Borescopes - Wow!

[Alex Wheeler]

I use mine to inspect and document every new barrel/chamber that I receive. I'll be the first to admit that I really don't know exactly what I'm looking for. Wish there was more for tutorials with pictures, describing what to look for and what is normal. If I see something concerning in a chamber job, which I have several times, pictures are taken and filed. If I later have actual issues, I can pull out the pictures as part of the troubleshooting/documentation process.

I use it to check for carbon rings and to make sure that the throat area is free of carbon before I re-measure length-to-lands when chasing-the-lands.

It has also taught me that I do not need to clean to perfection for good results on-target, and that a clean chamber/throat is much more important than a clean barrel.

I plan to do one (tutorial) when/if I get a camera setup for my hawkeye. I have not been able to get a picture through the scope.

 

[savagedasher]

The last time I had a barrel quit shooting it died in three shots
The bore scope showed it was junk two years before . But it was shooting 3/8 at one hundred
If you have a bore scop you wold never buy a old Winchester or a savage ever
Barrels are like women pretty don’t make them good

 

[savagedasher]

I agree. I don't go looking for excuses to condemn a barrel, but when one won't shoot a group, I like to know why. Precisely why, when possible. And in that role, the borescope aids in determining the cause.

I don’t see where looking at it would be needed replacement is the answer

 

[savagedasher]

Fine. Don't use a borescope, then. I'll choose to use mine when I want to diagnose a problem. That OK with you?

Sheeeesh.

That the way I see it .
I have one i will sell
I have a couple of barrels I will send with it
One looks good the other is trash
But both won’t shoot
I don’t have the tools to check the good one and can’t see it with a bore scope
But it just won’t shoot
I seen Alex chase a barrel all summer
Not Matt what he doing it just wouldn’t shoot
I’m sure he used a bore
Enjoy yours
To me they are great for sales and a must for gun smith

 

[Someoldguy]

Ok, I'm out. Y'all have a good afternoon.

 

[savagedasher]

I got to go put a race motor together and degree the cam in

 

[Milo 2.0]

I both agree and disagree with some of the comments I've seen in this thread. I will say I find it somewhat amusing that it comes up in every cleaning thread, but then in this thread folks are saying they shouldn't be owned because you can't interpret what you're seeing.

I sure hope this comment isn't stemming from my post. We all achieve different levels of tool usage, and we all learn at a different pace too. I encourage buying a borescope, if for nothing else than just cleaning.
Owning one does not make a guy like me a top barrel maker, or a top trouble shooting gun smith, but I know this.
Mine helped me identify and iron out an inclusion in a proof carbon barrel last August that if left untreated would've become problematic down the road as far as having to clean prematurely.
I hope you have as much fun with your new outfit as I did with mine. The minute we stop learning, the spiral down comes fast. Do find a way to post pics from the new unit, sorry, but the gen 1 Lyman did not impress me much.

 

[MikeMcCasland]

I sure hope this comment isn't stemming from my post. We all achieve different levels of tool usage, and we all learn at a different pace too. I encourage buying a borescope, if for nothing else than just cleaning.
Owning one does not make a guy like me a top barrel maker, or a top trouble shooting gun smith, but I know this.
Mine helped me identify and iron out an inclusion in a proof carbon barrel last August that if left untreated would've become problematic down the road as far as having to clean prematurely.
I hope you have as much fun with your new outfit as I did with mine. The minute we stop learning, the spiral down comes fast. Do find a way to post pics from the new unit, sorry, but the gen 1 Lyman did not impress me much.

Hey Milo,

Your specific comment didn't trigger my response, and I hope I don't come across as combative/contrary. This thread kinda got needlessly contentious rather quickly. I will say fundamentally I think it's always a good thing to have visibility; it's probably more in how you interpret/use the visual aids.

I did manage to snap some pics, but once on the PC I'm a little disappointed. I don't know if they updated the screen, but didn't update the image compression when saving the file, or what the deal is. Lyman Electronics aren't exactly 21st century quality, so the pics on the PC are a little disappointing. It looks better on the display; I'll see if I can't snap a cell phone pic of the external display.

Either way, here's a Bartlein .260 with ~1,700 rounds on it. I've shot it in 3 F-Open matches, and the rest of the time was spent either load developing, or just screwing around while suppressed.

Hugs & Kisses
Mike

 

[msinc]

Some of the posts on this thread remind me of the old joke "you don't want to know".....guys wife dies and leaves a note for him to "look in the trunk in the attic, there's a small gift for you". He finds $1000 and an ear of corn. He spends the rest of his life wondering about the ear of corn and whatever meaning it has. Finally they are united again in heaven and he thanks her for the gift saying that he realizes how long it must have taken to save up $1000 since she was a house wife and home maker her whole life with no income. He asks about the ear of corn and she looks down and replies, "well when I cheated on you I put an ear of corn in the trunk and I am sorry for that now." At first he's pretty upset and then gets thinking "only one time is not too bad, I guess I can forgive you for that but how long did it take you to save up the $1000???" she said, "well, corn was $3.00 a bushell".......the point being sometimes you don't want to know!!!!! Borescopes and women...they appear to have some things in common for some men.

