I
was recently hanging out at McLain’s Firearms in
Carlisle, Tennessee, talking with the proprietor about most
anything gun related. As Mike’s primary business is
gunsmithing, as we talked, he was cleaning a rifle barrel with
one of the handy little pull-trough flexible cleaning rods that
he always uses. I had seen him using these before, but never
really paid much attention. For some reason, this time I noticed
as he loaded a patch onto the slotted jag that the patch was not
an ordinary cleaning patch. The patch for this little flexible
rod has an odd arrangement of six slots cut into the center.
Mike showed me the idea behind the system, and I was impressed.
The Otis system uses one size of patch for all calibers, and the
unique method for installing the patch on the jag assures that
it is properly centered in the bore. I bought one of the Otis
Technology cleaning kits right on the spot.
Using
the Otis system could not be simpler. The premise behind the
flexible rod is that the patch or brush is pulled through the
bore, instead of being pushed through as with an ordinary
cleaning rod. With a standard hard cleaning rod, if the brush or
patch is tight, as it should be, the rod will flex as it pushes
the cleaning tool through the bore, rubbing against the rifling.
This can do harm to a rifle bore in a short time, and be
detrimental to accuracy. Also, some rifles and handguns can not
be easily cleaned from breech to muzzle as they should be.
Pushing a patch from the muzzle toward the breech can quickly
ruin the crown of a barrel, and deposit gunk into the action of
the firearm. With the Otis system, any cartridge firearm can be
properly cleaned from breech to muzzle.
Investigating
further, I learned that Otis makes several different cleaning
kits. I was particularly interested in the kit that fits into
the buttstock of an AR-15/M-16 rifle. I never liked the old
military issue sectioned rod cleaning kit for the M-16. That
jointed rod would rub the bore while cleaning, and I knew that
it was doing the bore of the weapon no good. Otis has a neat
little kit that fits into the buttstock that contains one of
their flexible rods along with the needed accessories to keep an
AR-15 clean and functioning properly. The kit even contains a
small bottle of bore cleaner. The whole thing fits neatly into a
vinyl case, which slides into the trap door of the butt plate,
always ready when needed.
If
your AR-15 does not have a standard A2 buttstock, Otis has a kit
for you, too. Many AR-15s have the collapsible CAR-style
buttstock without the trap door in the butt plate. Otis has a
handy little cleaning kit that snaps into the hollow of the
pistol grip. The whole kit fits into a plastic case, which then
locks into place in the grip with a device provided with the
kit. Installing the grip lock takes less than a minute. This
grip kit is very handy, locks securely in place, and keeps the
cleaning tools always with the rifle, which can literally be a
lifesaver. I understand that the grip kit is now being issued
with the US Army’s M-4 rifles. A dirty or wet gun can bring
everything to a standstill, just at the wrong moment. Having the
cleaning kit always at hand is a good idea.
Last
winter, an uncle and his friend were hunting in the woods behind
my home. It was cold and raining, but they had a covered stand
so they were fairly dry. However, both of these hunters got
their guns a little wet going in that morning. Both men missed
good shots at deer later that day when their bolt action rifles
failed to fire. Moisture had entered the actions, and had frozen
hard. It was just enough ice around the firing pins to cushion
the strike on the primer. If either man had brought along a
cleaning kit, they would have been able to dry their guns and
continue the hunt. Otis makes a couple of pocket size kits that
would have had the hunters back on stand in no time, instead of
taking the guns back home for cleaning.
You
can buy Otis products at better gun shops, or directly from Otis
Technology.
Check
out the complete line of Otis products online at: www.otisgun.com.
Jeff Quinn
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