Greetings! When I bought my rifles several years ago I had never heard of breaking in a new barrel and would like to know how important/ necessary this procedure is. Also anyone have a good method of doing this as I am awaiting the arrival of a brand new barrel? Many thanks

Oh, man! There are probably twenty-six threads about this. So here comes another one...

Breaking-in smooths the roughness of the throat. There can sometimes be machine marks there that will cause the bullet to copper-foul the bore right in and right in front of the throat. Getting off those heavy deposits of smeared-on copper can be a real hillary. So we do the break-in dance.

First, clean your new bore as you would after a round of shooting. Leave out the step when you swab a slightly oily patch through it before putting the gun away for its well-deserved rest. To begin: Fire the gun once. Insert bore guide into action. Run four wet patches through one stroke each, pull patches off jag each time; brush with about 25 strokes in total from breech (brush is out of battery) to muzzle (brush exits muzzle), four wet patches again, then four dry patches or until patches come out pretty much white as snow. Do this nine more times. Basically, shoot-clean-shoot-clean-shoot-clean for a total of ten times. Takes me and my shootin' buddies about three hours for a .30-caliber gun. O' course, there's lots of dirty jokes bein' told and mucho drinkin' goin' on, so we ain't in no hurry to get 'er done. Breaking-in is the drudgery part in owning a new gun. Just soldier through, and it's all fun and games after that...

Thanks for the info. Cant wait to get that out of the way!

lal,

Not trying to take this too deep, but

you did not specify the caliber, whether you've got an "off the shelf rifle or something custom.

Unless your a bench rest shooter trying for one hole groups, I think a lot of what is preached is a waste of your time and money. Just as in about everything, there is an orthodoxy about how things must be done when it comes to barrel break-in.

What I'm going to say may be considered heresy by some, but here goes.

I am not a high volume shooter.
I am not a bench rest shooter.
I don't worry about trying to get 1 hole groups from off the shelf rifles.


Having said that, my break in regimen is
use a graphite or coated one piece cleaning rod with a jb bore paste/kroil mix. Get a couple of quality bronze bore brushes. Run a couple of hundred strokes through the bore with the jb bore paste/kroil mix taking care not to damage or nick your crown and changing the brushes after they get loose in the bore (say a hundred strokes or so). Clean thoroughly, and go shoot.
It will take several rounds for your barrrel to foul. Depending on the caliber and velocity, I may put from 30 to 70 or so rounds down the tube before I clean again.

Here are some examples from a Savage 10 FCP chambered in 308 I purchased recently. This is from the first range session after the proceedure described above. The rifle was shot to get on paper, then shot for zero, then these are some groups shot back to back with no cleaning and no break in, simply waiting 5 or so minutes between groups. These were shot off a rest at 100 yds using said rifle and a Weaver grand slam scope, 4.5 x 16 if I recall correctly.












I'd say the rifle shot better than I did. I could post pix like this or better from a dozen or so rifles that I've "broke in" the same way.

Any rifle that I own that I can't get to shoot under 1" with my handloads, I blow out. I think Ive sold 4 for this reason in the last 15 years or so.
GWB

Not attempting to start a fight, but can someone please explain to me how a brush and a patch of cloth are supposed to remove tooling marks, etc from steel?
I do believe that after a given number of rounds a barrel does seem to settle and shoot more consistantly,but all the rifles I've owned have always been given a thorough clean to remove excess oil or grease before heading to the range, but from there on I only clean when I'm finished for the day.
If a given rifle has fouled to the point where it won't shoot , then I stop shooting it and go to another.
I have a friend who spends so much time over his new rifles doing the break- in Mantra, that we have started lighting incence near him whenever he starts the routine.He hore resembles a Budist Monk deep in prayer , than someone who is shooting.
Don't get me wrong, if you feel that it helps along the way, then I support your decision. Just personally and from observing friends who do this, it all seems to come down to the barrel settling down eventually and all the gunk poked down its throat ain't gonna speed that up.
rob

quote:

Not attempting to start a fight, but can someone please explain to me how a brush and a patch of cloth are supposed to remove tooling marks, etc., from steel?

It's not the cleaning, it's the friction of the bullet that removes the tool marks. But you knew that. My philosophy is to do the break-in and know I did all I could, as opposed to not doing it and always wondering if doing it would have been the right choice-- especially when it won't shoot worth a damn after its first ten or fifteen rounds out...

I don't believe barrels can count. Even custom ones. So whether you shoot in groups of one or ten, it doesn't know. Heat is the enemy of barrels. At no time when you're shooting it, (unless you're shooting one of the clones that are made to go pop pop pop and dystroy phone books and then it doesn't make any difference)should you barrel get so hot that you can't pick it up by the barrel. That means I don't believe in that shoot one, clean one, etc, etc stuff.

