Best way to straighten a bent barrel?

[Patrick Chadwick]

Never fired it so I don't know if it affects the accuracy or not and it isn't a milsurp but an 1886 Winchester in 45-90.

It depends on the length and depth of the ring, and where it is. IF you use black powder with plenty of lube, and do not clean between shots (as if for a military BP competition) then, after the first shot, the BP crud will tend to fill the dent and the bullet will pass over the gap without major distortion or gas blow-by*. The further the ring is from the muzzle, the better. Give it a try!

If the results are OK, then try with cleaning between shots. But stick to BP.

Patrick


*For those unaccustomed to BPCRs: A BPCR bullet should be softish-to-medium-hard lead (Brinell approx. 10 is my preference) and when it is fired over a good wad of lube it is in effect sitting on a hydraulic seal all the way up the bore. And if you are in a military competition (no cleaning between shots) your supposed bore-riding bullet nose is actually a crud-riding nose! (think of journal bearings) Gas blow-by? Leading? - Forget it!