Rough bore 30 WCF

[stubbicatt]

Guys. I have an old 1894 that has a really dark, ugly, bore. It is chambered for 30-30. I cobbled together a load of 180grain RCBS RNFP bullet, 15 grains of IMR 4227, CCI standard rifle primer, medium crimp, and I shot it today for the first time on paper, to get the tang sight zeroed. After some sight adjustments, it shot at 100 yards 4 shots at about 1 ½ inches. This surprised me due to the condition of the bore, and reports that the 30-30 won't do but 2". Moreso was I surprised that it shot cast bullets well. I examined the holes in the paper for tipping or signs of instability, and *maybe* it was kicking left a little. It wasn't key holing indicating a twist issue, nor nose up or anything indicating it needed more powder.

I would have thought the sandpaper like surface of the bore would have abraded the bullets to the point that they would be very inconsistent, and fly all over the place. But they didn't. Is this sort of occurrence commonplace, where a rough bore shoots cast well? Heck, I was ready to give up on cast and just shoot jacketed bullets, or get it relined by Mr. Taylor, but out of the 25 rounds or so I shot today, the accuracy I was getting suggested that this is not a fluke for this rifle.

Can someone explain this to me? I'm sitting here scratching my head. I am pleased, but I don't understand.

[pietro]

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The 8th wonder of the world - why it's ALWAYS advisable to shoot an ugly bore, before condemning it.

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[HangFireW8]

If the crown is perfect and the last, oh, 1/8" of rifling, there is always hope.

[stubbicatt]

Ok. But why aren't the bullets like .270 or something from traversing that bore?

[HangFireW8]

Rough bores are usually larger, only smaller if heavily fouled.

[John Taylor]

I have seen some rough bores that shoot great and some really nice looking bores that didn't shoot good at all.

[gnoahhh]

I too have had rough bores that shot very well. Still in all, they bugged me until I did something about it.

[TXGunNut]

I recently had one that surprised me, like yours the bore looked more than a little iffy. A closer look with a bore scope and my expectations went even lower. First range trip I wasn't set up to load for it and it was very disappointing with some BP loads my buddy had. In spite of all that I cast and loaded a handful over Unique and got a bit of a surprise. It fouls a bit more than slicker bores, of course, but it's still a fun and reasonably accurate shooter. Some, however, will have to be relined or relegated to eye candy/safe queen duty but as HangFireW8 points out long as there's a bit of rifling left there's hope.

[MostlyLeverGuns]

Yeah, I've got a few of those rough ones. Sometimes it is best to just shoot the rough looking ones before doing anything else. A good trigger seems to be more important than a pretty bore for accurate shooting.

[Ragnarok]

Old awful/rotten/rusted/worn rifle bores!...I don't understand them!

Maybe only got two good shots left and still shoot ok??

[stubbicatt]

As poor condition as this one is, I bought the NECO abrasives fire lapping kit and thought to give it a try. I haven't tried it yet, as the rifle has demonstrated very passible accuracy. Now I worry that to actually deploy the fire lapping kit might destroy whatever accuracy the rifle has.

[lobogunleather]

As poor condition as this one is, I bought the NECO abrasives fire lapping kit and thought to give it a try. I haven't tried it yet, as the rifle has demonstrated very passible accuracy. Now I worry that to actually deploy the fire lapping kit might destroy whatever accuracy the rifle has.

You have achieved a very good result with your first attempt (bullet selection, powder & charge, etc). Now you want to make changes to the rifle (abrasive bore lapping).

If it ain't broke don't fix it. The roughness exhibited is most likely the result of corrosive (mercuric) primers, which were in widespread use for the first half of the 20th Century. While it may look bad, it may have little actual effect on critical dimensions (bore and groove diameters) and may not cause any serious decline in accuracy unless the corrosion has invaded deeply into the steel.

I have several Winchester, Marlin, Springfield, and Sharps rifles dating from the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. Most of them display some degree of degradation in the bore, but all of them are capable of shooting very well. The primary consideration is always a bullet properly suited to that rifle (bore & groove diameter, length & weight suited to the twist, etc).

[Gtek]

Paper Patching?

[TXGunNut]

I have seen some rough bores that shoot great and some really nice looking bores that didn't shoot good at all.

OP, John Taylor is someone you'll want to listen to. He'll be relining a 32-20 for me, probably soon. Question is, what do YOU want to do with that rifle? Does it have collector value? Do you want a plinker or a hunting rifle? if you want to harvest deer with an historic rifle you just need to work up a load and go hunting. If your rifle has little or no collector value and you want a rifle that may shoot better than when it was new I'd seriously consider relining.