Cool down of the barrel when trying out some new loads?

Evil_Dark

Evil_Dark

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Hey, just wonder what are you doing when you are testing new loads? The time for the barrel to cool down seem to me very toooooo long... Or maybe I'm doing something wrong? Anyway, I don't have enough time to way 15 minutes between shots in the field, I have a life... (And my wife is reminding me anyway that I have to get back home QUICK!!).
I use to fire 3 shots and wait. But after 6-7 minutes (bolt open), the barrel is still hot. When I fire my second group of 3 shots, the barrel is too hot for my hand to stand on it. And now it won't get cool after a long time... I don't know how long actually, because I don't have the time to wait for it, so I usually wait 5-7 minutes before my next group. But I know that there is a heat build up...

Is barrel heat influencing the precision? And is it dangerous for the barrel itself or shorten the barrel's life ?
And what are you doing between shots? I know that bringing another rifle to shoot them alternatively should help, but regarding the cooldown time VS the shooting time, I should bring 5 different rifles to be able to shoot continuously!

Dark
 
I take 2 or 3 guns to the range and tell the wife ( if she's not shooting with me ) I'll be gone all morning. I have seen guys take ice cubes along to cool the barrel , rubbing the outside and wiping it dry then letting the temp even out but this seems a lot of work for me. My concern with barrels getting hot is excessive throat erosion as it happens much quicker in hot barrels than cool ones.
 
Usually I bring 4-5 rifles and alternate them. Something I've done on occasion is bring a cooler with a couple bags of ice. After shooting a group I'd set one bag on the bench and place the rifle barrel on top of that. Set the second bag on top, as far back as the scope will allow. Leave it there til you get a couple of weird looks from everyone (won't take long) then give it a quick wipe with a towel and shoot the next group. You want to keep the water out of the bedding.

A better approach might be to put the rifle across two bags upside down.
 
I've never done the ice cube thing, but I also bring a couple of rifles at a time, and I tend to alternate groups...

I've never noticed any excess heat issues when testing loads in 3 or 4 different rifles in a range session.
 
I just bring more rifles and alternate as others do. I do like bringing a rimfire with me and do position practice with it to stay tuned up for hunting while waiting for barrels to cool.


Mark
 
If you put the rifle in a vertical position (e.g. in a gun rack or leaned up against a bench) with the bolt open, the warm/hot barrel acts like a chimney and induces an upward draft. So in addition to being cooled by the air outside the barrel, it is also cooled by the air current inside the barrel (so it cools a bit quicker).
 
Is it a custom barrel that has been stress relieved? A heavy full floated barrel? If so, 5 minutes between groups will suffice. After all, a match is 12 to 17 rounds, and we don't expect the group to move.

If it is a factory barrel, drape a wet cloth over it between groups.
 
I've been meaning to hook up a CO2 tank for a little instant winter. Gotta get around to that one of these days. Working up loads for light barrelled hunting rifles in hot weather, can be time consuming and although shooting many rifles is fun and all it doesn't shorten the cooling process on any individual barrel.
 
Hmm, people have liquid cooled computer systems. Has anyone gone all bubba and made a liquid cooling system for their rifle?
 
The best option.........might throw off your groups a little however.

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Hmm, I wonder if I could find some cheap heat resistant tubing, coil it around an AR barrel, and still fit it under a regular handguard.
Damnit, now I wanna go shopping and build a frankengun. This is why I'm poor!
 
Dake21 said:
Since we are talking about barrel heats, is it a big concern? Should I expect the cartridge to cook off or the barrel to slowly degrade?
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Not really unless you're purposefully shooting and reloading as fast as possible. Even going full auto, it seems to take about five or six magazines to cause a cook off or light the handguard on fire. 30 round mags, mind you, so about 150 or 200 shots in less than a minute. There are some videos online, to bring a tear to your eye over the fact that we can't do any of those things.

Most people are concerned with the barrel heating up and causing their groupings to open up and migrate.
 
Not really unless you're purposefully shooting and reloading as fast as possible. Even going full auto, it seems to take about five or six magazines to cause a cook off or light the handguard on fire. 30 round mags, mind you, so about 150 or 200 shots in less than a minute. There are some videos online, to bring a tear to your eye over the fact that we can't do any of those things.

Most people are concerned with the barrel heating up and causing their groupings to open up and migrate.
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Sounds good. After 40 30-30 rounds the barrel was really hot so I was wondering.

Oh wow, that's what I call overheating lol http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGAwrmOapb4
 
Forget where, but I recall reading an account of someone using one of those small electric portable tire inflating pumps adapted to pump air through the barrel between shots.
 
I didn't really think it made that big of a difference. Usually I fire 3-5 rounds....ish, and by the time I walk down to check my target (shooting at my spot and not on a range) and walk back to my firing point I shoot more. I don't go all out but when I'm testing I fire probably at 15-30 second intervals.

Liquid cooling eh........
 
klink1983 said:
I didn't really think it made that big of a difference. Usually I fire 3-5 rounds....ish, and by the time I walk down to check my target (shooting at my spot and not on a range) and walk back to my firing point I shoot more. I don't go all out but when I'm testing I fire probably at 15-30 second intervals.

Liquid cooling eh........
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X2, except I make a point of waiting 1 min between shots. That said, I'm no expert rifleman with decades of experience so my practices at the range are based mainly upon what I've read. I do shoot my TRG-42 for extended periods (20-30 rds) babying it along like this. My light barreled M70 (300WM), however, will start to string after 5 rounds or so if not allowed to thoroughly cool down. I have rubbing alcohol (dirt cheap) on hand for patching out ammonia based bore cleaners and have spritzed some on warm barrels to aid cooling. Can't swear it does any good though, it is a bit of a "what the hell" effort that should, in theory, aid cooling.
 
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i usually take five rifles one being a 22lr. range time for me is arround four hours so with shooting the 22 it gives my rifles lots of time to cool.
 
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