Cast Boolit, Jacketed for new barrel break-in, or no break-in at all?

[ghh3rd]

Here I go again, reading stuff on the internet and creating doubt about my plans. I'm about to receive and start using a new 45-70, and intended to just clean the barrel and start shooting cast boolits.

Then I came across an article about breaking in one's barrel in order to keep from screwing up your barrel, and
for the rest of the gun's life the man complains that the barrel is no good

What is the general concensus about breaking in a new barrel and this article -- necessary or not? Truth or fiction?

The article:

Break-in procedure for Barrels
• Break in with jacketed bullets
For the first ten shots we recommend, if possible, using jacketed bullets with a nitro powder load, Clean the oil out of the barrel before each shot using something as simple as Windex™ which will soak the oil out of the pores, After firing each bullet use a good copper cleaner (one with ammonia) to remove the copper fouling from the barrel. We do not recommend anything with an abrasive in it since you are trying to seal the barrel, not keep it agitated.

After cleaning with bore cleaner, clean with Windex after each shot. Use Windex because many bore cleaners use a petroleum base which you want to remove before firing the next shot. This will keep the carbon from building up in the barrel (oil left in the pores, when burned, turns to carbon).

To keep the temperature cool in the barrel, wait at least 5 minutes between break-in shots. The barrel must remain cool during the break-in procedure. If the barrel is allowed to heat up during the break-in, it will destroy the steel's ability to develop a home registration point, or memory. It will have a tendency to make the barrel “walk" when it heats up in the future. I am sure we all have seen barrels that, as they heat up, start to shoot high and then "walk" when it heats up in the future. I am sure we all have seen barrels that, as they heat up, start to shoot high and then "walk" to the right This was caused by improperly breaking in the barrel (generally by sitting at a bench rest and shooting 20 rounds in 5 minutes or so). Then, for the rest of the gun's life the man complains that the barrel is no good. If you take a little time in the beginning and do it right, you will be much more pleased with the barrel in the future.If you look into the end of the barrel after firing a shot, you will see a light copper -colored wash in the barrel. Remove this before firing the next shot. Somewhere in the procedure, around shot 6 or 7, it will be obvious that the copper color is no longer appearing in the barrel. Continue applications through shot 10.
If you have any ammunition left, you then may shoot 2 rounds and clean it for the next 10 shots. This is simply insuring that the burnishing process has been completed.
In theory you are closing the pores of the barrel metal which have been opened and exposed through the culling and hand lapping procedures.
•
Break in with lead bullets
The same shooting-cleaning process may be used when firing lead bullets and black powder with this exception: shoot 2 bullets, than clean for the first 30 rounds. Naturally, you will use a cleaner appropriate to black powder. You can also use harder lead if available to accelerate the break in. This will accomplish the same as the jacketed bullets.
It may take 80 to 100 rounds to break in with lead. That is why we recommend using jacketed bullets when possible. After this procedure, you barrel's interior surface will be sealed and should shoot cleaner and develop less fouling for the rest of its shooting life.

Randy

[geargnasher]

Just clean it, patch a VERY light coat of oil or Bullplate through it, and go shooting. When you get home, clean it again with Ed's or whatever fouling cleaner you use just so you can get a good look at possible leading from rough spots. If you get those, you might consider firelapping to smooth things up.

While it is true that all formed steels "cure" and stabilize their structure through repeated thermal cycling, I disagree with the theory that a lead boolit launcher needs any special care during break in. Of course opinions will vary, and I'm sure someone will be around shortly with a myriad of reasons to contradict my opinion, but it's just my opinion based on a little bit of experience. I don't worry about special break-in procedures unless the gun is having troubles that need correcting, or I suspect troubles beforehand, like finding a restriction when slugging or patching before I ever shoot it.

Oh, one more thing, make sure you're using a top-shelf lube, as the "open pore" thing is not a problem if those pores get filled with good slick stuff right from the beginning. Make them work for you instead of performing ellaborate rituals to get them to shrink.

