Savage 12FV 223 used to shoot great and now sprays bullets

[Ratbuster]

i had the same issues with my 10T in 6.5 cm, after 1600 rounds i figured the barrel seen it's days, was almost ready to order a new barrel, so i figured either i will ruin this barrel or help it, JB bore pase did not quite get the carbon out, so i chanced a 600 grit valve grinding compound in the first 6-8inches of the throat area, i stroked for about 3-4 minutes vigorously, and then i finished it with JB bore paste, took it to the range and in the meantime before i done this procedure i was trying different bullets some times decent groups, most not, so i hit the range and i only shoot 200yds most of the time, best i was getting was maybe 1 1/4 to 1 3/4, my few loads were rather good, back to the loading bench i loaded the sierra 140SMK 40.8 H4350 and i am a happy camper, don't have to get a new barrel, i am near 5/8 mostly 3/4" i know its me now i use to have to give this gun a death grip, now i shoot it free recoil, last week i had 3 shots touching 4th and 5th were out to the 3/4". and since i done this the barrel cleans within 6 to 8 patches a few with a brush, before i done this it was a nightmare to clean, took forever .


chet

I have seen this scenario play out time and time again. Whenever a gun starts shooting poorly after a lot of shots I aggressively clean it with Iosso bore paste on a brush (50-75 strokes) and thoroughly clear out all traces of the Iosso with many solvent soaked patches. Accuracy returns every time. I shoot high volume sage rats that are small targets, typicallly shot at 200 to 300 yards, sometime much farther. There is almost always at least some wind to factor in so we want .35 MOA minimum out of our guns. I find that accuracy starts to wane after 50 or so shots which requires a quick conventional cleaning to bring it right back.

[david12601]

Check the condition of the crown

[DT400]

I'm late to the party here but I have found a good borescope to be a very worthwhile tool to have. If you "think" you have copper or carbon issues you can easily check. Likewise if you think you have all of the copper out you can look and see for sure. Saves a lot of time and guessing. They don't just work for the rifling but also work well for checking the crown and chamber/throat

Darrell

[Fotheringill]

Everything else aside, and if you don't already use one, get an aluminum or nickel plated jag. If you use a brass jag and/or a wire brush, each and every time you use a copper cleaner, you are going to get a false positive reading (aqua/green) color on the patch. It ain't necessarily from the barrel. It will certainly be also from the brass jag or wire brush.

As to carbon, get a dedicated carbon cleaner. Boretech, KG, and Slip 2000 Carbon Cleaner all come to mind. Choose your own poison (literally). Follow instructions and do not get it into the trigger group, bluing, or on the stock.