Barrel break in

[prob]

[QUOTE=Cactuscooler;16278107]Yes, another dreaded barrel break in question. But this time it's on equipment.

A local shop suggested Dewey rods with a jag to scrub and a boreguide to do this. He suggested using Sweets. I have a can of Gunslick foaming bore cleaner that works for me, without ammonia.

Question is, can I use my OTIS cable system to do the same job? I was told I wouldn't be able to " scrub" without a rod.. Maybe he just wanted to sell me his stuff?[/QUOTE]

I'm pretty sure that's the goal of those who promote barrel break in procedures. The whole crazy idea is based on voodoo.

[1859sharps]

When he said " Scrub" I think he meant to get any copper fouling out with a jag. Then continue shooting 1 round, run a patch to look for any blue or fouling than proceed with a jag to clean out.

Not overly helpful directions. I would suggest ignoring them even IF you truly feel a barrel break in procedure is a good idea. there is better advice for this out there.

Is achieved with three cleanings every five shots for the first 100 shots, then two cleanings every ten shots for the next 200 shots

with respect, coy, the procedure you suggest (not sure if you are serious or not) is one that I personally feel falls into the don't do category, and that without question has too much risk for doing damage to the barrel. The other reason I don't agree is there is no checks factored into even know if the procedure is doing any good and blindly followed just creates a lot of work.

Recently I did some googling to update my self on the thoughts out there on the barrel break in question.

There seemed to be two guiding thoughts that make the most sense to me. those by Gale McMillan and the other http://www.bartleinbarrels.com/BreakInCleaning.htm

Gale's opinion came down to it is a waste of time, bartlein's opinion splits the difference between Gales and the arbitrary suggestions out there.

my two cents, IF you feel the need to do a break in procedure, the Bartlein guidelines make the most sense. Note that their suggestion is complete within a few shots. minimizes risk, and if you spend the money on a custom, high quality barrel, you shouldn't need an elaborate break in procedure.

Me, my break in is simply shooting my rifle and enjoying it.

[19K]

You should buy EVERYTHING they tell you to buy for barrel break in.

Lolol. It's 2015 and this crap is still going around.

[LynnJr]

I love that quote by Gale McMillan who posted it while suing the guy he sold the barrel making business too. Gotta love revenge.

[LynnJr]

BREAK-IN & CLEANING:

With any premium barrel that has been finish lapped -- such as your Krieger Barrel --, the lay or direction of the finish is in the direction of the bullet travel, so fouling is minimal compared to a barrel with internal tooling marks. This is true of any properly finish-lapped barrel regardless of how it is rifled. If it is not finish-lapped, there will be reamer marks left in the bore that are directly across the direction of the bullet travel. This occurs even in a button-rifled barrel as the button cannot completely iron out these reamer marks.

Because the lay of the finish is in the direction of the bullet travel, very little is done to the bore during break-in, but the throat is another story. When your barrel is chambered, by necessity there are reamer marks left in the throat that are across the lands, i.e. across the direction of the bullet travel. In a new barrel they are very distinct; much like the teeth on a very fine file.

When the bullet is forced into the throat, copper dust is removed from the jacket material and released into the gas which at this temperature and pressure is actually a plasma. The copper dust is vaporized in this plasma and is carried down the barrel. As the gas expands and cools, the copper comes out of suspension and is deposited in the bore. This makes it appear as if the source of the fouling is the bore when it is actually for the most part the new throat.

If this copper is allowed to stay in the bore, and subsequent bullets and deposits are fired over it, copper which adheres well to itself, will build up quickly and may be difficult to remove later. So when we break in a barrel, our goal is to get the throat “polished without allowing copper to build up in the bore. This is the reasoning for the fire-one-shot-and-clean procedure.

Every barrel will vary slightly in how many rounds they take to break in For example a chrome moly barrel may take longer to break in than stainless steel because it is more abrasion resistant even though it is a similar hardness. Also chrome moly has a little more of an affinity for copper than stainless steel so it will usually show a little more color if you are using a chemical cleaner. Rim Fire barrels can take an extremely long time to break in, sometimes requiring several hundred rounds or more. But cleaning can be lengthened to every 25-50 rounds. The break-in procedure and the cleaning procedure are really the same except for the frequency. Remember the goal is to get or keep the barrel clean while breaking in the throat with bullets being fired over it.

