Picked up a Howa , break in procedure?? New to bolt guns

profeser

profeser

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Hi guys , I recently picked up a Howa 1500 mini action in 223 , im wondering if there's anything special I should do for a new rifle as far as a break in period, besides clean it .

I am also having a hard time finding much aftermarket stocks and parts any suggestions would be great. I was thinking about a chassis but is it really worth it , its the standard barrel not the varmint model.
 
Barrel break in is a hot topic that's for sure. I support it 100%. I go through barrels like people go through toilet paper and I've proven over and over again that a properly broken in barrel simply fouls less and therefore cleans up very quickly. If you're not the kind of guy who frequently cleans his barrels after every range session, not fussy about removing ALL copper fouling, or cares how long it takes, then don't bother going through the hassle.
 
clean it, shoot it , clean it, shoot it until you are broke or you never miss the target. Maybe replace a part if you break it but that takes years of frequent shooting
 
Bottom is a Howa/Vanguard bore (hammer forged) with about 300 rounds down it, top is a Savage bore (cut rifling) with about 800 rounds down it.
I didn't break in either one, both shoot great. I don't see any need to break in a hammer forged barrel as you can see from the pics, they are pretty smooth.
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i do follow a break-in procedure and it works for me - as stated in post #3
Howa's are well built - shoot it with the stock it came with - if you get MOA groups with it - leave it as is -
 
I use to be compulsive about barrel breakin.... Never have got .25 MOA
Now I just shoot a few each time when zeroing then clean at home
Did 3 yesterday and 5 today with a Savage
 
GUB said:
I use to be compulsive about barrel breakin.... Never have got .25 MOA
Now I just shoot a few each time when zeroing then clean at home
Did 3 yesterday and 5 today with a Savage
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No amount of barrel break-in will give you .25 MOA if the potential in the rifle isn't there. Am I misunderstanding your comment about never achieving .25 MOA? It simply slows down fouling and cleans up more quickly.

I have two identical rifles. One was purchased used, the other new. I broke in the new barrel. I can removed 100% of copper fouling with less than 20 patches. The used one; takes hours to clean perfectly. It drives me crazy but I admit I am anal about having a clean barrel.
 
Donny Fenn1 said:
Maybe because you clean too much?
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Hahaha. Good one! One could argue that point yes. However, most of my rifles clean up so quickly the cleaning rod isn't spending much time in the barrel anyway.

No, I shoot many thousands of rounds per year from my rifles in competition, practice, load development, plinking. The cartridges I shoot competitively lose their accuracy edge at +/- 1000 rounds. At some matches and the practice that leads up to it I can shoot 400 rounds. That's 3 matches at most for a barrel.
 
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Also, a high quality bore guide, coated one piece cleaning rod, a proper fitting patch/brush and proper technique all but eliminates barrel wear caused from cleaning.
 
chuck nelson said:
Just clean the crud out of it and go shoot it.
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Usually when I get a new gun I can barely muster up the will power to put a patch down it before I go blasting. Can’t imagine some of these methods, clean after every shot for 20 rds etcccc. Boring!
 
Hitzy said:
Bottom is a Howa/Vanguard bore (hammer forged) with about 300 rounds down it, top is a Savage bore (cut rifling) with about 800 rounds down it.
I didn't break in either one, both shoot great. I don't see any need to break in a hammer forged barrel as you can see from the pics, they are pretty smooth.
20-02-12-09-21-53.png

20-02-12-09-18-20.png
Click to expand...

Savage barrels are button rifled.
 
I have no procedure, i clean de rifle for starter than i dont bother about it, just shoot it like you stole it., Once in a bluemoon i will run a patch. Often i will get my winner groups after 200 rounds without cleaning. THE REAL AND ONLY CONSIDERATION IS DONT HAVE YOUR BARREL GET TO HOT.
 
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