Another point of view about breaking in a barrel

[theratdog]

the only time i have put an abrasive down my barrel is if they are rusty. jacketed bullets and lead do a  good job of breaking in a barrel and i don't get them real hot.

[PineyCreek22]

What may not be fully understood about the lapping process is that the lap is cast in the barrel conforming to the exact interior of the bore.  It is cast from the softest lead obtainable which is fishing sinker lead.  The abrasive material imbeds itself in the lead lap as it does its job.  As an auto mechanic I routinely  did overhauls on engines with over a hundred thousand miles on them.  Examination showed crankshaft journals (unless something out of ordinary happened) that were highly polished and usually not more than 1-2 thousandths undersize.  The bearing journals would show babbet bearings (a hard lead alloy) plated over a bronze bearing support with steel particles, dirt, carbon and sand imbedded into the babbet .   I said all that to point out that using a lead lap with an abrasive material will not trash it.  It was mentioned in a previous post that the Barnes bullet company recomends lapping for the reason shown in the photos I posted.  All those chatter marks are going to have to strip copper and lead from bullets and jackets and probably be compounded if you are shooting solid copper  PC

[Ol BW]

I agree that having a smoother barrel could help groups.  Another benefit is that it would foul less, and thus be easier to clean and keep pressures down.  (not that pressure is a big concern or is greatly affected by excess fouling). But if a barrel shoots good why go through the process.  Likewise I once heard of a fellow who said he didn't start to trust a rifle until he had shot at least a hundred rounds through it.  I think there is a lot to be said for that.  You can call it breaking in if you wish, some clean in between and some don't. Others call it practice, either way it involves shooting which can't be bad.  I believe that in our modern lives a person would have to work hard to wear out a barrel.

BW

[JustaShooter]

My take is similar to one of the posts in the link provided by the OP:

slabsides
Senior Member    posted September 27, 1999 04:24 PM
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bullseye: My credentials aren't as impressive as Mr. McMillan's, but I do have some experience with new factory barrels and used ones that have been neglected or abused by previous owners. Factory barrels aren't lapped or polished as a rule; the first couple of hundred shots through therefore, apparently serve to 'season' the bore, wearing away microscopic imperfections. Especially during this time, firing too many rounds too fast is not a good practice. I try to keep the barrel cool, especially until a few hundred shots have gone down the bore. That means that at least at first, I shoot only a few shots per session, and of course cleaning after each session. It's not so much the cleaning that helps is the gradual wearing in.

I've only purchased one centerfire rifle that was factory new - a TC Encore Pro Hunter in .243.  I wanted to take it to the range but didn't have a load worked up (or even brass for that matter) and wasn't inclined to wait, so I grabbed a few boxes of factory ammo and headed out. I'd read about breaking in a new barrel, and decided to give it a try. I started out shooting one shot & cleaning for 5 times, then 2 shots between cleaning for 5 times, then 3 shots, then 4, then 5, so I ran a total of 75 rounds through & cleaned the barrel 25 times.

I can tell you three things: 1 - the first patches I pushed through took serious effort, almost had to pound on the cleaning rod, but by the end of the break in I could push the patches through pretty easily. 2 - The first cleaning sessions showed noticeable blue/green coloring when I used copper cleaner, but it got progressively better till the last sessions of 5 shots where I did not see any blue/green with the copper solvent.  I have to put about 20 shots through the barrel now before I get any noticeable coloring when using copper solvent. 3 - after retrieving & checking my targets (I shot 5 shot groups in sequence from start to finish) the groups tightened up from about 1.5" to right at 1" over the course of the break in session.

Now, that's just one barrel, but I can tell you it made a difference.  And from my perspective, it didn't shorten the barrel life because I'd have shot those 75 rounds anyway, I was going to get some trigger time anyway, and ended up with a bunch of brass to reload. All it took was my time, and it really didn't take too much of that to be honest, and I wanted to see whether it would make a difference anyway. 

I plan on doing a similar break in for any new factory rifles I buy - though if I ever get a custom rifle with a hand-lapped barrel, I think I'll pass...

[Swampman]

Why would you clean a barrel?  It only ruins your accuracy and it shortens your barrel life.

[JustaShooter]

Why would you clean a barrel?  It only ruins your accuracy

Yep, that's why the best benchrest shooters never clean theirs... 

and it shortens your barrel life.

Kindof depends on how you clean it, now doesn't it?

[theratdog]

why make thing complicated life is to short.