Firearms leaving the factory with dirty barrels

[2DaMtns]

I have purchased very few brand new firearms in my lifetime, mainly because a lot of firearms I like aren't in production anymore. I just took delivery of a new Henry .327 and swabbed the barrel when I got it home and it was fairly dirty. I called and the factory confirmed that the do not clean the barrels after the test firing. Is this common with all factories? If so, has this always been the practice? The rifle was test fired less than a month ago, according to the card in it, but I was fairly surprised that a new rifle would leave with a dirty barrel. I kind of feel like someone who paid new car price for one with 5k on the odometer already. I'm not regretting the purchase, just (a) curious if this known to those who've bought more new firearms than I have, and (b) want to let others who may not know to clean the barrel on new firearms when you get them home if you're not heading to the range right away.

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[Stomper]

All of the NIB firearms that I have purchased have had a "soiled" bore. The test firing does two things… confirms functionality, and provides a (ever growing) library of ballistic "fingerprints" for the national crime lab to compare recovered bullets at a crime scene.

They don't swab the bores because of the added production costs, and most purchasers will clean the bore first thing anyway regardless.

 

[Nosferatu]

In todays episode of Anal Retentive First World Problems.

I assume everything gets test fired. I don't give a rats patotie that they don't run a patch through it.

 

[clanhanson]

I've purchased far too many new firearms and most arrived with at least a little schmutz in the barrel. A bigger concern is just how caked with preservative oil many have been when new. That needs to be removed as it provided no lubricity.

 

[osprey]

Very common.

 

[ma96782]

In todays episode of Anal Retentive First World Problems.

I assume everything gets test fired. I don't give a rats patotie that they don't run a patch through it.

YUP....
Noncorrosive primers
and
Smokeless powder surely helps.

And don't call me Shirley.



Aloha, Mark

 

[DirectDrive]

I have purchased very few brand new firearms in my lifetime, mainly because a lot of firearms I like aren't in production anymore. I just took delivery of a new Henry .327 and swabbed the barrel when I got it home and it was fairly dirty. I called and the factory confirmed that the do not clean the barrels after the test firing. Is this common with all factories? If so, has this always been the practice? The rifle was test fired less than a month ago, according to the card in it, but I was fairly surprised that a new rifle would leave with a dirty barrel. I kind of feel like someone who paid new car price for one with 5k on the odometer already. I'm not regretting the purchase, just (a) curious if this known to those who've bought more new firearms than I have, and (b) want to let others who may not know to clean the barrel on new firearms when you get them home if you're not heading to the range right away.

You have it backwards.
It's not "value reduced".
It's "value added".

Your firearm has been tested to assure functionality and for high grade rifles, to assure accuracy.

 

[2DaMtns]

In todays episode of Anal Retentive First World Problems.

I assume everything gets test fired. I don't give a rats patotie that they don't run a patch through it.

In today's episode of Snarky, Non-Helpful, Opinionated, Basically Worthless, Not Even Grammatically Proper Replies....

This is a fun game, bud.

 

[Nosferatu]

In today's episode of Snarky, Non-Helpful, Opinionated, Basically Worthless, Not Even Grammatically Proper Replies....

This is a fun game, bud.

Somebody's nipples are twisted, bud.

 

[OldTengu]

Somebody's nipples are twisted, bud.

Twisted hard, bud.
I bet he's got a chapped butthole too, bud.

 

[OldTengu]

I have purchased very few brand new firearms in my lifetime, mainly because a lot of firearms I like aren't in production anymore. I just took delivery of a new Henry .327 and swabbed the barrel when I got it home and it was fairly dirty. I called and the factory confirmed that the do not clean the barrels after the test firing. Is this common with all factories? If so, has this always been the practice? The rifle was test fired less than a month ago, according to the card in it, but I was fairly surprised that a new rifle would leave with a dirty barrel. I kind of feel like someone who paid new car price for one with 5k on the odometer already. I'm not regretting the purchase, just (a) curious if this known to those who've bought more new firearms than I have, and (b) want to let others who may not know to clean the barrel on new firearms when you get them home if you're not heading to the range right away.

I think the only ones that I've purchased that haven't had dirty bores when new are a couple of my Glocks. I'm under the impression that not all of them are test fired after assembly.
Edit:
One time I bought a kimber that was so dirty I swore it was used. It wasn't. It looked like they test fired a whole case of ammo through it.

