Yes it did! My 35E went from only likely 5.54 FTTs to preferring JSB 15.89gr, 18.13gr, and 5.53 FTTs
Upvote 0
Comments, observation, bore polishing and point to argue
- Thread starter ThomasT
- Start date
First let me say I am far from being authoritative on the subject. But I don’t believe I’ve seen a true improvement in accuracy? Maybe a improvement in cleaning intervals, what I have seen is one of the big killers in accuracy is a tight spot in the first 1/4 to 1/3 of the Barrel and polishing doesn’t really take care of it. I don’t have the skills or equipment to truly remove material without probably making matters worse.
Then comes the time spent truly and objectively testing your efforts, (before and after your procedure) Pellet lots and weights that you have changed during testing, hold or the way the gun is held in the rest, atmospheric conditions on and on! You get my point.
To me it may be better just to try another barrel if your really dissatisfied with accuracy,( which I did a LW 10 groove for my RAW “a theory on poly’s” )
Anyway my thoughts.
Then comes the time spent truly and objectively testing your efforts, (before and after your procedure) Pellet lots and weights that you have changed during testing, hold or the way the gun is held in the rest, atmospheric conditions on and on! You get my point.
To me it may be better just to try another barrel if your really dissatisfied with accuracy,( which I did a LW 10 groove for my RAW “a theory on poly’s” )
Anyway my thoughts.
Upvote 0
Let me play devils advocate here for a bit 
There is a HUGE disconnect in understanding what is Polishing and what product/s ONLY POLISH or BURNISH a barrels bore.
AND .. what product/s actually can remove metal making the bores surface SMOOTHER ( Lapping ) ... Not polished and shiny BUT SMOOTHER !!!
So we end up at a question of what your wishing to have happen ? What does said barrel require ? What is Too much or Not enough ?
Now I'm not going to fully disclose my barrel prep procedures being a Professional tuner and National ranked FT competitive shooter, but will hopefully enlighten those who care or wish to get a bit more clarity on this often spoken of accuracy maker or breaker ....
Now I'm not a barrel manufacturer or ever been around the process be it Buttoned, Cut or Hammer forge etc ... Only that of figuring out is barrel a decent to good or great to excellent shooter & the if or not some further barrel prep may improve what you / we have to work with ?
Substances that use Organic DIATOMACEOUS earth such as common "Bore or Polishing Pastes" are by there very nature Burnishing / Polishing compounds that have a VERY Mild abrasive property. They will make hard surfaces shine but DO NOT have enough bite to actually remove metal beyond microscopic.
* I'm not saying stroking paste on patch can't help and often it does ! But it won't remove surface fretting or metal burrs which as stated above is not necessarily smoother .. there just shinier.
For many barrels ( Seldom hammer forged tho ) while a barrel looks good, may shoot alright, in reality can be a train wreck for actually surface smoothness benefiting from a MUCH MORE AGGRESSIVE miens of post prep that gives far greater improvements in accuracy, clean interval and all those things we want from a good shooting barrel. That being it is accurate all the time be it first shot of after many, does not readily foul, throw fliers or be overly pellet picky.
Here ... Substances / compounds that contain Carborundum or Diamond give you the BITE to remove more so the surface inconsistencies & burrs a polish won't touch. Grit here is VERY important as we wish to only mildly scrub the bores surface removing the aftermath of the manufacturing process and residual surface fretting, burrs & embedded gunk. ( 400-600 grit is ideal ) We're not looking to round off corners of rifling, open bore size or any such thing. FOLLOWING THE RIFLING HELIX is paramount !!! Never spun over the land/groove ONLY following it !!!
More times than not the bores surface is left very smooth & while not polished per-say is Not in requirement of further polishing & can be used AS-IS.
On a personal note & customer guns who get barrel work .... I Never use specialty bore polishes of any kind .. NEVER
Lazy morning thoughts & share ... FYI
Scott S
There is a HUGE disconnect in understanding what is Polishing and what product/s ONLY POLISH or BURNISH a barrels bore.
AND .. what product/s actually can remove metal making the bores surface SMOOTHER ( Lapping ) ... Not polished and shiny BUT SMOOTHER !!!
So we end up at a question of what your wishing to have happen ? What does said barrel require ? What is Too much or Not enough ?
Now I'm not going to fully disclose my barrel prep procedures being a Professional tuner and National ranked FT competitive shooter, but will hopefully enlighten those who care or wish to get a bit more clarity on this often spoken of accuracy maker or breaker ....
Now I'm not a barrel manufacturer or ever been around the process be it Buttoned, Cut or Hammer forge etc ... Only that of figuring out is barrel a decent to good or great to excellent shooter & the if or not some further barrel prep may improve what you / we have to work with ?
Substances that use Organic DIATOMACEOUS earth such as common "Bore or Polishing Pastes" are by there very nature Burnishing / Polishing compounds that have a VERY Mild abrasive property. They will make hard surfaces shine but DO NOT have enough bite to actually remove metal beyond microscopic.
