A twist on barrel break in question...... Bullet seating depth....

[cdherman]

I am about to break in a new 280 AI barrel. Bartlein. They have some extreme recomendations, like cleaning after every shot etc.... But that's not the point.

My question is this:

Bullet seating. I have Nosler 280 AI brass. I will be neck sizing after the first firing until I have trouble chambering.

I'd like to make sure that the axis of the brass is perfect to the chamber. Its a blueprinted and trued action. So I am thinking to seat the bullets long, into the lands during break in (and initial firing of my brass) so I can minimize case stretch and also keep axis perfect. Loads will be reduced a touch.

BUT --- I also would like to clear out the milling remnants in the throat ASAP as well, to get her broke in ASAP.

Anyone have an opinion about seating depth impact on barrel break in time???? Maybe some jump clears out the milling irregularities faster?

Just thinking out loud. Probably is not an issue....

 

[FEENIX]

I am no expert but I normally just use factory ammo (with the brass I normally load with) when breaking in new barrels ... but that's just me.

I have no hands on experience but others swear by the effectiveness of Tubbs FF bullet kits (http://www.davidtubb.com/final-finish-bullet-kits/finalfinish-bulletkit-284).

 

[jjmp]

Sounds like you got it figured,but with such a great barrel she'll break in fast , but I'd still follow their break in procedure , what's a little labor of love compared to a non following barrel and one that shoots just the way you dreamed it would !. You could call Sierra bullets hotline & see what they say ,can't hurt .

 

[elf]

New brass should always be fired with the bullet seated long. This forces the brass to perfectly mold into the chamber. About .005" jam will do. On break in, I clean every 3 shots. You can use JB to remove the rough marks.

 

[gohring3006]

I'm with Feenix, I would just shoot factory ammo. If I didn't have factory ammo, your theory should work well. I usually use powder I don't use regularly and cheap bullets.
I would also follow the barrel manufacturers recommendations.

 

[HARPERC]

....I would also follow the barrel manufacturers recommendations........

I confess to remaining a little skeptical regarding barrel break in, so I guess my answer would be bullet jump won't make a difference. I would follow whatever practice I intended to use in the rifle.

The comments regarding the brass are on track, and I would rate this more meaningful than the effect on the barrel. I'm usually in the camp of a couple of boxes of factory to start.

I have a Bartlein coming, and break in will be as recommended. Perhaps fire formed as has been described, might be something to consider this time.

 

[gohring3006]

I confess to remaining a little skeptical regarding barrel break in, so I guess my answer would be bullet jump won't make a difference. I would follow whatever practice I intended to use in the rifle.

The comments regarding the brass are on track, and I would rate this more meaningful than the effect on the barrel. I'm usually in the camp of a couple of boxes of factory to start.

I have a Bartlein coming, and break in will be as recommended. Perhaps fire formed as has been described, might be something to consider this time.

I did a break in on a Savage 338 Lapua, i did notice less copper fouling, so I did it again with a Savage 6.5 Creed.
I like to get on to load development as soon as possible, mainly for barrel life preservation and so I can work out other bugs in the system, like bedding issues, loose scope base, bad optic etc.

 

[HARPERC]

.....I like to get on to load development as soon as possible, mainly for barrel life preservation and so I can work out other bugs in the system, like bedding issues, loose scope base, bad optic

That may explain my thoughts on barrel break in. My experience is mostly with moderate cartridges that have come up shooting fairly early in the process.
My one exception is a 6mm Remington that may have benefitted from a purposeful break in. Someplace between 150-200 rounds groups shrunk and stayed shrunk. That was before "break in" was a thing.

My next one is a barrel burner, and unnecessary rounds become a thing, and the issue being which is the quickest route to success.

 

[J E Custom]

I'm with Feenix, I would just shoot factory ammo. If I didn't have factory ammo, your theory should work well. I usually use powder I don't use regularly and cheap bullets.
I would also follow the barrel manufacturers recommendations.

+1
Break in is very important in my opinion and a shoot 1 and clean procedure not only speeds up the process of removing any discontinuities left by lapping, It makes clean up and accuracy happen much faster.

A quality barrel should break in with 10 to 15 shots, (I do 7 or 8 shots and clean after each), then shoot 2 or 3 3 shot groups cleaning after each 3 shot string. At this point most premium barrels are ready to go. Just give the barrel time to cool between cleanings.

For break in I do the same thing in most cases buying one box of factory ammo (Standard velocity) and as you do the breakin, you can feel your barrel getting better each time you clean.

It is money and time well spent in my opinion

J E CUSTOM

 

[TwoMore]

they sure get dirty on that first shot

 

[J E Custom]

they sure get dirty on that first shot

Yes they do, and That's the reason for cleaning after each shot. The purpose of this is to remove the carbon fouling that is harder than the barrel to prevent the bullet from picking up the carbon and running it down the newly lapped finish possibly scratching it. cleaning it also removes any copper fouling that could protect the parrel from bullet contact, preventing uniform breakin. Once break in is done fouling is held to a minimum.

The benefits may not be noticeable at 2 to 300 yards, other than the cleaning requirements, but at extended distance, the benefits are very noticable.