 

[gmerkt]

My sentiments favor the OP. It's a small point that has bugged me when I've bought new firearms. Which have mostly had smoked barrels, so I've assumed it's fairly common practice for manufacturers not to ship with a clean bore.

You pay $800 to $1,000 for a new gun, it would be nice if the bore was clean when you got it. "Proof" that it has been test fired is a Red Herring, that shouldn't be necessary. That's a justification, not a reason. But then again, these days new firearms commonly leave factories with worse problems so why expect a miracle such as a clean bore.

Worse, used guns for sale with dirty bores. There was a time when I would buy a used gun now and then from Cabela's. They had a policy of not cleaning bores of used guns, they said it would take too much labor. But a used gun especially should be looked at with a clean bore. Because previous owners might do any imaginable thing to the gun during their time. I've asked them to patch or bore snake a bore as part of my look-see and they obliged.

And do the factories really always test fire a new gun? Modern Smith & Wesson revolver barrels are electro chemically engraved as to rifling. At least centerfires. Which involves sodium nitrate, a salt. The one gun out of 500 that I didn't look down the bore was a new Smith & Wesson .38 Special. New in box, You figure, it's new in box, barrel must be okay, right. I got it home, started the routine inspection and cleaning and found a very dark bore. It was coated with rust. My guess, they forgot to fully rinse out the salts when the rifling was etched. They couldn't possibly have test fired this gun. Back to Smith & Wesson it went for remediation.

Re. alleged test firing of CMP rifles. It has been said over they years that CMP M1 Rifles all go through an inspection, disassembly, cleaning tank, reassembly, etc. then test firing. I know for a fact this doesn't always happen. They may do it for cruddy rifles. Some of the rifles I bought were taken from former US Army stocks, had been put away clean. Several hadn't been taken apart for decades, much less recently fired. The evidence was undoubted.

Re. the OP's Henry .327 Fed Mag rifle. Be sure to cycle the action (use some dummy rounds) many times under any holding conditions you might expect to use it. Cycle it slowly, cycle it fast. Those long, magnum length cartridges tend to issues more readily than say, a shorter to caliber .44-40 or similar. If you can find any bugs in the action, send it back to Henry and have them polish it here and there and get the action smoothed out. They will do a better job second time around than original, out-the-door quality. Speaking from experience on this.

 

[RVTECH]

On the flip side my Ruger PCC had a sparkling bore when I bought it. However it shoots very clean anyway so I suspect the one or two rounds they put through it didn't leave a mark.

The rest of it however was soggy with a very heavy oil like 75-80 and it didn't shoot properly until a complete cleaning.

That was my fault though for wanting to shoot it immediately after buying it - and it went from Bi Mart to the woods in about 15 minutes!

 

[oremike]

I always clean a new gun before shooting it. Alot of times they have a good coating of oil that is not a lubricant but a preservative. I want that crap off and out of my gun before I shoot it. Break Free is what I use for a first time lube/clean.

 

[Kruel J]

I have purchased very few brand new firearms in my lifetime, mainly because a lot of firearms I like aren't in production anymore. I just took delivery of a new Henry .327 and swabbed the barrel when I got it home and it was fairly dirty. I called and the factory confirmed that the do not clean the barrels after the test firing. Is this common with all factories? If so, has this always been the practice? The rifle was test fired less than a month ago, according to the card in it, but I was fairly surprised that a new rifle would leave with a dirty barrel. I kind of feel like someone who paid new car price for one with 5k on the odometer already. I'm not regretting the purchase, just (a) curious if this known to those who've bought more new firearms than I have, and (b) want to let others who may not know to clean the barrel on new firearms when you get them home if you're not heading to the range right away.

Sell it to me at "5000 miles on it" pricing. I'll happily shoot it dirty.

 

[RVTECH]

Break Free is what I use for a first time lube/clean.

Yea the PCC really had a lot of the oil in it and it got completely disassembled and hosed down with Brakleen to get it 'squeeky' clean! After that zero malfunctions!

 

[Jay Walk]

my new firearms have not been cleaned after the factory test fire.

 

[titsonritz]

Be worried if they are not.

 

[Alexx1401]

Some states now require a fired case given to the state with each one sold. Last couple Rugers I bought had 2 empty cases with the gun as this state did not want them. Guns I bought new have shown they were fired at factory for as long as I can remember. I have always given a quick clean and check to anything new so mattered none to me.

 

[3MTA3]

I'd personally rather they let me clean the bore, since I will anyway and it's one less opportunity for accidental damage.