tikka t3 270 win question

[birdhousepdx]

Hello. I have a brand new tikka t3 in 270 win. Im very new to firearms and i was wondering whats the best way to break a barrel in? I bought a box of federal soft 150 grain to shoot, i was told it was a good round? Any and all help would be great thanks.

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[Otter]

I don't really believe in breaking a rifle barrel in any more. If you insist, shoot a couple rounds and clean it with a bore guide, good rod, patches and a copper solvent. See if the patches show much blue from copper build up. Shoot it a couple more times and clean the same way. If you get a lot of blue from copper build up, keep shooting it a few times and clean until the copper fouling goes away. If you are not getting copper fouling, then I would say it is broke in. The 20 rounds you have right now should be enough to break it in. Unless you are hunting elk, I would stick with the 130 grain bullets in the .270 Winchester. That Tikka should shoot really well by the way.

 

[M67]

Welcome to the forum.

I have never found a need to break a barrel in, on a rifle or handgun.
No one can say for sure what bullet weight, or brand will group best in your rifle.
With some time on the range, you will be able to tell what your rifle shoots best.
My 270 Win prefers 150 grain bullets over 130 grain.

 

[civilian75]

+3 I have reached the same conclusion. IMO, break-in is something that happens while you shoot the first few rounds. I stopped doing it 3-4 rifles ago. Take it to the range, fire 20-50 rounds, clean it thoroughly and u r done. I usually run some J-B bore bright, too.

Otter's post sounds like a good compromise.

Tikkas are 1 MOA or less guns. I have a 308Win varmint that loves pretty much anything I load for it. When I have bad luck developing a load for any of my other 30 cal rifles, I work a new load for my Tikka to lift up my spirits.

 

[Otter]

M67 is right, try several bullets and weights. The 130 grain Remington Corelokt should shoot great out of that rifle and they are the cheapest you can get. A 130 Nosler Ballistic tip in either Federal or the Winchester Combined Technology brand is another one I would try. For a potential elk load, try a brand loaded with 140 grain Accubonds. That load can actually do double duty on elk and deer and be about as accurate as any bullet you will find. For an elk and deer load the 150 grain load you have would work great, but the best elk round in the .270 is a 150 grain Partition bullet. Those have the best knock down for the .270, but you might not get very good accuracy.

If you reload, and hopefully either you do or will start some day, H4831sc is about the best powder you can use. Great velocity and you get to pick your bullet of choice. I use mine for deer and a 130 Nosler Ballistic tip under a max charge of 4831 is deadly accurate and shreds the heart lungs of a deer.