Ultra Mag barrel wear prevention?

[gandilamont]

I am looking into getting either a 338 or 375 ultra mag(R.U.M. not SAUM) for big game in Alaska. I have heard srories of the rifleing getting worn out in less than 1500 rounds!! Is there ant way to prevent this? I tend to shoot my big game rifles alot for practice and would hate a rifle to wear out that fast.

The 375's won't be too bad. Its the 7mm's you got to worry about. I burned the throat out of one 300RUM in like 1000 rounds. And had heat cracks in the neck of a custom in like 500 rounds. Idon't know why or how that happeneds. You can really extend the life by shooting lower powder loads. But then whats the use. Get ya a H&H.

[gandilamont]

What makes you think the .375 wont do the same thing?

Because its a .375 and the other was a .308. I am not sure what to tell ya. Is it not obvious?

[bigbulls]

As you increase the bore size the more powder that is able to burn before it will damage the bore becasue it has more room to expand and does not enter the throat at such a high velocity and temperature as it does in smaller bore diameters.

It also has a lot to do with the bullet weights. As you increase bullet weight the powders burn rate needs to be slower in order to generate acceptable velocities in a given case size. So since the powder is burning slower it isn't getting as hot as quick and the burned gasses are not traveling down the bore as quick and eroding the metal.

Still alot of it has to do with the way you shoot it while practicing. If you keep firing round after round and the barrel gets so hot that it will burn your hands then you will wear out any barrel quickly. If you take a shot or two and let the barrel cool then it will last you considerably longer. Remember that the hotter the steel gets the softer it gets and the easier it becomes to erode it away.



The .338 bore diameter won't be bad and should keep good hunting accuracy for several thousand rounds but the .375 bore will be even better.

[stubblejumper]

The throat will erode due to heat and pressure long before the barrel will wear out due to friction.The best way to reduce throat erosion is to not overheat the barrel.

[Solitary Man]

Yep, don't let your barrel overheat. I almost never shoot more than 3 shots at a time and I let the barrel cool completely between groups. One thing that I do tohasten cooling is to place a damp rag over the barrel between groups. In fact, I sometimes even shoot with the rag draped over the barrel. Doesn't seem to affect accuracy at all.