Post by 45coltnut on Sept 15, 2013 17:09:18 GMT -5
bibbyman,
From my limited knowledge on this topic I'll do my best to answer. However, please anyone else jump in and correct my ignorance.
Fire lapping can in fact affect the throats if the throats are undersized. Therefore, I made sure my throats all were slightly over sized first before attempting this. In fact, that was my first objective as I sought greater accuracy. Once the throats were accurately reamed and accuracy was still not where I wanted, then I moved onto slugging the barrel. At this point, I found the thread crush at the frame. Therefore, the need to fire lap.
From all that I've read, fire lapping will greatly address the thread crush or tight spots more while also polishing the "rest of the bore". Like anything that involves abrasives such as polishing compound, you can take it too far as you are removing material. Therefore, with a less aggressive compound (320 grit) I'm firing in sessions of 12-24 and then inspecting for the removal of the tight spot or thread crush in my gun. After 48 rounds, I'm re-slugging with a new lead chunk to ensure I'm getting good results.
This is my first time doing this. So far, I'm both excited and disappointed in the results. Excited as I can see the bore becoming very polished and I can already tell a significant difference in how much easier it is to clean. This is great. But, my gun still isn't shooting the way I want it to. Of course, this could just be my gun. And it may like heavier bullets than what I'm pushing through it. So, all in all, I'm glad I'm doing it. Plus, from all that I have read, the stainless versions of the Ruger single actions are much harder steel and require more fire lapping. So, I'm still planning on loading 48 more and continuing on with the exercise. It may all come together at once. Hopefully so.
From my limited knowledge on this topic I'll do my best to answer. However, please anyone else jump in and correct my ignorance.
Fire lapping can in fact affect the throats if the throats are undersized. Therefore, I made sure my throats all were slightly over sized first before attempting this. In fact, that was my first objective as I sought greater accuracy. Once the throats were accurately reamed and accuracy was still not where I wanted, then I moved onto slugging the barrel. At this point, I found the thread crush at the frame. Therefore, the need to fire lap.
From all that I've read, fire lapping will greatly address the thread crush or tight spots more while also polishing the "rest of the bore". Like anything that involves abrasives such as polishing compound, you can take it too far as you are removing material. Therefore, with a less aggressive compound (320 grit) I'm firing in sessions of 12-24 and then inspecting for the removal of the tight spot or thread crush in my gun. After 48 rounds, I'm re-slugging with a new lead chunk to ensure I'm getting good results.
This is my first time doing this. So far, I'm both excited and disappointed in the results. Excited as I can see the bore becoming very polished and I can already tell a significant difference in how much easier it is to clean. This is great. But, my gun still isn't shooting the way I want it to. Of course, this could just be my gun. And it may like heavier bullets than what I'm pushing through it. So, all in all, I'm glad I'm doing it. Plus, from all that I have read, the stainless versions of the Ruger single actions are much harder steel and require more fire lapping. So, I'm still planning on loading 48 more and continuing on with the exercise. It may all come together at once. Hopefully so.