Barrel break in
- Thread starter 300Spartans
- Start date
I knew after I purchased my Tikka tactical that there was no way I was going to "just shoot it" to break it in, so I followed a very time consuming and tedious procedure to ensure maximum barrel life:
1 - Load magazine
2 - Fire 1 and only 1 shot
3 - Proceed to walk over to my spotting scope to check out my placement
4 - Let barrel cool
5 - Return to rifle
6 - Fire 1 more shot
I repeated this procedure, reloading as need be, until I had burned through a few boxes of ammo. Then cleaned the gun once I was done for the day.
Haven't had any problems since. Shoot safe.
1 - Load magazine
2 - Fire 1 and only 1 shot
3 - Proceed to walk over to my spotting scope to check out my placement
4 - Let barrel cool
5 - Return to rifle
6 - Fire 1 more shot
I repeated this procedure, reloading as need be, until I had burned through a few boxes of ammo. Then cleaned the gun once I was done for the day.
Haven't had any problems since. Shoot safe.
Long Range Canuck
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Athabasca Alberta aka God's Country
Savage said:
+1 the +1 I agree totally and only used to clean when groups open up. Now I don't clean I microlon. This topic has been argued probably since the first rifle was built and still isn't settled, so I doubt we will settle it here but it sure is fun trying!
I find the comments about breaking a barrel in and "getting less shooting out of it" and "a ploy by barrel manufacturers to sell more barrels" to be ridiculous.
Think about it - if you break a custom barrel in, you are firing about 20 rounds at the most to do that.
and that is "less shooting" and "a ploy to sell more barrels".....
Think about it - if you break a custom barrel in, you are firing about 20 rounds at the most to do that.
and that is "less shooting" and "a ploy to sell more barrels".....
.
If you have burrs or minor imperfection in the barrel that you have to "break-in" then you have a problem with the barrel and the manufacture. I have asked this question to licence machinist; ex weapon tech who manufactures his own barrels. His break in procedure is: 1) Run a bore brush down it 2)Run a patch down it 3) Shoot the damn thing.
- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
guntech said:I find the comments about breaking a barrel in and "getting less shooting out of it" and "a ploy by barrel manufacturers to sell more barrels" to be ridiculous.
Think about it - if you break a custom barrel in, you are firing about 20 rounds at the most to do that.
and that is "less shooting" and "a ploy to sell more barrels".....
.
I agree completely.
The idea that you shorten barrel life with a proper break-in regimen is silly.
I have a Kreiger Barrel on my target rifle, and Kreiger offers the following:
BREAK-IN & CLEANING
With any premium barrel that has been finish lapped -- such as your Krieger Barrel --, the lay or direction of the finish is in the direction of the bullet travel, so fouling is minimal. This is true of any properly finish-lapped barrel regardless of how it is rifled. If it is not finish-lapped, there will be reamer marks left in the bore that are directly across the direction of the bullet travel. This occurs even in a button-rifled barrel as the button cannot completely iron out these reamer marks.
Because the lay of the finish is in the direction of the bullet travel, very little is done to the bore during break-in, but the throat is another story. When your barrel is chambered, by necessity there are reamer marks left in the throat that are across the lands, i.e. across the direction of the bullet travel. In a new barrel they are very distinct; much like the teeth on a very fine file. When the bullet is forced into the throat, copper dust is released into the gas which at this temperature and pressure is actually a plasma. The copper dust is vaporized in this gas and is carried down the barrel. As the gas expands and cools, the copper comes out of suspension and is deposited in the bore. This makes it appear as if the source of the fouling is the bore when it is actually for the most part the new throat. If this copper is allowed to stay in the bore, and subsequent bullets and deposits are fired over it; copper which adheres well to itself, will build up quickly and may be difficult to remove later. So when we break in a barrel, our goal is to get the throat polished without allowing copper to build up in the bore. This is the reasoning for the "fire-one-shot-and-clean" procedure.
