Letting barrel cool ?

Rasputin

Well-Known Member
I have a new rifle and a quick question when zeroing how long do you leave to cool down or do you just rattle off 3-5 shots then let it cool completely? Current round count is only 60 so it's a totally new barrel. Thanks
 
When I got my first centre fire rifle, someone told me I had to leave it half an hour between shots when zeroing....... And I believed him :doh: It used to take me all day, particularly if I was trying different loads.
Now I just rattle off a few rounds in as long as it takes.
 
Depends on the weather temp how long you leave it & how cool or cold you want the barrel. Most sporting barrels are lightweight & heat up fast. I shoot 3 rounds then leave to cool properly. Doing it this way helps avoid throat erosion. Though you shouldn't need more to check zero is fine. After that anything else is either for pleasure or ammo testing load development.
 
God.
I hope not.:scared: MTLEADFARMER and I shoot steel at long range and letting the barrel cool generally doesn't come into the conversation. In fact, when we have the wind by the tail we tend to shoot fast and keep shooting.
We are worse when shooting prairiedogs. :eek:~Muir
 
I only shoot 3 shot groups in hunting rifles, and shoot them fairly quick. I reckon that if you haven't killed it in 3 shots you might want to take up another activity. But with my target rifle I'll fire up to ten in a quick string, particularly if there's a drop in the wind. The two are not really related for practical purposes because as deeango says most sporting rifles have thin tubes and are not designed for sustained fire. If I'm checking zero before a hunt I'll shoot 3 rounds at 100m and 3 at 200 and leave it at that provided no scope adjustments are needed.
There is the matter of barrel "break in" where it's often recommended to shoot and clean for around 10 rounds but that probably a different subject.
JD
 
The barrel is a consumable just use it up and move on to the next one it may shoot better:stir:
Just kidding when load developing I take my time and let it cool between shots start with 3 shot groups to sort out
a likely powder charge then 5 shot groups to fine tune the load, that's for a hunting rifle target rifles are a whole different game,
I don't shoot until the barrel is red hot most standard calibres don't over heat with up to 5 shots, magnums 3 just wait until the barrel is
back down to warm and your good to go again about twenty minutes between groups is usually long enough.
 
I picked up a new rifle enroute to a weeks driven boar in Germany, save for five or so zeroing shots it went straight to the shooting cinema and proceeded to have in excess of 80 rounds through it in under 2 hours...... that barrel was quite warm...! Still fine though.
 
When I got my Tikka T3 Stainless 308 it was on a hot spring day and I trundled off to the range with the rifle and a variety of my generic handloads. I shot put maybe 60-80 rounds through it in an hour and a half. It was delivering bug-hole groups at each end of the session and continues to do so three years later. (By the way, this was my "running in", too. I think I finally cleaned it a few months later....) I have been known to just go out and fire 40 rounds off hand for practice in one sitting -especially when I want to free up the brass for a different bullet.~Muir
 
I think it depends on your barrel, 10-12 shots over a couple of minutes on goats through my kimber 270 , creates a heat haze in front of the scope.
 
Cool thanks. Will just shoot it. Need to practise so will just find some space and pop away. Shoots pretty good ATM just the odd flier im sure will get better.
 
Cool thanks. Will just shoot it. Need to practise so will just find some space and pop away. Shoots pretty good ATM just the odd flier im sure will get better.

If you are zeroing or developing a load then I'd recommend not letting the barrel get hot - you're just adding other variables to the equation. It's easy to blast off £30 of ammunition & come to no conclusion.
I would keep a consistent 1 minute (or whatever) between shots...
 
go Google grain growth in stainless steel welds and then apply science to the benchrest bull and you will quickly work out that the hottest a rifle gets is when you squeeze the trigger and the throat being a sharpish edge gets the most heat as soon as the bullet has gone the temp is lower, shoot again and the temp is right up there due to the thing going bang again and the erosion process will start again it is round count that kills barrels. Barrel temp will affect fouling of the barrel and accuracy if the barrel has been machined, heat treated or stressed incorrectly It is a bit more in depth than this but this is the jist of it i could write a paper for research that would cover it but i can not be -rsed at present
 
go Google grain growth in stainless steel welds and then apply science to the benchrest bull and you will quickly work out that the hottest a rifle gets is when you squeeze the trigger and the throat being a sharpish edge gets the most heat as soon as the bullet has gone the temp is lower, shoot again and the temp is right up there due to the thing going bang again and the erosion process will start again it is round count that kills barrels. Barrel temp will affect fouling of the barrel and accuracy if the barrel has been machined, heat treated or stressed incorrectly It is a bit more in depth than this but this is the jist of it i could write a paper for research that would cover it but i can not be -rsed at present
This is an important factor. A quality barrel can be shot hot with little effect on grouping. As to wear, as I was once told, "If you worry about shooting out your barrel, leave the dammed thing in the cabinet. It's gonna happen!"~Muir
 
This is an important factor. A quality barrel can be shot hot with little effect on grouping. As to wear, as I was once told, "If you worry about shooting out your barrel, leave the dammed thing in the cabinet. It's gonna happen!"~Muir

This is absolutely true, but my view is there's no real need to accelerate the process with your hunting rifle, unless of course you really do want to shoot lots of rounds for fun/pleasure, rather than just being sure your ammunition works and the rifle is zeroed & fit for purpose.
Just my thoughts.
 
This is absolutely true, but my view is there's no real need to accelerate the process with your hunting rifle, unless of course you really do want to shoot lots of rounds for fun/pleasure, rather than just being sure your ammunition works and the rifle is zeroed & fit for purpose.
Just my thoughts.
Many people zero their rifle and put it up. That works OK if you shoot from sticks, bipods, or any other kind of rest. Unfortunately, where I live you generally shoot standing unsupported ("off hand") and that requires constant practice. I enjoy shooting my hunting rifles -my main two being T3;s in 308 and 7-08, set up identically right down to the weight of pull. The 308 is cheaper to shoot so I shoot it more, but I tend to work them both. Sometimes I fire just three practice rounds and come home. Sometimes i fire twenty and more. If I'm eating barrel I haven't been able to tell and I've been at these two for three and four years now. In any event, it's a necessary evil. Some years I have only license for 1 deer so I need to make the shot. This year it was two so I needed to make two shots with no excuses for bad marksmanship. In my case, at least, the barrel is a consumable item like bullets and primers. When it goes, I'll deal with it but, until then, I keep shooting.~Muir
 
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