I recommend breaking everything in (Factory or custom barrels) for the benefits irregardless of the manufacturer's recommendations.

Just my opinion

J E CUSTOM

 

[Edd]

From the Krieger website.....

BREAK-IN & CLEANING:
With any premium barrel that has been finish lapped -- such as your Krieger Barrel --, the lay or direction of the finish is in the direction of the bullet travel, so fouling is minimal compared to a barrel with internal tooling marks. This is true of any properly finish-lapped barrel regardless of how it is rifled. If it is not finish-lapped, there will be reamer marks left in the bore that are directly across the direction of the bullet travel. This occurs even in a button-rifled barrel as the button cannot completely iron out these reamer marks.

Because the lay of the finish is in the direction of the bullet travel, very little is done to the bore during break-in, but the throat is another story. When your barrel is chambered, by necessity there are reamer marks left in the throat that are across the lands, i.e. across the direction of the bullet travel. In a new barrel they are very distinct; much like the teeth on a very fine file.

When the bullet is forced into the throat, copper dust is removed from the jacket material and released into the gas which at this temperature and pressure is actually a plasma. The copper dust is vaporized in this plasma and is carried down the barrel. As the gas expands and cools, the copper comes out of suspension and is deposited in the bore. This makes it appear as if the source of the fouling is the bore when it is actually for the most part the new throat.

If this copper is allowed to stay in the bore, and subsequent bullets and deposits are fired over it, copper which adheres well to itself, will build up quickly and may be difficult to remove later. So when we break in a barrel, our goal is to get the throat "polished without allowing copper to build up in the bore. This is the reasoning for the fire-one-shot-and-clean procedure.

Every barrel will vary slightly in how many rounds they take to break in For example a chrome moly barrel may take longer to break in than stainless steel because it is more abrasion resistant even though it is a similar hardness. Also chrome moly has a little more of an affinity for copper than stainless steel so it will usually show a little more color if you are using a chemical cleaner. Rim Fire barrels can take an extremely long time to break in, sometimes requiring several hundred rounds or more. But cleaning can be lengthened to every 25-50 rounds. The break-in procedure and the cleaning procedure are really the same except for the frequency. Remember the goal is to get or keep the barrel clean while breaking in the throat with bullets being fired over it.

Finally, the best way to tell if the barrel is broken in is to observe the patches; i.e. when the fouling is reduced. This is better than some set number of cycles of shoot and clean as many owners report practically no fouling after the first few shots, and more break-in would be pointless. Conversely, if more is required, a set number would not address that either. Besides, cleaning is not a completely benign procedure so it should be done carefully and no more than necessary.

 

[TOM H]

I am about to break in a new 280 AI barrel. Bartlein. They have some extreme recomendations, like cleaning after every shot etc.... But that's not the point.

My question is this:

Bullet seating. I have Nosler 280 AI brass. I will be neck sizing after the first firing until I have trouble chambering.

I'd like to make sure that the axis of the brass is perfect to the chamber. Its a blueprinted and trued action. So I am thinking to seat the bullets long, into the lands during break in (and initial firing of my brass) so I can minimize case stretch and also keep axis perfect. Loads will be reduced a touch.

BUT --- I also would like to clear out the milling remnants in the throat ASAP as well, to get her broke in ASAP.

Anyone have an opinion about seating depth impact on barrel break in time???? Maybe some jump clears out the milling irregularities faster?

Just thinking out loud. Probably is not an issue....

This is from Bartlein

Break in and Cleaning
The age old question, "Breaking in the New Barrel". Opinions very a lot here, and this is a very subjective topic. For the most part, the only thing you are breaking in, is the throat area of the barrel. The nicer the finish that the Finish Reamer or Throating Reamer leaves, the faster the throat will break in.

Shoot one round and clean for the first two rounds individually. Look to see what the barrel is telling you. If I'm getting little to no copper out of it, I sit down and shoot the gun. Say 4 – 5 round groups and then clean. If the barrel cleans easily and shoots well, we consider it done.

If the barrel shows some copper or is taking a little longer to clean after the first two, shoot a group of 3 rounds and clean. Then a group of 5 and clean.

After you shoot the 3rd group and 5th group, watch how long it takes to clean. Also notice your group sizes. If the group sizes are good and the cleaning is getting easier or is staying the same, then shoot 4 – 5 round groups.

If fouling appears to be heavy and taking a while to clean, notice your group sizes. If group sizes are good and not going sour, you don't have a fouling problem. Some barrels will clean easier than others. Some barrels may take a little longer to break in. Remember the throat. Fouling can start all the way from here. We have noticed sometimes that even up to approximately 100 rounds, a barrel can show signs of a lot of copper, but it still shoots really well and then for no apparent reason, you will notice little to no copper and it will clean really easy.

This is meant as guide lines only. There is no hard and fast rule for breaking in a barrel.

I've got Bartlein on 30-06. I clean first two then shot group clean,very little copper and one more group and that was it.

I

 

[elf]

So. . . Would it be advisable to start a new barrel by scrubbing the chamber thoroughly with JB?