Lead to jacketed to lead

[shil]

Hello. Can anyone share with me his or her experiences with switching back and forth between jacketed and lead bullets?
Must copper fouling be cleaned from the bore before using lead bullets, and vice versa? The subject firearms are revolvers.

[OKFC05]

Lead bullet 101:
Ideally, start with a clean bore and then "foul" it with a few lead bullet shots. This leaves the bore "conditiioned" with bullet lube and capable of best accuracy. There should be little to no lead fouling.

Will the barrel fall off if you mix copper and lead deposits in the barrel? No, but don't complain if you lose accuracy and increase lead fouling.

[Beemer-mark]

I've always used a few jacketed rounds to clean my handguns after shooting cast lead bullets.

No only my opinion but is stated the same in the Lyman Cast Bullet Guide.

[Texas Roots]

I don't think it really matters switching back and forth.

But I agree with Beemer to finish up your shooting session with jacketed bullets to minimize cleaning.

[Forrest r]

+2 with beemer, years ago a guy was explaining to me that a bullet is not a bulldozer as I smiled & punched out my bbl's with jacketed bullets. Works for me

[ScottJ]

I once at the end of a shooting session intermixed lead and jacketed in a magazine for my Sigma. Just the leftovers from the various boxes.

No ill effects.

[thadheth]

The only place where I have seen something written to the contrary is in the Beretta 92FS owner's manual, in which they state never to use jacketed bullets without first cleaning lead from the barrel. But then, that's not a revolver, and I have to wonder if that might make a difference.

[mtgianni]

I believe that for optimal accuracy you need to get all the jacketed materiel out of the bore before shooting lead then season it with the loads you intend to shoot. I think that for optimal accuracy you should take the bbl down to steel before shooting jacketed as well. Obviously you can clean minor fouling with a jacketed round and shoot cast over copper with no ill affects other than accuracy. How much is dependent on the gun and the lube as well as the operator.

[n4zov]

I've never noticed any difference in handgun accuracy when switching, but a thorough cleaning is essential before shooting lead bullets in rifles. Otherwise, accuracy goes to pot.

[shil]

Many thanks, everyone, for sharing your experiences! One is never beyond learning, and I am first in needing to.

[Beemer-mark]

Originally Posted by n4zov

I've never noticed any difference in handgun accuracy when switching, but a thorough cleaning is essential before shooting lead bullets in rifles. Otherwise, accuracy goes to pot.

I always clean the p_ss out of mine, it's an obsession. And I believe it is essential for accuracy. The one thing that always bothers me is I was taught not to clean 22 rf, you would just wear the barrel out. So for close to 50 years I rarely clean my 22 rf guns; rifles, revolvers, semi-automatics.

So why is it OK not to clean 22 rf and you must clean everything else?