Barrel break-in and maintenance

[Lungshot202]

I think a good custom barrel chambered by a good smith requires very minimal break in where as a off the shelf factory made gun with the typical factory barrel and chamber job is usually a whole different story.

If you borescope a factory barrel and chambered gun and then go scope a custom barrel that's been chambered by a good smith you'll quickly see why one requires more break in and or why one versus the other coppers up way more. There's generally a huge difference in how both look.

 

[BRICKBURN]

........ Thank God for copper to fill in those imperfections in the barrel. In nearly six decades of shooting, I have never "broken in" a barrel.

After a buddy jumped on the "sterile" barrel bandwagon I borrowed his Electrolysis tool. I cleaned one rifle with it. After the removal process I took it out and shot it, expecting this miraculous improvement after removing all that bad copper.

It went from a very accurate rifle (three under a dime) to an excellent impression of a shotgun pattern at one hundred yards.

NEVER AGAIN.

I got my rifle back after 40 rounds down the barrel. Copper is my friend.

 

[WyoBull]

After a buddy jumped on the "sterile" barrel bandwagon I borrowed his Electrolysis tool. I cleaned one rifle with it. After the removal process I took it out and shot it, expecting this miraculous improvement after removing all that bad copper.

It went from a very accurate rifle (three under a dime) to an excellent impression of a shotgun pattern at one hundred yards.

NEVER AGAIN.

I got my rifle back after 40 rounds down the barrel. Copper is my friend.

Totally agree with you guys. Copper fills in any imperfections on the barrel. IMHO, the biggest harm to a barrel is getting it too hot. Patience is your friend between shots.
Good old Hoppes #9 is what I have used for years and love it. Love the smell of it too! Haha
I have used copper fouling cleaner at times over the years but only in extreme situations and definitely not on a regular basis.
I have a couple 17 Rem's that will open up and not shoot worth a darn that I have to periodically use a copper fouling cleaner on but that is about it.

 

[meigsbucks]

I never used to break in a barrel. Then about ten years ago, I purchased a rifle with break in instructions: Clean after every shot for ten rounds. Then clean after each three shot string, for ten strings. Then use JB Bore paste to clean copper. Then clean as you normally would. I copied that on the next couple of rifles. I didn’t notice a difference. I’ve since gone to a reduced break in: Clean after every shot for the first ten shots. Clean after the next two six shots. JB’s and then clean and shoot as normal.
As far as cleaning, I was a fanatic about it. Cleaned after every range session and cleaned copper about every 40-50 rds. Now I clean after about every 50-60 rds. Copper at the end of the season.
A winter project for me is I take every rifle down. Clean the underside of the barrel and apply a light coating of lube. I clean the trigger with lighter fluid.

 

[mdwest]

I was big into precision rifles in a past career (was part of my job).. and heard every imaginable argument both for and against "break ins" and specific cleaning regimens, etc...

while I have never been a "camp perry" level shooter.. Ive owned and shot dozens of .25 MOA or better rifles.. and most of my "hunting" rifles today will easily hold somewhere between .5 and 1 MOA with the right ammo (Im fairly meticulous about building accurate loads, and only keeping rifles that shoot accurately)..

and I have never once, ever, "broken in" a barrel..

Ive owned guns with douglas premium air gauged, shilen select match, and hart barrels.. as well as more "common barrels" from companies like Green Mountain, ER Shaw, etc.. there has never been a need to "break in" anything.. as a .25 MOA gun shoots better than I ever could without solid rest under me...

I suppose if you are a serious, world class, bench rest type shooter maybe shaving off an additional .05 MOA might make all of the difference in the world.. .and MAYBE a break in might help do that (some folks seem to think it will????)?...

but for this guy.. who was both a "sniper" and a competitive long range shooter a few decades ago.. break ins just seemed to be a waste of time propagated by a bunch of marketing hype created by those who benefitted from shooters that buy into it..

FWIW, I don't even bother to thoroughly clean by rifles but about once a year these days (typically a couple of months before hunting season they will get a good cleaning.. then taken to the range, and fouled up all over again a few days later...)... they get a decent oil and wipe down after each use.. but other than that, they get left alone for 12 months at a time.. whether they get shot 20 or 200 times through the course of the year..

and again.. most of my bolt action hunting rifles shoot no worse than 1 MOA... many will do a reasonably decent better job than that when sandbagged in really well... only a few are in the 1.5 MOA range.. and they mostly stick around due to "sentimental" value..

so.. why "break in"?

 

[sestoppelman]

I try to not shoot a new barrel to real hot temps initially, and have done a careful break in a couple of times on sniper type rifles, but the main problem with it is, that you cant prove it did anything.
You can only shoot a new barrel in once, you cant go back and try it again, so its just not proveable.
Anymore I just shoot the rare new barrel I might get with a bit more care than an old barrel, until its had some rounds down it.
As to cleaning, I like a clean barrel, sometimes I might go for all the copper, sometimes not. Depends how the accuracy is looking
I use No.9 for 99 percent of cleaning and Bore Tech Copper eliminator if I want it all gone.
I clean all guns right after shooting them, even .22's I actually like cleaning guns.

