- 1). Make sure the gun is not loaded. Check both the chamber and the magazine for live ammunition. Remove any ammunition from the gun. Field-strip the rifle if you prefer, though it is not absolutely necessary when simply cleaning the barrel. Consult the manual for proper instruction on field stripping the Mini-14.
- 2). Pull the bolt back and lock in place. Press the magazine release lever (located just behind the magazine) and remove the magazine.
- 3). Screw a .223-caliber bore brush onto the end of a cleaning rod. Place a bore-cleaning patch over the bore brush. Crimp the patch in place over the brush. Be careful not to prick your fingers on the stiff brush bristles.
- 4). Insert the bore brush into the muzzle end of the barrel. Push the cleaning rod down the barrel until you see the tip of the cleaning patch emerge at the other end of the barrel, inside the chamber. Make sure the bolt is still pulled back or you will not be able to see inside the chamber.
- 5). Pull the cleaning rod back out of the barrel until you see the end of the brush appear. Push it back down again. Repeat this process two or three times to help loosen the gunpowder and grime inside the barrel.
- 6). Remove the cleaning rod all the way out of the barrel. Discard the dirty cleaning patch. Dip a new bore cleaning patch into the bore cleaning solvent. Place the patch over the bore brush as you did earlier.
- 7). Put the brush and cleaning rod into the muzzle and push down into the chamber end again. Push the brush back and forth several times. Pull the cleaning rod out. Remove the cleaning patch, which should be black and filthy. Replace the patch with a new cleaning patch dipped in solvent. Continue cleaning with the solvent and cleaning patches until the patches are no longer black when you pull them through the barrel. (This may take 10 or more patches, depending on how much shooting you've done and how dirty the bore is.)
- 8). Put a fresh cleaning patch on the bore brush. Do not put any solvent on this patch. Run the patch and brush through the barrel two or three times to help dry the bore. Remove brush from the barrel.
- 9). Wipe down the outside of the barrel with an oil-impregnated gun-cleaning cloth
- 10
Shut the bolt, insert the magazine and reassemble the gun if you field-stripped it earlier.
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