Round count obsession..

[tarosean]

All across internet boards of different, hobbies, interests and activities there seems to be something "bragged" about. Whether its the size of a Great Dane, fastest Greyhound, fastest motorcycle, fastest car, boat, etc. etc. Whatever have you, there is always something that is just an unsubstantiated claim by an anonymous user with a funny name.

If you were to take a cross-section of the membership, say 20 members, Id bet that most of us own the same exact guns/models/types. So that leaves little to "brag" about unless its blinged out or heavily modified.

In steps Round Count. The number, whatever it may be, seems to be a chest thumping unsubstantiated claim. For what reason?
Resale value? doubtful, whether its got 20 down the pipe or 10,000 its a used gun. However, Im sure that number magically diminishes when attempting to sell.
Expertise with the gun? Is it a younger generation thing (under 30)?

Ive owned some guns for decades but couldnt even attempt to guesstimate a round count nor would I care... Its a machine, stuff breaks, wears out and needs to be replaced.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I have a few guns that I can give a pretty good estimate of round count on because I reload for them. The numbers mean nothing to some, but provide seemingly valuable info to others.

 

[Telekinesis]

An accurate count of how many rounds you have put through a gun lets you know when you're getting close to needing arsenal level maintenance on the weapons. For example my competition shotgun needs factory maintenance every 7,000 rounds which means I need to send it in more than twice a year when I'm competing. It is very nice to know when I'm getting close to that so that if I have a larger competition coming up, I can get the gun worked on before I compete.

Pistol wise, my Sigs (both west german, carbon folded slides) need new roll pins every 5,000 rounds. Its a good idea to keep track of that so that I minimize the risk of having a loose breech block and end up having to replace more than a few little pins.

Of course, this doesn't mean much to someone who only puts a few hundred rounds through their gun every year, but when you start getting into the higher round counts, it is a good idea to keep track of when you need to replace the small cheep parts so you don't end up having to replace a really big/expensive part later on.

 

[allaroundhunter]

I keep a very accurate round count for my Remington 700. It is a rifle that I intend to keep around, and even get into long range competition with, so I would like to know the number when the barrel begins to show signs of being worn out. So far, I am at 200 rounds in a month. If I continue at that pace, then I would expect this barrel to be out of tolerance in about 3 years (about 8,000 rounds) . However, since I am a college student, I don't have time to shoot 200 rounds a month during the school year so this barrel should last closer to 6, at least that is my guess as of now.

It isn't really an obsession, it is just a statistic to keep up with in my rifle's data book.


Sent from my HTC One X

 

[Warp]

For guns that you might need to work keeping track of round count is beneficial.

However, I must say that I rarely see people "brag" about the round count they have through a gun...and when I do see it mentioned it usually seems to be a "higher is better" number as it gives more credence to the claim that the gun is reliable/durable and also implies a certain level of skill...or at least familiarity...due to the experience garnered while firing those rounds.

I am keeping a somewhat accurate round count for the two guns I bought this year. The rest...don't really know...but I kinda wish I did. Oh well.

 

[TennJed]

Like the others have said, it can be very benificial to gun upkeep. Also for most of us it is a hobby. For most people hobbies are something we enjoy. This is just another "stat" that goes along with our hobbie. It is a point of reference and helps structure the hobby. Golfers play 18 rounds instead of just playing with out keeping track of holes played. I do not know any fishermen who do not keep track of the number of fish caught. Runners and Cyclist keep track of the miles they run or bike.

In most cases I do not see it as bragging, more just a reference point to help organize the enjoyment of our hobby

 

[tarosean]

I do not know any fishermen who do not keep track of the number of fish caught. Runners and Cyclist keep track of the miles they run or bike.

Lifetime??? Probably not.

Sure I know what I have caught, rode, ran, or shot that day.. Yet compound those weeks, months and years; not so much.

I can understand the maintenance aspect. yet your gun wont magically quit working when it achieves that number. Just like your vehicle doesnt quit running at 3001 miles when its ""recommended"" (and I use that term loosely) to change the oil.

I also understand re-loaders having a truer number since they are actually assembling the ammo.

I just find it interesting.

 

[TennJed]

Lifetime??? Probably not.

Sure I know what I have caught, rode, ran, or shot that day.. Yet compound those weeks, months and years; not so much.

I can understand the maintenance aspect. yet your gun wont magically quit working when it achieves that number. Just like your vehicle doesnt quit running at 3001 miles when its ""recommended"" (and I use that term loosely) to change the oil.

I also understand re-loaders having a truer number since they are actually assembling the ammo.

I just find it interesting.