Gear

[ghh3rd]

Thanks Gear.


Oh, one more thing, make sure you're using a top-shelf lube

Felix lube has been my Top Shelf (and only) lube... works great for me.

[white eagle]

I have never "broke in"a barrel on any gun I have owned
I have known a few that follow their break in procedure and their gun or rifle doesn't shoot any better than any of mine or theirs that they didn't go thru the trouble of a break in with
so believe what you will
I say a break in is a waste of time.... fwiw :holysheep

[454PB]

I've seen guys go through this procedure at the range I use. It looks to me like they nearly wear out the barrel with just the hours of cleaning they go through.

IMHO, it's a waste of time. The only part I do agree with is firing slowly enough so you don't overheat the barrel. I do a thorough cleaning before the first firing, then shoot as normal.

Many years ago, I believed the oft touted practice of breaking in with jacketed bullets before firing cast boolits. I've since broken in dozens of new barrels using cast boolits from the start, and they shoot fine.

[geargnasher]

I have three guns, all made by Uberti, all purchased new by me, that still have all of the blueing in the bores despite having been fired hundreds or thousands of times. All I did was clean and shoot them. No problems came up so I didn't fix them.

I use Felix lube almost exclusively as well, I think, for many reasons, it's the best stuff there is.
Carnauba Red gets used occasionally for things like the .40 S&W, but only because I have a bunch of it and it needs to get used for something. I also have a batch of Lithi-Bee I use for pan lubing some low-volume stuff. Everything else in the lube dept. has been given away or used up and won't be replaced, although I'm going down the Soy route at some point soon.

Gear

[jdgabbard]

I've fired plenty of new pistols and rifle in my time... Never went out of the way to break them in... Don't overheat the barrel and clean them well. You'll be fine.

[XWrench3]

that sounds like a break in proceedure for a custom rifle barrel, that will be used for bench rest competition shooting. not a production barrel, that will be used for every day run of the mill shooting like most people do. would it be great, to do your barrel the right way? ABSOLUTLY! but honestly, i have never gotten any new rifle that says anything about barrel break in in the owners manual. personally, i believe you need to "break in" a new production barrel with jacketed bullets. they will knock off, or smooth over any high spots in the barrel a lot sooner than cast boolits will. and that means less lead left in the barrel. i just had a new barrel put onto my remington 700, and my "breal in" was 100 rounds with jacketed bullets. first, clean the barrel with GUN CLEANING SOLVENT , i dont believe in the windex thing. i also dont believe that a barrel should be 100% completely and totally dry. LOOK at the barrel with a bore light, if it is alrady as smooth as a baby's behind, you may be able to just go shoot. if it was as rough as my 45/70 was, either return it and get one with a better barrel, or you might actually have to buy abrasive bullets just to smooth it out to a decent finish. if you decide to do that, i reccomend the David Tubbs "Final Finish System", i got it from Midway USA. follow his directions to a "T", and you will have 1 smooth barrel! I ended up doing the later because i didnt notice how rough it was until i had owned it for a while. i clean the barrel after 5 shots (at about 1/2 load), and yes, let the barrel cool off between sessions. i think that heating and cooling of the barrel is important. you dont want to get it smoking hot, but it needs to get warm anyways. heat / cool cycles stress relieves metal. for all i know, custom barrels may be stress relieved before the rifling process begins. i think if i were making precision hand lapped target barrels, i think i would do that. anyway, all of the above is just my comon sense aproach to doing my guns. i may be all wet. if you want to shoot lead right off the git-go, i guess the worst you will have to do is clean a lot of lead out of the bore all of the time. not much fun i.m.o.! but everybodys definition of fun differs.

