Leading in barrels

[roar]

Hi everyone, I have a simple question that I need help with.

How many lead bullets do you have to shoot through a barrel before leading starts to occur? I am asking because I have a box of fifty 158 grain LRN cartridges that I am going to shoot through my 442 this weekend. The only other lead bullets that I have ever shot had a gas check on them, so supposedly no lead was deposited. Beyond those, any ammunition I have ever used are jacketed.

Will I need to worry about any deposited lead after shooting fifty rounds, or can I just go ahead and shoot jacketed bullets afterwards with no problem?

Thanks!

 

[PA Reb]

Won't hurt a thing. Run a wire brush through the barrel when cleaning it afterwards and it will be spiffy clean again!

 

[OKFC05]

It's optimum to clean a barrel when switching between lead and copper, because each makes the other foul worse.
I'd take a bore brush to the range and at least check the barrel after shooting the lead. The proper lead load will hardly lead the barrel at all, but sometimes you get an unplesant surprise with a load/barrel combination.
I've been told that the newest rifling in the 442s is not lead friendly (inaccurate), but I haven't tried it.

 

[roar]

Won't hurt a thing. Run a wire brush through the barrel when cleaning it afterwards and it will be spiffy clean again!

I only have a boresnake that I have been using with pretty good results with my limited revolver shooting. I suppose I should pick up a real brush sometime.

It's optimum to clean a barrel when switching between lead and copper, because each makes the other foul worse.
I'd take a bore brush to the range and at least check the barrel after shooting the lead. The proper lead load will hardly lead the barrel at all, but sometimes you get an unplesant surprise with a load/barrel combination.
I've been told that the newest rifling in the 442s is not lead friendly (inaccurate), but I haven't tried it.

Good to know, thanks. I sent my 442 off for repair, and I ended up getting a replacement frame, which also happens to have a brand new barrel on it. As far as I can tell however, it is still the original style rifling.

Does Hoppes #9 remove lead?

 

[lebomm]

Yes, if you mix it about 50/50 with elbow grrease.

Larry

 

[roar]

cool, I figured.

 

[Snapping Twig]

Lead can be easily removed by wrapping some strands from a copper Chore Boy scrubbing pad around your regular bronze bore brush and a few passes.

Bore snakes are... not so effective for cleaning a bore, in fact, other than clearing some light fouling, I don't know what they do.

Copper can be removed with a foaming bore cleaner.

Shooter's Choice or Hoppes should be used in association with a brush to remove carbon.

 

[roar]

I understand that bore snakes aren't a replacement for a proper cleaning kit. I do intend to pick on up really soon, hopefully this weekend.

 

[Maximumbob54]

If your rifling has sharp squared edges then it will be just fine. If it has what looks like polished down round edges then I would save the lead bullets for another gun. I don't know how leaded a barrel has to get before shooting jacketed ammo could cause a problem but I'm also just not willing to find out. It will be better in all directions to just go buy some cheap WWB .38's and go have safe fun.

 

[roar]

If your rifling has sharp squared edges then it will be just fine. If it has what looks like polished down round edges then I would save the lead bullets for another gun. I don't know how leaded a barrel has to get before shooting jacketed ammo could cause a problem but I'm also just not willing to find out. It will be better in all directions to just go buy some cheap WWB .38's and go have safe fun.

It looks almost exactly like my original barrel, but now I am starting to doubt myself. I will try to take a few good pictures. Pretty sure it doesn't look like that one picture of the EDM barrel rifling a guy posted a few weeks ago (I can't find that picture now that I'm looking for it)

 

[Gorenut]

My 627 showed leading after just my first box of lead bullets. It's easy to clean out though if you have the proper tools at hand. What I did was take an old brash brush that I didn't mind getting ruined, then I covered it with copper wire I got for taking apart a Chore Boy pad. Cleaned the lead right out and got the bore shinier than ever.

 

[JDBarrister]

+1 on the chore boy copper strands. Read about that a few months ago and took it to several guns and I saw lead shavings falling out of "clean" barrels. It got my barrels cleaner than I've ever seen them and it was easy. I don't even worry about leading anymore

 

[roar]

If your rifling has sharp squared edges then it will be just fine. If it has what looks like polished down round edges then I would save the lead bullets for another gun. I don't know how leaded a barrel has to get before shooting jacketed ammo could cause a problem but I'm also just not willing to find out. It will be better in all directions to just go buy some cheap WWB .38's and go have safe fun.

Any particular reason why you don't recommend shooting lead through EDM barrels?

After comparing the rifling between my 442 and my 80s production 686, I think I can tell the difference between the rifling. The 686 seems to have clearly defined, sharp shoulders. Pretty sure the current 442 barrel has EDM rifling, which means the original barrel must have had it as well. I will try to have a picture or two up soon.

I just reread the thread and someone mentioned that the EDM rifling is inaccurate with lead. Is this the only issue?

 

[What the]

It won't hurt a thing to shoot a box of lead through your gun...in fact when your done with the lead rounds shoot a cylinder or two of jacketed slugs,it'll help remove the leading if there is any to begin with.

I agree that you need a good cleaning kit and bore solvent for lead as well as copper fouling. As someone mentioned before I'm not convinced bore snakes work as well as some believe, in fact other than for cleaning a shotgun I don't use them.

If your rifling is clean "without a lot of tooling marks that is" it should take many many lead rounds to foul it unless you are shooting pure lead hand loads at high velocity. Get yourself a good bore snake and have a look down the barrel and forcing cone, you'll see any leading problem fairly easy.

 

[roar]

Pretty sure I see a difference there. Sorry the pictures aren't the best. My 442 barrel looks like EDM, yeah?