Breaking in and ongoing cleaning of new Christensen Arms Mesa

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HoosierHunter128

HoosierHunter128

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I have never really broken in a rifle per the manufacturers recommendations. I have typically ran ballistol through and cleaned the barrel before shooting, then ran patches through with a patch worm until clean after I shot in the scope, usually 20-30 rounds. I have never had a huge issue with accuracy, and my rifles shoot MOA. I am not a bench shooter, I am a hunter, and my rifles are hunting rifles. I recently bought a Christensen Arms Mesa in a 6.5 creed. I want to break this rifle in, and clean the bore better than I have in the past with a hope of a more accurate rifle, and a rifle that may possibly like a variety of rounds of ammo, vs just one or two. I do not reload. I have reached out to CA, and here is their break in process as posted on their site.

https://christensenarms.com/barrel-break-in/

I called and asked for more specifics on this brake in. Specifically about what solutions for bore carbon and bore copper solvents. I was told that they use Barnes CR10, but he didn't provide a carbon bore solution.

He then provided this video as instructional to follow, however said Christensen Arms does not endorse or support it...



I'm hoping to get this new rifle started on the right foot, and as stated it is my first attempt at properly breaking in a barrel, and proper ongoing cleaning. This will also be the first time I have ever used a copper removing bore solution.

I've read lots of threads, and watched lots of videos, and have a short list of what everyone seems to prefer:

Bore Carbon Solution:
Butch's Bore
Shooters Choice
Sharp Shoot R Wipe-Out
Hoppes #9
Ballistol

Bore Copper Solution:
Bore Tech Eliminator
Bore Tech CU+2
Sweets
Montana Extreme
Barnes CR10
J-B Bore Cleaning Compound
Wipe-Out or Patch-Out

My plan after looking at Christensen Arms instructions, watching multiple brake-in videos, and reading forum posts, is this:
Clean barrel with Shooters Choice before shooting (I use a patch worm)

http://www.patchworm.com/patchworm.html

Break-in:
Run patches of shooters choice until no carbon, run dry patches until dry and clean. Run a wet patch or two of sweets, let sit 5 min, make multiple passes 10-20 with a copper solution resistant Dewey rod and a copper solution resistant Dewey nylon brush. Run wet then dry patches (patchworm) until no blue, possibly repeat twice with sweets.

Do this after every shot for first 5 shots, then after every 3 shots for 3 rounds, then after every 6 shots for 2 rounds for a total of 26 shots.

Then, clean again after I have shot 5, 3 shot groups to determine what ammo the rifle likes (15 rounds).

Then, as a rule, run a patch worm at the end of each weekend of hunting season if the rifle has been fired with shooters choice wet until no black then dry, and then add Lucas Oil Extreme Duty Gun oil (always using a wet and then dry patch if the gun is going to sit), and a full cleaning as described above after hunting season.

I have 5 different ammo rounds to see what it likes and I plan to wait to shoot for accuracy until I have broken in the barrel (26 shots). Maybe I don't need to do that and I can look at what the rifle likes during the break in period? Maybe after my first 5 shots cleaning after each?

I know this is a lot of info, but:

What do you feel is the best carbon removing bore solution and why?
What do you feel is the best copper removing bore solution and why?
What do you feel is the best method of braking in a barrel?
How often after you have broken in your barrel do you clean it, and what does that cleaning look like? How often are you removing copper (once a year, after a certain amount of rounds, each time you clean)?
 
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I think you should let the barrel tell you. read this first https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/barrel-break-in-pictoral-log.797080/

I only clean copper and use a copper solvent. I don’t clean powder fouling because it comes back too fast to do any good. I don’t have time to stop and clean powder out 10 times in a 300 shot match.

I don’t think it much matters which copper solvent. I assume they all work fairly well.

