Who "breaks in" a 22 barrel ?

Well to be different... sure you can just shoot them... but for years I have lapped all new gun barrels with 20 pulls on a boresnake (or swabs) with JB Bore Paste... ten pulls with JB, three pulls of Bore Brite, then ten more pulls of JB and a light barrel lube... then I run a few bricks through it... maybe its unnecessary, but i would like to think that it smooths out the rough manufacturing edges... which is what shooting it will do... but I can do it while watching Dexter or Justified.
 
I got a NIB Rem597 and had to use compound to polish it.
Here's why;
Rem says;" this gun was tested to hit a target at 50yds"....they don't provide said target nor stipulate how big it is. Apareantly they use the proverbial broad side of a barn as the target.
My barrel had a burr on the crown and rust in the bore. Recovered sluggs out of the snowbank backstop showed BAD stripping of the copper plating.
I ran a patch covered in Brasso down that russty pipe and a case neck deburring tool over the crown and all is golden!
Recovered sluggs were pristeen with 5 grooves in them instead of being ripped to $}{ITE.
It now easily groups a 25rnd mag rapid fire in a 6"x6" steel plate @ 100yds with 555bulk ammo, and best 3rnd group is 3/4"@ 100 yds with Win supperX.
I may have been able to acomplish these resaults with 10000 rounds down the barrel but broad side of a barn accuracy was not acceptable to "waste" 10000 rounds on.
 
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heavenIsAlie said:
remington, bad quality control? im shocked!
Click to expand...

I'm not....now. But it was my first gun and all the old remingtons my dad owned were great guns so I asumed the tradition had continued......I was mistaken.
Would I buy another 597? Yes
Would I shine a bore light down the barrel before buying and not just asume; "its NIB so it must be OK"? Yes

I bought a Rem 870 and have never had a hitch....but I went through 5 boxed guns before choosing which one. I also deburred and polished everything just for good measure.
 
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Breaking in a .22 is critical. If you don't, nothing will happen but if you do then your rifle will be worth more than a new one. A broken in 10/22 is worth $350 while a new one is only $250. Check the EE if you don't believe me.
 
On the topic of gun sales on the EE... It is insane how many people are selling used guns for more than a new gun costs... 10/22's are only one example... H&R Handi rifles are listed from $350 - $450 used, and some you have to add shipping... These guns are selling NEW for $270 at half a dozen retail stores in Ontario... I don't get these guys trying to rip-off fellow shooters... Fair market value should be enough.
 
Yeah its pretty pathetic really. Most of them are FIRM plus shipping or if you make an offer you get a rude response. I inquired about a used Mares leg in .22lr that the guy was trying to sell for $420. I offered $320 based on the brand new retail price of $350 and holy fack dude flipped his s**t. I forgot he had broken it in, my mistake.
 
Alot of folks don't bother cleaning their rimfires... and thats ok with me... but I like to keep my guns clean and lightly lubed... and a few of my precision semi's will not run unless they are clean... the tolerances are too tight to allow for grit and residue to ride in the actions... a factory OEM 10/22 is so sloppy in the action, you can usually get away with shooting it dirty.
 
Opinions are a bit like a**holes, everyone has one. even me, lol.
Breaking in a barrel, whether rimfire or centerfire, serves a purpose.

Simply assures the new owner that his new toy will work the best possible for him for a long time.
All new barrels [except very expensive hand lapped ones] have some burrs and rough spots in them.

It generally takes anywhere from 50 to 500 rounds to smooth these out in a rimfire.

Cleaning every few shots right at first makes sure no lead or plating metals are left around these burrs to build up and cause issues.
As the barrel smooths out, the presence of bullet material in the barrel diminishes.

Makes for easier cleaning later, and less likelihood of leading when using unplated ammo.

A 22 rimfire barrel has a very long life [>100,000 rounds]so starting it out in life correctly makes sense.

Regards, Eagleye
 
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It was recommended to me to clean the bore of my CZ452 Varmint.
There was a considerable amount of brown crap and crud even after scrubing with a bronze brush, and lots of patches.
 
As a precautionary practice, I always break in every new barrel carefully. It's a good thing to do and as another poster has mentioned, "you only get one chance to do it". I'm doing a 597 mag now and with the cooler temps right now, the barrel doesn't get too hot. It gets to a point that when the groups begin to spread out, you can tell that the barrel is getting fouled to the point where accuracy falls off. It's no biggie, but does take a bit more time. Once the bore is smoothed out the gun will fire repeatedly for quite a white before it needs anther cleaning. With a semi-automatic one has to keep an eye on possible powder fouling as well.
 
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