"Rapid" firing a rifle bad?

At the Wholesale Sports Pin Shoot in Selkirk, every year, guys bring out their mostly bolt action rifles, and fire continuously for up to 10 minutes. Last year, I ran 35 rounds of 22-250 in 6 minutes and my partner did about the same. Which is about par for the course. Lots of fairly expensive custom rifles in attendance. I doubt any of them make a habit of it, but every once in a while, it's not going to seriously hurt anything. Hell, the winners last year, would have been fools to accept my car in trade for their rifles, and they didn't bat an eye at shooting them like madmen for 3 minutes.
The first year I attended, one member here, finished in second or third, using a pencil barrel stevens 200. Mirage from the barrel was practically blinding him by the end, but he kept chugging away and finished very well, so accuracy was still acceptable to 200y, even through a barrel so hot that it could likely have been bent by a strong man with asbestos gloves.
 
Until the Angels Fall said:
My friend and I were "rapidly" shooting my Savage Edge in .223Rem today...probably 11 shots within 2 mins. Is that bad? Its new and we were just playing around with it...I didn't think until after that I was possibly...but hopfully not hurting it, meaning burning out the barrel and/or hurting the rifling.

Was I?

thanks, UTAF
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I would not worry too much about the .223, I did find that with a sporter barrel the groups will open up noticeably as it gets hotter. This was with a Stevens 200 so you should experience about the same with yours.
 
Epidemic said:
Obviously no. Firearms are meant to be fired it doesn't matter how rapidly you do it. (Well I guess it sort of does but you get my point)
Of course some guns can overheat with constant firing so you'd want to be watchful of that but you're fine.
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Spend an afternoon ramming a couple of hundred shots out of a 300 Win Mag and you'll see some throat damage.
 
I don't think I shoot my guns fast. The guns the taxpayers have issued me over the years could get hot - but that's what spare barrels are for.

In the Recce Sqn at Lahr in the late 80s - early 90s, we would check .50 Browning HMG headspace every two cans (100 rounds to ea fifty cal can) and change barrels every four cans.

I ran a C9 range at Baumholder in 89, eight guns. Four on the mound at a time. Fire two belts (200 rds per belt), change barrels, fire two more belts, change the guns.

Four firing, four cooling. Range ran all day. We fired a MOUNTAIN of 5.56 linked out of those C9s.

Slow is smooth - smooth is fast.

Though waaaaaay back, we did fire an FN C2 so much, the screws on the gas block loosened off and the foresight guards fell off - but that was just being dopey.

Jealous yet? :)
 
BigUglyMan said:
Spend an afternoon ramming a couple of hundred shots out of a 300 Win Mag and you'll see some throat damage.
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Friend of mine saw a guy at the range, blasting like a madman. Figured guy had a 303 and was recreating the war. Turned out to be a brand new Rem 700, in 300WM, and he was trying to get his scope set up. Guy had run 100 rounds in 45 minutes the first day, and 120 in about an hour the second day. Kept figuring the scope was the problem. Barrel was at least a few shades whiter than it should have been. Once He finished laughing, he explained to the guy that he had most likely already destroyed the barrel.
 
I fed about 15 rounds of 17FB through my single shot rifle as fast as I could a while back and felt guilty of abuse. You could hang onto the barrel so I highly doubt it was damaged in any way. I sure get paranoid though.
 
curtmg said:
Friend of mine saw a guy at the range, blasting like a madman. Figured guy had a 303 and was recreating the war. Turned out to be a brand new Rem 700, in 300WM, and he was trying to get his scope set up. Guy had run 100 rounds in 45 minutes the first day, and 120 in about an hour the second day. Kept figuring the scope was the problem. Barrel was at least a few shades whiter than it should have been. Once He finished laughing, he explained to the guy that he had most likely already destroyed the barrel.
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Expensive way to end up with a donor.
 
svehn said:
Lets see how long the shoulder lasts too. :p
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The Wby 30-378 I had was braked, my wife could ring a 5" gong @ 300m with it comfortably if wearing hearing protection. No recoil to speak of. However, it did cost $25/box to reload, so rapid fire wasn't part of that game, plus the third shot would walk about 2 inches right @ 300m if you didn't allow a couple minutes cooling. I think that chambering really only has about 2 firings availible before the heat swells the bore and changes the POI in regards to the sights.
 
I think that chambering really only has about 2 firings availible before the heat swells the bore and changes the POI in regards to the sights.
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My 300RUM would average sub 1/2" at 100 yards for three shots if fired one after the other with no cooling time. Then again, it wasn't a Weatherby.:D
 
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