Barrel break in?

[brontodon]

Browning has the following advice on its web site:

>> For the first ten shots we recommend, if possible, using jacketed bullets. After firing each bullet, use a good copper cleaner (one that has ammonia) to remove copper fouling in the barrel. Always follow the directions listed on the cleaning solvent package or barrel damage may occur. We do NOT recommend anything with an abrasive in it since you are trying to seal the barrel, not keep it agitated. If you look into the end of the barrel after firing a shot, you will see a light copper-colored wash in the barrel. This must be removed 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 two rounds and clean it for the next ten shots. This is simply insurance that the burnishing process has been completed.

In theory what you have just accomplished is the closing of the pores of the barrel metal which have been opened and exposed through the cutting and lapping procedures.

After following the procedure, your barrel's interior surface will be sealed and should shoot cleaner and develop less fouling for the rest of its shooting life. <<

Is this normal procedure for a new gun? Do most of y'all do it? Do other manufacturers recommend something similar?

 

[jmr40]

Lots of discussion and no consensus.

Every barrel shoots more accurately after a few shots have been fired through them. It varies a lot, some need 10-20, some 100-200. Barrels are easier to clean after a few shots have been fired through them. Most factory barrels are a little rough to begin with and get dirty easy. Firing a few shots through them smooths out the rough edges, makes them more accurate, and easier to clean.

MY OPINION.

I've never seen a barrel that could count, they don't know how many shots have been fired through them. I'm not a believer in some of the complex break-in procedures which recommend a specific number of rounds between cleanings.

With some of these you end up shooting at least 100 rounds through the barrel and may clean it a dozen times at specific round counts.

I shoot and clean, when necessary, without keeping up with round counts. A newer barrel is harder to clean and should probably be done more often, but after a few shots gets easier to clean and more accurate.

 

[LiveLife]

This Youtuber asked 21 manufacturers how to break in their barrel. (Responses at 10:00 minute of video)

And the verdict? All replied "No recommended break in" and Henry replied, "Clean before firing. Already test fired".

How To Break In New Rifles & Barrels – 21 Companies Answer

How do you break in a new rifle barrel and what is the best process? I contacted 21 rifle manufactures and asked them how to break in their new rifles. After...

www.youtube.com

 

[Ignition Override]

Supposedly the entire “concept” began many years ago with a guy who manufactured barrels.
He added a note with each new barrel recommending that customers “Break-in” by doing this and that.

The motivation was that this would ultimately create more wear which was expected to bring him more business. $$

LiveLife: that is good. They asked manufacturers.
“Clean before firing. Barrel already test-fired”.
How can people even think of questioning “internet wisdom?”.

The problem also might have been Peer Pressure, not wanting to tell buddies/ friends that “You are mistaken”. This reminds me of the mass-anxiety/ internet “wisdom” about a certain type of ammo component (steel)-which had been about corrosive Primers—Not cases. Go along to get along.

 

[EIB0879]

I have followed a procedure in the past on a couple of rifles and on others I have just shot them until I felt like I needed to clean them but it didn't make a difference that I could detect.

 

[Pete D.]

This Youtuber asked 21 manufacturers how to break in their barrel. (Responses at 10:00 minute of video)

And the verdict? All replied "No recommended break in" and Henry replied, "Clean before firing. Already test fired".

How To Break In New Rifles & Barrels – 21 Companies Answer

How do you break in a new rifle barrel and what is the best process? I contacted 21 rifle manufactures and asked them how to break in their new rifles. After...

www.youtube.com

Just go shoot>

 

[Laphroaig]

Here's Kreiger's version:

https://kriegerbarrels.com/faq#breakin

Their explanation seems plausible to me. Browning recommends the same procedure, but for a different reason. Who knows?

 

[W.E.G.]

If a new barrel requires some special procedure to protect the barrel from day 1, that barrel is going to be a problem from day 1.

You can shoot a good barrel bad.

You can't shoot a bad barrel good.

 

[dfish1247]

Barrel break in is like breaking in a new engine. All you’re doing is the final machining.

Just do what the manufacturer says and have fun.

 

[lightman]

On a factory rifle I just clean it then shoot it. I do try to not get it really hot early in its life.

On a custom barrel I clean it to remove any possible machining residue and then shoot it once, patch it out, shoot it once, patch it out and continue to do that until that one shot does't leave copper fouling. On my Kreiger barrels this has been around 6 or 7 shots. I read this method was recommended by one of the better known Benchrest gun smiths but I don't remember which one.

 

[Nature Boy]

On a custom barrel I clean it to remove any possible machining residue and then shoot it once, patch it out, shoot it once, patch it out and continue to do that until that one shot does't leave copper fouling. On my Kreiger barrels this has been around 6 or 7 shots. I read this method was recommended by one of the better known Benchrest gun smiths but I don't remember which one

I follow a similar break in process as well

 

[Chuck R.]

