↬ If you’re wondering how to clean a choke tube you’ve come to the right place. Nothing is more frustrating than a stuck choke tube, but with proper choke cleaning and firearm maintenance, it can be a thing of the past.
Choke tubes accumulate dirt, debris, and gunpowder over a lifetime of use and without proper cleaning can affect performance. As the shot column exits the barrel of a shotgun, gases, unburnt powder, and pieces of plastic wadding are deposited inside the choke tube building up over time. Removing this buildup with quality cleaning tools is essential to maintaining choke tube performance.
In this guide, we’ll discuss how to clean a choke tube using methods that are proven to work for even the grungiest of conditions. These choke tube cleaning tips can be applied to a cleaning schedule after heavy use, or when the hunting season has ended.
How to Clean a Choke Tube (6 steps)
Below are six steps to clean a choke tube correctly to keep it functioning at maximum performance and to prevent buildup of debris and corrosion.
1) Hoppe’s #9 Will Remove Gun Powder
If you’ve ever gone through cases of ammo with sporting clays or hunting, you’ve experienced burnt gun powder coating the inside of your shotgun barrel. Removable choke tubes suffer the same fate and black grit will coat the inside just the same over time.
One of the best ways to clean a choke tube is to use Hoppe’s #9 solvent which is specifically designed to penetrate gun powder residue and break it up for easy removal. Just a light coating is all that is needed and with a few wipes of a rag, a choke tube can be completely free of black gun powder residue and looking like new again.
Hoppe’s #9 is a staple of the gun cleaning and maintenance community for over 100 years, and it’s proven to work.
- Ultra effectiveness
- Safe and easy to use
- Child proof cap
- Penetrates deep and rapidly
- Ultra potent
2) Keep the Threads Clean with these Tips
The threads of a choke tube should be cleaned regularly just as you would the inside or the barrel of a shotgun. Chokes that bind or are stuck are common problems associated with threads that are dirty or corroded.
These issues can cause the choke to not mate properly with the barrel threads and in some cases cause damage to the threads themselves. Choke threads that are never cleaned can become difficult or even impossible to remove. Use these tips to clean choke tube threads for optimal performance.
How to keep choke tube threads clean
- Remove the choke tube from the shotgun
- Examine the threads of the choke for debris or signs of cross threading. Replace the choke if the threads are damaged
- If the threads are dirty, soak overnight in solvent and use choke cleaning tools to gently massage the threads until the debris is removed
- Clean with solvent and wipe excess material off with a cloth rag
- Rust or heavy corrosion may require a brass brush
- Apply choke tube lube to threads to prevent future corrosion
3) An Outside Coating of Oil is Best
A light coating of oil on the outside of the choke tube can prevent corrosion and debris build up issues in the future. Not only is it important to oil or grease the threads of a choke to prevent it from seizing up, but the outside walls of the choke tube where it meets the inside barrel can also accumulate debris.
Lubricating gun oils work best as they only leave a light coating and tend to not collect dirt and debris buildup. A light coating of oil will help shed water intrusion onto the surface of the choke tube and prevent rust or corrosion from developing. Grease can also be used for severe applications.
Oil coatings are especially useful when hunting over water, in the rain, or in saltwater. These environments are hard on metal surfaces and preventative measures such as coating them with oil and grease can help protect them for the foreseeable future.
4) Scrub the Inside with a Soft Bristle Brush
A shotgun choke can easily see thousands of rounds during its lifetime, and the buildup of material in the choke tube can affect its performance. Shotgun wads are made from plastic and as the shot column is compressed through the choke, can leave streaks of plastic behind.
Soft Brush
A soft bristle brush and solvent is a great way to remove plastic and gunpowder from the inside of a choke tube. This combination will clean even the dirtiest choke tubes. A toothbrush or nylon brush is perfect for this application, but sturdier plastic brushes like those from Hoppe’s will also work.
Metal Brush
Avoid using certain metal brushes as they can scratch the inside of the choke tube. Only in the worst cases, where rust or corrosion is built up should a metal brush be used. Brass brushes are the softest and most forgiving metal brush to use for cleaning metal parts.
Gun cleaning kits provide brushes and everything you need to clean a shotgun and a choke tube correctly without damaging it.
- All-in-one: Use for all types of shotguns, pistols...
- High-quality: Our tips & jags are made from sturdy...
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- Package: Includes 6 solid brass rods, 14 brushes,...
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5) Let it Soak in Penetrating Oil or Rust Remover
Some cleaning applications require enhanced methods that go beyond just removing cosmetic dirt and debris. For the grimiest of choke tubes, that may mean soaking it for an extended time in penetrating oil or anti-seize lubricant.