Finally, the best way to tell if the barrel is broken in is to observe the patches; i.e. when the fouling is reduced. This is better than some set number of cycles of shoot and clean as many owners report practically no fouling after the first few shots, and more break-in would be pointless. Conversely, if more is required, a set number would not address that either. Besides, cleaning is not a completely benign procedure so it should be done carefully and no more than necessary.
This is straight from Krieger Barrels website were Tracy Bartlein learned to make barrels.
Mike Rock worked at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds before opening Rock Barrels and if you shoot moly bullets you void the warranty on your barrel.

[Divernhunter]

The Dewey rods are really good. I use Wipe-Out which was the 1st foaming cleaner. I learned about it long ago from the 50bmg guys and have used it since. I then follow with Sweets, Blue Miracle, Butches bore shine or what ever one I want using a Dewey rod. You will most often get more fouling out that way.
Some of my barrels clean faster with less effort than others.

For break in I just shoot the rifle and do not allow the barrel get to hot to hold in my hand. When I am done shooting for the day I usually clean the barrel then oil it. I also pull a bore snake thru it before shooting it for the first time just to get anything out of it that should not be there to start with.

My firearms shoot very well this way. My 2 Cents

[anonymous308]

Just keep the barrel cool the first 10 - 20 rounds. That is about all I did for mine and I don't think it could possible shoot much better.

[leeber18]

I can second that about Dewey rods being great, however you go about your break in is up to you but a Dewey rod and bore guide help the job along, I personally use a Parker hale jag (it's the one you wrap patches around) and think it works the best for my application, plus you don't have to fully exit the muzzle with the patch to pull it back (let it pop out about halfway), leaving your crown essentially untouched by the rod or jag. That just my opinion.

[laurelpark]

Maybe I err on the side of simplicity, but a clean boresnake with some CLP on it every twenty rounds seemed to work fine.

[killshot44]

Bore guide + Metal rod + nylon brushes + Pierce & Parker jags + ProShot patches.

Snakes are for field-expedient cleaning ARs and shotguns.

[jpx0123]

i cleaned mine after i got it. took to the range (indoor 25 yards, easiest to go to for me). have about 100 rounds through it and i haven't cleaned it yet. groups are still the same but like i said.. its at 25 yards.. shots are still close to each other and i don't get a weird flyer except for the shots i feel i did something wrong and it shows on the paper. read somewhere that after the first shot you are not going to have a perfectly clean barrel so you should get better accurate groups when its got a few rounds through it. not my opinion read it somewhere.. but seems to be holding up with my rifle.

edit: when i say accurate. i meant it by meaning more consistent barrel condition because after the first shot, you are going to have residue in the barrel anyways.

[Sheepdog1968]

On a good day, I can just about shoot 1 MOA at 100 yards. I don't abuse the equipment but I have never bothered to break in a barrel. I just go out and shoot. I have never used a copper cleaner on anything in 35 years of shooting. Also, I don't over clean the rifles as I think being too diligent at cleaning rifle barrels because I think the odds are greater that I will screw up the crown or damage the rifling.

I shoot bench rest reasonably often at those,who are really good are more diligent with a routine cleaning but again they are consistent sub MOA shooters.

Depending on your skill, you may not need to do too much in the way of cleaning.

[LynnJr]

I shoot bench rest reasonably often at those,who are really good are more diligent with a routine cleaning but again they are consistent sub MOA shooters.

This.
Those that shoot better clean more often.

[bsumoba]

With regards to break-in, I do not do too much. Shoot 3-5 shot groups and clean, and if the groups start to tighten up, then I'm done. All of the barrels I have had all "broke in" around 8-13 shots. Then I go into load development.

I also find that my barrels will get into a sweet spot somewhere around 30-40 shots after a clean. From here to about 160 rounds, I see optimum accuracy where my X-count will increase. After about 160 rounds (more or less), the X-count or accuracy will start to decrease and is then in need of a clean. this is in my f-class rifle.

In my tactical rifle, I clean every 200-300 rounds. But then again, I can live with sub 1/2" groups for this rifle's intended purpose. If I shoot it for groups or long range, then it seems to optimum around the same as my f-class rifle; right around 20-200 rounds and then it needs a clean.

One thing that I do though, is I always clean the bolt and the chamber area. I try to leave anything from the throat forward alone if I decide to not clean. The neck area can get dirty since I have anywhere from 4-5K neck clearance on all my rifles so I try to clean that up a bit.

[GJC]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRRahHX9Zkg