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I currently use Q Tip brand swabs and they used to be great. Then about a couple of years ago they really seemed to go downhill. The stick portion isn't as strong as they used to be and the cotton tip shreds and unravels just by looking at it. :rolleyes: I've also tried Target's house brand and they aren't much better.

With all the industrial and/or medical type swabs out there, there must be some decent ones that hold up to gun cleaning...and aren't outrageously expensive. What do you guys use currently that you like and that holds up?

Please note...I'm not a pipe cleaner kind of guy and I do have a couple thin/strong plastic type sticks that I use in conjunction with patches. I'm really looking for a decent swab/Q Tip. I don't really care if it's a wood stick, plastic stick, or cardboard stick as long as the thing holds up.

BTW...Both of these are pretty good if you're looking for a plastic type tool. And "County Comm" has lots of other fun stuff if you're not familiar with them: :)

Norton's U.C.S. (Universal Cleaning Stick) ~

Armorer Tool
 
Have you tried Derek Swabs?

From the Amazon description on my phone :

Zetek Bundle Foam Tip Cleaning Swabs Sponge Stick for Inkjet Printer, Printhead, Camera, Cleanroom, Optical Lens, Gun, Automotive Detailing, Optical Equipment
 
https://amazon.com/gp/product/B07KMP75T3

1800 for $22 shipped.

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Thanks, but do you have direct experience with this product so you know for a fact that they hold up?

Yeah I've used them, Just ordered more yesterday. Very tight tips. Benefit of actual qtips is the tips fall apart and fuzz up and that makes it easier to get into corners or you can fluff them by hand, very difficult to fluff these up they're so tight and it has a tip on one side but its hard to get that into every spot since it doesn't 'squish out' very well. Also the tightness limits the absorption to the surface, it's like a wrung out rag thats still under tension, it just doesn't hold much more. These are more for scrubbing.
 
I've been using dollar tree plastic stemmed versions, it doesn't matter about as little bit getting into the nooks and crannies, it does come out.
I thought i'd splash out a year or so ago on the ramrodz, and i have to say, even though they are very expensive, they're excellent quality and re-usable to a degree, though less usable in tight areas, moreso in barrels.
 
I use the Q-Tip brand. They were really good when the stick part was made out of wood but I haven't seen those in years. Some milquetoast environmentalist probably got a splinter and sued due to a nervous breakdown over it. The wooden Q-Tips were the best though.
Don't get me started on the Japanese half of my family that uses plastic scrapers. We had a friend whose kid bumped into her while she was scraping out her ear and drove the scraper through her ear drum. My wife still won't give up her ear scraper even though I said I told ya so. I know that I'm a culturally insensitive Neanderthal (yeah, I can pull that off:D) but I'll stick to my Q-Tips. They're great for cleanin' guns too.
 
From Amazon, single sided, wood:
SE CS100-6-4 6" Cotton Swabs with Wooden Handles (4 Packs of 100) , about $12

They have other similar version and sometimes they change without notice (i.e. when you reorder they may be different). I use regular Q-tips from Costco as well.
 
From Amazon, single sided, wood:
SE CS100-6-4 6" Cotton Swabs with Wooden Handles (4 Packs of 100) , about $12

They have other similar version and sometimes they change without notice (i.e. when you reorder they may be different). I use regular Q-tips from Costco as well.
I've seen those long medical swabs with the wooden stick and cotton only one end. They don't do it for me. I need the original. I know, I'm odd that way. o_O Just like I can't bring myself to put Pachmyr grips on a 1911. It has to be wood or govt issued plastic.
 
From Amazon, single sided, wood:
SE CS100-6-4 6" Cotton Swabs with Wooden Handles (4 Packs of 100) , about $12

They have other similar version and sometimes they change without notice (i.e. when you reorder they may be different). I use regular Q-tips from Costco as well.
Ahh, i inherited a bunch of these, they've actually come in use more than i'd imagine, and it's under $5 delivered for another 100, easy grab.

https://www.amazon.com/SE-CS100-6-Count-Cotton-Swabs/dp/B002V0ZY2Q
 
Comparison against genuine QTIPs from what I received today from the amazon link I posted. They are 1.2 cents each, I think Costco Qtips are actually half that at 0.6 cents each. (4x625 @ ~$15)

Hopefully this illustrates the difference in fuzziness.

IMG_20190404_182032473.jpg
 
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