Breaking in a barrel

Buckmastr

Buckmastr

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Interesting viewpoint that likely has merit.


https://www.6mmbr.com/gailmcmbreakin.html


How to Break-in a Barrel

-- A Dissenting Point of View



Gale McMillan, of McMillan Stocks fame, was one of the finest barrel-makers and benchrest shooters of all time. Here he argues that elaborate barrel break-in procedures do more harm than good.

Comments collected from Gale's Gun Forum postings.

As a barrel maker I have looked in thousands of new and used barrels with a bore scope and I will tell you that if every one followed the prescribed [one shot, one clean] break-in method, a very large number would do more harm than good. The reason you hear of the gain in accuracy is because if you chamber a barrel with a reamer that has a dull throater instead of cutting clean sharp rifling it smears a burr up on the down wind side of the rifling. It takes from one to two hundred rounds to burn this burr out and the rifle to settle down and shoot its best. Any one who chambers rifle barrels has tolerances on how dull to let the reamer get and factories let them go longer than any competent smith would.

Another tidbit to consider--take a 300 Win Mag that has a life expectancy of 1000 rounds. Use 10% of it up with your break-in procedure. For every 10 barrels the barrel-maker makes he has to make one more just to take care of the break-in. No wonder barrel-makers like to see this. Now when you flame me on this please [explain] what you think is happening to the inside of your barrel during the break in that is helping you.

Consider this: every round shot in breaking-in a barrel is one round off the life of said rifle barrel. No one has ever told me the physical reason of what happens during break-in firing. In other words what, to the number of pounds of powder shot at any given pressure, is the life of the barrel. No one has ever explained what is being accomplished by shooting and cleaning in any prescribed method. Start your barrel off with 5 rounds and clean it thoroughly and do it again. Nev Maden, a friend down under that my brother taught to make barrels was the one who came up with the [one shot one clean] break-in method. He may think he has come upon something, or he has come up with another way to sell barrels. I feel that the first shot out of a barrel is its best and every one after that deteriorates [the bore] until the barrel is gone. If some one can explain what physically takes place during break-in to modify the barrel then I may change my mind. As the physical properties of a barrel don't change because of the break-in procedures it means it's all hog wash. I am open to any suggestions that can be documented otherwise if it is just someone's opinion--forget it.

It all got started when a barrel maker that I know started putting break-in instructions in the box with each barrel he shipped a few years ago. I asked him how he figured it would help and his reply was if they shoot 100 rounds breaking in this barrel that's total life is 3000 rounds and I make 1000 barrels a year just figure how many more barrels I will get to make. He had a point; it definately will shorten the barrel life. I have been a barrel maker a fair amount of time and my barrels have set and reset benchrest world records so many times I quit keeping track (at one time they held 7 at one time) along with High Power, Silhouette, Smallbore national and world records and my instructions were to clean as often as possible preferably every 10 rounds. I inspect every barrel taken off and every new barrel before it is shipped with a bore scope and I will tell you all that I see far more barrels ruined by cleaning rods than I see worn out from normal wear and tear. I am even reading about people recommending breaking-in pistols. As if it will help their shooting ability or the guns'.
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There are many different procedures to barrel break-in, many gun owners don't even try. I always follow my own procedure of barrel break-in, been doing it for over two decades, sans complication. My objective is to complete two intentions at the same time. However, before getting started I always give the entire new rifle and barrel a good cleaning with solvent, inspect that guard screws are tight, base and rings are tight, trigger pull, remove front and rear studs, clear clean optics. These things are checked, double checked and checked again prior to range time.
When at the range my objective is to break-in the barrel and to conduct load development/fire form at the same time. I shoot three shots and then clean. This procedure will continue until such time I reach near to 50 shots fired. The first three shots is to line-up the rifle then followed by working three different powders around one bullet, usually 15 rounds per powder, a total of 48 to 50.
I'm an old dog, I don't like new tricks, of any kind.
 
It can help reduce fouling in production cut/button barrels to do the break in thing. Hammer forged or after market precision barrel it's a waste.
 
With a new barrel, I also do load development and break in at the same time. I don’t clean at the gun club, only at home, and usually after 15 rounds or so initially. Three or four range visits the break in is complete and I stop cleaning until the gun needs it.
 
I haven't done "break in" on a barrel since 2005. I don't even like to clean them anymore haha

Last trip to the range with an abused barrel that hasn't been cleaned in 250 rounds resulted in a 0.7moa 5 shot group with a handload I had never tried before
 
Barrels tend to settle results on paper and today’s accurate chronographs prove this.

Haven’t found breaking in or not to change this.

Anyone have proof of cleaning rod damage?
 
