VikingsGuy
Well-known member
you need a AK variant - the dirtier the better
Breaking in a new rifle?
- Thread starter duckhunt
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JohnCushman
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belshawelk
Well-known member
Depends on the rifle. My high end rifles I absolutely follow strict break in to ensure accuracy guarantees and make sure barrel is broke in correctly without overheating.. My MSR and low end rifles I just shoot the crap out of. They are always worth the same amount no matter what.
D
Deleted member 38069
Guest
Weatherby has a good podcast episode on this very thing. Great listen!
Dougfirtree
Well-known member
I do the break-in stuff for the first 20 rounds or so. I'm not sure I actually believe in it, but I figure why take the chance? It's easy.
Dougfirtree
Well-known member
^^^^^ I went a bunch of years before I figured this out...
matt0550
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Invest once in the tools and supplies necessary to hand lap - become educated in it and then put that knowledge to work. Once you learn to hand lap correctly, you will never need to consider the words "break in" again.
cahunter805
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Agree with Buzz and others. Way more harm is done by improper cleaning and over cleaning than from not cleaning.
Always use a bore guide and coated 1 piece rod. Use a good solvent. I use boretech products and they work extremely well.
I have rifles that have easily 200+ rounds and are still shooting 1/2MOA. They are custom barrels.
If hunting in very wet conditions I would push a patch through the barrel before storing.
Always use a bore guide and coated 1 piece rod. Use a good solvent. I use boretech products and they work extremely well.
I have rifles that have easily 200+ rounds and are still shooting 1/2MOA. They are custom barrels.
If hunting in very wet conditions I would push a patch through the barrel before storing.
BuzzH
Well-known member
I agree or buy hand lapped barrels to start with.
matt0550
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Now that you mention it...your time is likely worth more than the difference in cost! Particularly if you arent doing many barrels - or believe you will. Buzz is spot on, buy a hand lapped Bbl and forget about it.
JohnCushman
Well-known member
I ❤ bore snakes
matt0550
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Not to hijack, but recommendations for best brand/type to carry afield for "just in case"? I only own one for my smoke poles and have considered that I should have one for rifles in the field.
JohnCushman
Well-known member
I just get the $6 off of amazon. I forgot the brand name. I just got one for my 25-06 and 17 hmr for like $13
quiet22
Member
My own advice....no break in required. This is supported by a very well respected gunsmith on YouTube - called 'GunBlue490'. You have already seen the warning regarding overheating....that's a real and should be watched for intently. In fact, he advises for the most part against copper removal and the associated cleaning products believing the copper only fills the valley's of inconsistencies. Best of luck to you and enjoy.
matt0550
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I'm not trying to disagree with you - but I do feel somewhat a duty to correct info that may be partially inaccurate - please dont take offense. Copper does in fact build in the bore of a rifle and it will collect differently in different bores dependent upon the conditions or that bore, the rifling, inconsistencies in the steel, tooling impressions and use/condition of that steel and of course projectile selection and velocity. Copper will definitely deposit in striations and microscopic cavities in the surface - this isn't the problem, but it is where the problem begins. Copper under heat and pressure becomes much more malleable and cohesive than when it is in it's cold state. As hot copper screams by those tiny deposits, often times it will leave additional deposit on top of and beyond that deposit (think of what road patch does when placed in a pothole and is then driven on again and again). After many many cycles, when a gunsmith places a bore scope (a real scope, not junk found at most big box stores) into this bore, he sees the tiny gold blobs or hills of jacketing built up in those locations. A rifle with a good bore and particularly in the case of a hand lapped barrel when new will reach a point of "copper equilibrium" where the microscopic deposits will be so small they are nearly undetectable and they collect additional copper so slowly that a shooter can fire several hundred rounds sometimes (slow fire) before accuracy begins to fade. In this instance, when accuracy begins to fade is the time to introduce that bore scope and look at those deposits. After removing those deposits and re-seasoning the barrel (fouling, coppering - whatever a guy likes to call it) the shooter regains his accuracy node that he previously enjoyed. Knowing this does not change the fact that most truly good and strong copper removers/solvents do cause some form of chemical erosion of the bore during use - this is the double edged sword. For my money, I find it much more important to regain my accuracy than to make my rifling last forever. It is always highly recommended to chase any and all solvents out of the barrel with liberal quantities of oil to neutralize any remaining detergent chemical that may have survived thurough swabbing and dry patches. This is a very general and broad look at a truly deep rabbit hole. I believe that your youtube guy is likely a very competent gunsmith, but like anything else, when you deal in generalizations you will often end up being proven wrong at some point. I am not saying that the youtube guy is completely wrong, I believe like him that you dont have to break in a barrel. A high quality barrel that was tooled (broached/cut/buttoned) at less than production speed will likely suffer far less copper collection than an ultra high speed production barrel that undergoes perhaps only a 1 or 2 step QC process...that's life. That's why I am a big fan of hand lapping - you stack the odds in your favor. Steel is fascinating and the processes used to create and shape what ends up being our rifle barrels is downright rocket science - but it ain't perfect...at least not yet.