Fishermen was probably a bad example, but I think most runners and bikers will have a general idea of how much they run/cycle each time and how oftern they do it. then is is a simple math problem. I may be wrong but I think if you ask a runner to estimate how many miles they have run in the last x number of years they could estimate it. That is the same thing I see with most shooters who "keep track" they know how much they usually shoot each time out and roughly how often they go to the range. What they come up with is estimates. I do know some that are very anal about keeping it exact, but I think that is more a complusion than bragging.

 

[coloradokevin]

I can tell you to the very round precisely how many bullets have exited the barrel of my precision rifle, since I track every shot I put through it. I do this for the sake of performance, nothing else.

My duty weapon I can give an approximate round count, based on how many qualification, practice, and competition courses I regularly shoot with it. Mentioning this round count helps me to establish a track record of reliability for this gun. That's important to me.

Round count isn't necessarily about bragging. I don't typically sell my guns, either, so that isn't an issue for me.

 

[M2 Carbine]

Mostly I hate keeping records such as round count. Having many guns I couldn't keep the round count if I wanted to.
Heck, I don't even know how many guns I have, much less how many rounds I've shot through them.

Recently I bought a Ruger LC9. Being a new model of a small 9mm I was interested in the gun's reliability, so I kept the round count for a while.
In the first 8 days I shot over a thousand rounds. Then I kept a accurate count to 1,700, when I stopped accurately counting. Now the gun has something over 18-1,900 trouble free mixed lot rounds through it.
The round count served the purpose of showing me that this gun design is exceptionally reliable.

 

[joecil]

I actually track every round out of my guns. Now this is not for something to brag about however from that information one can base an opinion on how dependable a fire arm is.

I often read a question about a particular gun or brand I own as to how dependable they are. Rather than just giving a general it is good or bad perhaps some data based on real world experience. I have a daily carry gun that has over 5000 rounds through it and also report that the recoil spring assembly had to be replaced at 3000 rounds due to wear. So that gives a bit of a clue as to how long it will go with out needing parts repaired.

 

[ny32182]

Good for maintenance, and for competition shooters it can be one data point of many that goes into measuring performance or performance improvement over time.

Not really about "bragging", but on some specific topics I will definitely give more serious consideration to the opinions of someone who shoots a five figure round count through the gun every year vs the ~1k a year or less kind of shooter.

I track it through virtually all my guns, even ones I might shoot somewhere between never and once every few years, just for my own curiosity.

 

[Zaydok Allen]

Hmmmm.......
I'm not sure if it's chest thumping going on out there so much as an attempt by some people to sound knowledgeable and experienced so they are taken more seriously. I also think a lot of people take their shooting much more seriously than I.

Personally, I shoot handguns. I keep track in my head of the first 500 rounds fired in semiautos. At that point I generally consider a gun to be broken in, and I have learned it's habits well enough to predict it's behavior. After that, I don't really care about round count.

With revovlers I consider them broken in when they have 250 rounds through them and I have dry fired them enough to smooth out the trigger. After that, I don't care again.

It is a rifle that I intend to keep around, and even get into long range competition with, so I would like to know the number when the barrel begins to show signs of being worn out. So far, I am at 200 rounds in a month. If I continue at that pace, then I would expect this barrel to be out of tolerance in about 3 years (about 8,000 rounds) .

This makes sense, and I can see the value in knowing your round count for this purpose.

 

[youngda9]

I keep a spreadsheet for all of my centerfire handguns only. It tracks the number and type (bullet and load) that I put through each gun. I know how many are through each gun and how many I shoot per year. Once you set up a spreadsheet it is simple to update. It's the Engineer in me...I decided to stop fighting and embrace it.

I used to do the same thing when I was cycling a lot. Kept track of time and miles in the saddle. Watching my averages go down was motivating to ride more to bring them back up.

 

[holdencm9]

I think it is more common to "brag" about how many rounds you have through your weapon without a jam.

I've never seen anyone brag about a high round count in itself, it is usually in the context of how reliable their AR or Glock is. You know:

"I have 11,000 flawless rounds through my Glock and never cleaned it once!"

or

"I put 2,000 rounds through my AR in one weekend with no jams, didn't even have to add any lube to keep her runnin'!"

I tried to stop cleaning my AR and Beretta just to see how far they'd go before they got so nasty they started to malfunction. Both easily hit the 1,000 round mark, and that was about where my OCD for clean weapons over-powered my curiosity. I had to at least give them a rudimentary cleaning, I HAD to. So suffice to say my guns are more tolerant of being dirty than I can tolerate.

Oh yeah, and I know within about 50 rounds where my LCP is at (~600) because it is a carry gun and I've heard has a shorter "lifespan."

 

[Trent]

I can keep a round count in my head for two of my bolt action rifles. (The former, since it was recently rebarreled, but I also know how many rounds went out of it BEFORE the rebarreling)

The only other time I keep an ongoing round count is if I'm shooting something to the point of failure. (I blame "how many licks will it take to get to the center of a tootsie pop?" for this odd behavior of mine)

Currently I have 600 rounds through my FN Five Seven between cleanings with no hiccups. I only know this because I've had it out 3 weekends since I cleaned it last and I shoot 200 rounds a session on it.

