredom, ingenuity and innovation into a mixing pot and come up with a knotted boresnake pulled through by the back of a Land Rover.

 

[Gluteus Maximus]

Been using the .308 and .22 versions for a few years. Good stuff, better than the length of tent guy-rope supplied in the old green tins.

 

[vampireuk]

That may well be the case but never underestimate the squaddies ability to put curiosity, boredom, ingenuity and innovation into a mixing pot and come up with a knotted boresnake pulled through by the back of a Land Rover.

You can call them thick, it is allowed.