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new barrel break-in
- Thread starter Lilswede1
- Start date
Not needed.
It benefits ammo and barrel makers as they get to sell more. Barrels start wearing out with the first shot fired in them. How many high pressure proof loads are shot in factory rifle barrels before customers buy them?
If you'll feel better by breaking it in, use one of several methods.
It benefits ammo and barrel makers as they get to sell more. Barrels start wearing out with the first shot fired in them. How many high pressure proof loads are shot in factory rifle barrels before customers buy them?
If you'll feel better by breaking it in, use one of several methods.
Premium button rifled hand lapped barrels benefit a little from break-in, and broach-cut barrels from 50 or so years ago benefitted a lot from break-in, but factory barrels vary in their response to breaking in. Hammer-forged barrels respond the least. Try it, it won't hurt, but don't get too caught up in it, people will look at you funny .
15 years ago reading gun forums two of the most interesting posters were here at TFL, was the late Gale McMillan, an outspoken Rem700 benchrest guy, and rec.guns where Bart Bobbitt was a careful fact stating Win M70 high power guy.
Here is an example:
On other posts he made the point that barrel makers do everything to finish a barrel right, and you can't improve on that.
Here is an example:
New rifle break-in
January 25, 2000, 02:19 PM #9
Gale McMillan
I just read the Feb edition of rifleman. No wonder it has shrunk to a few pages when they print such garbage as the barrel break in. It's lucky it doesn't have much following now. As a life member and a barrel maker of long standing be assured I will call them on this BS!!! I can say that there are enough barrels ruined by ignorance without encouraging the masses to commit mechanical suicide with such BS
On other posts he made the point that barrel makers do everything to finish a barrel right, and you can't improve on that.
4runnerman
New member
Thats why all the top bench rest shooters follow a very tight break in procedure. because there is no benefit to it. All the people I shoot comp with break in their barrels. now whether it be just to season the barrel so to say or get the rough spots out or make it easier to clean later,ect,ect. Then there is the group that say- Barrel makers want you to do it to wear your barrel out faster. Come on people, If you really believe that. Then the - I have seen more barrels ruined by cleaning then being shot out. 40 plus years of shooting and cleaning & many many friends, Never ever seen a barrel ruined by cleaning.
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Just because they do it (if they do it) doesn't mean there's a real benefitThats why all the top bench rest shooters follow a very tight break in procedure. because there is no benefit to it.
It seems I just read where a couple of top shooters said it's a waste of time
All the people I shoot comp with break in their barrels. now whether it be just to season the barrel so to say or get the rough spots out or make it easier to clean later,ect,ect.
So all those custom barrels the "top shooters" are using come with rough spots?
trigger643
New member
I don't break in my barrels, per se. I've talked to a number of competitive shooters and precision rifle builders who consider it a waste of time, ammo and barrel life.
The best advice I've received, and that I adhere to, comes down to: "What is the new barrel telling you?" It is summed up best as follows:
As the above states, as long as my groups are good I'm shooting. Over the years I've had rifles that were excellent right from the very first round down the tube and I've had a few others that took from 20 to 50 rounds to settle down into producing consistently tight groups. It depends on the gun.
The best advice I've received, and that I adhere to, comes down to: "What is the new barrel telling you?" It is summed up best as follows:
The age old question, "Breaking in the New Barrel". Opinions very a lot here, and this is a very subjective topic. For the most part, the only thing you are breaking in, is the throat area of the barrel. The nicer the finish that the Finish Reamer or Throating Reamer leaves, the faster the throat will break in.
Shoot one round and clean for the first two rounds individually. Look to see what the barrel is telling you. If I'm getting little to no copper out of it, I sit down and shoot the gun. Say 4 - 5 round groups and then clean. If the barrel cleans easily and shoots well, we consider it done.
If the barrel shows some copper or is taking a little longer to clean after the first two, shoot a group of 3 rounds and clean. Then a group of 5 and clean.
After you shoot the 3rd group and 5th group, watch how long it takes to clean. Also notice your group sizes. If the group sizes are good and the cleaning is getting easier or is staying the same, then shoot 4 - 5 round groups.
