S.G.&Y. BARREL BREAK-IN& CLEANING
Many of our customers upon taking delivery of their new gun orbarrel are in a quandary as how to go about breaking-in that new barrelfor maximum life and accuracy. With so much written in magazinesthese days stating use this, donÂ’t use that, brush, donÂ’t brush...whatÂ’sa person to do??
At S.G.&Y. Precision, we have a unique opportunity to inspectmany barrels on a daily basis with our video borescope. Consequently,we see the results of a variety of break-in as well as cleaning procedures,and most of them leave the rifle owners with their mouth agape when theysee the fruits of their misinformed labor on our color monitor. Wehave seen practically new barrels ruined with less than a hundred roundsshot through them by some of the crazy and sometimes humorous break-inmethods. Anyway here goes for what itÂ’s worth.
A. Bore guides- If you donÂ’t have one, get one!Without a good bore guide you are just wasting your time trying to break-ina barrel or cleaning it for that matter. More barrels are destroyedby cleaning without a bore guide than by shooting. There are manytypes and brands of bore guides available on the market and range in pricefrom $5.00 to $50.00. The only one we recommend is the Lucas two-piecebore guide. They are the best insurance you can buy for that newbarrel. All other bore guides in my opinion are only good for keepingthe solvents out of the trigger and action.
B. Solvents- We recommend Sweets 7.62 for copper and a *solventmix of our own(Actually Pat McMillan gave me this formula) for powder foulingand for cleaning/storing your gun for the next match or season. ThisSpeedy Formula is made as follows:
Mix 2/3 rds. Hoppes No. 9 Plus Black Powder solvent with 1/3rd. RegularHoppes No. 9 Nitro solvent. Let this mixture set overnightand it will form a sort of gel that adheres very well to the brush andcuts powder fouling to a minimum.
* Note: Butches Boreshine may be substituted for this Speedyformula.
C. Procedure for “Break-in”- Before firingthat first shot, clean the barrel as if it had been shot by following thesesimple steps.
Step 1. Insert Lucas bore guide intoreceiver and chamber. If you don’t have one stop here and get one,if not, just shoot your gun and forget trying to take any care of yourbarrel at all. If you do have one, proceed, and give yourself one“At-A-Boy” for being astute enough to have purchased the proper tools forthe job.
Note: One “Aw-Shit” wipes out all “At-A-Boys”.
Step 2. Run one wet patchof Sweets through the bore and let soak for approximately 30 seconds.Do not patch this out.
Step 3. Next, run the brush throughthe barrel only enough to expose the entire brush. Yes, I know thatyou still have 12 more inches of cleaning rod you could push out the endof your barrel but we want to protect that new crown. Also, if thatrod hangs out that far, you will eventually start wearing down the riflingat the crown from about 4 to 7 o’clock. This is very bad “JU-JU”for accuracy. OK, back to our next step. Once the brush isexposed, saturate it well with our Speedy Formula or Butch’s Boreshineand SLOWLY run the brush through the bore 10 complete back and forth passeswhile keeping the rod as straight as possible. This is when the Lucasbore guide really pays for itself! Remember, the key word is slowly.We are not trying to break any land speed records today. Let thissit a minute or two and proceed to the next step.
Step 4. After you have let the barrelsoak for a few moments, saturate a patch with the Speedy Formula or ButchÂ’sBoreshine and pass it through the bore. Follow this with 2 dry patchesand then dry the chamber with Brake Kleen or lighter fluid. Next,gently wipe the crown off with a soft cloth and lube your bolt (lets notgall the lugs just yet). Now, your ready to shoot your first shot.Then follow the schedule below to complete your barrel break-in.
1. Clean barrel / lube bolt / 1 shot.
2. Clean barrel / lube bolt / 5 shots.
3. Clean barrel / lube bolt / 10 shots.
4. Clean barrel / lube bolt / 10 to15 shots and clean again.
D. Additional Cleaning Tips-
1. Each time you clean you mayalso follow the last dry patch with a patch soaked with LOCK-EEZ.This is a graphite powder suspended in a quick evaporating carrier thatcoats the bore slightly before passing that first round through a completelydry bore.
2. We are always asked about powderfouling and how to remove it. The only product that we have seenthat really does a good job on powder fouling, especially on the carbonring that forms just ahead of where the neck ends in the chamber, is IOSSOBore Paste. This is used with a Pro-Shot nylon bristle brush andworked slowly in the neck and throat areas, then slowly down the entirebore. Follow this up with a few wet patches, then dry the bore asusual, and your ready to shoot.
E. Follow the outline above for your regular cleaning programand I promise that your barrels will deliver their greatest accuracy andlife without a lot of grief and hours of wondering if they are clean.
