BREAK-IN a Barel

[Louis Riel]

Hi, I just got a new 7 mm Rem. Mag. Savage and I would like to know if you do any thing to BREAK-IN a new barell and why ? I am getting confuse there are so many differnte way to think. And tell me if you agree with this article.


http://www.kriegerbarrels.com/RapidCat/catalog/pagetemplate.cfm?template=/RapidCat/common/viewPage.cfm&PageId=2558&CompanyId=1246


Thank you.

[L. Cooper]

My rifles are for hunting. Hunting accuracy is not the same as bench rest competition accuracy. I doubt you could do a definitive test on the average hunting rifle manufactured by the standard companies that could define any advantage to breaking in an average barrel. Carefully machined, tuned, and lovingly cared for bench rifles, maybe, but not guns like I shoot, shot like I shoot them.

I always try to clean my rifles well, and I am specially careful when a gun is new. I just clean after every range session at first, and then try not to let my rifles go beyond 25-30 rounds without cleaning after that (although the varmint rifles necessarily often go longer).

There is lots of effort that goes into purely theoretical "advantages" that will never actually show up in most people's rifles with the skill levels of most shooters.

[denton]

First, you probably aren't going to get complete agreement on this topic. And I'll be the first to admit that I don't have a lot of "hard data" on the topic.

Most barrels foul more when new. If you properly break in a barrel, it will go longer before it builds up to an unsatisfactory level of fouling.

My method is to pick a fairly warm day for the job. Ammonia works faster in warm weather. Below about 60-65F, the process just takes too long.

I shoot, and clean after each shot, until I see a substantial decrease in the amount of copper I am getting out (powder solvent, then ammonia, then oil, then dry patches). This usually happens around 10 rounds. Then I start cleaning after three rounds, until the amount of copper diminishes. That seems to happen after about 20-30 rounds.

A non-broken in barrel will often shoot just fine. The tendency is that a properly broken in barrel will also shoot well, but will need less frequent copper solvent cleaning.

[Louis Riel]

Do you think that this info from Savage is exessive or not and why?

Thank you


Q. What is the barrel break-in procedure?

A. Although there may be different schools of thought on barrel break-in, this is what Precision Shooting Magazine recommends:

STEP 1 (repeated 10 times)

Fire one round
Push wet patches soaked with a powder solvent through the bore
Push a brush through the bore (5 times in each direction)
Push dry patches through the bore (2 times)
Push wet patches soaked with a copper solvent through the bore
Push a brush through the bore (5 times in each direction)
Push dry patches through the bore (2 times)
Push a patch with 2 drops of oil through the bore
STEP 2 (repeated 5 times)

Fire a 3 shot group
Repeat the cleaning procedure from STEP 1 after each group
STEP 3 (repeat 5 times)

Fire a 5 shot group
Repeat the cleaning procedure from STEP 1
They recommend the use of a patch with 2 drops of oil after the cleaning so that you are not shooting with a dry bore. It is also advisable to use a powder solvent and copper solvent from the same manufacturer to be sure they are chemically compatible.







Contact » History »

©2005 Savage Arms, Inc. All rights reserved.

[Rocky Raab]

It is not excessive at all.

Time consuming, yes; but not excessive.

As bullet velocities go up (and cartridge pressure right along with it), the problem of bullet jacket fouling gets worse and worse. A standard factory bore that's almost unfired is fairly rough inside. The first bullets through it will be ground down almost as if you fired them over a file. Unless you get that jacket material and powder fouling out of there between shots, it will likely be there forever - and that bore will be even rougher for all its life.

Proper break-in removes not only the bullet jacket material, but the even harder powder fouling AND acts to "lap" the minor roughness out of the bore. A barrel that's been properly broken in stays cleaner, cleans up easier, and might even shoot a bit faster.

As an aside, custom barrels like Krieger, Shilen and such are hand-lapped when those companies install them. They don't need a break-in because the hand lapping is even better than a shooting break-in.

The good news is that shooting break-in needs to be done only once.