removing copper fouling

[KWK]

Say you're shooting jacketed .357s in an 1873 and end up with some copper fouling. Will copper solvent bother the brass carrier? Must one disassemble the action to the point one can remove the carrier?

I found the manual for one '73 (the current Winchester's) on the web, and they encourage you to use copper solvent after opening the action with the lever; still, I have to wonder.

[w44wcf]

KWK,
The minimal amount of exposure won't hurt the carrier.  If one cleans his / her '73 upside down with the carrier in the bottom position, there would be no contact at all.

I have found that shooting 002" over groove diameter cast bullets will remove copper fouling. 

w44wcf

[KWK]

John, I understand, and I should have figured that out. When Winchester said to fully open the action, I saw the carrier up, at the end of the lever's stroke. Instead, one would want to move the lever enough to fully retract the bolt but not raise the carrier.

This reminds me, I'm long overdue with some basic stress calculations for you and Sixgun over at Leverguns.com.

Karl

[Fox Creek Kid]

Copper doesn't bond with steel until circa 3,000 fps. What you're seeing is most likely just a "wash" from a bronze brush.