 

[MikeMcCasland]

Here's a cell phone pic; it's as good as I could get in 30 seconds of playing with it. It's also compressed down from the original image size.

The images I've seen online of the Gen1 literally do look like the first color cell-phone screens; this has a higher resolution than that.

 

[270 ftw]

Does the gen 2 have a fold out kick stand or just the rounded hump?

Did you search anything special on amazon to get the gen 2? Im not seeing anything to to indicate the Gen 2 on my Amazon search. Thanks in advance

 

[jpx2rk]

I've got a Lyman, I learned my cleaning routine needed revising, and factory barrels are on the fugly side. I've got only factory barrels, I was very disappointed in 2 brand new savage barrels, but both still shoot satisfactory groups for me. I am satisfied for the $$ I spent on those guns. My R700 barrel does look a bit better but does not shoot any better groups than the savage, both 223. I'm still satisfied.

 

[MikeMcCasland]

Does the gen 2 have a fold out kick stand or just the rounded hump?

Did you search anything special on amazon to get the gen 2? Im not seeing anything to to indicate the Gen 2 on my Amazon search. Thanks in advance

I didn't search anything specific; I just ordered it and was going to live with whatever version I received. It does come plastered on the front of the box "new and improved screen resolution".

Here's the link to the one I ordered...~$189 on sale.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00URUE84W/?tag=accuratescom-20

 

[270 ftw]

I didn't search anything specific; I just ordered it and was going to live with whatever version I received. It does come plastered on the front of the box "new and improved screen resolution".

Here's the link to the one I ordered...~$189 on sale.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00URUE84W/?tag=accuratescom-20

Awesome! Thanks for the info, I just ordered one. Had a gen 1 and was amazed to find out my cleaning routine was not removing carbon from the neck area. SD and groups were greatly improved when I figured it out

 

[47WillysGuy]

The Lyman works very well for me. I want to know what’s happening in the dark recesses of the barrel. It helps me take care of the barrel, when I hit more 9’s than I should, then I’ll replace the barrel no matter what it looks like on the interior.

 

[Phil3]

I may order the Lyman myself, but this thread has caused me to evaluate just what will I see, what will it mean, what will I do with that information, and how will it help me. Barrels can behave very unpredictably and contrary to expectations, so if I see carbon, copper, tooling marks, etc., and it still shoots (some do), now what? Or what if it looks perfect and it shoots like crap? I am struggling to understand how I can intelligently make use of what I see in the borescope in a way that helps accuracy. Maybe accuracy falls off and I see that happens with a certain degree of buildup in the barrel, and the accuracy returns after a cleaning. OK, but I would know that just by cleaning every so many number of rounds w/o a borescope.

I am not qualified to look at a bore and draw conclusions on barrel performance. I can believe what my eyes tell me on a target and how those results coincide with other barrel information, like cleaning regimen, rounds fired, etc. I guess this explains why I have not yet ordered a scope.

Phil

 

[Medic505]

Ok, I'm out. Y'all have a good afternoon.

Don't leave now, it's just getting good!

 

[Alex Wheeler]

I got to go put a race motor together and degree the cam in

You sell your bore scope, and I'll sell you my old degree wheel. Thats something I will NEVER use again!

 

[Rustytigwire]

All things in moderation. There are no absolutes. Let your bore scope give illumination, do not be blinded by what it reveals.

 

[JMayo]

Hummm, I

I may order the Lyman myself, but this thread has caused me to evaluate just what will I see, what will it mean, what will I do with that information, and how will it help me. Barrels can behave very unpredictably and contrary to expectations, so if I see carbon, copper, tooling marks, etc., and it still shoots (some do), now what? Or what if it looks perfect and it shoots like crap? I am struggling to understand how I can intelligently make use of what I see in the borescope in a way that helps accuracy. Maybe accuracy falls off and I see that happens with a certain degree of buildup in the barrel, and the accuracy returns after a cleaning. OK, but I would know that just by cleaning every so many number of rounds w/o a borescope.

I am not qualified to look at a bore and draw conclusions on barrel performance. I can believe what my eyes tell me on a target and how those results coincide with other barrel information, like cleaning regimen, rounds fired, etc. I guess this explains why I have not yet ordered a scope.

Phil

You learn ...
clean it really good,
A: shoots great. B: doesn't shoot good.
Leave the ring A: shoots good. B: doesn't shoot good.
Leave that little trace of lead... A or B
I'd say all copper needs to be out.
but still A or B
So on and so on