cohland
03-08-2011, 01:32 AM
Today I began a barrel break-in procedure provided by Russ Haydon (http://www.shooters-supply.com/break_in.html). I got off 12 shots over a period of about three hours at 100 yards, mostly because of the time needed for range breaks to allow other shooters to change targets.
While the procedure is working, it looks like I have to fire another dozen shots or so before it's done. That next phase will be shot at 200 yards, where there are (a) fewer shooters and (b) target pits. It should take a bit less time! I can easily see the .30 caliber holes at 200 yards with my spotting scope, so I won't be running back and forth.
Because of some shoulder problems I had pretty much given up on .30 caliber rifles, but the muzzle brake and recoil pad on this one made me believe I could get back into the bigger gun, and not have to shoot .223 all the time. I was right. This Savage produces less recoil, possibly due to the brake, and what recoil is left is pretty well soaked up by the super soft recoil pad. I also set it up with a BlackHawk Tactical Cheek Pad, which has to be one of the greatest values on the market.
One thing I noticed that's new and different is that the brake gives you a real sniff of the powder! I don't think I ever noticed that before with a rifle.
Grouping so far is nothing special, because I didn't load as much for accuracy as to just test a few powders at middle velocities as I ease back into .30 caliber reloading. My comparator didn't arrive until I already had the break-in ammunition made up, so the ammo is much too short. That will get fixed after the barrel is finished with break-in.
It's far too soon to tell if this procedure will make any difference, but I have the time to spend to do it right, so I thought I'd give it a try. My other Savage, a 10FLP in .223 with a custom McMillan stock, was not given a break-in procedure, and it shoots about .23" groups from a rest at 100 yards.
So far, so good. The new AccuStock seems like a nice design, I think this one will be worth keeping instead of replacing with a McMillan.
Chris
While the procedure is working, it looks like I have to fire another dozen shots or so before it's done. That next phase will be shot at 200 yards, where there are (a) fewer shooters and (b) target pits. It should take a bit less time! I can easily see the .30 caliber holes at 200 yards with my spotting scope, so I won't be running back and forth.
Because of some shoulder problems I had pretty much given up on .30 caliber rifles, but the muzzle brake and recoil pad on this one made me believe I could get back into the bigger gun, and not have to shoot .223 all the time. I was right. This Savage produces less recoil, possibly due to the brake, and what recoil is left is pretty well soaked up by the super soft recoil pad. I also set it up with a BlackHawk Tactical Cheek Pad, which has to be one of the greatest values on the market.
One thing I noticed that's new and different is that the brake gives you a real sniff of the powder! I don't think I ever noticed that before with a rifle.
Grouping so far is nothing special, because I didn't load as much for accuracy as to just test a few powders at middle velocities as I ease back into .30 caliber reloading. My comparator didn't arrive until I already had the break-in ammunition made up, so the ammo is much too short. That will get fixed after the barrel is finished with break-in.
It's far too soon to tell if this procedure will make any difference, but I have the time to spend to do it right, so I thought I'd give it a try. My other Savage, a 10FLP in .223 with a custom McMillan stock, was not given a break-in procedure, and it shoots about .23" groups from a rest at 100 yards.
So far, so good. The new AccuStock seems like a nice design, I think this one will be worth keeping instead of replacing with a McMillan.
Chris