Not much of a need for gun cleaning rods
There6 are a lot of things that haven’t changed much with shooting firearms, but the way things are cleaned has changed. Gun Lubricants are mostly non-toxic anymore and they are much better at doing more than keeping a firearm running, they also help do what gun cleaners did and also help protect rifles and handguns from corrosion. I have gone through a few gun cleaning rods, all 3 piece ones, and it’s always the 22 caliber rifles that do in those devices. If you put the wrong cleaning patch on the rod you are going to get it stuck halfway in the barrel and might even not be able to pull the rod out. Not all firearms can be cleaned with a cleaning rod properly, the M1 Garand, and Mini 14 and Ruger 10/22. Sure if you want to clean it from the muzzle you can but that’s not the direction the bullet goes and isn’t recommended.
The only firearm that I don’t use a device like this in are my revolvers because I do find that I need a pistol cleaning rod to brush out the cylinder whenever I am shooting all lead bullets because the Hoppes Boresnakes just don’t seem to get it all. There are always reasons to have more than a few gun cleaning tools around but it’s also important to make sure you use the correct caliber sizes and don’t force it. I am presently using a 22 Caliber Boresnake on my AR15s, Ruger Mini 14s and Marline Model 882 and Ruger 10/22. Just soak the top of the snake just ahead of the bristles and drop the cord through the barrel and pull.