Barrel Life Reduction With Suppressor

[AccuracyARs]

Interested in any knowledge or experience people may have on this topic (i.e. of barrel life reduction with suppressor use). I know there's a correlation (i.e. the more you use a suppressor the fewer rounds of barrel life) but don't hear people discussing it or their experiences.

[Rushthezeppelin]

Considering they are mostly going to be used with subs I doubt there's enough heat blown back. The only think I can think of is some of the crud in the barrel can wear it quicker. I'm not going to have to worry bout it as most of my loads will use PCed cast bullets which possibly take 100,000+ rounds. Nobody is really sure yet as far as I know (barring the freak barrel erosion a member had that was possibly due to flat black powder coating).

[r.tenorio671]

...."barrel erosion" is typically a misnomer in how it is used.

When accuracy degrades to a specific level on a consistent basis, then "barrel erosion" is considered to have occurred.

Where it gets tricky and misconstrued is where the erosion occurred and what has caused it.
"Chamber erosion" due to high or excessive heat based on powder composition altering the free-bore or leade angles will affect accuracy.

"Barrel erosion" of the riflings angles (lands & grooves) due to exessive/prolonged heat (power burn temps/bullet hardness & speed/sustained rapid/burst/full auto) can affect accuracy.

A damaged muzzle crown can also affect accuracy.

Each individually will have a negative effect on accuracy, in combination it will compound the negative effect on accuracy.

Some service manuals have recommended round count intervals to replace barrels, based on the design criteria, but at unit, organizational and depot level, the loss of stated/required accuracy standard calls for replacement, regardless of round count.

[Badfinger]

Barrels usually die from throat erosion due to extreme heat and pressure. When shooting suppressed my cases eject cool to the touch and I would think it more likely you will clean your barrel to death before you erode it out. Think about a .22 LR compared to a .223!

[AccuracyARs]

...."barrel erosion" is typically a misnomer in how it is used.

When accuracy degrades to a specific level on a consistent basis, then "barrel erosion" is considered to have occurred.

Where it gets tricky and misconstrued is where the erosion occurred and what has caused it.
"Chamber erosion" due to high or excessive heat based on powder composition altering the free-bore or leade angles will affect accuracy.

"Barrel erosion" of the riflings angles (lands & grooves) due to exessive/prolonged heat (power burn temps/bullet hardness & speed/sustained rapid/burst/full auto) can affect accuracy.

A damaged muzzle crown can also affect accuracy.

Each individually will have a negative effect on accuracy, in combination it will compound the negative effect on accuracy.

Some service manuals have recommended round count intervals to replace barrels, based on the design criteria, but at unit, organizational and depot level, the loss of stated/required accuracy standard calls for replacement, regardless of round count.

Hmmmm - - maybe I missed the point here - - so how does this bear on the original topic of barrel life reduction with the use of a suppressor?

[realtreehunter]

I asked the man that built my custom bolt guns this question once, this is what he told me.

If you have a removable muzzle brake you will notice a hard crusty deposit that builds up on the end of the barrel and is tough to clean off. (This may be in the way that he does his breaks, I don't know because he is the only person to ever put one on a rifle for me.) When you add a can on the end of the barrel this stuff is pushed inside the barrel because of the extra back pressure created by the can. This stuff builds up in the end of the barrel and robs accuracy.

I know this stuff is tough to get off, usually takes a minute with a wire brush and some brake cleaner. I am assuming from what he told me that the stuff would also wear the barrel due to the bullet pushing this extra abrasive down the tube.

All that being said, I mostly shoot my cans on two rifles, an AAC Handi and a mostly stock 700 in 7mm Rem. The Handi requires a box of ammo for the groups to tighten back up after cleaning the barrel so yep, I stopped cleaning it. The 7mm just gets many fewer rounds down it than the Handi and hasn't been given any attention since deer season but looking at the crown and the end of the barrel its time, matter of fact, I think I know what Im doing after dark tonight

[Whole Bunches]

I had not heard of reduced bbl life due to using a suppressor.

Background: I monitor bbl wear in the Blackout with different bbl steels and treatments.

I looked at my data in that I have more than one "plain" (no chrome lining; no nitride treatment) 4140 steel bbl in the Blackout. One bbl gets fired mostly suppressed (Handi Rifle); the other bbl mostly not suppressed (Remington M700). For the same number of rounds fired, the Handi is wearing a touch less than the Remington, and it's fired suppressed. Keep in mind, this is only one comparison. While I have other bbls mostly or always fired suppressed and some not fired suppressed, the bbl steel and/or treatment is different so I can't compare bbl life with suppressor due to the steel/treatment differing, but nothing jumped out at me from the data. In other words, I couldn't say, "Oh wow, that suppressed combination is wearing much more than others."

The Blackout has a long bbl life. Shoot often and be happy!

[hoser]

I have been shoot long range rifles with cans for many years. I have not noticed any premature barrel erosion from a suppressor. My last 243 barrel went almost 4,000 rounds before I pulled it. It saw less than 300 rounds without a can.

[rimshaker]

It's bore/chamber pressure from a fired bullet that mainly affects barrel life. Look at the shorter barrel life of the magnum calibers.

Using a can just makes the barrel dirtier. It's just hot gas backpressure at worst. No additional combustion or mechanical wear imposed within the bore.