Rough bores and accuracy

[SIGSHR]

Anyone else have a handgun-or a rifle-that has a rough bore but is accurate. I have a 1943 Walther made P-38 that has a rather sad looking
bore but has fired 1.5" groups with Winchester Silvertips. I can see where a
rough bore would have problems with lead bullets, leading to lead scraping and deposits, but with FMJs or other jacketed ammo, it almost seems like it
doesn't make a difference.

 

[RickB]

I shot a Colt .32 auto with a very nasty bore. Pitted from end to end. Bullets were keyholing at ten yards, but they were flying pretty darn straight. I was able to get good hits out to fifteen yards, which is all I would expect of a pocket pistol with tiny little sights, regardless.

 

[Tripplethreat]

Years ago we had an M1 Garand that had been sporterized by a local master gunsmith. It had a beautiful stock with real hand checkering and the bolt was jewelled.Williams receiver sights. I never knew a Garand could be turned into such a masterpiece.The problem? The bore was so bad,when you looked through it with a light it looked like rust was just curling up from the rifling.We tried everything we could think of to get it clean and in shape,but to no avail.
The funny thing was,it was one of the most accurate rifles I have ever fired. Hitting a styrofoam coffee cup off hand at 200 yards was simply not a task.We did it repeatedly. Many deer killed with it,never a shot missed.
Very odd,and hard to explain,but it worked great. Wish I still had it.

 

[JohnKSa]

I had an EAA Witness in .45ACP with a terribly rough bore. It was quite accurate although I suspect if I had shot it a lot during a single range trip the fouling would have eventually caught up with me and hurt the accuracy.

It was a bear to get the bore clean after shooting...

 

[Tom C.]

Rough barrels can be very accurate, but that roughness usually causes metal fouling and the accuracy deteriorates. Lead being softer, fouls much more quickly. Jacketed bullets will foul as well, but more slowly. You may not see the effects in a short range session.
There are several cures for this condition. Hand lapping has been used for years. Fire lapping has been used and written about lately. I tend to just shoot jacketed bullets and then clean thoroughly and do it again. The bore eventually smooths up and I have fun shooting.

 

[jben]

Don't want to hijack this good thread, but Tom C. had something in his answer that I wanted to look into further. Along these thread lines, I have a model 657-3 41 mag that is almost like new, other than some machine marks in one spot in the bore - near the muzzle. The rest of the bore looks great. Will these hopefully lap themselves out by shooting alot? I'm hoping they will get better with use - I haven't shot it yet. Hopefully this adds to the poster's original question. Thanks jben

 

[JohnKSa]

If you're shooting jacketed ammo, it will probably smooth out--with lead, it's going to take a really long time.

I have noticed that the guns I shoot a lot get easier to clean as the bores smooth out and fouling becomes less of a problem.