After break in shoot it til the barrel tells you to clean it.
with my 260ai I cleaned it again around 1000 rounds and again around 1500.
With my 6.5x47 I clean about every 350 or so
 
taliv said:
I think you should let the barrel tell you. read this first https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/barrel-break-in-pictoral-log.797080/

I only clean copper and use a copper solvent. I don’t clean powder fouling because it comes back too fast to do any good. I don’t have time to stop and clean powder out 10 times in a 300 shot match.

I don’t think it much matters which copper solvent. I assume they all work fairly well.

After break in shoot it til the barrel tells you to clean it.
with my 260ai I cleaned it again around 1000 rounds and again around 1500.
With my 6.5x47 I clean about every 350 or so
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info and thread. I'll look that over a little more closely. Here is a good video I watched about this by John Kreiger that I found interesting. He uses sweets or CR10
 
taliv said:
I think you should let the barrel tell you. read this first https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/barrel-break-in-pictoral-log.797080/

I only clean copper and use a copper solvent. I don’t clean powder fouling because it comes back too fast to do any good. I don’t have time to stop and clean powder out 10 times in a 300 shot match.

I don’t think it much matters which copper solvent. I assume they all work fairly well.

After break in shoot it til the barrel tells you to clean it.
with my 260ai I cleaned it again around 1000 rounds and again around 1500.
With my 6.5x47 I clean about every 350 or so
Click to expand...
So, based on the thread that you shared, you’re saying to just use sweets after each round, and as soon as I don’t see copper (blue) fouling on my 1st dry patch (after waiting 5 min) my break in is done...and that can be in as little as 4 rounds? Wow. Do you not use a nylon brush? I guess I will have lots of Ammo leftover...
 
Sometimes I never see any copper. Sometimes it’s 7-10 rounds. It just depends imho on how sharp the Reamer was and how good your gunsmith is.

I don’t use brushes. Nylon isn’t going to do anything to copper. Let the solvents do it.

I will say this though, again, I don’t think it has an immediate affect on accuracy. It just keeps your bbl from copper fouling for a long time.

and your bbl will still speed up over the first hundred+ rounds or so. So until that plateaus I wouldn’t print out your dope cards for long distance or anything.
 
I have never understood how a person can say they only clean ______ from the bore. Bullet rubs a little copper off on the high points as it passes thru, followed by unburnt powder, then remnants of burning power. Next is the remnants of the powder additives. Next.......another copper bullet......adding a layer of copper on top of the last deposits.
 
dcloco said:
I have never understood how a person can say they only clean ______ from the bore. Bullet rubs a little copper off on the high points as it passes thru, followed by unburnt powder, then remnants of burning power. Next is the remnants of the powder additives. Next.......another copper bullet......adding a layer of copper on top of the last deposits.
Click to expand...
So what solvent do you like for carbon and what for copper?
 
dcloco said:
I have never understood how a person can say they only clean ______ from the bore. Bullet rubs a little copper off on the high points as it passes thru, followed by unburnt powder, then remnants of burning power. Next is the remnants of the powder additives. Next.......another copper bullet......adding a layer of copper on top of the last deposits.
Click to expand...

Look at the pictures in the thread I linked. If there is blue on the patch that means the solvent has eaten some copper and the patch removed it from the barrel. If there’s black that means there’s carbon fouling.
so someone could keep cleaning until the patch comes out clean. But I don’t. I just clean until I stop seeing blue. I don’t care if the patches are still black.

It shows how it starts copper fouling from the beginning and then stops. 80 rounds later and two hundred rounds later there’s still no more blue coming out in patches.
 
I dont know if this method will work for you but a wise old shooter instructed me thusly: (This method only requires 4 range trips.)

Run 5 wet patches through the bore.
Brush 5 times taking care to not pull the brush back through the bore.
Dry patches until they come put dry.

Repeat

Take the rifle to the range, and place on a rest

10 wet patches followed by 10 brush strokes.
Dry patches until the bore is dry.

Fire one shot.

14 wet patches followed by 14 brush strokes.
Dry patches until the bore is dry.

Go home.

2nd Range trip:

Place the rifle on the rest and dust with a chantilly cloth. Look at it very sternly.
Go Home.

