Barrel break in? Is it real?
- Thread starter bigfelipe
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Buy gun and ammo, shoot ammo, clean a little bit and repeat.
https://www.6mmbr.com/GailMcMbreakin.html
https://www.6mmbr.com/GailMcMbreakin.html
“Ah, it is the fault of our science that it wants to explain all;
And, if it explain not, then it says there is nothing to explain.”
Bram Stoker
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He wrote “Dracula”. I read it in high school. And not because I had to.
Hell of an imagination.
Not sure what he knew about firearms.
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I am told that one benefit of the clean/shoot/clean/shoot/clean regimen is to clean any residual manufacturing
(boring, chambering, packing and
shipping) debris out of the bore before it can damage the lands. Then, cleaning out anything else that breaks loose in the first few shots. Sounds good to me, I suppose.
But when I bought my Bergara, the manual said that break-in was not necessary and was a waste of bore life. They said to clean it to get out any dirt, dust or debris, then shoot it. They said if it floats your boat to do something, then clean after every shot for the first 5-10 shots and call it good. I am paraphrasing, but you get the gist of it.
(boring, chambering, packing and
shipping) debris out of the bore before it can damage the lands. Then, cleaning out anything else that breaks loose in the first few shots. Sounds good to me, I suppose.
But when I bought my Bergara, the manual said that break-in was not necessary and was a waste of bore life. They said to clean it to get out any dirt, dust or debris, then shoot it. They said if it floats your boat to do something, then clean after every shot for the first 5-10 shots and call it good. I am paraphrasing, but you get the gist of it.
Aardvark
Identifies as okie-dokie
Consensus on the "serious" gun-boards over the years seems to be: "If it's a pricey custom-built competition-grade precision rifle, then yes, get on the internookie and obsess/argue/defiantly defend/lose friends over which is the 'BEST' break-in routine".
I suspect ANY rifle instantly turns into a precision rifle in the hands of a CFFer though, fastidiously broken-in or not. Not me, I just precision-guide things on-target using The Force. Even works sometimes.
I suspect ANY rifle instantly turns into a precision rifle in the hands of a CFFer though, fastidiously broken-in or not. Not me, I just precision-guide things on-target using The Force. Even works sometimes.
Yes, it is a real thing. How it's done is a hotly debated subject. Doesn't matter who made the barrel, there are some remaining "sharp edges" and other evidence of whatever method was used to rifle it. The "break in" process smooths those over.
My GAP-10 rifle came with a prominent bright yellow paper with break-in instructions on it. They seemed to think it was important.
It is real in the context of fouling filling in poor machining. Most factory barrels are OEM'ed for around >$8 ea so barrel brake in does apply.
If you own a barrel from Douglas, Hart, Broughton and the like, no its not needed.
John
If you own a barrel from Douglas, Hart, Broughton and the like, no its not needed.
John
Never broke in a barrel before. Why start not. I just clean it really good and shoot. I don’t do mag dumps on my precision ar and don’t let the bolt guns get hot.
Maybe we should think of it as seasoning a cast iron pan? The pan will cook things unseasoned. But it’s better after cycles of cooking and seasoning.
What are you shooting? Read the manufacturer of your barrels instructions. They know more than anyone else about what they manufacture. I would only worry about it on a precision rifle. I would shoot then clean 10 times or so. But i have no hard science to back it up. Nor can i shoot to the limit of a precision gun. My input is far greater on the accuracy than any microscopic imperfections. I have also seen videos online where Proof barrels were not shooting better than cheap barrels until they were very hot. You ever play baseball? Come up to the mound and have a routine you have to do or you can't hit the ball good? This may be a lot of that.
Depends on what you might mean by (lower case) 'faith,' but perhaps this is not the thread for a digression on epistemology? I submit that Stoker's critique, however, does not commit him to a position of "blind trust in the darkness" as the only option against scientific rationalism.
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I always shoot some holes in a new one before starting the first fire in it.
Maybe we should think of it as seasoning a cast iron pan? The pan will cook things unseasoned. But it’s better after cycles of cooking and seasoning.
totally different type of material.
Chuckman
Senior Member
If you unravel the secret you can unseat the swami sitting atop the mountain as the wisest of all.
Some manufacturers say no, some say yes. I have heard some high-end users (snipers and competitors) say no, some say yes. I think at the end of the day it depends on the metallurgy of the barrel.
Some manufacturers say no, some say yes. I have heard some high-end users (snipers and competitors) say no, some say yes. I think at the end of the day it depends on the metallurgy of the barrel.
I know some F-class guys that have ridiculously precise break in routines that must be meticulously followed or the whole rifle is junk:
"Clean the bore with an 89.4% alcohol solution mixed 38/30/32 alcohol to kerosene to extra virgin coconut oil from a coconut carried into the country on a rope between two European swallows, then fire one round, dipped in the blood of a Peruvian virgin at exactly midnight, on the eve of the winter solstice. Remove your pants, clean the bore with a patch made of chewed bark from a 4-6 year old persimmon tree, then... blah blah blah ..."
Fact is, whether it works or not, those guys are bitching over 3 inch groups at 1000. If they think it works, with their skillset, maybe it does. Maybe their belief in their system and routine is a difference in and of itself. As for me, not so much. Even if it makes a quantifiable difference, I lack the skill to exploit the potential gain. And of course, their barrel cost more than my whole rifle, so...
"Clean the bore with an 89.4% alcohol solution mixed 38/30/32 alcohol to kerosene to extra virgin coconut oil from a coconut carried into the country on a rope between two European swallows, then fire one round, dipped in the blood of a Peruvian virgin at exactly midnight, on the eve of the winter solstice. Remove your pants, clean the bore with a patch made of chewed bark from a 4-6 year old persimmon tree, then... blah blah blah ..."
Fact is, whether it works or not, those guys are bitching over 3 inch groups at 1000. If they think it works, with their skillset, maybe it does. Maybe their belief in their system and routine is a difference in and of itself. As for me, not so much. Even if it makes a quantifiable difference, I lack the skill to exploit the potential gain. And of course, their barrel cost more than my whole rifle, so...
They need to find another gunsmith that uses quality barrels and knows how to hand lap. Jeesh, I had a bud put 200 rounds on his 6.5x284 before he considered it broke in. The life of that barrel is around 1000-1100 rounds then you have to set it back and start over again. It shot the same sub-half minute groups at 0 rounds as it did at 200 rounds.
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You just may have taken me way too seriously.