 

[mdwest]

I try to not shoot a new barrel to real hot temps initially, and have done a careful break in a couple of times on sniper type rifles, but the main problem with it is, that you cant prove it did anything.
You can only shoot a new barrel in once, you cant go back and try it again, so its just not proveable.

yep... thats how I see it as well...

if hundreds of shooters are saying they get .5 MOA out of a shilen select match in X caliber after "break in".. and hundreds more are saying they get the same .5 MOA out of the same barrel in the same caliber without a break in.. and neither party has any evidence of their "system" producing any better results than the other... and there is no way to actually prove the value and viability of either..

then.. I have a hard time seeing the point.. especially when my guns that arent "broken in" produce far better results than I ever need under hunting, or even long range recreational shooting conditions...

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

 

[Inline6]

yep... thats how I see it as well...

if hundreds of shooters are saying they get .5 MOA out of a shilen select match in X caliber after "break in".. and hundreds more are saying they get the same .5 MOA out of the same barrel in the same caliber without a break in.. and neither party has any evidence of their "system" producing any better results than the other... and there is no way to actually prove the value and viability of either..

then.. I have a hard time seeing the point.. especially when my guns that arent "broken in" produce far better results than I ever need under hunting, or even long range recreational shooting conditions...

The reality of all this, we have many barrels that are capable of .25MOA we have few shooters that are truly capable of that.

People want to believe in some type of magic when they just need to spend more time behind the rifle shooting.

 

[Bonk]

I'm surprised. This topic tends to get heated. Nice job fellas.

Put me in the no break in camp. I researched this years ago and, like others, came to the conclusion that any claims about improved accuracy are purely anecdotal. Whether you break it in or not you get what you get. The break in procedure may have even made accuracy worse for all we know. Actually, I doubt it hurts anything but I'm equally convinced it doesn't improve things either.

Bottom line, I went with the MacMillan philosophy about it. I figure he knows more than the rest of us here combined and he says it doesn't matter. Good enough for me.

 

[Bonk]

@mdwest, thanks for posting what you did about cleaning. I'm not OCD about gun cleaning either. They all get a wipe down after every use but I don't break them down and completely clean them after every use. I clean them when they're dirty. Unfortunately there's a stigma about those of us that aren't cleaning fanatics. Apparently, not meticulously cleaning your gun after every use is on par with pedophilia. It's refreshing to hear someone else acknowledge that their guns get put back in the safe less than perfectly clean. I've seen no evidence in 50+ years of shooting that leaving a rifle/pistol with a little residue in the barrel is in any way harmful. However, and this is a big however, I use my guns regularly. If I have reason to believe it may be more than a few months before I get around to shooting a particular gun I'll give it pretty good cleaning before I put it away.

 

[Happy Myles]

Hey if extremely careful barrel breaking in cleaning works for benchrest shooters that is good enough to convince me. Just to make sure I also wait for a full moon and burn some incense

 

[marksman]

some more on barrel break in from the master Gale McMillan

How to Break-in a Barrel
-- A Dissenting Point of View

Gale McMillan, of McMillan Stocks fame, was one of the finest barrel-makers and benchrest shooters of all time. Here he argues that elaborate barrel break-in procedures do more harm than good.

Comments collected from Gale's Gun Forum postings.

As a barrel maker I have looked in thousands of new and used barrels with a bore scope and I will tell you that if every one followed the prescribed [one shot, one clean] break-in method, a very large number would do more harm than good. The reason you hear of the gain in accuracy is because if you chamber a barrel with a reamer that has a dull throater instead of cutting clean sharp rifling it smears a burr up on the down wind side of the rifling. It takes from one to two hundred rounds to burn this burr out and the rifle to settle down and shoot its best. Any one who chambers rifle barrels has tolerances on how dull to let the reamer get and factories let them go longer than any competent smith would.

Another tidbit to consider--take a 300 Win Mag that has a life expectancy of 1000 rounds. Use 10% of it up with your break-in procedure. For every 10 barrels the barrel-maker makes he has to make one more just to take care of the break-in. No wonder barrel-makers like to see this. Now when you flame me on this please [explain] what you think is happening to the inside of your barrel during the break in that is helping you.

Consider this: every round shot in breaking-in a barrel is one round off the life of said rifle barrel. No one has ever told me the physical reason of what happens during break-in firing. In other words what, to the number of pounds of powder shot at any given pressure, is the life of the barrel. No one has ever explained what is being accomplished by shooting and cleaning in any prescribed method. Start your barrel off with 5 rounds and clean it thoroughly and do it again. Nev Maden, a friend down under that my brother taught to make barrels was the one who came up with the [one shot one clean] break-in method. He may think he has come upon something, or he has come up with another way to sell barrels. I feel that the first shot out of a barrel is its best and every one after that deteriorates [the bore] until the barrel is gone. If some one can explain what physically takes place during break-in to modify the barrel then I may change my mind. As the physical properties of a barrel don't change because of the break-in procedures it means it's all hog wash. I am open to any suggestions that can be documented otherwise if it is just someone's opinion--forget it.

