Proof Carbon Barrel Cooling

[Shootin4fun]

I didn't know they made them for this market so I bought a little battery powered fish tank pump a couple of years ago and use it sometimes...but in Texas where the ambient summer temp is near 100F anyway, it isn't very efficient. So I resorted to ice in ziplock bags. I run it up and down the barrel and press it against the receiver under the scope on each side for 30 sec (total) or so and then let the remaining heat of the barrel redistribute evenly for a minute. That gets it to well below 100F and I'm good to go again for 2 - 3 shots. I don't care if people look at me funny...it works better/faster than air.

 

[Shootin4fun]

I think it would be more effective to blow cooling air through the bore. Water would be a much more efficient bore coolant but I'd be very hesitant to use it as it could cause thermal shock to the barrel and damage it. Depending on how hot the barrel is you might even get scalded by the steam.

That is a great idea. Water has a very high heat of vaporization and even a little bit of it will remove a lot of heat when it turns into steam.

Great post Zym! I've long thought, just intuitively mind you, that the CF actually insulates the barrel, rather than helping cool which I've heard people suggest. I mean, if it doesn't get hot, then where's the heat going??

Anyway - "thermal shock" - Thank you for mentioning it. I've also wondered if there is a problem along those line with my ice cooling method. So I don't ever hold the ice bag in 1 spot for long; I slowly run it up and down the barrel / receiver. Do you think this damages the metal? And as I said, I let the remaining heat redistribute to areas that were in cooled a bit with the ice.

 

[BasilPascali]

My business is composites and I shoot both a Sako TRG .260 Rem and an HS Precision .338 Lapua. They both have heavy barrels. Since I have seen point failure loads as well as delamination due to thermal cycling I would not want such a hybrid barrel. The coefficients of thermal expansion are quite different for composites and steel alloys. Make an interesting science project for a materials science engineering student. All that said it would be IMHO a good idea to keep the barrel from getting too hot. We saw delamination at around 140°F between composites and steel. Of course the carbon fibers are wrapped compressively, maybe 57° angle, and might not go anywhere. Just give me heavy steel alloy barrels.

 

[Orange Dust]

View attachment 145105
Kind a like this one ha ha no I don't feel there's any danger and cooling your barrel it's not going to cool it down so rapid that it would cause problems I drilled out a case to go in the chamber

How did you sneak in my house and take a picture of my rig? I have 6 dogs as a primary burglar alarm and an electronic backup. You must be an absolute ghost in the woods. LOL

 

[Wedgy]

Chamber Chiller makes a very efficient fan(way more volume than Barrel Cool or riflekhul) that can be powered by AAA or USB pack, not CR123 batteries. they have a new one coming out soon that almost doubles the air flow, and they have a new magnetic chrono in the works(in demo phase now). I plug the fan into my Labradar battery pack. You can get a closeout for ~$20
https://www.chamberchiller.com/ejection-port-chillers/beta-60-chamber-chillers.html

 

[Zymurgist]

Great post Zym! I've long thought, just intuitively mind you, that the CF actually insulates the barrel, rather than helping cool which I've heard people suggest. I mean, if it doesn't get hot, then where's the heat going??

Anyway - "thermal shock" - Thank you for mentioning it. I've also wondered if there is a problem along those line with my ice cooling method. So I don't ever hold the ice bag in 1 spot for long; I slowly run it up and down the barrel / receiver. Do you think this damages the metal? And as I said, I let the remaining heat redistribute to areas that were in cooled a bit with the ice.

Thank you, I'm not a composite expert so I can't really answer your question regarding the ice cube method you are using. Wrapping the cubes in a damp towel might work better than a baggie. The heat in a CF barrel is concentrated at the bore. Cooling the bore would be more effective than cooling the outside of the barrel. Or, do both at the same time.

 

[Dosh]

Ice cold wet towel on a hot barrel, perhaps not molecularly healthy for any barrel. Orange Dust's amazingly inventive idea appears to safely cool CF and steel barrels and perform the task economically.