Generally I follow the manufacturers break in recommendation.

Last 3 barrels I've bought have been Bartlein's so I follow this:

How to Break a Barrel In | Bartlein Barrels

www.bartleinbarrels.com

Factory OEM barrels I just shoot & clean.

IMHO, break-in via the maker's instructions is not that much of a PITA, especially since my range is out my back door. Usually I'm done in around 20rds or so. The key is to read the patches as you go. The majority of the new barrels I've bought have sped up as they've been shot anyway, so I don't normally start load development till I've got 60 or so rounds fired anyway. By then I've got brass that's formed, the rifle is zero'd and my initial pressure tests are done.

Biggest difference I've seen is how easy the broke in barrels clean up afterwards, but then again, they're were all lapped from the get go.

 

[brontodon]

Henry replied, "Clean before firing. Already test fired".

I love those guys at Henry!

 

[Lo-Profile]

All I've ever done is 10 shots, letting the barrel cool between shots and cleaning with a copper cleaner.

 

[denton]

Some simple experimental evidence:

I have a 6.5x55 Swedish milsurp that is a joy to shoot. However, it did copper foul more quickly than I thought it should.

So I thoroughly cleaned the barrel, removing every trace of copper. Then I shot 1 shot and cleaned again for about 15 shots. Finally, I shot 3 shots and cleaned for another 15 rounds. Bear in mind, this barrel has been in use since 1917.

At the end of this treatment, the barrel had much less copper build up after a shooting session, and could go longer between cleaning.

So I take this to show that if a barrel fouls excessively, thorough cleaning and barrel break-in will make a difference in how long the barrel can shoot accurately without requiring cleaning.

On the other hand, I have had barrels that remained clean for a long time without any break-in. I think some barrels need it, and some don't.

 

[brontodon]

I emailed Browning and they have now clarified their advice:

>> That process is only if you are not getting a good grouping. So if you are getting a good grouping you do not have to do the break in process <<

This doesn't really make sense, since the break-in process is supposed to begin with the very first rounds you shoot through the barrel. If you're shooting enough to have "groupings" (good or bad), you've already missed the boat.

 

[Mk-211]

Man, you guys are slacking off!

No one has posted Gale McMillan's wisdom on barrel break-in.

Consider this, every round shot in breaking in a barrel is one round off
the life of said rifle barrel. No one has ever told me the physical
reason of what happens during break in firing. In other words to the
number of pounds of powder shot at any given pressure, is the life of the
barrel. No one has ever explained what is being accomplished by
shooting and cleaning in any prescribed method. Start your barrel off
with 5 rounds and clean it thoroughly and do it again. Nev Maden a
friend down under that my brother taught to make barrels was the one who
come up with the break in method. He may think he has come upon
something, or he has come up with another way to sell barrels. I feel
that the first shot out of a barrel is its best and every one after that
deteriorates until the barrel is gone. If some one can explain what
physically takes place during break in to modify the barrel then I may
change my mind. As the physical properties of a barrel doesn't change
because of the break in procedures it means it's all hog wash. I am open
to any suggestions that can be documented otherwise if it is just
someone's opinion forget it.

Gale McMillan

As a barrel maker I have looked in thousands of new and used barrels
with a bore scope and I will tell you that if every one followed the
prescribed break in method A very large number would do more harm than
help. The reason you hear of the help in accuracy is because if you
chamber barrel with a reamer that has a dull throater instead of cutting
clean sharp rifling it smears a burr up on the down wind side of the
rifling. It takes from 1 to 2 hundred rounds to burn this bur out and
the rifle to settle down and shoot its best. Any one who chambers rifle
barrels has tolerances on how dull to let the reamer get and factories
let them go longer than any competent smithe would. Another tidbit to
consider, Take a 300Win Mag. that has a life expectancy of 1000 rounds.
Use 10% of it up with your break in procedure for ever 10 barrels the
barrel maker makes he has to make one more just to take care of the
break in. no wonder barrel makers like to see this. Now when you flame
me on this please include what you think is happening to the inside of
your barrel during the break in that is helping you.

Gale McMillan
NBSRA IBS,FCSA and NRA Life Member

This is how (some) benchrester break in barrels, and it does work.
# #The mechanism is that the bore has pores in it (microns in size).
# #If you simply shoot a box or two through it without cleaning, the
# #pores fill up with gilding metal, and stay that way. If you
# #follow the above procedure (and they mean *clean* between shots!),
# #the pores are "smoothed over" with each successive shot. A barrel
# #correctly broken in is MUCH easier to clean than one that is
# #not. If it is a good quality tube, it will also be more accurate.
# #Regards,
# #whit
#
# Well, the range hours here are quite limited. On my first trip I
# managed to fire a whole fourteen rounds, with a thorough cleaning
# after each round. It couldn't hurt! Fun gun! Difficult to think of
# .223 as a battle round after experience with .30-06 and .45ACP, but it
# surely going to be a pleasure to shoot.
# Thanks to all for their advice.

