Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Custom Rifles & Wildcats Barrel break-in

Latest technique


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRRahHX9Zkg

Not really the latest technique, this has been posted twice a week on this forum for at least a couple years now. we need something fresh for being smug and condescending !!!

I'm sure glad that clod isn't breaking in my barrels.

More like the last five years.

I'm not sure what it says that half the guys on this forum worship some guy that'll intentionally trash a $1500 rifle/scope combination just to be obnoxious.

There's a lot going on in that video than seems to be flying over your head.

David

That was a pretty good satire, I laughed.

I used to offer dissertations on the why and how of barrel break in, but came to the conclusion that everybody had their own opinion, ritual, sacrament and mumbo jumbo regarding the process, and the fact that most rifles and shooters aren't accurate enough to see any difference, that it's better to keep quite. I bet the guy in the video was tweaking some noses for all those reasons.

Bull barrels versus cow barrels - just gotta love it.

My friend has a shooting tube in his shop, and he agonizes for a couple days breaking in barrels in accordance with instructions from his gunsmith (a major player in custom rifles). Meanwhile, I see guys at the range with new rifles shoot them fast enough to glow, and they go away perfectly happy as soon as the barrel cools enough so it doesn't melt the foam case liner. Me, I just do my thing.

That video is a true classic, we should refer to it as the toss it on the ground and shoot a shot method.

I too laughed, no matter what another does to his gear.

Interesting folks do "Break-in" - then you hear of shooters who go 50-400 rounds between cleanings. JS.

Nothing's flying over my head about it, I know exactly what he's trying to get across. I just find the whole thing obnoxious like his posts on here. He definitely has his fan club on here though, there are no shortages of people lining up to pat him on the back and sniff his rear.

You own an actual rifle?

The video guy used to post that video and more 5 years ago on Snipers Hide as "NOBODY".
I think he has shown up here lately, but his bad manners hardly stand out around here.

I think I have seen him lately at SH as "GawdamnRight".

By all means, lay it on me - what is he trying to get across?

David

That most people are idiots and he ain't wrong.

I get the broad view, I'm referring to some rifle specifics:

I count at least 4 points he's making besides the stupidity of barrel break-in.

David

LMAO

....With any premium barrel that has been finish lapped -- such as your Krieger Barrel --, the lay or direction of the finish is in the direction of the bullet travel, so fouling is minimal compared to a barrel with internal tooling marks. This is true of any properly finish-lapped barrel regardless of how it is rifled. If it is not finish-lapped, there will be reamer marks left in the bore that are directly across the direction of the bullet travel. This occurs even in a button-rifled barrel as the button cannot completely iron out these reamer marks.

Because the lay of the finish is in the direction of the bullet travel, very little is done to the bore during break-in, but the throat is another story. When your barrel is chambered, by necessity there are reamer marks left in the throat that are across the lands, i.e. across the direction of the bullet travel. In a new barrel they are very distinct; much like the teeth on a very fine file. When the bullet is forced into the throat, copper dust is removed from the jacket material and released into the gas which at this temperature and pressure is actually a plasma. The copper dust is vaporized in this plasma and is carried down the barrel. As the gas expands and cools, the copper comes out of suspension and is deposited in the bore. This makes it appear as if the source of the fouling is the bore when it is actually for the most part the new throat. If this copper is allowed to stay in the bore, and subsequent bullets and deposits are fired over it, copper which adheres well to itself, will build up quickly and may be difficult to remove later. So when we break in a barrel, our goal is to get the throat �polished� without allowing copper to build up in the bore. This is the reasoning for the "fire-one-shot-and-clean" procedure.

Every barrel will vary slightly in how many rounds they take to break in For example a chrome moly barrel may take longer to break in than stainless steel because it is more abrasion resistant even though it is a similar hardness. Also chrome moly has a little more of an affinity for copper than stainless steel so it will usually show a little more "color" if you are using a chemical cleaner. Rim Fire barrels can take an extremely long time to break in, sometimes requiring several hundred rounds or more. But cleaning can be lengthened to every 25-50 rounds. The break-in procedure and the cleaning procedure are really the same except for the frequency. Remember the goal is to get or keep the barrel clean while breaking in the throat with bullets being fired over it.

Finally, the best way to tell if the barrel is broken in is to observe the patches; i.e. when the fouling is reduced. This is better than some set number of cycles of "shoot and clean" as many owners report practically no fouling after the first few shots, and more break-in would be pointless. Conversely, if more is required, a set number would not address that either. Besides, cleaning is not a completely benign procedure so it should be done carefully and no more than necessary.....

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........The age old question, "Breaking in the New Barrel". Opinions very a lot here, and this is a very subjective topic. For the most part, the only thing you are breaking in, is the throat area of the barrel. The nicer the finish that the Finish Reamer or Throating Reamer leaves, the faster the throat will break in.

Shoot one round and clean for the first two rounds individually. Look to see what the barrel is telling you. If I'm getting little to no copper out of it, I sit down and shoot the gun. Say 4 - 5 round groups and then clean. If the barrel cleans easily and shoots well, we consider it done.

If the barrel shows some copper or is taking a little longer to clean after the first two, shoot a group of 3 rounds and clean. Then a group of 5 and clean.

After you shoot the 3rd group and 5th group, watch how long it takes to clean. Also notice your group sizes. If the group sizes are good and the cleaning is getting easier or is staying the same, then shoot 4 - 5 round groups.

If fouling appears to be heavy and taking a while to clean, notice your group sizes. If group sizes are good and not going sour, you don't have a fouling problem. Some barrels will clean easier than others. Some barrels may take a little longer to break in. Remember the throat. Fouling can start all the way from here. We have noticed sometimes that even up to approximately 100 rounds, a barrel can show signs of a lot of copper, but it still shoots really well and then for no apparent reason, you will notice little to no copper and it will clean really easy.

This is meant as guide lines only. There is no hard and fast rule for breaking in a barrel......
Bartlein Barrels, Inc.


dave

My Gunsmith has chambered thousands of custom rifles over 30 years and has never "broken-in" a barrel.

http://www.6mmbr.com/GailMcMbreakin.html

David

http://www.snipercountry.com/Articles/Barrel_BreakIn.asp

David

The "break in" process is simple. It is a "shoot and clean" process.

Take your new rifle to the range on day one. Shoot it as much as you like. Come home and clean it.

Go to the range on day two. Shoot as much as you'd like then clean

Go to the range 5 days then clean

Go to the range 10 days then clean.


Barrel is broken in.

Most people couldn't break in a barrel in a lifetime following that procedure....

David