3rd range trip:

35 Wet patches followed by a half hour of brushing.
Start one end of a half mile spool of yarn through the bore and tie it to your bumper hitch. Take off driving until all the yarn has gone through the bore.

Fire a shot.

Repeat the above procedure, but faster on the accelerator this time. Try to hit 13 seconds.

Go home.

4th range trip:
763 Wet patches and a case of Foaming bore cleaner.
Shoot one shot.
Get on GIS and find the nearest mountain.
Open the action and place the rifle muzzle up at the bottom of a raging waterfall. Leave it for a calendar year.

Shoot a shot.
Go Home.

Well this method has always worked for us.


Posted in jest, I hope it brightened someones day!
 
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mshootnit said:
I dont know if this method will work for you but a wise old shooter instructed me thusly: (This method only requires 4 range trips.)

Run 5 wet patches through the bore.
Brush 5 times taking care to not pull the brush back through the bore.
Dry patches until they come put dry.

Repeat

Take the rifle to the range, and place on a rest

10 wet patches followed by 10 brush strokes.
Dry patches until the bore is dry.

Fire one shot.

14 wet patches followed by 14 brush strokes.
Dry patches until the bore is dry.

Go home.

2nd Range trip:

Place the rifle on the rest and dust with a chantilly cloth. Look at it very sternly.
Go Home.

3rd range trip:

35 Wet patches followed by a half hour of brushing.
Start one end of a half mile spool of yarn through the bore and tie it to your bumper hitch. Take off driving until all the yarn has gone through the bore.

Fire a shot.

Repeat the above procedure, but faster on the accelerator this time. Try to hit 13 seconds.

Go home.

4th range trip:
763 Wet patches and a case of Foaming bore cleaner.
Shoot one shot.
Get on GIS and find the nearest mountain.
Open the action and place the rifle muzzle up at the bottom of a raging waterfall. Leave it for a calendar year.

Shoot a shot.
Go Home.

Well this method has always worked for us.


Posted in jest, I hope you liked it.
Click to expand...
This post reminds me of one of those long jokes that you wait through, trying to be nice, hoping it will end soon, you get to the end, and it's just not funny.
 
I was told by multiple guys who shoot precision rifles competitively that a good barrel requires very little in the way of break in. They said to shoot until the barrel is up to speed, usually 100-150 rounds. Then clean it with a copper solvent. Then clean the copper out barrels when they start to shoot "bad".

I did this with my AI running a Gradous barrel. From the beginning it would shoot sub 1/2 MOA at 100 yards regularly. However until about 150 rounds or so the muzzle velocity was inconsistent which made shots out past 900 or so yards tricky at times.

at around 350 rounds the groups started opening up. I shot a 1 and a .9 MOA group at 100 yards with ammo it's known to like. I cleaned all the copper out of the barrel with Hoppes #9 and the next range day it shot a .3 MOA group.
 
Break in really is going to depend on the barrel who made it and how well it's made.

A good precision rifle barrel by someone like Krieger You likely won't need More than a few rounds.

However some people's break in is different from others for the same barrel. Some clean prior to shooting and clean after groups begin to open up before cleaning the barrel again.

We are talking match barrels, not off the shelf common factory barrels. I only say that because each rifle barrel is different and when or how you clean affects how well it shoots.

I have a Shilen barrel landing on my door step tomorrow and i too have considered how to break that barrel in. From what i know its no more than a few shots and a few cleanings before i'm ready to go. I will follow the breakin procedure like the guy at panhandle precission which mentions that same video linked above.
 
HoosierHunter128 said:
So what solvent do you like for carbon and what for copper?
Click to expand...

That is my point, is there one?

I still use Hoppe's #9 - plain jane. Let it soak if you need to. Scrub with nylon brush. Patch out.


The OTHER side of this....some barrels don't LIKE to be clean. Have to run them dirty, at least a bit. :) Have a 300 Win Mag - don't look at the 1200 yard groups, until you have 10-12 rounds thru the barrel.
 
dcloco said:
That is my point, is there one?