This is total hogwash! It all got started when a barrel maker that I
know started putting break in instructions in the box with each barrel
he shipped a few years ago. I asked him how he figured it would help
and his reply was If they shoot 100 rounds breaking in this barrel
that's total life is 3000 rounds and I make 1000 barrels a year just
figure how many more barrels I will get to make. He had a point it
defiantly will shorten the barrel life. I have been a barrel maker a
fair amount of time and my barrels have set and reset bench rest world
records so many times I quit keeping track (at one time they held 7 at
one time) along with HighPower,Silloett,smallbore national and world
records and my instructions were to clean as often as posable preferably
every 10 rounds. I inspect every barrel taken off and every new barrel
before it is shipped with a bore scope and I will tell you all that I
see far more barrels ruined by cleaning rods than I see worn out from
normal wear and tear.I am even reading about people recommending
breaking in pistols. As if it will help their shooting ability or the
guns.
Gale Mc.

 

[.38 Special]

In the 80s, when I played at benchrest competition, break-in was a hot topic - and I got the impression that it already was an old and well-worn topic.

The bottom line for me was that the people who argued that you had to do it and the people who argued that you should never do it seemed to perform about the same. In fact, the two guys at the club who normally traded "top dog" status back and forth were polar opposites when it came to break-in. I figured that was a clue, and so never bothered to "break in" rifle barrels after that.

 

[Varminterror]

I emailed Browning and they have now clarified their advice:

>> That process is only if you are not getting a good grouping. So if you are getting a good grouping you do not have to do the break in process <<

This doesn't really make sense, since the break-in process is supposed to begin with the very first rounds you shoot through the barrel. If you're shooting enough to have "groupings" (good or bad), you've already missed the boat.

Doesn't make any sense at all...

Too many folks have been through too many barrels to know you're not going to turn a junk barrel into anything better just by whatever voodoo they're concocting...

But what they DO have, alternatively, as a barrel/firearm manufacturer, is an easy escape for an underperforming firearm... "Hey, my rifle doesn't shoot well, right out of the box, can you fix it?" Rep: "Did you follow exactly the break in procedure?" Consumer: "No, I didn't know I had to stand on my head with a 2 year old chicken named Stanley that was born on the 3rd thursday after a full moon shoved down my pants to get my rifle to shoot well." Rep: "Ah, I see, well these barrels shoot better if you did that, but it's too late now..."

What's a far, far better idea - if you want rifles which shoot small - rather than trying to fire lap and over-brush a factory barrel, is to buy proper custom barrels which have been air gauged and hand lapped. Or, just accept that it's really not so difficult to get 1/2-1MOA precision out of ANY rifle, and don't blame some mis-step during a voodoo ritual on why a $400 rifle with a $50 scope mounted by a lackey in the back of a Walmart doesn't shoot cheap factory or surplus ammo into the same hole at 100yrds from leaning against a fence post.

 

[Heir Kommt Die Sonne]

It just sounds like to me we're really spoiled today with touch hole accuracy, that we obsess about the state of an already excellently machined barrel like this. Even after a barrel is worn, it'll still shoot acceptably (well, 3 MOA) and is still safe. Now in competition or when precise accuracy is important, then of course we can't let it get to this point. But those of us who deal with milsurps quite a bit, it just looks silly to be so concerned about a loss of 1/2 moa because you fired several hundred rounds through the barrel already

 

[brontodon]

Too many folks have been through too many barrels to know you're not going to turn a junk barrel into anything better just by whatever voodoo they're concocting...

I got the impression that the break-in advice was to promote barrel longevity, not accuracy.

 

[Varminterror]

I got the impression that the break-in advice was to promote barrel longevity, not accuracy.

Barrel "break in" doesn't do that either...

But quite specifically, your OWN post states what you claim to have received from Browning in email, specifically regarding accuracy...

 

[Nature Boy]

This is my take on the subject. I perform a barrel break in process to normalize the barrel before I start load development. If there’s a higher degree of variability to a brand new barrel that reduces over the first 20-30-40 rounds it wouldn’t make any sense to shoot 3 foulers then jump right into load testing.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

Your barrel will never be "broken-in." It will always be in a state of flux/wear and tear. It will change with every single shot.

However, if you feel that breaking in a barrel is necessary, you might as well use those shots to get and refine your zero at the same time.

 

[Nature Boy]

@Double Naught Spy

I agree that your barrel will be changing during its lifespan but it’s about degrees. There’s more variability in the first 100 rounds than there is in the next 1 or 2 thousand. You can see it in the chronograph data and reduction in fouling