If you don't have a track to run it on , then yes burnish it in. I will burnish mine on the track , use the tuning runs to burnish it in. Then fill up the bores up and take it to the race. I found that most other graphites, the 3rd run was the fastest, with DD4H stuff the 1st run was the fastest, always. So I never run a break in lap or two, I figured I had 2 or 3 more good runs than everybody else in the finals.....SPIRIT....