Barrels will vary slightly in how many rounds they take to break in because of things like slightly different machinability of the steel, or steel chemistry, or the condition of the chambering reamer, etc. . . For example a chrome moly barrel may take longer to break in than stainless steel because it is more abrasion resistant even though it is the same hardness. Also chrome moly has a little more of an affinity for copper than stainless steel so it will usually show a little more "color" if you are using a chemical cleaner. (Chrome moly and stainless steel are different materials with some things in common and others different.) Rim Fire barrels can take an extremely long time to break in -- sometimes requiring several hundred rounds or more. But cleaning can be lengthened to every 25-50 rounds. The break-in procedure and the clearing procedure are really the same except for the frequency. Remember the goal is to get or keep the barrel clean while polishing out the throat.
Finally, the best way to break-in the barrel is to observe when the barrel is broken in; i.e. when the fouling is reduced. This is better than some set number of cycles of "shoot and clean" as many owners report practically no fouling after the first few shots, and more break-in would be pointless. Conversely, if more is required, a set number would not address that either. Besides, cleaning is not a completely benign procedure so it should be done carefully and no more than necessary.
When my PSS gets here, im buying 60 rounds and im off to the range.I'll shoot my 60 rounds, then go home, and clean my rifle. It is then going in my safe. and i'll continue to do that for as long as i own this rifle.
Some barrels will have a tndency to foul and may be difficult to clean regardless of who made them. If one takes his rifle out and fires 60 rounds through it in spite of the fact that it may have picked up significant fouling in the first 5 shots, he risks physically damaging the barrel. It may never perform as well as it should.
I do feel that breakin will vary from barrel to barrel. A barrel which doesn't break in well and quit fouling within 20 rounds will probably always be a bit of a problem.
My breakin technique consists of firing, cleaning, and inspection. After each shot, I wipe the bore with a damp patch (I still like Hoppes#9 just fine, thanks) followed by a dry one. I then inspect the barrel. If it has picked up visible copper, I clean it to remove same. If not, I fire again and repeat. If I am able to do this for 5 shots with no apparent fouling, the barrel will probably never be a problem and may be fired at will. If the barrel shows fouling after one shot, I assume it won't be any better after two so I clean it. Once I am able to fire a shot with no apparent fouling, I will fire two. If still no fouling, I will fire a group and move on.
Over the years, I've noticed that barrels which required much in the way of break in never shot as well as those which did not. Regards, Bill.
I do feel that breakin will vary from barrel to barrel. A barrel which doesn't break in well and quit fouling within 20 rounds will probably always be a bit of a problem.
My breakin technique consists of firing, cleaning, and inspection. After each shot, I wipe the bore with a damp patch (I still like Hoppes#9 just fine, thanks) followed by a dry one. I then inspect the barrel. If it has picked up visible copper, I clean it to remove same. If not, I fire again and repeat. If I am able to do this for 5 shots with no apparent fouling, the barrel will probably never be a problem and may be fired at will. If the barrel shows fouling after one shot, I assume it won't be any better after two so I clean it. Once I am able to fire a shot with no apparent fouling, I will fire two. If still no fouling, I will fire a group and move on.
Over the years, I've noticed that barrels which required much in the way of break in never shot as well as those which did not. Regards, Bill.
As most of you know, I have been having quite a bit of fun with a couple of Stevens 200 rifles I bought recently. Both shoot very well, right out of the box. The 223 is getting half-inch gropups and the 300 Win shoots just under an inch. Not bad at all for factory barrels.
Now, here's the interesting part.
While the 223 had to have a bit of copper removed after the first few sessions at the range, the 300 still shows no signs of copper fouling at all, absolutely none! All I have done with it, is swab it with a bit of Kroil after each session at the range to remove powder fouling.
Now, the 223 has not needed any more copper cleaned out for many many shots, even with lots of 40 gr Ballistic Tips at 3600 fps, so I guess it has made it there, too.
Ted
Now, here's the interesting part.
While the 223 had to have a bit of copper removed after the first few sessions at the range, the 300 still shows no signs of copper fouling at all, absolutely none! All I have done with it, is swab it with a bit of Kroil after each session at the range to remove powder fouling.
Now, the 223 has not needed any more copper cleaned out for many many shots, even with lots of 40 gr Ballistic Tips at 3600 fps, so I guess it has made it there, too.
Ted
