"You need to break it in with 500 rounds of ammo"

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Balrog

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Often, I hear of automatics that fail to feed after they have been purchased. I have even had some. If you call the manufacturer, they will often tell you, "Oh, it just needs to be broken in, shoot 500 rounds through it and call us back if it still is a problem".

And so I have taken that advice, and every time I have, the gun still had the same problem it did 500 rounds earlier. I call back, they let me send the gun in, fix whatever was wrong with it, and send it back. Usually that solves the problem.

Never in 30 years of shooting though have I had a gun that actually improved with break in.

I think the 500 round break in is just manufacturers putting off a problem. It costs about $20/ box of ammo, so the owner is out of $200 of ammo trying a break in period that doesn't seem to work very often (at all in my case).

I know some tightly built custom 1911s probably do need a break in, but short of that I am not a big fan of having to waste $200 of ammo on a gun that jams before a manufacturer wants to take it back and work on it some more.
 
I have never had a handgun that had a suggested 500 round break in. The only one I have that had a suggested break in was a Kahr CM9. They suggested 200 rounds. I did the break in but everything worked right out of the box. The only problem I had was one magazine wouldn't let me fully load it. I took the base plate off. Wiped it out & reassembled it & it worked fine. I would agree with you though with the possible exception of the high end 1911's. Maybe the reason I haven't encountered this is that I shoot inexpensive guns.
 
I don't believe a pistol should have a break-in period, my HK P7M8 worked right out of the box and I think that's the way it should be.

I wanted a Kahr CM9 though and I wanted to have confidence in it, I didn't want to have problems that shook my confidence in it.

I did almost everything that Jocko on KahrTalk recommends doing for break in. I cleaned the CM9, including using non-chlorinated brake cleaner in the striker channel. I manually cycled the slide 500 times.

Yes I actually manually cycled the slide 500 times.

I noticed on Kahr Talk the the guys who reported problems with the CM9 or PM9 on the first range trip were shooting cheap 115gr WWB ammo. So I decided to use "NATO" ammo for the first few hundred rounds. When I say NATO - I mean 124gr FMJ rated at or near 1200 fps from a 5" barrel. Fifty rounds of the Winchester Ranger RA9124N (NATO) and 200 rounds of the Georgia Arms 124gr "NATO" I considered those 250 rounds the "Break In" rounds.

One of my Kahr magazines came with the spring loaded upside down - I fixed that before I ever went to the range.
 
Balrog said:
Often, I hear of automatics that fail to feed after they have been purchased. I have even had some. If you call the manufacturer, they will often tell you, "Oh, it just needs to be broken in, shoot 500 rounds through it and call us back if it still is a problem".

And so I have taken that advice, and every time I have, the gun still had the same problem it did 500 rounds earlier. I call back, they let me send the gun in, fix whatever was wrong with it, and send it back. Usually that solves the problem.

Never in 30 years of shooting though have I had a gun that actually improved with break in.

I think the 500 round break in is just manufacturers putting off a problem. It costs about $20/ box of ammo, so the owner is out of $200 of ammo trying a break in period that doesn't seem to work very often (at all in my case).

I know some tightly built custom 1911s probably do need a break in, but short of that I am not a big fan of having to waste $200 of ammo on a gun that jams before a manufacturer wants to take it back and work on it some more.
Click to expand...
"Oh, it just needs to be broken in, shoot 500 rounds through it and call us back if it still is a problem"

"I did. It still does."

Problem solved.
 
Guns that require break in, like a tight custom 1911, may experience a few hiccups in the first few hundred rounds. If, however, you're getting the same problem over and over again then that's likely due to something wrong with the gun that 5k rounds, much less 500, is never going to fix.

Like the OP, I've never had a gun of any kind that really had a break in period. They were either reliable from the get go, or they weren't.
 
If a car would stop during the first few miles after leaving the dealership would you trust that vehicle after 1000 miles?
A gun is a tool to dispatch bullets, hopefully accurately.
I give new guns a good cleaning before operation and then they should be ready to work.
If they fail is not because they are new but something else.
And I understand there might be some tuning involved building a new rifle or pistol but that is the job of whoever makes the firearm.
 
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I think the whole "break-in period" is a tale of old lore from the 70's when manufacturing was not solid across the board that carries over into gun-shop-talk. I also think it is an excuse from manufacturers if they say it.

Then again, I always test my carry guns before I carry them to catch any issues. Not saying that guns don't get broken in, I'm saying it is unacceptable for a modern gun to be unreliable out of the box.
 
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break in is a thing....it just depends what you are breaking in. Breaking in the barrel for optimal copper equilibrium so you arent having a mv muzzle climb...1911 one was touched on, but with auto handguns, the interlock, magazines, and if it uses a browning recoil design the barrel, barrel lugs and frame with all start to "mesh" together and give up optimum consistency...especially if its wearing equally bilaterally. Not a big deal really for the purposes of most handguns. Rifles a little more. my ar10's lock up took about 80 rds to smooth up the tight tolerances to cycle good. I good of done some polishing or light lapping, but why? it will do it itself.
 
grampajack said:
Guns that require break in, like a tight custom 1911, may experience a few hiccups in the first few hundred rounds. If, however, you're getting the same problem over and over again then that's likely due to something wrong with the gun that 5k rounds, much less 500, is never going to fix.

Like the OP, I've never had a gun of any kind that really had a break in period. They were either reliable from the get go, or they weren't.
Click to expand...
In my limited experience with semi-autos I also find this to be true. Either they are or are not reliable from the get-go.
 
