I bought an AI 338 Lupia a while back and it had a round count of approx 2000, so I recently bought a new barrel for $800, which I will have to go thru the break in period. My question is, is there a way to bring a barrel back to life, and is it cheaper then buying new barrels, or do I just have a large paper weight now?
bringing a barrel back to life?
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lancetkenyon
Well-Known Member
Paperweight if it is truly shot out. Barrels are a consumable item.
D
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Paperweight
I have read that the chamber end can be cut off and rechambered which can yield some more life from a barrel.
I finally got around to trying this. I cut off 4" from a shot out 6mm-284 Bartlein and rechambered it. It has a long area of scorched bore running 12" or more up barrel. Some wild looking fissure type cracks as well as the typical alligator skin appearance. I got it to shoot again! Put 20 test rounds through it and found an accurate load that is 1/2 grain off previous load. Haven't chronographed it yet. Would imagine it lost some velocity going from 28" to 24". Currently letting it soak with some Bore tech. Will do a bore scope inspection when no more blue shows. Seems to be cleaning up more easily than with the old chamber. Have no idea how long it will last. It was a free experiment as I have the reamer and a lathe.
To have someone rechamber it would IMO be a waste of money.
I finally got around to trying this. I cut off 4" from a shot out 6mm-284 Bartlein and rechambered it. It has a long area of scorched bore running 12" or more up barrel. Some wild looking fissure type cracks as well as the typical alligator skin appearance. I got it to shoot again! Put 20 test rounds through it and found an accurate load that is 1/2 grain off previous load. Haven't chronographed it yet. Would imagine it lost some velocity going from 28" to 24". Currently letting it soak with some Bore tech. Will do a bore scope inspection when no more blue shows. Seems to be cleaning up more easily than with the old chamber. Have no idea how long it will last. It was a free experiment as I have the reamer and a lathe.
To have someone rechamber it would IMO be a waste of money.
MagMan
Well-Known Member
I set back a 243 Ackley at 1800 rounds and it didn't rejuvenate the accuracy it once had. Still shoots 1/2 MOA but not the bug holes that it once did.
SMK1000plus
Well-Known Member
Suspect two things; the bore viewing is going to show more deterioration at the muzzle end than you might expect and your new found accuracy will die rather quickly.
When I set back a barrel, most of the breech end wear is within 2" or 3" of the throat. The muzzle end of the bore will usually need to be cut back about an inch as well, to get the entire bore back to good, sustainable accuracy.
Depending on what your borescope shows, you may want to shorten the muzzle end a bit. Especially since you can do it for merely a small investment of time. I commend you for experimenting. You may well get another few hundred rounds of acceptable accuracy out of what would otherwise be scrap metal or a full re-bore/re-rifling job.
SMK1000plus
Well-Known Member
Yes, most are never going to achieve their new barrel accuracy from a barrel set back but, you can usually achieve something close enough to be acceptable.
This is what I was wondering when I asked this question.
Some of the very best shooting AR barrels I've had (6.5 Grendels) were used tubes. I took shot out high-power barrels which were generally 6.5-284's with well over 1500 rounds down the tubes (mostly Kriegers). Some barrels had firecracking for 4-6" past the chamber. Take one of those barrels, cut 6-8" off the chamber end, contour for your AR and chamber. Some of the absolutely best shooting barrels I've used. Was it more work? Yes it was, but I pick up the barrels for $50-$75 ea and it's worth it. NOT the same thing, but those barrels are not lost if there's enough meat on them for another rifle, maybe a shorter barreled sporter or an AR. Setting back a barrel tenon and rechambering can freshen up things, but it won't give you double the life. I do think taking 4" off does change things closer to a new tube (that's already very broke in).
Oh, and no, I didn't sell em for new price, a few friends of mine got some very good deals on AR's in 6.5 that shot extremely well.
Oh, and no, I didn't sell em for new price, a few friends of mine got some very good deals on AR's in 6.5 that shot extremely well.
SMK1000plus
Well-Known Member
Re-boring a rifle barrel usually requires that the doner barrel be heavy enough of a contour to accommodate at least a two caliber increase in size and the final bore's groove diameter be of .358" or more.
http://www.35caliber.com/ (JES Re-boring) is one source of such services, and have been around for years. There are quite a few others now. Do a web search on "reboring rifle barrel".
I had a friend that rebored a heavy varmint Krieger from a 300 Win Mag to a 375 H&H Mag. I helped him with load development on it. That rifle is now a very large bore tack driver!
http://www.35caliber.com/ (JES Re-boring) is one source of such services, and have been around for years. There are quite a few others now. Do a web search on "reboring rifle barrel".
I had a friend that rebored a heavy varmint Krieger from a 300 Win Mag to a 375 H&H Mag. I helped him with load development on it. That rifle is now a very large bore tack driver!
I rebarreled a 7 rem mag that had over 600 through it. Was a 1 in 7 twist 3 groove that began to "eat" all bergers put through it. Even ruined 180 targets.
Gave it to Classic Barrel and Gunworks in Prescott to be bored to 338. Dan Pederson said at first it was difficult to cut then when the hard surface was machined away it became easier. It has shot well as a 338 bore and still does.
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Interesting suggestion to cut of some of muzzle. At this time it appears to shoot quite with old crown. Will keep it in mind.
Gave it to Classic Barrel and Gunworks in Prescott to be bored to 338. Dan Pederson said at first it was difficult to cut then when the hard surface was machined away it became easier. It has shot well as a 338 bore and still does.
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Interesting suggestion to cut of some of muzzle. At this time it appears to shoot quite with old crown. Will keep it in mind.
sable tireur
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No matter if it's spelled Lupia or Lapua, no barrel in .338 Lapua will last 2,000 shots and have any decent accuracy.
First and foremost, find a gunsmith who is willing to sacrifice their expensive reamer in an attempt to save a used up barrel.
Then ask him for the cost of the set back and new chamber in this used up barrel.This is from a well-known gunsmith who has 30 years experience making rifle barrels and re-boring rifle barrels:
Enjoy!
