Why a Break In Period?

[Kleanbore]

Ss Old Fuff points out, breaking in a gun and testing to have sufficient confidence that it is reliable are two different things.

The first pace to look is in the manual, or you can ask the factory. Kel-Tec manuals say the guns need to be broken in. So does Kimber. At the time I bought my M&P 9c, the manual stated that no break-in was required. STI, a maker of pretty good 19111 type firearms, told me to run a couple of hundred rounds thought the gun. That's a good idea for any gun, but the comment was in response to a question about break-in, if that means anything.

The purpose of the break-in "period" is to cause bearing surfaces to become smoother through wear. According to my recollection, the finely made semi-autos of the old days, including the best Astra service pistols, Berettas, Belgian Brownings (forty plus years ago), Colts, SIG products, S&W DA/SA pistols, and some others were sufficiently well machined and polished in critical areas to obviate the need for breaking them in.

I have heard somewhere that every Beretta 92 is "exercised" on a machine that works the slide for a high number of cycles before it is shipped.

 

[Mad Magyar]

Let's get something straight. The "break-in" period for an internal combustion engine and the workings of a pistol are entirely different. With the former, it is still functioning but with the handgun; it stops! All this business started when many dissatisfied pistoleros were returning their hardware to the mfgrs for shoddy workmanship, parts and general QC. I can name a few..After all according to the mfgr, "they actually think something should work right out of the box?" The idea of utilizing as much as 500 rds before one can come to a decision fell right into the hands of the mfgr. After all, if you look at a recent survey (a few years back-Guns & Ammo) of how much firing the public actually accomplish; 500 rds would take in about two years for most giving them a lot of breathing room.
I recall Old Fuff mentioning about pulling the slide couple of hundred times and plenty of dry-firing that would in many ways do the same thing...
Folks, gun mfgr's can build better fitting parts (trigger for one) for the same price but they can't control two important variables: the ammo one uses (handloads or +P+, etc) and the owner and his maintenance habits...Either one not appropiately used can be disruptive. IMHO.

 

[Balrog]

Kimber recommends 500 rounds for break in, which adds about $200 to the price of your gun.

There is no difference between just shooting a gun and breaking it in. I have never seen a gun that was ever really helped by breaking in. If the gun jams frequently before breaking in, it will probably jam frequently after break in.

I think Kimber and some other companies recommend break in just to delay having to deal with the quality control issues they have.

 

[FruitCake]

I understand the breakin period to smooth things out. But to make it reliable should be the manufacturers responsibility.Any gun that I buy I expect to be reliable out of the box. If its not reliable or I can't trust it new in box is unnacceptable in my eyes. I don't understand why some settle for this hogwash. For this the manufacturer should put a warning label on the box stating "This weapon cannot be trusted to be reliable or can malfunction in some way until the breakin period has been completed".

 

[Geckgo]

I don't think that my point has been adequately made, so I will post here. Sorry if I just missed it. A break-in period on a gun should NEVER be a requirement before "real" use, pistol or rifle. The Rifle barrel break-in camp will disagree with me. To each his own. But a pistol break-in does smooth parts. Here goes.

Point 1.
We'll use my XD as an example. I bought it new-in-the-box and it has never had a malfunction that was not the result of improper handling (failures to lock back because my thumb was resting on the slide release while firing, intentional jams due to loading empty casings randomly in the mag, etc.) If your gun doesn't shoot reliably out of the box, let the manufacturer know and have it fixed or sell it!

Point 2
Test your defense ammunition to make sure that your gun will eat it and eat it well. If it doesn't switch ammo. If you can't find a good defense ammo that will work, get a different gun. I always recommend to friends and family that 100 rounds at a good pace (fast as you can pull the trigger for at least a couple mags) is essential to ensure reliability, like a mini-torture-test, but without damaging the weapon. Practice for proficiency with a handgun is essential, and this should involve at least another 200 rounds within the first couple weeks, IMO, but other people differ. My old man has put maybe half a box of ammo through his SD handgun.

Point 3,
As you are using your gun normally through testing SD loads, practice, dry-firing, etc, the parts are wearing and smoothing slightly. Pistol parts are mass produced for most guns and for a custom fitting, you need to fire the weapon. On my XD, after 1000 rounds had been put through it (through normal practice and regular cleaning) I gave it a thorough scrub down and cleaned everything up until the "smell" was gone. Put it back together and notices a few things. The feed ramp has completely polished itself and is as smooth as glass. The slide is so smooth it feels like it is on bearings, and the trigger pull has lightened up significantly (the trigger pull may just be in my mind, I didn't measure it, but it feels lighter).

I didn't give it a break-in firing session or do anything special to the gun at all. It has always functioned reliably. But like a fine wine, it gets better with age.

Just my two coppers.

 

[vsteel]

All things have a break in period. Hate to tell you that your TV and stereo have one as well. The difference is that it happens at the factory. It is called burn in.

I don't care how carefully machined a part is they wear and mate together. The only difference is will the surface cause issues before they mate or not.

