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UPDATE: 7/31/2022 - Post #18


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Let me preface this by saying the BCA is working with me on this. They have given me the option to return the upper for a new barrel, but I am doing what I can to maybe solve it first. I will add that there is an awful lot of copper on the bolt tail as well.

The picture above is about 3" from the muzzle of my 450 BM barrel which is on the complete upper that I bought from BCA in February. From the first swipe with a patch when cleaning the new barrel I noticed a roughness near the end of the barrel and just thought is was something that would shoot out eventually. Last week I decided that I was going to take a look and this is what I saw. It is hard to tell from the photo, but it is copper and just in that spot in the barrel. Per BCA instruction I went to work with five different cleaners, a bronze brush chucked in a drill and countless number of patches with just OK results. Here is where I have left it:

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So now I am wondering why just this one spot? Could it have been cutter chatter? Or maybe the problem is further up stream and that is the spot in the barrel where the temperature is low enough for the copper to start to build?

Bullet has only been Hornady FTX both factory and reloaded. Also, I do clean all my guns after shooting but do not remove all the copper on purpose.
 
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My first barrel from BCA was junk - a single burr in the chamber which put a deep gouge in the brass, rendering it non-reloadable. They sent a replacement, which tooks months to arrive. On inspection, the replacement looks good but I haven't shot it yet 'cuz it's still in my spare parts bin.

The "why" is one of those questions that might never get answered. could be the tooling was fine, but something changed in the G-code programming which caused the tool to speed up, or if hammer forged, a defect in the mandrel.
IMO, it's a case of YGWYPF. I'd opt for a replacement.

Question - was it accurate, and as the buildup has increased, has the accuracy been affected? Are you seeing increases in pressure? While waiting on the replacement, you could lap the current barrel and see what it does.
 
First picture looks more like carbon build up over copper. Was the patches coming out black or blue?
 
Accuracy did not seem to be effected. Last week it shot the same "one big hole" groups at a 100 as it always has. The only thing I can add about pressure is that the brass, primers and ejection are fine.

They have asked that I return the whole upper for them to replace the barrel.

I does look like carbon, but here are a few patches I dug out of the garbage. There was a whole lot of coppers flecks coming out.

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Accuracy did not seem to be effected. Last week it shot the same "one big hole" groups at a 100 as it always has. The only thing I can add about pressure is that the brass, primers and ejection are fine.

They have asked that I return the whole upper for them to replace the barrel.

I does look like carbon, but here are a few patches I dug out of the garbage. There was a whole lot of coppers flecks coming out.

View attachment 1242843
View attachment 1242844
That's a lot of blue.

How many rounds you put through this? What ammo, bullets?

If it shoots fine and is fairly precise and it wasnt expensive, I'd say just keep shooting. Being a BCA I'd think the price isn't worth sending everything back for.
 
I've got about 300 rounds through it right now using factory Hornady FTX and reloading the same FTX bullet.

I agree that it does shoot just fine, I just hate to worry about it potentially having a full power squib. 😵
 
I've got about 300 rounds through it right now using factory Hornady FTX and reloading the same FTX bullet.

I agree that it does shoot just fine, I just hate to worry about it potentially having a full power squib. 😵
I doubt that would happen. Each firing smooths out any roughness, over time it will likely copper foul less and less. It's something you'll have to be aware of with this rifle and I bet over time you'll worry less.
 
Tomorrow we're headed out to Burns to shoot some Rats and if we get situated facing some hills I'll see what 450BM does to the little buggers. I'll check the bore after to see if it has started to build up again.
 
Tomorrow we're headed out to Burns to shoot some Rats and if we get situated facing some hills I'll see what 450BM does to the little buggers. I'll check the bore after to see if it has started to build up again.
An we get a definition of "overkill"??? LOL, 450BM on rats should prove interesting? Have fun.
 
🤣 🤣 🤣 That's egzakly what I have been imagining, but unfortunately we just heard from the outfitter and the rat shooting is bubblegummed and we're gunna save the trip. This is what we get for waiting so long to get out there. Now I'll have a chance to get the rest of that copper out of there and then go shoot a bunch.
 
So I went out and shot 60 rounds through this thing and came back to this. Note the red and green arrows pointing out before and after "the spot", and you can see the abundance of copper/carbon being left and the copper runs all the way through the flash hider. I am sending it back for replacement now, but what on earth am I looking at? I have never seen this before.

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