Reduced loads for barrel break-in

[John Wayne]

I've got a new rifle that I plan to shoot mostly handloads through. It's chambered in .300 Win Mag. Will shooting reduced loads through it be beneficial to the break-in period, make no difference at all, or do I need to break it in with full-power loads? The manufacturer recommends a 50 round break in period, and I'm looking at the following loads:

.300 Win Mag

18 gr. Trail Boss Powder with 150 gr. bullet @ 1302 fps

25.5 gr. Trail Boss with 150 gr. @ 1687 fps

70.9 gr. Reloder 19 with 150 gr. bullet @ 2988 fps

Factory ammo or equivalent load, 150 gr. @ 3200-3400 fps

Please don't tell me a break in is unneccessary; the manufacturer recommends it and I have had very good results in the past (using factory at ammo for standard velocity).

 

[R.W.Dale]

OK here's what you do.

1-Buy at least 80rds of the ammunition you intend to shoot or components you intend to load for barrel break in.

2- but it in a box and ship it all to me

3- give up on waiting on me and go shoot your rifle

4- I'll evaluate the stuff and get back to you on it's suitability for break in

Somewhere between 2 and 4 your rifle will break itself in.


Seriously though do you REALLY think that you an improve apoun hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of equipment and decades of skill from the manufacturer with a cleaning rod and some patches?

 

[NCsmitty]

I would follow the recommendation of the manufacturer, and start with 10 rounds of 20gr of Trail Boss behind the 150gr. Clean each shot for 5 rounds, then shoot the other 5 and clean. Then 5 rounds of the Rel-19 start load and clean. Then another 5 rounds of start loads and clean.
Clean every 5 loads of factory equivalent up to the recommended 50 rounds and use your judgment on the cleaning regimen from there.
You will see a bit of copper jacket in the patches at first, then it'll get better as the burrs smooth out.



NCsmitty

 

[joed]

Everyone has a theory on breaking in a barrel, and everyone's idea is right. When I had a benchrest gunsmith in this area build a rifle for me I asked about break in. What I was told was take it out and shoot it. Don't waste my time shooting 1 shot and cleaning. Just shoot 20 rounds go home and clean it. I followed this advice, the rifle shoots less then 1/2" and at present has 40 rounds through it.

YMMV

 

[John Wayne]

Seriously though do you REALLY think that you an improve apoun hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of equipment and decades of skill from the manufacturer with a cleaning rod and some patches?

It's not so much "improving" on the manufacturer's design as it is allowing it to reach its full potential. Colt, the manufacturer of my rifle, specificially recommended a 50-round break in period with cleanings every 5 rounds. Larry Potterfield of Midway USA recommends a similar method.

Car manufacturers spend millions of dollars developing automobiles, and still recommend break-in periods for the engine for the first few thousand miles. Some people ignore it. Others follow the directions, and are still driving their car twenty years later.

Thank you for ignoring the point of this thread and trying to start an off-topic rant about the usefullness of barrel break in periods.

NCSmitty and joed, I have already decided the method to break the barrel in--what I'm specifically wondering is whether shooting one particular load to begin with will make the rifle shoot that load better than others.

 

[jerkface11]

You have a rifle made by colt and it's a .300 winmag?

 

[9mmepiphany]

You have a rifle made by colt and it's a .300 winmag?

Maybe one of the beautiful Colt Sauers?

Hopefully not a Colt ULR

 

[JDGray]

What joed said I shot in a new barrel on my Rem LTR .223 with load work ups that worked in other guns. When I stumbled on a load it liked, I stopped development and started enjoyment Not that developent isn't fun! I clean it after 100rds or so.

 

[John Wayne]

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=555530

Yes, it is a Colt Light Rifle, made by Saco. It's a 5.8 lb .300 Win Mag, hence the question about reduced loads

 

[R.W.Dale]

http://www.snipercountry.com/Articles/Barrel_BreakIn.asp

Some very interesting reading

 

[rcmodel]

I'd just shoot the dang thing, then bring it home and clean it.

Repeat as often as you can stand it!

I have never broken in a new barrel in my life, and have owned, and still own some 1/2 minute varmint rifles.

rc

 

[9mmepiphany]

hence the question about reduced loads

You're a stouter man than I for even buying it in that caliber

 

[NCsmitty]

Here is a PDF file from Hodgdon using H4895 with lighter bullets to produce lower powered loads for plinking or hunting and especially for use by youths, offering lower recoil levels.

http://www.hodgdon.com/PDF/Youth Loads.pdf



NCsmitty

 

[wyocarp]

John Wayne, your barrels will last much longer if you only clean them without ever firing them. It will also save on time.

 

[John Wayne]

You're a stouter man than I for even buying it in that caliber

Thanks--you're not the first person to make a comment to that effect though. From the sound of it I'm going to need a helmet and mouth guard to even shoot the thing! (I have never fired a .300 Win Mag. Fired a .300 Wthby. and was not put off by the recoil, but it was from a much heavier rifle).

NCSmitty, looks like that load data could be really useful. Most of those "youth" loads would be fine for whitetail. The trail boss ones I was looking at offered lighter recoil but were way too slow to be useful. A 130 gr. bullet around 2600 fps seems like something that would be pleasant to shoot and actually have a practical application for hunting too.

wyocarp, you have me feeling a little lysdexic I don't clean my rifles after the break in period unless they need it. I know it only increases wear on the barrel, so I don't clean with brush and patches until I notice a decrease in accuracy. I run a bore snake through the gun every now and then just to keep fouling down though.

 

[justgoto]

Just sight-in the rifle and start load developing as you break it in. There is no need to do anything extra during the break-in period other than cleaning copper. By the time I broke-in my rifle, (20 shots,) I had it sighted in and had a sub-moa hand-load.

And I knew I'd find the break-in conspiracy theorists strawman argument.