If fouling appears to be heavy and taking a while to clean, notice your group sizes. If group sizes are good and not going sour, you don't have a fouling problem. Some barrels will clean easier than others. Some barrels may take a little longer to break in. Remember the throat. Fouling can start all the way from here. We have noticed sometimes that even up to approximately 100 rounds, a barrel can show signs of a lot of copper, but it still shoots really well and then for no apparent reason, you will notice little to no copper and it will clean really easy.
This is meant as guide lines only. There is no hard and fast rule for breaking in a barrel.
As the above states, as long as my groups are good I'm shooting. Over the years I've had rifles that were excellent right from the very first round down the tube and I've had a few others that took from 20 to 50 rounds to settle down into producing consistently tight groups. It depends on the gun.
4runnerman
New member
gunnut69- No rifeling for the first inch or 2. now you contribute that to cleaning?. A nylon brush or copper for that matter totally scraped the rifling out of his barrel and then just the first inch or 2 ?.. Maybe he was using acid to clean?. Take a chuck of metel and a nylon brush and start scrubbing, do say 50 strokes a day,every day. Call me in 50 years when you can see where you have wore out the metal. I don't doubt what you saw in the rifle,what I do doubt is that is was caused by cleaning.
Snyper- It was a subjective thought. That is why there is more than one reason I posted and also the Ect,ect. What ever the reason might be, they break their barrels in is the point. I am not saying you have to break in a barrel, shoot it as you want. I am mearly stateing that those of us that do, will continue to do so.
Also- If cleaning ruins your barrel- At what amount of cleaning does this happen? After 100 times,1000 times, 10000 times. Your barrel is going to be long shot out before it is , lets say cleaned out. Remember- barrel break in is not a on going life long thing ok,it is for the first 30 to 50 or so rounds. Man if you can ruin a barrel by cleaning it that fast,well then,sorry to say you must be a idiot.
Snyper- It was a subjective thought. That is why there is more than one reason I posted and also the Ect,ect. What ever the reason might be, they break their barrels in is the point. I am not saying you have to break in a barrel, shoot it as you want. I am mearly stateing that those of us that do, will continue to do so.
Also- If cleaning ruins your barrel- At what amount of cleaning does this happen? After 100 times,1000 times, 10000 times. Your barrel is going to be long shot out before it is , lets say cleaned out. Remember- barrel break in is not a on going life long thing ok,it is for the first 30 to 50 or so rounds. Man if you can ruin a barrel by cleaning it that fast,well then,sorry to say you must be a idiot.
First Bartlein barrel I used this is from their site
http://www.bartleinbarrels.com/BreakInCleaning.htm
http://www.bartleinbarrels.com/BreakInCleaning.htm
I've been through a couple "break in" series with a few rifles, and I also sighted my scope during process as not to waste any ammo..,,,still not sure if they benefitted from it.
When I received my custom rifle with a premium "airguaged" Douglas barrel on it, I called Douglas and talked with one of their staff about break in, and I went by exactly what he told me to do, and the rifle shoots lights out,, so Im tickled....
When I received my custom rifle with a premium "airguaged" Douglas barrel on it, I called Douglas and talked with one of their staff about break in, and I went by exactly what he told me to do, and the rifle shoots lights out,, so Im tickled....
Dixie Gunsmithing
Moderator Emeritus
If a barrel is made by a reputable manufacturer, (not like those old half-rifled black powder jobs coming from Spain, etc.), then one should not have trouble from a barrel, even cut and broached rifling.
I think the stories about breaking in barrels, comes from the old days, when quality was not what we have now, or even 50 years back. Today, cut rifling uses precision ground cutters, and if one starts making bad rifling, then the cutter and barrel are scrapped, unless the barrel has some meat left to take out of the grooves, and a cutter change will clean it up. I never hear anyone speak of severe copper fouling, etc., with todays new barrels.
I think the stories about breaking in barrels, comes from the old days, when quality was not what we have now, or even 50 years back. Today, cut rifling uses precision ground cutters, and if one starts making bad rifling, then the cutter and barrel are scrapped, unless the barrel has some meat left to take out of the grooves, and a cutter change will clean it up. I never hear anyone speak of severe copper fouling, etc., with todays new barrels.
No one is saying anyone has to stop.I am mearly stateing that those of us that do, will continue to do so.
