New barrel break in
- Thread starter Sikas
- Start date
Shoot and don't overheat it, the last 3 of mine have shot less than moa. You must remember a man in either London or Birmingham has recently tried to blow it to bits.
It really depends on type of barrel and the ‘cut’ when chambering.
All that ‘breaking in’is, to maximise accurate barrel life by reducing severe copper build up, caused when ‘smoothing off’ the tool marks which cause more copper to be deposited than when its had a few down it. Thats why you clean between shots. Ive had one barrel (pacnor) that simply wouldnt show clean after over 60 shots. It sits on a shelf at the gunsmith.
John Krieger says its not required for his barrels. Id say, Ive had good results by doing it.
5 singles clean
2 clean
3 clean
4 clean
3x5 clean.
It takes some time.
All that ‘breaking in’is, to maximise accurate barrel life by reducing severe copper build up, caused when ‘smoothing off’ the tool marks which cause more copper to be deposited than when its had a few down it. Thats why you clean between shots. Ive had one barrel (pacnor) that simply wouldnt show clean after over 60 shots. It sits on a shelf at the gunsmith.
John Krieger says its not required for his barrels. Id say, Ive had good results by doing it.
5 singles clean
2 clean
3 clean
4 clean
3x5 clean.
It takes some time.
And for this reason you must superclean after proof....
If only you were able to run it in before sending to these chaps ....
Does a barrel actually need some kind of special "breaking in" routine? I'd say just zero it and go and shoot some deer.
Sampo
Well-Known Member
Never believed in any rituals. Clean it if its dirty or wet, if it shoots well, do nothing. Take sound moderator off before storage. Once every 1000 round or so, take it apart and give it a good clean. Seems to work for me but again I don't own anything shiny as its just tools for a job. Maintanance - yes, Spotless - not for me.
Does a barrel actually need some kind of special "breaking in" routine? I'd say just zero it and go and shoot some deer.
Each barrel is different. The match grade quality from a well known manufacturer-probably not, but not all those fitted are match grade - ie they have tool marks. And thats before the gunsmith cuts the chamber.
You might get a barrel that coppers up badly after 10-12 shots, in which case you may start getting flyers or just larger groups, needing more frequent cleaning.
Its all context - the shooter might be happy with 1/2/4”+ groups.
Each barrel is different. The match grade quality from a well known manufacturer-probably not, but not all those fitted are match grade - ie they have tool marks. And thats before the gunsmith cuts the chamber.
You might get a barrel that coppers up badly after 10-12 shots, in which case you may start getting flyers or just larger groups, needing more frequent cleaning.
Its all context - the shooter might be happy with 1/2/4”+ groups.
alberta boy
Well-Known Member
I've talked to a number of barrel makers over the years , including John Krieger , Ron Smith and a few others . They all said the same thing as John pointed out in the above video . There is no recommended break in procedure , shoot it and see what it does . I've had barrels from the same manufacturer in the same cartridge ( 308 Win ) that behaved completely differently . One didn't foul at all and shot extremely well right off the start , the other took a few rounds to settle down , and some copper fouling removal , before shooting to it's full potential . As the old saying goes , every rifle is a law unto itself . Shoot it and see what it does , then go from there .
AB
AB
The first shot out of a new barrel will be its best each one after that is not as good as the previous
I've never got much copper out of a Sassen barrel , they feel very different however , to my factory barrelled rifles when pushing a patch through .
Personally , I'm of the belief the only person benefiting from the break-in procedure is the guy selling you the ammo .
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Quite funny, if you scroll down to the last question it is claimed that cut rifling has just a wee edge over button rifling.
Before they were set up to do cut rifling and were button only, Sassen said 'no difference!'
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