[44man]

Seems as if who made and how the barrel was made. Most of my guns have never seen a bullet unless for a special application or test. Never had any break in and shot cast from the start.
Cut rifling might need smoothed but a good barrel maker should have already lapped it.
BFR's are lapped and Ruger's are not rough. Most factory rifles are smooth.
Old Spanish and some Italian barrels needed worn out to get smooth!
Some TC barrels are real bad, had many barrels for a Contender that would grind all the copper from a bullet.
Shoot some groups with a new gun and your best boolit load and I bet it shoots just fine. If it leads up, look at your loads first.
Tight spots at threads, etc, are different and might need attention.
I don't believe that barrel heat thing either. Some rifles get so hot in 3 shots, you need to let it cool.

[jonk]

It may have had a use years ago but with modern steel/machining, is bunk, I say; a ploy by the barrel makers to get you to wear out your barrel faster.

The THEORY is that by firing/cleaning firing/cleaning you are wearing down the 'rough' spots left by machining and it may well do that; however, just shooting the gun and cleaning as normal will do this eventually as well. If you feel you must, I recommend a quick firelap of the barrel with light loads and be done with it.

[Bass Ackward]

Every barrel is new, breaks in, stabilizes, and dies if you use it. How you shoot it and clean it determines how long that barrel might live. Heat and wear are the reality that makes that happen. Fouling is the enemy that creates uneven wear.

Whether you acknowledge the process or not, doesn't change reality. It WILL go through this life cycle. It goes through this process whether you assist it or not.

Only question is if you need / want to let it happen or try to control it. Sometimes it just don't matter.

My new Whelen will lead at 1100 fps. 300 jacketed rounds later, it still leads at 1100 fps. Crappy barrel? Yep, for lead. Did it need broken in for jacketes? Best loads were in the 1 1/2 MOA area. Same load that shot like that now shoots tenths ..... at 200 yards.

Will it shoot lead someday? If I live long enough.

[montana_charlie]

Consider the reputation of the barrel maker.

There are a couple of brands that I would not even consider breaking in.
There is one brand (the one who provides those instructions) which I would break in without question.

Of the others...who knows? Look through the bore with a borescope and make your decision.
Just be sure to examine one that doesn't need break-in, so that you know how to evaluate those that do.

CM

[44man]

Every barrel is new, breaks in, stabilizes, and dies if you use it. How you shoot it and clean it determines how long that barrel might live. Heat and wear are the reality that makes that happen. Fouling is the enemy that creates uneven wear.

Whether you acknowledge the process or not, doesn't change reality. It WILL go through this life cycle. It goes through this process whether you assist it or not.

Only question is if you need / want to let it happen or try to control it. Sometimes it just don't matter.

My new Whelen will lead at 1100 fps. 300 jacketed rounds later, it still leads at 1100 fps. Crappy barrel? Yep, for lead. Did it need broken in for jacketes? Best loads were in the 1 1/2 MOA area. Same load that shot like that now shoots tenths ..... at 200 yards.

Will it shoot lead someday? If I live long enough.
You keep blaming other stuff but I KNOW what is going on! You, like me, are so old that you snooze behind the gun, half dead, so nothing moves. You don't remember pulling the trigger but must have at some time.
I bet you hat fell off and you didn't notice! :kidding::bigsmyl2::bigsmyl2:

[1Shirt]

Like a lot of the others, have broken in a number of rifles and a few one handers, and other than running a couple of clean patched down the tube before I shot the first round, did nothing. It works for me that way, so I don't try to fix it!
1Shirt!:coffee:

[harvester]

Ok, I have not tried that involved of a procedure but I have used the shoot one clean, do this for 10x. Then shoot 2 and cleaned 5x. Then shot 5 and cleaned. With these two rifles the only jacketed bullets they saw and will see were the break in rounds. These two rifles do NOT LEAD at all, none, zero. HR CR-45LC, and NEF 357 magnum were the guns in question. I dont know for sure that is why they dont lead at all but they are surely better than my other guns regarding leading. Just saying.

[Mk42gunner]

My personal thoughts are if the barrel is any good you can just shoot it like normal.

IIRC the "you have to break in your barrel, or it is ruined" school of thought started 10 or 15 years ago. What about the millions of rifles that were fired before that, were they all ruined?

Robert