I have yet to see a bulged barrel in person but I have always wondered what's so damaging about them. Don't burn me if I am completely ignorant but wouldn't it, at the worst, throw your pattern off? Or if it's a huge bulge could it weaken the barrel to the extent of cracking? I guess it would depend on where the bulge is on the barrel. What are people's experiences?
Bulged Barrel
- Thread starter stuckon308
- Start date
I've been to a gunsmith who had several bulged sections on his counter. There's also a video on the 'net of a guy here who shot an old s/s Cooey and blew the fixed Full choke right off. The bulge weakens the barrel at that point.
It happens; how often, I can't say.
It happens; how often, I can't say.
I've seen the after effects of a 44mag that had been loaded way to hot, the owner who wasn't 100% sure of what happened but after examining the casing and the size of the bugled barrel determined that the load was double charged.
The owner was very lucky he hadn't gotten himself injured, having said that I can tell you that the cracking to the eye was minimal, as a fun project I took the firearm and conducted Mag Particle inspection on it to find several huge cracks that were naked to the eye. If it was accidently fired again I think it would have come apart and injured the user for sure.
J
The owner was very lucky he hadn't gotten himself injured, having said that I can tell you that the cracking to the eye was minimal, as a fun project I took the firearm and conducted Mag Particle inspection on it to find several huge cracks that were naked to the eye. If it was accidently fired again I think it would have come apart and injured the user for sure.
J
Any bulge ruins the barrel completely. The barrel no longer has the internal dimensions to properly direct the tremendous pressure and the bullet. At the bulge, the metal of the barrel had been weakened to the point that it can only hold a small fraction of the original pressure it was rated for. The crystal lattice structure that gives the metal its strength is damaged. The next shot fired will blow the gun and possibly hurt/maim/kill the person shooting it and people near by. Do not ever used a bulged barrel.