I still use Hoppe's #9 - plain jane. Let it soak if you need to. Scrub with nylon brush. Patch out.


The OTHER side of this....some barrels don't LIKE to be clean. Have to run them dirty, at least a bit. :) Have a 300 Win Mag - don't look at the 1200 yard groups, until you have 10-12 rounds thru the barrel.
Click to expand...
Solvents with a higher ammonia content breakdown copper better than standard hops number nine.... If I'm remembering correctly hops number 9 benchrest, and sweet 762 or what I was recommended years ago. I still got the bottle of 762 that was given to me along with my first plastic coated rod by our local gunsmith.
These were a specifically for getting out copper fouling and as a bonus they get out all your carbon also.....

The other flip side is that the cleaning during breaking in a barrel isn't about getting the optimum accuracy As much as it is about keeping the barrel clean enough that the next shot fired has the best chance to polish down the little imperfections in the bore.


I said this before but I USUALLY don't do barrel break in, I'll clean more religiously and sometimes at the range the first few times I have a new gun out... Sometimes...
sometimes ill also follow the manufacturers breakin recommendations
 
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here for carbon , many uses alkali ammonia
it cleans well and does not need 50 cartridges to regain precision
in addition it is cheap 5€ per litero_O
 
LoonWulf said:
Solvents with a higher ammonia content breakdown copper better than standard hops number nine.... If I'm remembering correctly hops number 9 benchrest, and sweet 762 or what I was recommended years ago. I still got the bottle of 762 that was given to me along with my first plastic coated rod by our local gunsmith.
These were a specifically for getting out copper fouling and as a bonus they get out all your carbon also.....

The other flip side is that the cleaning during breaking in a barrel isn't about getting the optimum accuracy As much as it is about keeping the barrel clean enough that the next shot fired has the best chance to polish down the little imperfections in the bore.


I said this before but I USUALLY don't do barrel break in, I'll clean more religiously and sometimes at the range the first few times I have a new gun out... Sometimes...
sometimes ill also follow the manufacturers breakin recommendations
Click to expand...


Yes, ammonia will help with copper removal. But has a bad side effect if not completely removed as well, especially on stainless barrels.
 
"What do you feel is the best carbon removing bore solution and why?"

I don't have a favorite. Almost everything works, so I'll use whatever is on hand. Often that is Butch's Bore Shine, which I started using in my long-ago benchrest days, and which has always worked well.

"What do you feel is the best copper removing bore solution and why?"

Sweet's in general. Apply it with a mop, let it sit, patch it out. Repeat until no more blue. I also have used several different bore foams with good results. They seem harder to find/less popular these days, so I don't use them much anymore. And I also have had very good results with abrasive cleaners such as J-B, but generally don't like doing that much work anymore.

"What do you feel is the best method of braking in a barrel?"

Just shooting it. Break-in is really just compressed shooting, and in my opinion the only reason to do a formal break-in is that you want the barrel broken in today, as opposed to over the next few months. I see no evidence that formal break-in improves anything over the life of the barrel and stopped doing it decades ago.

"How often after you have broken in your barrel do you clean it, and what does that cleaning look like? How often are you removing copper (once a year, after a certain amount of rounds, each time you clean)?"

It depends entirely upon the barrel. I have had barrels fresh from the factory that gave impeccable performance from the first shot, with all fouling coming out after a few patches of whatever general-purpose cleaner was at hand. And I've had bores which never settled down and would need a thorough cleaning after every box of ammo.

Generally speaking, all of my "headache" rifles have been sold or traded off. The ones that I have kept - mostly hunting rifles of around .30 caliber - are happy to be shot as much as I like in a day. Back at home I simply wipe out the gunk with something like Bore Shine on a patch, then give the bore a coat of Sweet's and let it sit for 15 minutes. That patch almost always comes out with just a bit of blue on it, so I just run another solvent patch through, then a dry patch, then a lube patch, and that's it for the bore.
 
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