This cleaning method involves removing the choke (if you can) and submerging it completely in a vat of penetrating oil, such as KROIL. Over time the oil will work its way into the corrosion and crevices to break up the rust or debris.
Soaking a choke tube in penetrating oil may not clean it completely in one day. Several days or weeks may be needed, so patience is key.
6) Set up a Cleaning Schedule
Preventative maintenance is always the best approach to keeping equipment in top working order. Choke tubes are no different and should be cleaned regularly with gun lubricants and oils. Setting up a cleaning schedule is a great way to ensure that your choke tube stays clean and operable when you need it the most.
Cleaning schedules can revolve around heavy use or days out in the field. Spring cleaning once after each hunting season is another option but should only be followed if usage is low or you didn’t expose the choke to water.
Properly cleaning the choke tube and oiling it each time will set you up for reduced effort in subsequent cleanings. Staying committed to a choke tube cleaning schedule will result in peak performance in the field.
Choke Tube Cleaning FAQs
Should you clean shotgun chokes?
Yes, shotgun choke tubes should be cleaned routinely just as you would any other part of a firearm. Cleaning a choke is often overlooked since they are rarely removed and the main focus with cleaning firearms is keeping the action functioning smoothly and preventing surface rust.
Cleaning a choke tube is as simple as removing it from the shotgun and using a soft bristle brush coated in solvent to remove any debris. For situations where corrosion or rust is visible, the choke tube can be submerged in solvent for as long as 24 hours to help penetrate and remove it.
Unfortunately, the first time most hunters get serious about cleaning a choke tube is when they go to remove one and it’s stuck. This stressful situation is the catalyst to clean a choke tube more often, develop a maintenance schedule, and to use oil or grease on the threads.
Why do choke tubes get stuck?
Choke tubes get stuck because the threads are binding or stripped, corrosion or rust has formed, or the choke is overtightened. Any of these conditions can prevent removing the choke by hand and may require more invasive techniques to break it free.
Stripped threads on a choke can cause binding inside the barrel resulting in fused threads. This situation requires extra force to break free and the threading may be damaged. Not over tightening the choke tube is the best prevention method and making sure the threads mate correcting before installation.
Corrosion and rust forming in the choke threads and gaps where the choke meets the barrel is the most common reason why chokes get stuck. This occurs more frequently after water gets into the choke and doesn’t dry quickly. Prevention involves removing the choke once submerged, letting it dry sufficiently, and applying a light coating of oil or grease to the threads before it’s re-installed.
What do you put on choke tube threads?
Oil and grease are the best products to put on choke threads to prevent them from becoming stuck. Grease applied to choke threads prevents water from sitting in voids for long periods of time where corrosion can build up.
A light coating of grease is all that it takes to keep a choke tube working correctly. Choke grease comes in easy to apply tubes with applicator tips that makes coating the choke threads clean and efficient.
Oils such as CLP and WD40 can be used in place of white lithium grease and others, but its effects aren’t long lasting and can even attract more debris. Developing a cleaning schedule can prevent most choke issues and applying the proper amount of grease each time a choke is installed can prevent headaches down the road.
Can you return choke tubes?
Choke tubes can be returned to retailers if they are defective or damaged during shipping. Amazon and Cabelas have robust return policies which typically span 30 days. If an item is returned within that window, they will issue a full refund.
Before returning a choke tube, make sure it really won’t perform to the standards you need it to. This requires patterning the choke with quality hunting loads to see how it performs. Any waterfowl choke that can achieve 80% of pellets with a three shot average in a 30-inch circle at 40 yards is considered to be working extremely good.
Bottom Line
Cleaning a choke tube is not a time-consuming task, but it does require attention occasionally to avoid long term issues from neglect. Most choke tubes develop gun powder residue and plastic wad buildup after each use. If left uncleaned, it can eventually cause a choke tube to underperform.
Cleaning a choke with Hoppe’s #9 solvent is often the best first step for dirty choke tubes. Removing debris from the choke threads and keeping them oiled or greased will stop it from binding when installed and help it back out easier upon removal.
Soft bristle bushes can be used to free hardened debris, and they won’t scratch the choke tube surface. Soaking the choke in penetrating oil for extended periods of time can help break free stubborn corrosion. Developing a cleaning schedule after each use can keep your choke tube performing flawlessly for years to come.
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Last update on 2025-09-16 / Affiliate links / Product Images from Amazon Product Advertising API