Good Shooting,
Speedy Gonzalez
Many of our customers upon taking delivery of their new gun orbarrel are in a quandary as how to go about breaking-in that new barrelfor maximum life and accuracy. With so much written in magazinesthese days stating use this, donÂ’t use that, brush, donÂ’t brush...whatÂ’sa person to do??
At S.G.&Y. Precision, we have a unique opportunity to inspectmany barrels on a daily basis with our video borescope. Consequently,we see the results of a variety of break-in as well as cleaning procedures,and most of them leave the rifle owners with their mouth agape when theysee the fruits of their misinformed labor on our color monitor. Wehave seen practically new barrels ruined with less than a hundred roundsshot through them by some of the crazy and sometimes humorous break-inmethods. Anyway here goes for what itÂ’s worth.
A. Bore guides- If you donÂ’t have one, get one!Without a good bore guide you are just wasting your time trying to break-ina barrel or cleaning it for that matter. More barrels are destroyedby cleaning without a bore guide than by shooting. There are manytypes and brands of bore guides available on the market and range in pricefrom $5.00 to $50.00. The only one we recommend is the Lucas two-piecebore guide. They are the best insurance you can buy for that newbarrel. All other bore guides in my opinion are only good for keepingthe solvents out of the trigger and action.
B. Solvents- We recommend Sweets 7.62 for copper and a *solventmix of our own(Actually Pat McMillan gave me this formula) for powder foulingand for cleaning/storing your gun for the next match or season. ThisSpeedy Formula is made as follows:
Mix 2/3 rds. Hoppes No. 9 Plus Black Powder solvent with 1/3rd. RegularHoppes No. 9 Nitro solvent. Let this mixture set overnightand it will form a sort of gel that adheres very well to the brush andcuts powder fouling to a minimum.
* Note: Butches Boreshine may be substituted for this Speedyformula.
C. Procedure for “Break-in”- Before firingthat first shot, clean the barrel as if it had been shot by following thesesimple steps.
Step 1. Insert Lucas bore guide intoreceiver and chamber. If you don’t have one stop here and get one,if not, just shoot your gun and forget trying to take any care of yourbarrel at all. If you do have one, proceed, and give yourself one“At-A-Boy” for being astute enough to have purchased the proper tools forthe job.
Note: One “Aw-Shit” wipes out all “At-A-Boys”.
Step 2. Run one wet patchof Sweets through the bore and let soak for approximately 30 seconds.Do not patch this out.
Step 3. Next, run the brush throughthe barrel only enough to expose the entire brush. Yes, I know thatyou still have 12 more inches of cleaning rod you could push out the endof your barrel but we want to protect that new crown. Also, if thatrod hangs out that far, you will eventually start wearing down the riflingat the crown from about 4 to 7 o’clock. This is very bad “JU-JU”for accuracy. OK, back to our next step. Once the brush isexposed, saturate it well with our Speedy Formula or Butch’s Boreshineand SLOWLY run the brush through the bore 10 complete back and forth passeswhile keeping the rod as straight as possible. This is when the Lucasbore guide really pays for itself! Remember, the key word is slowly.We are not trying to break any land speed records today. Let thissit a minute or two and proceed to the next step.
Step 4. After you have let the barrelsoak for a few moments, saturate a patch with the Speedy Formula or ButchÂ’sBoreshine and pass it through the bore. Follow this with 2 dry patchesand then dry the chamber with Brake Kleen or lighter fluid. Next,gently wipe the crown off with a soft cloth and lube your bolt (lets notgall the lugs just yet). Now, your ready to shoot your first shot.Then follow the schedule below to complete your barrel break-in.
1. Clean barrel / lube bolt / 1 shot.
2. Clean barrel / lube bolt / 5 shots.
3. Clean barrel / lube bolt / 10 shots.
4. Clean barrel / lube bolt / 10 to15 shots and clean again.
D. Additional Cleaning Tips-
1. Each time you clean you mayalso follow the last dry patch with a patch soaked with LOCK-EEZ.This is a graphite powder suspended in a quick evaporating carrier thatcoats the bore slightly before passing that first round through a completelydry bore.
2. We are always asked about powderfouling and how to remove it. The only product that we have seenthat really does a good job on powder fouling, especially on the carbonring that forms just ahead of where the neck ends in the chamber, is IOSSOBore Paste. This is used with a Pro-Shot nylon bristle brush andworked slowly in the neck and throat areas, then slowly down the entirebore. Follow this up with a few wet patches, then dry the bore asusual, and your ready to shoot.
E. Follow the outline above for your regular cleaning programand I promise that your barrels will deliver their greatest accuracy andlife without a lot of grief and hours of wondering if they are clean.
Good Shooting,
Speedy Gonzalez