Now then, JB paste. Good stuff. Every barrel I have, factory or custom, has had 500 passes of JB paste thru the barrel. I do it enough like Geedubya that I won't bore you with details. But, be sure you have a good bore guide. If you're not useing a good bore guide, none of these instructions mean anything. And 2. I run my cleaning rod thru the rifle from the chamber and out to the muzzle and THEN put my bore brush and wrap it with a patch and knead the JB paste into it. Then my first stroke is to pull the brush thru the bore. That way the excess is scraped off at the muzzle instead of in the chamber. Every so often, take your finger and re-smear the excess back onto the patched brush. You don't have to bring the patch all the way out, just til you feel it come free in the chamber and push it back thru.
I've been told by the grit bullet boys that JB is such a mild abrasive that it does not good but you can't prove that my me. When I can shoot a 50 shot match w/o cleaning and then clean up the cooper with a half dozen strokes of Butche's, it must be doing something.

Hurt me, beat me.

I absolutely use a bore guide any and every time I clean a rifle. I have three different ones for my different caliber bolt rifles, and several delrin plastic bore guides from sinclair for my TC's and rimfires. I got to thinking about leaving that out of my post, but was too lazy to go back and edit it.
GWB

usta/was/still and forever be - beeman,

What's the saying, "Sacred Cows" make the best hamburger. Overcleaning is another of my pet peeves. Over the last several years since we sold our farm I find myself shooting at a members only shooting range. A goodly number of regulars show up and also a sprinkling of newbies. It amazes me how many of the regulars go through a cleaning ritual after a half a dozen rounds out of a custom barrel and medium velocity cartridge. I bet I fire 30 or 40 rounds at least out of most rifles before I begin to notice any degradation in accuracy.
On my hunting rifles, I never clean during the season (unless using moly bullets, which I don't and that' another issue, just wipe 'em down with kroil and put them in the safe.
GWB

quote:

I had never heard of breaking in a new barrel and would like to know how important/ necessary this procedure is.

For the most part it's a joke.

Having said that I find a few barrels I own don't shoot real fine groups until about 200 rounds have been down the tube. An official break in procedure is not at all required.....but cleaning copper fouling is required with any barrel....new or old!

i usually clean the bore on a new barrel just after 2 or 300 hundred rounds. (really)

I have a gunsmith who's been gunsmithing all his life. He says he's never "shot and cleaned".....

wasbeeman,
Gotta couple of questions.

quote:

If you're not useing a good bore guide, none of these instructions mean anything.

What kind is a "Good Bore Guide"? Only Lucas? or other???

quote:

I run my cleaning rod thru the rifle from the chamber and out to the muzzle and THEN put my bore brush and wrap it with a patch

Do you use bronze or nylon brushes? What kind of patches? Cotton flannel?

Stuff and nonsense--as has been said before--and as to BR shooters--If a BR barrel has tool marks in it and needs "breaking in" beyond the time required to form enough brass for the next match---it gets scrapped and no more barrels are ordered from THAT outfit------------

If the barrel has rough spots that are SMALLER than the bullet diameter--hand or fire lapping can improve it a bit--running a patch down the barrel--scrubbing ---using JB bore scrubber--- any of that nonsense is just idiotic and serves no purpose other than perpetuating myths and legends and superstition

I just like a calibre specific bore guide. Beyond that I haven't any favorite. And I buy calibre specific bronze brushes by the dozens and cotton flannel patches by the thousands.
If I've a bore with some stubborn coppeer, I use a nylon brush with my copper cleaner instead of just patches. Don't know if that helps or not, but it makes me feel that I'm trying harder.

quote:

I have a gunsmith who's been gunsmithing all his life. He says he's never "shot and cleaned".....

He added, "What makes you think you can make the barrel any better than the company already has with their tooling and equipment?"

I used to break in my barrels but no more. I do clean it completely free of copper after each range session and after hunting season is over. While I haven't conducted any empirical studies on the topic, my rifle shoots just fine without having undergone the customary break in process. So far two black bears have been killed with my rifle and neither bear complained about being killed by a rifle whose barrel hadn't been properly broken in!

I just don't leave my rifles near my friend's rifles , in case they tell mine how they received the proper break in routine.I don't want my rifles to start feeling that they have received inferior treatment at my hands.
So far they have remained ignorant and are happy as can be shgooting tight groups.
Just hope my friend's guns don't blab or there could be a mutiny
rob

I have often heard people saying that a new gun, any type, usually settles down after a few hundred rounds or so. As to what I should do, I think I will flip a coin.Thanks.

I think it is very important. Use the Krieger Barrel Break-In & Cleaning Procedure. Here is the link http://www.kriegerbarrels.com/...ing-c1246-wp2558.htm

then if you have a krieger barrel, you might want follow the procedure. Your barrel, your time.

GWB

in my humble opinion .. its a waste of time

clean it, shoot it, don't get it too hot, clean it when it shoots off .. and don't waste your time with "break in"

a hand lapped barrel should have ZERO need for breakin

Break in process, simplified
Grab rifle by barrel, gently throw it so it hits the ground 5' away.
Shoot
Throw rifle 10'
Shoot
Throw rifle 15'
Shoot
Throw rifle 20'
Shoot
Throw rifle 25'
Shoot
Rifle is now broken in.

quote:

Originally posted by Geedubya:
then if you have a krieger barrel, you might want follow the procedure. Your barrel, your time.

GWB

That sums it up.