 

[Orange Dust]

Ice cold wet towel on a hot barrel, perhaps not molecularly healthy for any barrel. Orange Dust's amazingly inventive idea appears to safely cool CF and steel barrels and perform the task economically.

Really cant take credit. Just like most wildcatters, i thought it up on my own, but wasnt the first by a longshot. This unit really blows a high volume of air and is cheap. Life is good.

 

[AZShooter]

Interesting thread. While I don't get my barrels hot I use CO2 to get the barrel back to ambient temperature to continue load development. Saves a ton of time.

Use a 20 lb CO2 tank minimum. When I first made it back in 2006 I used a regulator that allowed the flow I wanted. Not all regulators will work. This one does:
Prest-O-Lite R36-50-580. I finally wore out the T handle threads and went with a ball valve.

The rubber hose was 3/8" OD. I tapered the tip with a knife so it would wedge into the neck area of any rifle I use from 6mm BR to 375 Taylor.

As for using the CO2. Hold hose in place while you open up tank valve then rotate T handle or ball valve to get a mild flow coming out of the end of the barrel.

There are now five shooters that copied this idea. All of us that use this system to keep the barrel at ambient not for cooling a super hot barrel. With some magnums I will use it after every shot or every two shots.

It even worked on a Rem 700 ultimate muzzle loader by putting the hose far down the muzzle end and gently blowing air through breech plug.



​

 

[ntsqd]

You can cool a barrel too fast. I believe that the CO2 method is treading on thin ice there. Actual technique is going to determine whether or not the barrel is damaged by the process. Even the length of the hose might matter. The phase change will happen at the regulator, and that is where the gas will be the coldest. The length of the hose and the ambient temperature will determine how much ambient heat the gas picks up in transit.

Imaginative idea, but not one that I'm willing to use.

 

[cjl2010]

You can cool a barrel too fast. I believe that the CO2 method is treading on thin ice there. Actual technique is going to determine whether or not the barrel is damaged by the process. Even the length of the hose might matter. The phase change will happen at the regulator, and that is where the gas will be the coldest. The length of the hose and the ambient temperature will determine how much ambient heat the gas picks up in transit.

Imaginative idea, but not one that I'm willing to use.

Treading on thin ice... well done

 

[AZShooter]

I am not worried. Like I said I am doing this to maintain ambient not cooling a barrel that is HOT but warm. For what it is worth even Dave Miller and Curt Crum adopted this for some of their load development.

I own a bore scope and have not observed any changes in the condition of the bore. Nor have I observed any changes in accuracy.

Sure one can argue that the things I am observing are not that scientific.

FYI I know a few guys that will run cold water across the outside of the barrel with a synthetic stock then wipe off excess water and go back to shooting. One is a close friend. He has never reported that he damaged his rifle with his approach.

ntsqd: Can you share with us exactly what you think could get damaged?

 

[ntsqd]

It wouldn't be a one time event because even a HOT barrel isn't all that hot in terms of heat-treating temperatures. Over time the repeated rapid cooling will change the internal structure of the barrel metal. Think of it being similar to the "checking" that barrel throats can develop. I expect that since the temperature delta is not as large as there, that it would take longer to occur. Increase the delta and you'll shorten the time.

That is why I said that the technique will be critical. Goes back to what I quoted earlier in this thread "The more radical the temperature difference, the more radical the reaction." The guy who thinks he's going to take out half a squirrel mound with his .22 Eargasplittenloudenboomer (look it up!) and then bring that 300°C barrel back down to ambient temp with CO2 so he can dispatch the other half is in for a very, very short barrel life. Used with care and caution it may well be fine in a comp environ where a barrel's peak accurate life is short to start with.
I'd use just air on a field rifle.

 

[Wedgy]

You would have to have that gas blasting out of the regulator to damage the hot steel barrel, while all this theoretical stuff is true it doesn't apply here. I can stick my arm in a 400F oven or a -80F freezer and not sustain any damage but you won't see me stick in into a 400F salt bath or liquid nitrogen. Different mediums.