* I'm not saying stroking paste on patch can't help and often it does ! But it won't remove surface fretting or metal burrs which as stated above is not necessarily smoother .. there just shinier.
For many barrels ( Seldom hammer forged tho ) while a barrel looks good, may shoot alright, in reality can be a train wreck for actually surface smoothness benefiting from a MUCH MORE AGGRESSIVE miens of post prep that gives far greater improvements in accuracy, clean interval and all those things we want from a good shooting barrel. That being it is accurate all the time be it first shot of after many, does not readily foul, throw fliers or be overly pellet picky.
Here ... Substances / compounds that contain Carborundum or Diamond give you the BITE to remove more so the surface inconsistencies & burrs a polish won't touch. Grit here is VERY important as we wish to only mildly scrub the bores surface removing the aftermath of the manufacturing process and residual surface fretting, burrs & embedded gunk. ( 400-600 grit is ideal ) We're not looking to round off corners of rifling, open bore size or any such thing. FOLLOWING THE RIFLING HELIX is paramount !!! Never spun over the land/groove ONLY following it !!!
More times than not the bores surface is left very smooth & while not polished per-say is Not in requirement of further polishing & can be used AS-IS.
On a personal note & customer guns who get barrel work .... I Never use specialty bore polishes of any kind .. NEVER
Lazy morning thoughts & share ... FYI
Scott S
Upvote 0
Motörhead, if I’m not mistaken lapping with a poured lead lap, is the only way to truly safely condition your bore? But I’ve never done so myself.
Upvote 0
Yup ... perhaps a part of what was not said ?
I not going into procedures that one could use, statements are that of bringing more clarity to a subject we see often and few really grasp what is happening or wished would happen.
I not going into procedures that one could use, statements are that of bringing more clarity to a subject we see often and few really grasp what is happening or wished would happen.
Upvote 0
- Apr 25, 2021
- 3,902
- 5,679
- 83
Hello Motorhead,
Nice to hear from someone in the business and a knowledge background. I used to own a machine shop with almost 30,000 sq feet of various machine doing work with requirement to .0001, so I really appreciate precision.
Thank you and have a great day,
ThomasT
Nice to hear from someone in the business and a knowledge background. I used to own a machine shop with almost 30,000 sq feet of various machine doing work with requirement to .0001, so I really appreciate precision.
Thank you and have a great day,
ThomasT
Upvote 0
That's my main concern. I was going to polish my barrels but hesitated because I have at least 6-8 tins of best shooting pellets for each gun I own and don't want to risk wasting those pellets after barrel polishing.
Upvote 0
Is the gun shooting well? The only reason I even attempted it on mine because over an inch at 30m was unacceptable to me. Had the gun been shooting well, I wouldn't have touched it.
Edit: I should mention that it still likes the 5.54 FTTs as it did before. It just shoots a wider variety of pellets now. I wasn't sure if I made that clear in my last comment.
Last edited:
Upvote 0
When I was shooting high-power competitively (late 1990's to early 2010's) I started out polishing the bore of each new barrel along with selecting the best reload, of my own making. Years later, I had stopped polishing the bores and only shot high quality ammo made by a manufacturer. My results at the range were not negatively effected.
I treat air rifles the same, today. The more things you change/modify in your shot process, the less likely you are to know what is causing a problem, or solving a problem. Limit changes to one thing, at a time.
I treat air rifles the same, today. The more things you change/modify in your shot process, the less likely you are to know what is causing a problem, or solving a problem. Limit changes to one thing, at a time.
Last edited:
Upvote 0
One of my gun with hammer forged cz barrel fouls after 500 shots, would be nice if I can reduce the cleaning interval.
Upvote 0
Don't do what I just did. I took apart my Brocock Sniper HR and pulled the barrel and removed the shroud. Lite clamp in a vise to hold on to the barrel, removed the Probe O-Ring, found the Bore Paste. Took out the mops and opened the bore paste. It was tan, and I had it for a while, unused.
So I proceeded to go through the process of polishing the bore. About 30 minutes later, it's all cleaned up and ready to go. Or so I thought.
It would appear that all the abrasive had settled to the bottom of the little jar. So I spent all that time and functionally did nothing.
So now I have to buy some more .25 cal mops and take everything apart again and actually polish the bore.
FYI - Once I mixed the paste up with the abrasive it's a nice dark GREY color.
So I proceeded to go through the process of polishing the bore. About 30 minutes later, it's all cleaned up and ready to go. Or so I thought.
It would appear that all the abrasive had settled to the bottom of the little jar. So I spent all that time and functionally did nothing.
So now I have to buy some more .25 cal mops and take everything apart again and actually polish the bore.
FYI - Once I mixed the paste up with the abrasive it's a nice dark GREY color.
Upvote 0
- Apr 25, 2021
- 3,902
- 5,679
- 83
Hello Smitty911,
Well we all have situations like that so hang in there.
Have a great evening,
ThomasT
Upvote 0