[joe80]

I just recently finished an AR build and have a Stainless 16" Wylde chamber barrel from PSA. I have heard many different things about breaking them in from shoot once and clean for first 50 rounds to don't worry about it to shoot once and clean x times then shoot 3 and clean for x times etc.. So I am coming here to see what you wise people have say about what is required to properly break in a stainless steel barrel

 

[K.Lee]

Just see how it shoots. I'll clean once every few rounds for 15-20 rds with my precision rifles, but for ARs and such i just shoot them.

The purpose of break in is to smooth out rough and tight spots and also fill in copper in low spots. A barrel is only as good as it's tightest spot.

 

[Beef_Supreme]

The main thing with break in is as Kyle said, smoothing out the rough spots lapping didn't get or in essence 'fire lapping.' I always clean every shot for 5, then go up to once every three for 15, then spread it out. Once the bore is smooth enough so that it isn't coppering up, then it is to full accuracy potential. Also when I say I mean clean I mean CLEAN- copper solvent then regular solvent.

 

[GSRswapandslow]

i just shoot....a lot.... cleaning, 99 times out of 100, does more damage than good. I've never "broke in" a barrel

 

[nbkky71]

Shoot & clean method, or just shoot it? I've tried both methods on my NRA/CMP service rifle and couldn't tell an appreciable difference either way.

Nowadays I just give it a good intial cleaning, and then start shooting.

 

[joe80]

thanks for the feed back seem it comes down to a better safe than sorry type thing. At least for me. I will probally go about like beef supreme said. It can't hurt

 

[SuperCuz]

The barrel bores aren't really rough because they are lapped after gun drilling and the rifling process. The barrel bore has spots in it where the diameter is .0001 to .00015 tighter than the rest of the bore.... These spots must be " opened" up via firing the rifle and "wearing" the spots untill the bore in those spots opens up and is a consistent diameter from chamber to muzzle.

 

[Beef_Supreme]

I have looked down the bore of literally thousands bof barrels with a borescope. To the point of having to build an inspection cradle and use a video attachment to the scope so I could look at them on a computer monitor. Bores are rough. Cut rifled barrels are almost always of better bore quality than buttoned or hammer forged but I don't care what they were lapped with- there are miniscule little burrs, reamer marks (in the bore, bores are reamed to final dimension) and all manner of tiny little imperfections. You look by eye at it against a white sheet of paper and think 'Man that's awesome!' Wrong answer.
Remember that buttons 'press' form the grooves, burrs are particualrily noticeable at land/groove transition- you can't see this without magnifying it a 100x and even for those who do if they don't know what they are looking at will miss it.
Reamer marks also must be consistently spaced, if you look down the bore and see the little telltale rings and they look good then great, if there are heavy ones then light ones or a run of heavy and all light, this is indicitive that the reamer was stopped or the feed rate varied and in these areas you will play particular hell with breaking in, and in sever cases, the barrel will not shoot to potential.
Breaking in for something you want utmost accuracy potential out of is very important. When you look down the muzzle from an angle and see all that copper built up, it's because copper sticks to copper, especially in a hot barrel. The more you shoot it the worse it gets and unless you stop and get rid of copper, then you will never get the surface imperfections smoothed out properly.
What does it hurt to follow the barrel makers recommended procedure for their barrel? Afterall you are buying it from them and they should know better than anyone what their barrel requires. Everyone is free to do as they please, but experience has taught me a great deal, take my advice or don't.
Again, if you are just blasting away to make noise and punish offending cans and bottles, no one will ever notice, but if you want to suqeeze it for all it's worth- there is a regimen to follow. I have corrected a lot of accuracy complaints in the past with a couple of hours, a good fan, and Sweets 7.62. Bit of bore polish for a top dressing and groups shrink.