barrel wear??

[Gene R]

I've been reading alot here the past few days. Every one keeps saying tp "practice-practice then practice some more" I agree and practicing in a bunch of fun as well, except on the wallet.
My question in, How many shots can you expect from a barrel before you start wearing out the rifling?

I've not gotten there yet, but always wounder.

Has anyone done this yet? This always bothers me about buying usad relvolvers, not knowing.

[Camel 23]

Don't worry about it.  If you can wear out the barrel of a 45 Blackhawk you definately got your money's worth out of it.

[Castaway]

If you shoot cast bullets you'll die of old age first. 

[Glanceblamm]

Don't worry about it.  If you can wear out the barrel of a 45 Blackhawk you definately got your money's worth out of it.

I think that this is true even with a fine rifle...If you can shoot the barrel out it will be worth the overall experience rather than babying it along over several years.
That Blackhawk is a different animal though and you will get a warning of sorts...The wear will start at the throat making the accuracy fall off because the cylinders will then be undersize. To have someone open up the cylinder throats
(like the cylinder smith) is very reasonable cost wise and then you will be good to go for several thousand more rounds.

I would not care to estimate the number of rounds it takes before even the barrel throat starts to wear but recon that it is a massive amount...I would say to go ahead and shoot it out on both pistol & rifle if you can
But Don't Let Either Of Them Get Too Hot...Especially Your Rifle.

[jhalcott]

  You do not need to use the big gun for practicing. I will shoot a .22 rimfire or even an air gun for practice. As long as the guns are about the same size you'll get the benefits of the practice. I set up a target in the basement and shoot several shots every day with a high powered ADULT scoped air gun. More as deer season approaches. I do go to the range and shoot the REAL gun several times before the hunting starts.

[Graybeard]

From a .44 magnum even 5000-10,000 isn't enough to adversely affect accuracy so it's somewhere beyond that and replacement barrels aren't that expensive really if/when needed. Just shoot it and don't worry about it. Long before you wear it out you'll have become a very good shot and will not care that you wore out a barrel if you're able to do so.

[Gene R]

I appreciate the response, if it's beyond 10,000 rounds that's over $6,000 buying factory ammo since I don't reload. I don't guess a new gun or two would hurt the pocket much more any how at that point. Maybe I do need to look at reloading, and seeming as how thats just one gun out of alot more than I care to count between myself and my two sons, I probably can't afford to wear them out.

Besides the fun of an additional shooting/hunting related hobby, how much is the savings % wise reloading vs factory ammo???

We could be talking, a few good hunting trips(Canada-Africa-ect), new guns and a small house!

[kennisondan]

reloading can save you a bundle.
dk

[huntswithdogs]

At least with reloading, you can get a good round to hunt with. Most loads for a 45LC are "cowboy" stuff. Low pressure and low velocity. At 20-30 dollars a box, that can get expensive.

HWD

[Graybeard]

You save absolutely no money by reloading. 

BUT you do shoot 3 or 4 times as much for the same price. 

[Gene R]

I understand completely about saving no money....I don't save money by hunting either, probably the most expensive meat out there.
$500 -2500 for a gun, and you cant stop there if your like me you have to have a new one every so often or you don't feel like your living right. Camouflage, hunting license, tree stands, gas to keep going, ammo and more ammo, new scopes??? $300+ for a good one $2000 for a great one, and of course I have to have one on each rifle. A descent pair of snake boots, gortex, then both the boys and the wife hunts also so mulitply that x 4.............?? Hamburger at Food Lion .99 lb...... Venison $2500plus a year or $15-25 per pound???

I just want to cut a little expense so I can spend even more on a new hobby.

[Jerry Lester]

My stainless 357 Blackhawk has had at least 50,000+ rounds through it(I lost count at around 35,000). I'd say that at least 20,000 of those were full house loads. It's definately a little looser than when it was new, but the barrel looks perfect. The forcing cone has eroded some, and there's a .010" or so groove cut into the top strap, but it still shoots great.

[Mikey]

Gene R:  Sorry, can't agree on y our costs and I think you've made the same mistake mathematicians make when they get involved with theories and formularies on economics and your cost to benefit equation doesn't to use the 'time' factor,  which provides that your expenses for the same activities become less each year, rather than remain static, as you have already incurred the initial expenses and are now simply maintain your equipment/programs, etc.  This is the same process anti-hunters use to confuse the general public about the cost of hunting.

This means that you spend once for things like rifles, scopes, slings, maybe tree stands, camouflage (once every 4-5 yrs), snake boots (once every 4-5 yrs), etc.  Now, all you have to do is teach your wife and sons how to reload and you're all set. 

I went to the range yesterday to sight in my old 06.  Now, I have taken whitetail with that rifle for many years running, but yestereday I found myself opening a new box of Winchester Power Points (yellow box) that had a price tag of $5.80 - guess it had been a while since I needed a new box of ammo.    Mikey.

[Gene R]

Well, I am not a anti-hunter, and I didn't sit down with a calculator before posting.

In fact I'm sure my numbers are far less that reality, I'm not sure I could calculate what we spend on hunting/shooting each year, and I'm not sure I want to. It's kind of irrelevant as long as I can still provide for my family, everything else doesn't matter so long as we enjoy it.................