It's just not making a real difference.
If the barrel is bad, it's going to take more than a simple cleaning procedure to fix things
The " 2" with no rifling" is wear caused by the rod, not the brushes or solvent
4runnerman
New member
Snyper- The 2 inch wear is caused by the rod?. Again we go to improper cleaning procedure. With a bore gide( like you should be using) that senerio would never happen. Even though I do not believe that is what caused it in the first place-just giving you the benefit of the doubt here.
It's just not making a difference you say- That is your opinion-you are entilteled to that. I and millions of other think it does make a difference.
dixie gunsmithing- While what you say about bad barrels being scraped. Remember they come down a production line. having worked on a production line, not everyone is checked or caught. Most times there is a certain number the company will set, such as 1 out of every 20 or 30 or ect. that will get pulled off the line and checked. the rest slip through. This is why you can have 2 of the same rifles, same barrels that do not shoot the same. While they would catch the real bad ones, the ones that are border line will probebly go un-caught.
You get a rifle with real bad rifeling in it- There is a very good chance that it left the factory that way, it was not caused by cleaning.
I am not against people that don't break in a barrel and I do not praise people that do-To each their own. We all do thing different, that is what makes this Forum great. All kinds of info and all kinds of people.
It's just not making a difference you say- That is your opinion-you are entilteled to that. I and millions of other think it does make a difference.
dixie gunsmithing- While what you say about bad barrels being scraped. Remember they come down a production line. having worked on a production line, not everyone is checked or caught. Most times there is a certain number the company will set, such as 1 out of every 20 or 30 or ect. that will get pulled off the line and checked. the rest slip through. This is why you can have 2 of the same rifles, same barrels that do not shoot the same. While they would catch the real bad ones, the ones that are border line will probebly go un-caught.
You get a rifle with real bad rifeling in it- There is a very good chance that it left the factory that way, it was not caused by cleaning.
I am not against people that don't break in a barrel and I do not praise people that do-To each their own. We all do thing different, that is what makes this Forum great. All kinds of info and all kinds of people.
I have a ~ 1951 Husqvarna 98 Mauser 30-06 that has some damage to the bore I can't imagine how it was done.... maybe screwdrivers, wrenches, and hammers? It was not a chemical process, it was some kind of mechanical process that did it.
I don't know this guy's real name, just the handles he uses on gun forums, but although horrible vulgar, he does know a lot about guns. He make this comedy video about breaking in barrels, but he has more humor about lapping rings.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRRahHX9Zkg
I don't know this guy's real name, just the handles he uses on gun forums, but although horrible vulgar, he does know a lot about guns. He make this comedy video about breaking in barrels, but he has more humor about lapping rings.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRRahHX9Zkg
Yes 4runnerman cleaning does have an effect on rifle bores.
gunnut69- No rifeling for the first inch or 2. now you contribute that to cleaning?. A nylon brush or copper for that matter totally scraped the rifling out of his barrel and then just the first inch or 2 ?.. Maybe he was using acid to clean?. Take a chuck of metel and a nylon brush and start scrubbing, do say 50 strokes a day,every day. Call me in 50 years when you can see where you have wore out the metal. I don't doubt what you saw in the rifle,what I do doubt is that is was caused by cleaning.
Don't be foolish.. The 99 is normally cleaned from the front and the standard jointed aluminum rod makes a great lap.. A funneled bore is common on them...
gunnut69- No rifeling for the first inch or 2. now you contribute that to cleaning?. A nylon brush or copper for that matter totally scraped the rifling out of his barrel and then just the first inch or 2 ?.. Maybe he was using acid to clean?. Take a chuck of metel and a nylon brush and start scrubbing, do say 50 strokes a day,every day. Call me in 50 years when you can see where you have wore out the metal. I don't doubt what you saw in the rifle,what I do doubt is that is was caused by cleaning.
Don't be foolish.. The 99 is normally cleaned from the front and the standard jointed aluminum rod makes a great lap.. A funneled bore is common on them...
From a friend on bore polishing
From the CBA forum:
http://www.castbulletassoc.org/forum/view_topic.php?id=8364&forum_id=63
From the CBA forum:
http://www.castbulletassoc.org/forum/view_topic.php?id=8364&forum_id=63