Brian in Montana
Well-known member
Larry Potterfield of Midway USA has a short vid on a new barrel break in. I found it informative. I think it makes sense to do a break in. I basically do this - shoot 10 shots and clean after each shot; shoot 10 more and clean after every 2 shots. I don't get too crazy about what solvent to use, I just use Hoppes #9 Copper.
For normal cleaning I usually just use standard Hoppes #9. It's worked well for me my whole life.
For normal cleaning I usually just use standard Hoppes #9. It's worked well for me my whole life.
Brian in Montana
Well-known member
I also think that if you just clean your rifle after every trip the range for a while, you'll probably come back with similar results.
Lawnboy
Well-known member
Last time I cleaned my gun really good it shot horrible for about 20-30 shots. I won't do that again . It's a 1/2" gun though so I expect a lot. I'm currently using a Shilen barrel on this one and this is from their website. Every manufacture has a different opinion it seems.
"
How should I break-in my new Shilen barrel?
Break-in procedures are as diverse as cleaning techniques. Shilen, Inc. introduced a break-in procedure mostly because customers seemed to think that we should have one. By and large, we don't think breaking-in a new barrel is a big deal. All our stainless steel barrels have been hand lapped as part of their production, as well as any chrome moly barrel we install. Hand lapping a barrel polishes the interior of the barrel and eliminates sharp edges or burrs that could cause jacket deformity. This, in fact, is what you are doing when you break-in a new barrel through firing and cleaning.
Here is our standard recommendation: Clean after each shot for the first 5 shots. The remainder of the break-in is to clean every 5 shots for the next 50 shots. During this time, don't just shoot bullets down the barrel during this 50 shot procedure. This is a great time to begin load development. Zero the scope over the first 5 shots, and start shooting for accuracy with 5-shot groups for the next 50 shots. Same thing applies to fire forming cases for improved or wildcat cartridges. Just firing rounds down a barrel to form brass without any regard to their accuracy is a mistake. It is a waste of time and barrel life.
Back to top.
. It's a 1/2" gun though so I expect a lot. I'm currently using a Shilen barrel on this one and this is from their website. Every manufacture has a different opinion it seems."
How should I break-in my new Shilen barrel?
Break-in procedures are as diverse as cleaning techniques. Shilen, Inc. introduced a break-in procedure mostly because customers seemed to think that we should have one. By and large, we don't think breaking-in a new barrel is a big deal. All our stainless steel barrels have been hand lapped as part of their production, as well as any chrome moly barrel we install. Hand lapping a barrel polishes the interior of the barrel and eliminates sharp edges or burrs that could cause jacket deformity. This, in fact, is what you are doing when you break-in a new barrel through firing and cleaning.
Here is our standard recommendation: Clean after each shot for the first 5 shots. The remainder of the break-in is to clean every 5 shots for the next 50 shots. During this time, don't just shoot bullets down the barrel during this 50 shot procedure. This is a great time to begin load development. Zero the scope over the first 5 shots, and start shooting for accuracy with 5-shot groups for the next 50 shots. Same thing applies to fire forming cases for improved or wildcat cartridges. Just firing rounds down a barrel to form brass without any regard to their accuracy is a mistake. It is a waste of time and barrel life.
Back to top.
Buckyranger42
Active member
If using the rifle for typical hunting (not extreme long range) or casual “plinking” I believe Remington has these guidelines to break in the 783 that started this thread:
A. If using Remington ammo to break in your barrel, be sure to shoot at least 200-300 rounds
B. If using ammo from another manufacturer, you’re good-to-go out of the box. Shoot it at least 3-5 times to get it dialed in. Or several thousand to burn out the barrel.
I believe other rifle manufacturers have synonymous guidelines...
A. If using Remington ammo to break in your barrel, be sure to shoot at least 200-300 rounds
B. If using ammo from another manufacturer, you’re good-to-go out of the box. Shoot it at least 3-5 times to get it dialed in. Or several thousand to burn out the barrel.
I believe other rifle manufacturers have synonymous guidelines...