It all got started when a barrel maker that I know started putting break-in instructions in the box with each barrel he shipped a few years ago. I asked him how he figured it would help and his reply was if they shoot 100 rounds breaking in this barrel that's total life is 3000 rounds and I make 1000 barrels a year just figure how many more barrels I will get to make. He had a point; it definately will shorten the barrel life. I have been a barrel maker a fair amount of time and my barrels have set and reset benchrest world records so many times I quit keeping track (at one time they held 7 at one time) along with High Power, Silhouette, Smallbore national and world records and my instructions were to clean as often as possible preferably every 10 rounds. I inspect every barrel taken off and every new barrel before it is shipped with a bore scope and I will tell you all that I see far more barrels ruined by cleaning rods than I see worn out from normal wear and tear. I am even reading about people recommending breaking-in pistols. As if it will help their shooting ability or the guns'.

Barrel Break-In - Sniper Country

Breaking in the barrel of a new rifle and cleaning techniques are contentious subjects and there are many different opinions and techniques. Read our article to see what we think about..

www.snipercountry.com

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

My 2 cents worth on this subject, how the barrel is made , hammer forged , cut rifling, button rifled, hand lapped & its internal finish determine how much running in is required, all should be run inn to some degree, as this process will make the barrel easier to clean in the future especially in the regard to copper fowling, 1 shot & clean for 5 shots, 2 shots & clean for 10 shots, 5 shots & clean up to 20 shots,do not over heat the barrel, is a pain in the arse but worth it , clean with a bronze brush & a carbon removing solvent, & use a bore guide & a1 piece coated cleaning rod.
Then with copper solvent & patch out thoroughly, when you get home repeat the cleaning process asap & use Iosso paste after the copper solvent, you can use the running inn process to sight in the rifle you only have to do it once in the life of the barrel

@rdog and @Anthony George
The only rifle I've ever cleaned after every shoot was my old 303. Then it was simple. 2 pints of boiling water down the barrel, quick scrub with a bronze brush, dry patch the oil with 303 oil.
I personally have never ever run a barrel in. Shoot it until dirty, through clean with bore cleaner/ copper remover then oil.
Since using CFE223 I haven't cleaned a barrel in ages just oil and put away. CFE223 really help reduce or eliminate copper fouling. All my hunting rifles have match grade barrels so come already hand lapped. I see no reason to try and smooth an already smooth surface. Button rifled barrels are usually pretty smooth because the button uses irons out the barrel.
My rem 788 in 222 is superbly accurate and the previous owner never ran it in
Bore snakes are ok for the occasional field use but not long term. Pulling it rhru the muzzle will eventually ruin the crown.
Just my 2 cents

 

[mark-hunter]

A couple of passes with Balistol before the season or before initial sight-in, and a couple of more at the end of the season.

Me too!
As an American who has access to all kinds of American gun care products, using Ballistol must be habit left from the time when you were in Germany I guess?

Good thing about balistol, if leaked it does not damage and soak wooden stock.
In ww2, german army used it for everything from gun care and cleaning , to injury treatments. it is almost a magic oil, I can not think of any similar product (good for hands - not damaging skin, good for guns and good for rust protection).

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Has anyone ever found rust lurking underneath copper or moly layers, or is that pretty much a wives' tale?

@steve white
Old wives tale. The copper acts like copper plating.

 

[Goose Cracker]

I was formerly an OCD-adjacent "extensive barrel break-in and clean thoroughly after each use" camp. Likely a result of US Army training and the aforementioned mild neuroticism. But I can learn...

With more and more practical experience, I've evolved into the other camp. I definitely have rifles that shoot better fouled than clean.

 

[rdog]

Me too!
As an American who has access to all kinds of American gun care products, using Ballistol must be habit left from the time when you were in Germany I guess?

Good thing about balistol, if leaked it does not damage and soak wooden stock.
In ww2, german army used it for everything from gun care and cleaning , to injury treatments. it is almost a magic oil, I can not think of any similar product (good for hands - not damaging skin, good for guns and good for rust protection).

Ballistol. Looking for some stuff in a Miter 10 hardware store in Brisbane Australia the other day, i found bottles of non aerosol ballistol a lot cheaper than the aerosol cans sold in gun stores. its in the same place as the WD40 ect.

 

[Hogpatrol]

Barrel break-in, first five consecutive shots, no cleaning, .223Rem, Lilja barrel, 55gr Sierra HPBT. Got lucky, just used a load that worked in another rifle.

 

[BeeMaa]

Firmly in the no break-in camp. Only caveat is I do a thorough cleaning when I have a new (or a new to me) barrel to remove any foreign matter from it. Hoppe's #9 and a few other products get used, but I take it down to bare metal with a proper rod and bore guide to prevent damage to the throat.

I prefer to spend my time shooting rather than doing a break-in. Light cleaning gets done when I get home from the range with a bore snake and CLP. And for those of you so concerned with the dirty condition of my bore snake...they get washed as well.