polishing Shotgun barrel bore.

C

colostomyclown

New member
So I followed some given advice, bought some 000 extra fine steel wool and wooden dowels and used them by hand and with a drill to polish some rough shotgun bores I had inherited, cleaning up the chamber and the bore and it looks great.

Am I doing this correctly? I just want to make sure I'm not removing any protective the layer in the bore that will cause it to pit out of control or bulge or anything or threaten headspace. Like I said I'm using 000 extra fine steel wool and some oil like Honing oil or 3-in-1 oil...

also, does a smooth shiny bore help patterning at all? I know a polished chamber will alleviate feed issues, are there other benefits as well?
 
It would take a LOT of steel wool to egg shape or remove significant metal from the bore.
As long as the bore isn't chrome plated you won't harm it.

Strangely, for reasons they didn't quite understand, the American Rifleman Tech Staff once did a test in which the groups tightened when the choke area was roughened up.
Repeat, this was ONE test and ONLY the actual choke area was slightly roughened.
 
The theory is a rough finish on the choke will slow the wad and start shot to string, thereby tighter pattern.
 
Anyone know when that test was run by the AR staff? It sounds like it might have been before use of plastic wads, when the thick over-powder wad sometimes broke up the pattern as it exited the bore.

Jim
 
no chokes here, folks. Have now done four shotguns, an 870 tactical, 1981 police wingmaster and two 590a1s. all cyl or imp cyl barrels. All look like a mirror now and I didn't have to wail on the barrels too hard. 6 or 7 vigorous passes in conjunction with some wd-40 or 3-in-1 and now the chambers and bores gleam.

i was having some issues with the 81 wingmaster the other day. had a +2 extension on it and the gun started off fine. after burning through about 50 rounds, it wouldnt like to eject shells properly depending on my pump technique. if i racked slow, like the movies, a deliberate chik-chak, the gun would function fine. however, if i racked how ive been taught and how a prefer, a speedy forceful quick back and forward, shells would hang up and not eject. i was not short stroking. could this have been due to the rough chamber? or was the extension put on incorrectly and the spring hanging up possibly?
 
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"...000 extra fine steel wool..." 0000, but we know.
"...any protective layer in the bore..." There isn't one. The bore has nothing whatever to do with head space either. That's entirely a bolt/chamber tolerance.
 
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