Fire lapping a bore

[larryw]

I just read an article about fire lapping a bore using David Tubb's "FinalFinish" bullets. Anyone have any experience with this product or the process in general?

My primary concern is if done poorly, the process would round over the edges of the rifling.

http://www.jarheadtop.com/article_finalfinish.shtml

I have a couple rifles and a pistol with bores that have never really smoothed up as I had hoped. If this works, it seems like an economical means to solve a problem.

thanks,
Larry

 

[dfariswheel]

You already stated the concern with "if done poorly".

Most of the firelapping kits come with very detailed instructions, and the abrasive isn't extremely coarse. Few rounds are fired, and the bore is inspected often.

Done according to the instructions, there is little danger of rounding off the rifling, since to damage it would require a non-standard coarse abrasive, or firing far more rounds than instructed.

In truth, fire lapping seems to be just an accelerated method of breaking in a barrel. Done properly, it can't really hurt, and might help.
Again, DONE PROPERLY.

 

[tex_n_cal]

I have done it on a .22-250, using the kit made by Wheeler Engineering. I shot slightly better groups afterwards, so in that case it didn't hurt, and may have helped some.

 

[Kimber Kid]

Fire-lapping a barrel is a last ditch effort that should only be done before the barrel is replaced. Mr. Tubbs' barrels are air-guaged and hand lapped by the finest craftsmen in the business.

If you have a barrel that's clean and refuses to shoot anything well after everything else has been checked and rechecked. Then what the heck, you might try it before replacing the barrel. What do you have to lose? But only then. Mr's Tubb is a great rifleman but he'll do just about anything to keep from getting a real job.