I couldn't give you an answer to that question however, I would like to pose a question of my own. How many rounds do you have through that barrel?

 

Its 15 years old, and I know its seen a few thousand, but I haven’t kept track of it. I shoot steel at our range in the summer, and probably go through 3 to 4 hundred rounds, and I shoot bulleye groups in my garage in the winter, so maybe a couple hundred more rounds on top of those in the summer!

 

The land edges appear to still be there at the leade end.

What does the muzzle end look like? Can you get a photo?

-

 

My eyes aren’t great, but I can still see a spiral pattern, but the land edges look completely rounded. Compared this barrel to my sons new Service Model, and the rifling really stands out. Photo is about the best I can do with my cell phone, but I’ll add a picture of his barrel for comparison.
Photo one: new barrel in Service Model.

bottom photo is old Regent barrel, and I don’t think there’s anything left the camera can focus on!?

 

I can't really speak to a 1911 barrel but in the M14 world, match grade barrels typically show a noticeable decline in accuracy between 6000 and 7000 rounds. It sounds like you have pretty close to that through your barrel.

 

Some barrels have deeper rifling than others, but a pistol barrel normally good for about 45K rounds, a guy I shoot with has about 60K rounds of coated bullets through his STI 9mm, and that thing is a smooth bore now, absolutely no rifling left in it.

A rifle barrel will last longer if you don't let it heat up too much.

 

I have heard and read that a .45ACP barrel should be good for 25K or maybe more (i even recall one guy saying he had close to 250k through one), it is a slow low pressure round. Unlike a rifle (.308, .223, 300Win mag etc.) which as stated above tend to las 5K ish before they degrade noticeably.
That said my highest round count pistols have 10k to 20k through them and seem just fine.

 

Unlike a rifle (.308, .223, 300Win mag etc.) which as stated above tend to las 5K ish before they degrade noticeably.
That said my highest round count pistols have 10k to 20k through them and seem just fine.

Yah but those don't suffer from rifling wearing out they usually just suffer from accuracy loss due to throat erosion.

 

How does it shoot? Accuracy-wise

 

The best I can do off a bench is 4 to 5 inches at 25 yds now, but it never was a really good group shooter compared to a Mil Spec Springfield I had.

 

If you had a .450 sizer you could load a few lead bullets and bench them. 45 acp rifling looks thin from the factory. Most of mine will group .451 lead. I bet your barrel is good. Most 230 ball is .451. I size for .452 when shooting lead. Most gun barrels will lead it the bullet is too small.<lead bullets>

 

For $89 dollars I’m going to order a new barrel from Tisas, and some of their dark double diamond grips to breathe a little new life into my old Regent. The rifling in my son’s Service Model is much stronger than what is in my Regent.

 

Are you certain that the barrel wasn't that way from the factory because due to the low operating pressure and velocity of the .45ACP a decent barrel can last upwards of 50,000 rounds.

A 1911 barrel with only 11,000 rounds through it should have its original rifling in excellent condition.

 

I built a 38 Super comp gun for a buddy back in the 80s. It had a documented 80,000 plus rounds through it when he died from cancer. The throat was eroded, but the rifling was still fine. Mush higher pressures and usually wear out long before 45 ACP barrels.

 

That does look pretty bad, never seen one like that. Like above, probably came that way or was some pretty soft steel. Do you shot lead bullets a lot?

 

Many times improper cleaning practices can lead to excessive wear. Using a steel cleaning rod or a rod that's surface becomes impregnated with abrasive materials can lead to accelerated wear.

I usually use a bore guide when cleaning most of my firearms.

 

That. I bet it was over-aggressive cleaning, like using a metal jag, stainless steel 'de-leading' brushes, etc., that wore it down.

 

The rifling was stronger when I got around 2009, but then my eyes were better then as well. Its digested mostly Ball and Berry’s plated 230 gr RN.

 

I feel it wore out prematurely. I'm not convinced the quality of steel used in a Tisa barrel is on par with say a Kart easy fit. Perhaps a few bucks more for the Kart would be money well spent for a most likely more accurate and longer lasting bbl.

 

Perhaps a few bucks more for the Kart would be money well spent for

Get it quick, I saw yesterday that Mr Kart has turned 90.

An old gunzine article showing Bob Day at work quoted him as saying that with target loads, the barrel will wear out of fit before the bore shoots out. And the fitting can be redone. Of course that was in the Weld 'em up, cut 'em back. era.

 

I don't think that wear is necessarily from bullets - I think it might have been cut that way. We need to see what the cutter looked like when it was new. A lot of manufacturers will use cutters that are past their wear life to save costs. Some rifling types in use today in many handguns have angled edges like a Glock uses. I have several S&W revolvers with angled edges on the rifling and they spin bullets just fine.

 

I'm guessing it was manufactured that way. I can't see how a barrel would wear so much from shooting the number of rounds you relate to us and I know that you know out to properly clean a bore.

 

Only takes 2500 rounds if they are depleted uranium.

 

This whole thing sounds like a loaded question...

 

Not loaded—I’m just curious what others have put through their barrels before noticing significant wear, and a change in accuracy. I’m replacing the barrel with a new Tisas barrel as soon as I get my next paycheck. The pistol has been incredibly reliable since the day I bought it, and for $369 I’ve more than got my money’s worth from it—gunna give her a new barrel, and a set of grips, and figure she will last longer than me!

 

The lands in the top pic look fine to me. All the 1911s I've ever had looked like the rifling was too shallow. I may be wrong but I think Colt's specs call for lands .002 high in their .45 barrels. Seems very shallow compared to the more-or-less standard of .004 for most rifle barrels. Forum people, correct me here if I am mistaken!

 

This is an interesting thread. I've never shot out a barrel before. But I'm always ready to find I've done just that due to all the stories I hear from people around the Internet Round Table...

Jon.

 

I have seen barrels that were ruined by improper cleaning over years. Never did understand people that are opposed to learning how to do things right. More than likely the same mentality that does not read instructions.

 

I do clean it every time I shoot it. I’ve got bore guides on even my pistol cleaning rods—perhaps I clean too much, but we cleaned them every time we shot’em in the military and its my habbit. Haven’t used metal jags and lead removing meshes—it seen mostly .45 Ball (Federal and PMC) with some Berry’s plated the last five or six years!

 

If the barrel is made from a softer steel alloy it might wear out fairly quickly. I remember some guns made for black powder that you did not want to use jacketed bullets in, especially steel jacket bullets, just lead bullets only. Otherwise it would wear out fast. So I think the barrel was made from a softer steel alloy of some type.

 

This is my suspicion as well, but I certainly don’t feel ripped off after 15 years of trouble free shooting from it!

 

45 acp barrels have very shallow groves and what you have there is fine. I have a Dan Wesson w ~30,000 rounds and no change in accuracy and no visual change to the barrel, a friend has 2 Eyewitnesses each 100,000 rounds and both accurate after a decade of USPSA/Steel Challenge. I clean my barrel w Hoppe's and Ballistol, nothing harsh, shot only Blue Bullets ever.

 

OP,

I think if you slug the barrel in question, you will likely be surprised at how much is actually there.


SAAMI groove DIM is 0.450, +0.004