FL-NC said:
+1. Many guns- especially those bought for CCW/HD by "non-enthusiasts" will probably never see 500 rounds.
Click to expand...

Sadly this is often the case with many gun owners including those that post on this forum.

Man made things malfunction all the time. NASA lost not one but two multi-billion Space Shuttles.

My response to the O.P. is why don't you want to practice shooting several hundred rounds through a new gun?
 
Considering the reliability of currently manufacturers in almost all cases you're really breaking in the shooter more than the gun. You need to get used to the trigger and other controls if the gun is different than what you're used to. I like to know where the gun hits with different loads. Do I think I need different grips for a revolver? I still think you need to find out how different hollow points feed in a semi auto. I've never had a semiautomatic I've purchased new in the past 10 years or so that wouldn't feed anything I put through it.

All of which can be done with maybe 100-200 rounds. A lot of it depends on your skill and experience as a shooter.
 
Two brands I've found to be dependable straight from the box are Beretta
and FN. Other brands may also be good to from the box, but these two I
can vouch for.
 
I run a few hundred rounds through a new carry gun to make sure it works. If it or any of my guns don't run pretty well out of the box, they have to go.

There's a reason I choose an HK for my primary carry gun and another HK as my bedside gun.
 
I own a Baer PII that was so tight (new) that I had a heck of a time working the slide - needed two mules and sled dog to jack a round in the chamber - super tight. After several years and 1,400 rounds, the slide action still remains "tight" but is very operational now - much easier to work. I would have bet that when the gun was new and so tight that there would be malfunctions - but never a one - the gun has always run perfectly and was noticeably "broken in" (smoothed out) over time.
 
BSA1 said:
Sadly this is often the case with many gun owners including those that post on this forum.

Man made things malfunction all the time. NASA lost not one but two multi-billion Space Shuttles.

My response to the O.P. is why don't you want to practice shooting several hundred rounds through a new gun?
Click to expand...

I will run a minimum of 200 rounds of ammo through any new gun before I am comfortable carrying it. This is not the same as break in. The 200 round minimum means 200 jam-free rounds. If a pistol is being broken in, and jamming a round or two out of every magazine, that tells you the gun is not ready for defensive use.

Firing 500 break in rounds where the gun is jamming ends up being an adventure in troubleshooting and clearance of stoppages. It is so distracting that little else can be accomplished.
 
Mike J said:
I have never had a handgun that had a suggested 500 round break in. The only one I have that had a suggested break in was a Kahr CM9. They suggested 200 rounds. I did the break in but everything worked right out of the box. The only problem I had was one magazine wouldn't let me fully load it. I took the base plate off. Wiped it out & reassembled it & it worked fine. I would agree with you though with the possible exception of the high end 1911's. Maybe the reason I haven't encountered this is that I shoot inexpensive guns.
Click to expand...


Kimber recommends 500 rounds.
 
Balrog said:
I will run a minimum of 200 rounds of ammo through any new gun before I am comfortable carrying it. This is not the same as break in. The 200 round minimum means 200 jam-free rounds. If a pistol is being broken in, and jamming a round or two out of every magazine, that tells you the gun is not ready for defensive use.

Firing 500 break in rounds where the gun is jamming ends up being an adventure in troubleshooting and clearance of stoppages. It is so distracting that little else can be accomplished.
Click to expand...

I do not run ammunition though my guns just for the sake of "breaking it in." I combine learning how that particular gun functions, getting use to the trigger pull and sights and any bullet style and ammunition brand preferences along with practicing my marksmanship. Unlike your experiences I have had both revolvers, semi-automatic pistols and rifles improve after a few hundred rounds.

The most extreme case is a friend that had a new Colt Government Model that was occasionally failing to feed. It had a slight hitch in slide/frame rail fit that was slowing the slide down just enough to cause problems.
However he noticed that everytime we went shooting together he had fewer failure-to-feeds and the slide / frame rail fit was getting smoother. Somewhere between 900 - 1,000 rounds the problem totally disappear. Not only does he now have a reliable gun but it has one of the best, smooth slide / frame fits I have experienced. While shooting 900 - 1,000 rounds is unreasonable to you he did not have to risk losing or having the gun damaged when shipping it an did not have to worry about if the factory fixed the problem correctly.

Likewise I am willing to fix minor problems myself or pay a gunsmith to fix it to avoid the risks of shipping and improper factory repair. Frankly I am surprised that gun design and manufacturing technology has progress to the point where I can buy a new handgun for less than $300.00 with the expectation it will most likely function perfectly out-of-the box.
 
If a customer rep told me I needed to run 500 rounds through a newly purchased gun to make it run properly, I'd ask where should I pick up this ammo at your expense? I bought a new product and expect it to work, if it doesn't, any remedy should be at their expense.

Or perhaps I can just send it back and you can run sufficient rounds through it to make it work properly?
 
Only break-in is with Browning Buckmarks.
While they run 100% from the get-go, things really smooth up after a couple hundred rounds.
I use the awful Remington HV stuff to start, then, it's only Norma.
 
I've experienced a break-in period with my LCP. I had several instances in the first 100 rounds with 2 different brands of ammo where it wouldn't return to battery after firing, and was considering sending it back to Ruger. But I decided to attribute it to a "break-in" period and have since put over 1,000 rounds through it since then without a single problem using the exact same ammo.
 
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