School me on breaking in a new rifle

[BigThicketBoy]

We bought the kids a Savage Axis XP in .243 . What's the correct way to break it in?
Already got the kit to fix the stiff trigger pull.
Also it has a Weaver 3X9 scope on it. How's good or bad is the scope? They'll be hunting hog and deer in East TX. Probably keep the shots to 50-75 yards until they get more trigger time.


Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

[Traildust]

Clean it, shoot it, repeat.

[oktx]

Clean it, then shoot it.

[AntlerCollector]

I hope y'all bust a few of them with that gun. I will start hunting them hard as soon as deer season is over. Let me know how you like the trigger job.

[6.5 shooter]

https://savagearms.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/214238323-What-is-the-barrel-break-in-procedure-

[lovemylegacy]

We bought the kids a Savage Axis XP in .243 . What's the correct way to break it in?
Already got the kit to fix the stiff trigger pull.
Also it has a Weaver 3X9 scope on it. How's good or bad is the scope? They'll be hunting hog and deer in East TX. Probably keep the shots to 50-75 yards until they get more trigger time.


Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

Just shoot it. The break in method of multiple shots and cleanings is designed to wear your barrel and reduce your barrel life. During the cleaning process you could also damage the rifling or crown.
Just shoot it, enjoy it, clean it with a Teflon based lube and then run a dry patches through the barrel till it is dry. Use a OTIS cleaner to ensure no rifling, lans or crown damage.

[S-3 Ranch]

From savage web site

https://savagearms.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/214238323-What-is-the-barrel-break-in-procedure-

^^^^^ I agree , I sighted mine in about 20 shots, cleaned, picked best group ammunition, dialed in
, hunted ^^^^^

[bmc09]

clean the junk they put on it before packing it up.
Go shoot and clean when you are done.

My father in law got a savage combo with the weaver scope. his had trouble staying zero'd. might just have been a defect on the one he had...who knows. have fun putting it through its paces to find out.

[pure lefty]

Clean, then One clean two clean etc, up to 5 and clean. You would be surprised how much shavings and stuff are in barrels

[Drycreek3189]

Pull the bolt out and clean it from the reciever end. They make guides that slip in where your bolt goes to prevent damage and undue crap falling into the "works". Some cleaning rods (mine) have a guide on them so you can clean from the muzzle without hurting the crown. I personally think you would have to really try hard to damage the crown with a good cleaning rod, but the notion persists. Worse damage can occur from resting the muzzle on a dirty floorboard in your truck.

As for break-in, just shoot it like they said. Try not to get the barrel too hot, and periodically clean out the copper fowling if you want to maintain your accuracy.

[Carpe_diem]

https://savagearms.zendesk.com/hc/en...-in-procedure-

I had no idea the break-in process for a new rifle was so laborious, time intensive and potentially expensive. Wow.

[krisw]

I clean them initially, then start shooting. When the groups start being affected, I clean it again. Like drycreek mentioned, try to keep it from getting too hot.

[lovemylegacy]

I had no idea the break-in process for a new rifle was so laborious, time intensive and potentially expensive. Wow.

....and un-necessary

[BrianL]

https://savagearms.zendesk.com/hc/en...-in-procedure-

I do a shorter version of this, but I rarely use a brush.

clean
1 shot and clean for 5x
3 shots and clean ...how many time based on how long it takes to get a clean patch, but average 3X
5 shots and clean 2-4x depends on group size. When it starts shooting good groups, I clean shoot 5 more, clean, shot once. done

[lovemylegacy]

I do a shorter version of this, but I rarely use a brush.

clean
1 shot and clean for 5x
3 shots and clean ...how many time based on how long it takes to get a clean patch, but average 3X
5 shots and clean 2-4x depends on group size. When it starts shooting good groups, I clean shoot 5 more, clean, shot once. done

Years ago I did a study on this and there must be 20 different ways to "break in" a barrel. There is one cleaning method using lapping compound....really? I tried the 20 shot method on a couple of rifles vs a no cleaning method. All the rifles shoot just fine, tack drivers. So I quit using the 20 shot method. I now just initially clean the barrel, shoot, cool, shoot, cool, lube the barrel and dry patch it.

The one thing I noticed, the more I shot the rifles, the tighter the groups got. In my opinion, you need some copper fouling to increase accuracy. When the bullet is running on a thin layer of copper is less friction than on a steel barrel. Now this is just my unprofessional opinion.

Its all an imperfect science, but a heck of a conversation subject