When breaking it in how often should I lube it? How can I tell when it is broke in? What weight Mobil - 1 works best? Is all of this in the Owners Manual? When breaking it in is it better to rapid fire or fire a few rounds and then cool? Is it better to break it in in one trip to the range or spread it out over a few weeks. I ordered my XCR from Aussie Arms and should have it in a few weeks just waiting on the barrel
I would not stress about breaking in or babying your rifle. Guns are like women, you got to slap them around every once in awhile to see what they can handle ;D
I say keep her wet before each time you shoot her. No break down necessary, just open the action and apply lube liberally. The more you shoot, the more the lube will work it's way through. Break in or no break in, I keep my guns wet. I have found that wet guns just operate better and they are easier to clean afterwards.
As far as oil weight, I don't think it really matters or makes a difference. Both heavy and light seems to do the job just fine. I like light such as 5w-30 only because it gives me the peice of mind knowing that lighter oil moves easier therefore lubing the gun easier. I also have tried 15w-40 and it seems to do just a good of a job. I guess common sense just comes into play here, if it is 100 F plus probably go with heavy, if it is below freezing, go with light, but in the end I don't think it really matters. Just use Mobil-1, it is great stuff!
I am not too meticulous when it comes to break in, and I always break in my guns in one day (if I have the ammo). Only thing I do is shoot 3 rounds, then clean with one wet (bore solvent) and one dry patch. I repeat this process about 3 times, even this might be a little overkill, but I do it just because it is a EricCartmann tradition. Then after tje EC break in method, I just blast away! If a gun does not function properly when new, I would be patient and give it time. Sometimes tolerences are tight and parts just need time to loosen themselves up and mate properly. My $1400 1911 had FTE problems right our of the box, but once I fired the first 50 rounds through her, she has been flawless ever since. My buddies AR-10 took about 100 rounds before it ran flawless. If it still has problems at about the 200 round point, then I would get a little worried.
It is another EricCartman ritual to put a light coat of lube on the inside of the barrel, there are guys who will recommend against this, but I believe anywere there is metal to metal contact, it is better to have a film of oil to slow down wear. Hell if it works for the internals of a car's combustion engine, then it is good enough for my toys.
I have found, if the barrel is not accurate it was not because you did not break it in properly, it was just born that way. I did not even bother my usual barrel break in routine with my Noveske, I was lazy and anxoius to shoot that day, and figured, what the hell, it's a combat rifle anyways. Turns out my 14.5" Noveske is just as accurate as my SS NM free floated M1A and my M1A was painstakenly broken in too!