Barrel Break In/Cleaning etc

[MoA]

Cleaning the weapon before putting it away seems to work well. If its not going to be used lightly oiling the barrel should negate any effects of moisture.

I personally have not had this happen, but can see how it could in humid conditions. Oil and WD40 are good preventive's for moisture.

[nagarifle]

how about molly lube?

[MoA]

Moly coating bullets and barrels etc was popular, and still is. Supposedly it reduces friction, and lets a barrel have a longer life.
However Moly and humidity dont go well, primarily because it causes the creation of Sulphuric acid.
Does Moly reduce pressure? Sure, I could use a grain more than my normal load with Moly coated bullets.
Getting it out of the bore, was a right royal PITA. You do need to use Iosso paste, or JB and a lot of brushing. Two-three storkes per bullet through the tube.

Then came Danzac which was supposed to be better than Moly, bt had simillar issues with humidity.

Both Moly and and Danzac bullets need to be wax coated to avoid a mess.

The current lube flavor of the day is Hexagonal Boron Nitride. Easy to put on, no issues with humididty, and seems to reduce pressure just as well. Does it improve accuracy? I wouldnt bet on it. Does it improve barrel life? No evidence so far.
What it does however allow one to do, is shoot more without cleaning. For example, with me I do need to clean the barrel every twenty or so shots, because the groups open up. While shooting HbN coated bullets, I can shoot about double that number.
Getting HbN out of the barrel is much like getting Moly out. That is the downside. I am experimenting with HbN so can provide more info if you want.

[nagarifle]

thanks MoA

one more:
how about taking care of the muzzle ? any tips

[MoA]

The crown is always a hot topic.

It is the last part of the barrel the bullet touches and is fairly critical as far as accuracy goes.

I dont do anything special, other than not drag patches back through it. With a brush dependent on the rifle I will not pull one back. Or if I do I am very carful about it. I do throw my brushes away after three cleanings. And use a bore guide, so am not overly anal about a straight brush.

When in doubt, cut the barrel by half an inch and recrown. It is simple enough to do. I only had to do it once, with a cheap .260 barrel that progressively went from 28 inches to 19.5 and into the dustbin. It still would refuse to shoot.

The only real tips are:
1. Use a bore guide and a straight rod. Preferably coated or carbon fibre.
2. Use fresh brushes. Dont try to strighten them if they bend. Use a new one.
3. Be consistent with the rod. It isnt a steam train or a quickie.
4. Use common sense.

[TwoRivers]

I believe the term "barrel sweating" came about when corrosive primers were the norm, and before people realized that smokeless powder/corrosive primers needed barrel cleaning just like black powder; that smokeless powder did not neutralize primmer residue. People cleaned their rifle barrels with an oily patch 'til it shone like a mirror, and by next morning it would be rusty. Took a while before they figured out that a cleaning with hot soapy water was needed to get the primer residue out. The barrel didn't "sweat", but the corrosive salts left in the bore would react with the moisture in the air, and rust the barrel.
So, unless you have a bore cleaner formulated for corrosive primers (WD-40 works), use hot soapy water to remove the primer salts prior to drying and oiling.

[MoA]

Tworivers: Thanks for that. Didnt know about that.

[shooter]

thanks tworivers

[eljefe]

The old timers of the cordite era swore by boiling water in the barrel at the end of the day-and a light coat of oil after drying.I guess experience at home got carried over to my 303 shooting when I opened the cartridge and found cordite.
I tried and quickly gave up on Moly-The horror ,O the horror...
IIRC there was a recent mention of a famous gunsmith, who used a brass brush and gave his barrels a 100 strokes with moly to moly coat .I am not inclined to try anything with moly now and with my dismal 'no show' performances the whole of this year, I'll have to wait a while to use up what I've loaded

[TwoRivers]

Asif: While Cordite is hot burning and as such more erosive than cooler burning nitro-cellulose powders, it is not corrosive. It was the primer that was the culprit, and still is. And yes, any .303 ammo loaded with cordite most likely also has corrosive primers. Cheers.

[eljefe]

Its ADI 2208 and Fiocchi primers with 180grn hog loads for my Smelly now Walt.I am thinking of home brewing some Ed's red to see how it hold up against the plethora of miracle cleaners

[MoA]

Its ADI 2208 and Fiocchi primers with 180grn hog loads for my Smelly now Walt.I am thinking of home brewing some Ed's red to see how it hold up against the plethora of miracle cleaners

seriously try some KG-1 and KG-12. The stuff really is awesome.