Personally I don't call a weapon a SD weapon until I have at least 500 rounds through it. My life is worth taking the time to know and trust the weapon. A SD weapon is not the time to cut corners or take shortcuts.

 

[Old Fuff]

Oh my!!!

How did Uncle Sam ever get through all the wars since 1911 (if not before) without checking out all of its service pistols and revolvers with 500 rounds fired before issue?

Why 500? Your handgun might fail at 501 or 600 or 1000 - whatever?

This is not to say you're wrong, you should be out shooting anyway, but I'm not sure that 500 rounds = perfect reliability.

 

[vsteel]

I pick 500 because it is a nice number and it is where I feel I can really know a weapon to count on it. There isn't any science behind the number (there could be, entire books have been written on prediction of failure with extremely small sample sizes but that is way to much work to go through all of that math.) Yes it could fail at 501 or more. Nothing is 100% but I feel after 500 I am better able to deal with any problems. It is my line in the sand so to speak.

As for the military they can't do any big tests because of the scale of things. They also have others around them. They have backup, if a weapon malfunctions just grab one off of your dead buddy or stop and hunker down and fix it while your buddies return fire. Even if someone is caught alone and their weapon malfunctions, the bean counters are not going to worry to much about it. It will get buried in with the other casualty numbers.

I am sure 99% of guns will function fine right out of the box. Personally I can't say I have ever had one fail to work right out of the box. But since I don't have any of the military advantages, I figure I am worth taking the time to test it to my level of comfort.

 

[JohnBiltz]

I have seen guns that were experiencing problems get them cleared as the round count goes up. Kel-Tec Sub 2000 often have problems with light bullets at first that go away as the spring works. Recently the Glock Gen 4 9mm were having the same problem with light loads.

As for the military, you don't deploy with virgin rifles. You have to at least zero and qualify with a rifle. Minimum for that is 49 rounds. 9 rounds for zero and 40 for qualifying. Chances are if you are Infantry you have shot it more than that and really for break in the gun doesn't care that much if you are cycling blanks, cycles is what matters. In almost all cases a unit goes through a training phase before deployment including live fires.

 

[usp9]

All machines require a break in period.

Nonsense.

My new toaster didn't come with a break-in period. My new hypoid saw has no break-in period and it has as many parts as a pistol. I think I'd pass on buying it if the box said "cut 100 boards before using for actual construction projects."

Either the gun functions or it doesn't. If it is test fired at the factory, then it should fire when a consumer shoots it.

 

[EddieNFL]

If it is test fired at the factory, then it should fire when a consumer shoots it

.

I'm convinced "test fired" for most mass produced weapons means one shot...maybe as many as five or six, but not enough to identify problems.

 

[Elmer]

.

I'm convinced "test fired" for most mass produced weapons means one shot...maybe as many as five or six, but not enough to identify problems.

You are correct.

 

[Balrog]

I would make several observations:

1. "Break in" may allow for the parts to mate and fit and function better.

2. If a gun can't feed and eject right out of the box, it will continue to have problems after break in.

3. Ammo reliability testing is an issue entirely unrelated to break in.

 

[Elmer]

2. If a gun can't feed and eject right out of the box, it will continue to have problems after break in.

That hasn't always been my experience. I had plenty of guns that had a burp or two on the first mag, then went on to be flawless.

 

[Balrog]

That hasn't always been my experience. I had plenty of guns that had a burp or two on the first mag, then went on to be flawless.

That is not what I am talking about.

What I am talking about is a gun that will jam several times each mag. I had this experience with more than one Kimber. I called their customer service and was told to put 500 rounds through the gun to break it in. That did not affect the jamming.

If a gun has some fundamental problem, break in isnt going to fix it.

 

[Elmer]

That is not what I am talking about.

What I am talking about is a gun that will jam several times each mag. I had this experience with more than one Kimber. I called their customer service and was told to put 500 rounds through the gun to break it in. That did not affect the jamming.

If a gun has some fundamental problem, break in isnt going to fix it.

Ahhh. No, that's true. Some of the companies are pretty notorious for not taking responsibility for problems.

 

[FruitCake]

500 rounds WHAT, that's crazy especially for an expensive 1911. If it requires all those rounds for the weapon to be reliable then why doesn't these big companies invent a machine that cycles the gun 500 times and then test fire it. Kimber makes beautiful 1911s but having to buy and shoot it 500 times out of your pocket is bullstuff. To me that's a lot of money in ammo. This just seems like a quality testing at your expense. I can understand 100 or so but 500, get out of here.Sad part is some people actually go for this crap and believe in it. To make the weopon smooth yes, to make you trust this weapon to your life to give you comfort at your choice yes, but the company saying 500 rounds is absurd.

 

[earlthegoat2]

I tend to think a lot of manufacturers will tell an owner to run a few hundred rounds through the gun as a "break in" are just covering themselves for the few times that some malfunctions do occur in the initial firing of their pistols. Kimbers I know are just made too tight and seem to have a high instance of malfunctions in the first 500 or so rounds fired. Just my own observations first hand as well as second hand from Kimber owners.

I doesnt hurt to run a few hundered rounds through any gun be it used or new. Revolvers included.