How long before I get a "shot out" barrel on average??

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sgt.rock

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I just broke the 10,000 round mark with my Smith and Wesson model 422, and its more accurate now than when I first got it last august. The barrel looks crisp and sharp , so it got me to thinking about how long one can expect reasonable life on a 6" .22 barrel???
I shoot 500-1000 rounds every time I go to the range, and only clean it when it starts to missfeed from grunge buildup. I usually have a boresnake with me at the range and run it through every 50 to 100 rounds. I think I remember someone saying you couldn't shoot out a .22 barrel, but eventually wouldn't friction work on it the same as it does to everything else?
 
I have a Cooey 39 that's pretty "shot-out"...:)...just how many rounds went through that rifle before I got it is anyone's guess..:eek:...but it loves the .22 birdshot...:D
 
Lead is so much softer than steel, it will take longer than you are going to live. You must remember that lead also builds up inside the barrel and needs to be removed. My Anschutz 1420 Sporter has also done around 10 000 rounds and is as accurate as ever.
 
Other than cleaning the actual barrel twice with a rod/bore cleaner, it only gets a dry swipe with the boresnake every 100 rounds. The bore is bright and shiny with sharp rifling. At this rate, it seems like it will take 100K or more to see a difference.
 
The brass brush on the boresnake, although harmless, is likely causing more wear per pass than a 22 bullet.
 
Almost every "shot out" rimfire barrel I have ever seen has been "shot out" by being allowed to sit and rust, then being shot , then the cycle repeated...The old corrosive ammo(really old!) was not much help if not followed up by a proper cleaning. Sand and other forms of corruption stuck in the lube from the old lubed bullets being carried around in pockets, would be the next prime suspect.

After that, I'd dare suggest that too much scrubbing with a cleaning rod is to blame for more wear than all the ammo the was shot through the tube.

Lifespan on a .22 barrel is almost unlimited, as long as it gets fed clean ammunition.

Cheers
Trev
 
More than likely the moving parts will wear out long before the barrel life in a .22 rimfire. I remember reading years ago about an Anschutz rifle with over 500,000 rds and still going strong.
 
I talked to a guy who had 5 Browning 22 Short semi-auto "gallery" guns. He said they had anywhere between 200,000 and 400,000 rounds through them, and had every part replaced repeatedly except the barrels! I was astounded when he told me this, so asked how they shot. He said the high miler was due for a new barrel, but the others were still good. Hard to wear out a 22 rimfire barrel. More damage from cleaning and foreign material than from lubed lead bullets
 
We have a Cooey 39 in the family since the late 60's. I have personally put about 8k through it on top of the 10k+ my uncle has plus my grandfather's count on top of that. Last time I checked the barrel was pristine.
 
I have an older savage mark II i've shot atleast 20,000-30,000 rounds in and it still looks new. My cooey 75 rifleing is almost as good as my savage mark II and shoots just as well. My cooey 39 isn't half what the 75/mark II are but still shoots just as well as either. I have no idea what the 39 has seen as far as round count goes, i've only had it for a few months.

I mostly shoot rimfire, being broke I cant afford center fire expect the odd case of x39.
 
Rimfire barrels should last indefinitely. The only real hazards are from improper cleaning and rust from neglect.

Since the advent of non-corrosive .22 ammunition, it is rare to see a gun with a bad bore. Bullet lube will actually provide some corrosion protection. It is more common to see bad bores on really old .22s, which were fired with corrosive ammo and not cleaned afterwards.
 
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