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Posted: 4/14/2014 8:40:03 PM EDT
| Hey guys I was just thinking about if I load my loads really light is it possible that my BCM 14.5 BFH midi will last longer than if I shot factory ammo? |
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You can expect your rifle barrel to last at least 5000 rounds shooting factory ammo and still retain accuracy equal to what you get now. If you aren't shooting tournaments at 600 yards your barrel will easily remain serviceable past 10,000 rounds inside of 200 yards. Some people still shoot rifles with 25k rounds through them that remain "accurate enough" and reliable.
The things that destroy barrels are: 1. High heat caused by magazine dumps or full-auto applications. Premature throat erosion will be caused by the heat which destroys the rifling ahead of the chamber. 2. Crown damage caused by dragging bronze brushes back through the bore, cleaning from the muzzle end and impacting the crown against a hard surface (dropping the rifle muzzle first on cement). 3. High pressure loads especially with heavy bullets. Rifle steel is designed to withstand 55k to 60k of sustained operational pressures without deforming under load. Going over this threshold on a regular basis will cause the metal to give. The end results include excessive headspace and premature throat erosion. I believe any rifle that is fed a steady diet of lighter loads with lighter bullets will almost certainly have a longer service life. Faster extruded powders are ideal in this application, low powder charge weights help. To get the most from a rifle I would shoot an exclusive diet of 52/53 grain match bullets with single base extruded powders like: LT-32 XMR-8208 H-322 AA-2015 Load them for accuracy, not for maximum high velocity. 3000 fps is more than fast enough from a 20" barrel. I would avoid any ball powders because they include nitroglycerin as part of the mix. It's known to accelerate barrel wear. |
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