But, I'm only meticulous on the bolt guns. THOSE I need to know how many rounds I have out the bore, because it lets me coordinate that knowledge with other things going on - fouling, etc. Basically, it helps answer "when is this barrel due for a swap". Only pertinent on the big magnums - 300 Win Mag, 50 BMG, etc. I doubt I'll ever "shoot out" anything else.

 

[JEB]

i guess i just never saw the need to keep track of round count. i couldnt give you an accurate number on any one of my guns.

 

[Reloadron]

I am with JEB on that note. Never bother to keep any round counts. When accuracy on a clean barrel falls off I might do a throat erosion casting and think about a new barrel. That assumes nothing else has changed.

Ron

 

[Trent]

If you're shooting a handgun, chrome lined rifle (most AR-15's, AK-47), and just about anything other than a high-power magnum with great frequency.. you don't really need to.

You'll wear out your trigger finger and/or bank account(s) before you wear out the barrels.

Personally, I don't care if a firearm has had 100 or 10,000 rounds shot through it, *unless* it's a non-chrome lined rifle barrel. Those I'll check for throat erosion before buying. If it's further out than I can lengthen a reloaded round (e.g. I can't fit the longer rounds in the magazine and they're still too far from the lands they're skipping), it's done for. Time for a new barrel.

Handguns? Good grief, I've shot so much ammo through my Glock 21 45ACP and Ruger P95 9mm that I couldn't begin to tell you how many I've shot. Tens of thousands. And they still shoot the same as day #1, with some new springs.

I wear out MAGAZINES. Not guns.

 

[beatledog7]

Since I log all my reloads and manage my ammunition inventory, I could calculate a round count for all my firearms since I acquired them. But I don't have accurate "pre-me" numbers for the ones that originally belonged to someone else.

I don't spend much time worrying about it.

 

[SFsc616171]

This sort of thing started as postings on prepper boards. First, it was, "how many for what firearm would be a good suggested amount'. Now, it is, 'Bubba Jones has got 13 gazillion rounds of 5.23mm for his Cimmaron Lightning rifle. Ain't that sump'tin'?'

Please do NOT edit my quotes. They are there as editorial fiction absurdities.

I am not interested in 'round count'. Should I own enough ammunition, as per what and which firearm I own, is no one's business, including the media or government - federal or municipality. It is sad, though, that because of, now, three nutjobs, we, the American People, are being raked over the coals by the media, with the same fervency, they raked over Vietnam Vets.

I suggest: "Look at the old Col. Fairbairn books. Do the math, and figure out what you might need to have on hand." Col. Fairbairn was no dumb cookie.

 

[Snag]

Keeping count of rounds you have fired through a gun is no different than keeping count of miles on your car. Either you care or you don't. Has nothing to do with bragging.

 

[Warp]

I can understand the maintenance aspect. yet your gun wont magically quit working when it achieves that number. Just like your vehicle doesnt quit running at 3001 miles when its ""recommended"" (and I use that term loosely) to change the oil.

...and yet you should still be keeping track of how many miles it has been since you last changed the oil and filter. That's just good sense and good practice.

If you're shooting a handgun, chrome lined rifle (most AR-15's, AK-47), and just about anything other than a high-power magnum with great frequency.. you don't really need to.

You'll wear out your trigger finger and/or bank account(s) before you wear out the barrels.

Personally, I don't care if a firearm has had 100 or 10,000 rounds shot through it, *unless* it's a non-chrome lined rifle barrel. Those I'll check for throat erosion before buying. If it's further out than I can lengthen a reloaded round (e.g. I can't fit the longer rounds in the magazine and they're still too far from the lands they're skipping), it's done for. Time for a new barrel.

Handguns? Good grief, I've shot so much ammo through my Glock 21 45ACP and Ruger P95 9mm that I couldn't begin to tell you how many I've shot. Tens of thousands. And they still shoot the same as day #1, with some new springs.

I wear out MAGAZINES. Not guns.

Exactly. Parts, such as springs, wear out with use. If you are going to trust your life to a firearm it makes sense to proactively and preemptively replace them rather than simply waiting for something to fail.



Of course, if you don't want to do it that way you don't have to. That's fine. It's your call.

 

[tarosean]

Keeping count of rounds you have fired through a gun is no different than keeping count of miles on your car.

Don't know about you, but none of my guns have an odometer on them.

 

[Warp]

Don't know about you, but none of my guns have an odometer on them.

He is, obviously, speaking in terms of the reasons for and usefulness of. I guess you didn't get that.

However, if you have determined that it is not worth the effort to you, then don't do it. Your call.