New barrel?

[LIMPINGJ]

I was wondering what others have found as the best way to start with a new barrel? Should I fire a few hundred jwords through it first then clean and try cast then or just start with cast and use cast to lap with if it does not seem to shoot with cast? This is about a new CZ 9.3x62 I got but could apply to any new barrel for cast. What has been your experience?
Thanks
Jim

[ammohead]

I have found the best thing to do with a new bbl or gun is to shoot it, lots. My marlin cowboy 45-70 was probably test fired at the factory with jacketed, but it had not seen another one since. It shoots cast as good now as when it was new, maybe a little better. Any amount of copper fouling left in the bore will make cast shooting a mess until you get it all out. Best to start with as little exposure to copper as possible. Surely copper is not a prerequisate for a bbl to shoot cast good.

ammohead

[waksupi]

I put a Douglas barrel on a Mauser a couple years ago, and it would only shoot cast at about 6". So, I got some of Veral's lapping compound, and ended up shooting 18 or 20 rounds through it, until the cleaning patch squeaked all the way to the muzzle. Groups dropped to around an inch. I put a Bauska on my current project. The guy making them, understood what I needed for cast bullets, as he is also a cast bullet shooter. Test firing delivered about a three inch group, with no load development. I suspect it will not need lapping.
Each barrel is an individual. At work, we do quite a few stainless barrels. they generally shoot jacketed into under an inch, right from the start. Chrome moly barrels can take a bit of work to get good results, and they foul much, much worse.
Have you shot it yet? It may not need anything done to it. The 9.3 should be a rather forgiving barrel, and if it shows decent accuracy, I would just shoot the beejeebers out of it, and let it wear in.

[44man]

I would shoot it first after getting out any copper. If you want to break it in with jacketed, you have to fire one shot and clean out all the copper before the next shot. Do this at least 20 times. Then clean after every two or three shots for a while. You want the bullet to ride bare steel to smooth it out. Shooting over fouling will not do a thing.