New barrel was DIRTY!

[Keith L]

Yesterday I cleaned the new .204 Ruger barrel I just got prior to first firing.  I expect to get some mill oil and some metal like I got from the other new barrels I have.  But this one was filthy.  I didn't see any metal, but scrubbed for nearly a half hour before I got clean patches.  The bore looks fine, but was a mess.

Any thoughts?  I don't expect a problem but am interested in why this one is different.

And yes I know some don't see any use in this calaber, and that some think .22-.250 is better but unless that is the reason this barrel was dirty I don't see the need to add those replies to this question.

Thanks,

[contender hunter]

Keith lets hope they were just test firing it , I'm not sure if they test one every so often or not , let us no how it shoots , is it a factory t/c bbl. I'm REAL interested in this caliber , I got a custom shop bbl. in 7x30 waters last year and man does that bbl. shoot, I can't find a listing for the .204 at the custom shop site isn't it avail from them yet ? I think this caliber would be a lot of fun and something that you will shoot alot, LOW recoil , very fast . HAVE FUN

[skb2706]

My new .204 barrel had been test fired and came with a report regarding its accuracy.....I suspect they did not clean the barrel after that as mine was dirty also. No matter....nothing that a little Hoppes and a few patches took care of.
Half an hour ?

[drichi]

I bought a new barrel from midsouth and it had been test fired also. it was dirty with powder residue. dave

[Keith L]

I started with gun scrubber and finished with Hoppies.  I have never had a smokeless barrel that took so much work to get a clean patch.  I wonder whaqt they fired out of it.

Thanks for the answers.

[Chuck White]

When I got my 204 rifle barrel, I ran a dry patch through it!

Then 2 with Hoppes, 3 dry, 1 with a touch of oil then finally 3 dry!

Went outside and tried it at 100 yards and shot a 3/8", 3-shot group with factory 32 grainers!

[Keith L]

I hope to give mine a try in the near future.  I am laid up for a few days recovering from foot surgery.  The trail to our improved range is a steep, rough one to discourage people from stopping and shooting without asking (or stopping and breaking stuff).  I have to get a little better like the pins and stiches out before giving it a try.  Today I got it out of the safe and looked it over, looked through the scope, wiped it all down and put it away.  If I have to wait much longer I may wear through the bluing<VBG>.

[contender hunter]

Keith I was wondering where you got your 204 bbl. is it a factory , custom maker and encore or contender and also I can't find the 204 at the t/c custom shop website don't they offer it yet ??

[Keith L]

I ordered it from Midsouth Shooters Supply (http://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com).  Look under Firearms, then Contender, then 23" barrel.

I ordered it Monday and it came on Thursday.  Cost is 216.06 plus shipping.  It is a standard issue T/C barrel.

[contender hunter]

WOW THATS FAST SERVICE , let us no how it shoots , sounds like alot of fun and a very fast round. !

[Moe]

Guys is there loaded ammo and ALL reloading components readily available for the .204??

[Tad Houston]

Not really, most catalogs list it, but most of it is out of stock. I couldn't find any brass ready to ship. Dies should be no problem. Loaded ammo is hit & miss. I was wondering if a guy could form brass from another cartridge like the 223? None of my load books give me the dimensions for the 204- They don't list it - too new.

[SLAVAGE]

the parent case is a 222 mag  from what i heard

[Keith L]

So far I have found loaded ammo (Hornady 32 grain bullet, and Winchester) fairly easy to find.  I haven't gotten to shoot it yet though .

[str8shooter48]

Yesterday I cleaned the new .204 Ruger barrel I just got prior to first firing.  I expect to get some mill oil and some metal like I got from the other new barrels I have.  But this one was filthy.  I didn't see any metal, but scrubbed for nearly a half hour before I got clean patches.  The bore looks fine, but was a mess.

Any thoughts?  I don't expect a problem but am interested in why this one is different.

And yes I know some don't see any use in this calaber, and that some think .22-.250 is better but unless that is the reason this barrel was dirty I don't see the need to add those replies to this question.

Thanks,

Just got my 223 barrel from Mid South Shooters Supply today. It was also loaded with what looked like powder residue. Maybe its a good thing they are test fired. Don't see any other marks on it so I'm assuming it was just test fired. I hope I'm as happy with the accuracy as the guy that tested it.

[Keith L]

One of the people who answered this post said he got information about how it grouped.  I wish mine had.  And as hard as it cleaned I wonder what they shot.

[skb2706]

That was me...I got a hand written note with my barrel (I had sent it back to TC because it didn't lock up correctly on my frame...put the old style locking bolts in it) when it was returned. The tech who checked it out wrote they tested it with 32 gr. factory loads ( I suspect these were Hornady) three shot group at 100 yds. on the test bench grouped .500". We spent a few hours with it on Sunday and confirmed that it will shoot my handloads at least that well.

[Keith L]

Great!  I can hardly wait.

[MickinColo]

All good barrel manufactures “Proof Fire” every barrel they make. I for one would not buy a barrel that wasn’t proof fired. If you look at a newly manufactured barrel, you’ll notice how nicely the manufactures name, warning labels, and caliber is stamped on the barrel. Then there’s this little round hand stamped symbol, usually on the left side of the barrel close to the breech, that’s the barrel’s proof mark. That means that the barrel had at least one hot round through it and it didn’t blow up.

T/C has their proof mark on the locking/hinge pin/extractor bar under the barrel.

For some reason they don’t clean them after proofing them. I can imagine any number of good reasons why they don’t clean them.