Proper break in Techniques

[AK5.56]

Took my Ruger 10/22 out for its first play date this weekend. It was a blast and shot very accurately. I'm new to the world of .22 so I didn't know what to expect but I can tell you I'm hooked now and my wallet is feeling nervous.

I did a light cleaning of the action, trigger, and barrel before shooting but did not really adhere to any specific break in process. I did some research when I got back (should have done it before...Doh!) and found some people recommend you clean the barrel after every shot for 20 rounds then after ever 10 shots for 100 rounds and so on till you get 200 rounds through the barrel.

Also found that it's important to use premium ammo when breaking in to depict how your rifle will shoot down the road.

I cleaned the barrel and receiver after 50 rounds then put another 200 through it. I used Remington golden bullet ammo. I didn't have any malfunctions or problems and was fairly accurate out to 50 yards. No target shooting but was plinking on 2"x2" steel.

So my concern is I may have hurt my future accuracy or reliability with out using proper break in techniques or match ammo? What do you guys do to break in your rifles?

[ViciousJellyfish]

Break in techniques vary by owner and firearm. There's no one proper way to do it. Some people baby their guns, some put them to work. What you did is fine, but the 10/22 is quite reputable and reliable. They've been known to run fine after months/years of shooting hundreds to thousands of rounds without cleaning. Still, I clean mine after every range trip, and make sure they're lubed for storage. Just my .02. Check rimfire central for tons of info.

[Booboi]

I just started shooting mine straight out the box.
Ran 500rounds through it that day. I did lube and patch the barrel a couple times sometime around 200 rounds.

[Izzy43]

I did a light cleaning of the action, trigger, and barrel before shooting but did not really adhere to any specific break in process. I did some research when I got back (should have done it before...Doh!) and found some people recommend you clean the barrel after every shot for 20 rounds then after ever 10 shots for 100 rounds and so on till you get 200 rounds through the barrel.

Also found that it's important to use premium ammo when breaking in to depict how your rifle will shoot down the road.

That's regimen for breaking in a centerfire rifle, not necessary for a rimfire .22. Centerfire tends to generate more heat and can have a build up of copper/lead. Premium ammo not required either unless you are looking for the most accuracy/precision from your rimfire rifles.

I own six .22lr rifles, just cleaned them when they came from the factory and starting shooting. No break in. They all shoot very accurate with match ammo.

[Dannicus]

I only clean my barrel when accuracy degrades. Seems like it takes 10-15 rounds before my groups settle down again after cleaning. Since it's a sem-auto, id clean the action and chamber after every range trip, tho.

[MongooseV8]

Dude don't worry. The common theory on Rimfirecentral is you do more damage from cleaning too much vs shooting too much. I run a bore snake through my new barrels every couple hundred rounds or before switching ammo types. After a brick or two I don't clean the bore til accuracy starts to expand a bit.

[as_rocketman]

Just shoot it. Complicated break-in is only needed if you're counting on the shots to do a final sizing or annealing of your barrel, and almost nobody does that, not even top-level competitors.

However -- if brand new in the box, you should give it a cleaning before shooting. Very common to find preservative oils in the chamber. Probably won't hurt anything but you might get some fails-to-extract until it's scrubbed out.

There are also VERY rare cases where there's been an obstruction in the bore... At Appleseed we snake every barrel (string trimmer line works great) before the first shots are fired, every time. Safety first.

[Rosebud22]

I didn't know what to expect but I can tell you I'm hooked now and my wallet is feeling

Welcome to the world of 10/22s. You will enjoy. I guess you missed the warning label on the box:

" SURGENON GENERALS WARNING: Ruger 10/22s have been known to be highly addititive. They will suck money out of your wallet. There is no known cure for this addiction except large quanities of .22LR ammo on hand at all times. "

[majtom94]

Took my Ruger 10/22 out for its first play date this weekend. It was a blast and shot very accurately. I'm new to the world of .22 so I didn't know what to expect but I can tell you I'm hooked now and my wallet is feeling nervous.


Also found that it's important to use premium ammo when breaking in to depict how your rifle will shoot down the road.

?

Memo to self: it will shoot better without cleaning of the barrel. Accurate until it goes away. You will know when necessary.

[AK5.56]

That's regimen for breaking in a centerfire rifle

That's what I thought and followed this more rigorously for my AR out of the box.

However -- if brand new in the box, you should give it a cleaning before shooting. Very common to find preservative oils in the chamber. Probably won't hurt anything but you might get some fails-to-extract until it's scrubbed out.

There are also VERY rare cases where there's been an obstruction in the bore... At Appleseed we snake every barrel (string trimmer line works great) before the first shots are fired, every time. Safety first.

It was BNIB but I was rushing to get out to the desert to shoot and only did a light scrub and bore snake swipe once out there. I didn't take the bolt out or anything like that. No problems and I'm planing on doing a decent cleaning tonight!

[G21Shooter]

Shoot, clean/oil, repeat. Make sure to take the 10/22 all the way down and clean inside the receiver and bolt every so often. Oil relatively lightly.

I would not hurt to use quality ammo like CCI Minimags to break in a gun, but don't think it matters too much.

[rogervzv]

As long as you do not abuse the gun, it will break in by itself with shooting.

Me, I clean mine after each shooting. No big deal, just clean the bore and the bolt area. No need to remove the 10/22 bolt in my opinion, although I do it now and then just to make sure that there is no excess crud where I cannot see it.

[as_rocketman]

It was BNIB but I was rushing to get out to the desert to shoot and only did a light scrub and bore snake swipe once out there. I didn't take the bolt out or anything like that. No problems and I'm planing on doing a decent cleaning tonight!

Then you did it right. Happy shooting.

[bubbapug1]

Here's the best article I've ever read on break in procedures.

http://forum.snipershide.com/sniper-hide-gunsmithing/37176-objective-research-barrel-break-procedures.html

[sd joe]

Never heard of breaking in until Calguns.