Not sure why there would be cleaning rod damage if you're doing it right. Use the proper cleaning rod and Jag, clean from the breech using a plastic rod guide in the chamber etc.

I think barrel break in is a thing and have done it to rifles I've bought new. I think it's a good thing.
 
I do a clean after every round for the first 10. Then after 5 and 5 again. Then as required. Usually copper is the one I look for. On a carbon deposit in magnums. Bore scope!
 
I’ve always been too lazy to break in, or the even clean barrels more than once in a blue moon. Glad to hear I’ve been right all along!
 
I thought it was rather stupid when he first said,

"Consider this: every round shot in breaking-in a barrel is one round off the life of said rifle barrel".

take a 300 Win Mag that has a life expectancy of 1000 rounds. Use 10% of it up with your break-in procedure. For every 10 barrels the barrel-maker makes he has to make one more just to take care of the break-in.

...and I still do.

Breaking in a match grade hand lapped custom barrel may take 10 shots... I don't think he was good at math.

I think Lilja explains the break in more accurately. https://riflebarrels.com/support/centerfire-maintenance/
 
guntech said:
I thought it was rather stupid when he first said,

"Consider this: every round shot in breaking-in a barrel is one round off the life of said rifle barrel".

take a 300 Win Mag that has a life expectancy of 1000 rounds. Use 10% of it up with your break-in procedure. For every 10 barrels the barrel-maker makes he has to make one more just to take care of the break-in.

...and I still do.

Breaking in a match grade hand lapped custom barrel may take 10 shots... I don't think he was good at math.

I think Lilja explains the break in more accurately. https://riflebarrels.com/support/centerfire-maintenance/
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:)Thanks guntech. Great info you've posted on barrel break in by Lilja. Any possibility of having it as a sticky in the top of this section??? It would be a valuable source of info to fall back on by people:redface: with a memory like mine. Thanks again.
 
todbartell said:
I haven't done "break in" on a barrel since 2005. I don't even like to clean them anymore haha

Last trip to the range with an abused barrel that hasn't been cleaned in 250 rounds resulted in a 0.7moa 5 shot group with a handload I had never tried before
Click to expand...


Somewhere in the back issues of either Rifle or Handloader magazine Barsness did an interesting article where he essentially came to the same conclusion. At the end of the day clean them when accuracy begins to degrade. Some rifles lose accuracy after 15-20 some 200. Some get more accurate as they foul. It’s rifle barrel witchery
 
Actually what I have found is that any barrel that I thought was worth "breaking in" didn`t really need breaking in and always shot great. A barrel on a Savage Axis is still what it is no matter how much you break it in. Have done the breaking in thing out of curiosity and never proven to myself that it mattered. Just my personal experience.
 
Every Barrel is different, some foul more than others, let the barrel tell you what it needs,

Ive lost count how many new Benchmark/other brands of aftermarket barrels on Custom builds or Semi custom builds Ive shot from new,

With any new build or rebarrel job when I get it home I clean it so I know what Im starting with, I usually use 2-4 shots to zero at 25 yards then 100 yards, I clean out the carbon in between those shots, then I start shooting 3 shot groups

I give a quick clean of carbon between each 3 shot group for the first 3 or 4 groups after that I let the barrel tell me what it needs, like I said earlier some carbon/copper foul worse than others, some hardly at all.

My previous 300 PRC build was an extremely fast barrel, 26 inch #4 fluted Benchmark 1-9.5 twist 5R barrel shot factory Hornady ammo 80fps (avg) faster than advertised velocity, this barrel never had any copper fouling other than a little carbon when I cleaned it, didn't matter what bullet I used it still ran fast, handloads on average were a 100 fps faster than any of the other four 300 PRC builds Ive had ?

My latest 280 AI copper fouls pretty good......its a 23 inch #1 contour fluted 1-9 twist Benchmark, its very accurate even fouled, clean or dirty so far hasn't made a difference in accuracy.

I have had some factory rifle barrels barrels that when clean the groups open up, a Mark V 240 Wby comes to mind, it would shoot 1/2-5/8" group with factory 85gr TTSX Wby ammo, if you cleaned it the group would open up to 1-1.25", after a cpl groups it would tighten back up....so it shot better fouled which most barrels seem to to a point.

Gary Flach had built a full custom 30-06 for me for a friend with a 24" #2 contour 1-10 twist barrel, first group was 1/2" after that it wouldn't shoot under a 1 1/4" group and some bigger ???

I did my usual cleaning routine at the range, yikes this thing won't shoot, 2nd time at the range still won't shoot and its getting worse, called Gary he suggested a really good cleaning but let sit for a few hours or overnight, sure enough a good thorough cleaning/brushing and the copper fouling come out of it and after that groups tightened right up, and no issues after that.
 
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