Just bought a Stoner SR-15 M4 and come to find out the barrel/bore are not chrome lined.  Everyone, dealers/experts/ect, all promised me that they were beforehand.  Anyway, when it arrived it had many copper/brass/rust? streaks along the last visible length of the barrel so I called the factory to see if there were possibly defects in the chrome lining.  Then, after "checking with the guys on the floor", was informed that the barrel was just standard steel.

The Stoner rep kept saying it will have better accuracy over chrome-lined.  My point was that if I wanted a target rifle I would have gotten a 20" HBAR and not a 16" lightweight M4.  I plan on shooting this rifle alot and even have two back to back weeks of Urban Rifle coming up soon.

My questions are:

1.  Should I worry about chrome lining the barrel, and if so with whom?  Or should I just shoot this one up and replace it when needed.

2.  Are these streaks indication of any significant problem?  They appear on all areas of the barrel, not just in the rifling corners.

Thanks in advance for any feedback.

chris k

To the best of my knowledge you are SOL on having a barrel chrome lined after firing. #1 it is almost impossible to get the barrel clean enough down to the level necessary for proper adhesion of the chrome. #2 the barrel did not get finished to the internal dimensions required to allow the addition of several microns of chrome to further restrict bore and chamber dimensions. (even though I fire bi-metal .311 projectiles in my 7.62x39 ruger SS .308 barrel)(my inner child thrives to disprove the theory that you can not bust a cast iron piss pot with a marshmallow hammer.)

No you cant. Go demand a refund from the store you bought it from as the rifle was misrepresented.  If you purchased it off a credit card have the transaction canceled.  

You really should ask your questions here and not to the gunstore owner trying to sell you something.  I have had em try to tell me you can put a silencer on a postban SBR and that the Remington 700 LTR was illegal to sell to civilians etc.

Thanks for the feedback guys.

I thought chrome lining was the big lesson learned during the Vietnam Conflict.  It is amazing that Stoner's company wouldnt put it in their M4.  I thought this issue would have been a slam dunk.  Guess it all comes down to the almighty dollar these days.

I will be checking here in the future with my questions.  Let the buyer beware huh?  Thanks for all the help.

chris k

this is BS, sure a non-chromed barrel "can" be more accurate, but in 16" it is limited.

For most of us guys it really wouldn't matter much, but you sound like you're involved in regular training/competition and would be better off getting a chrome-lined barrel.