dave dog Posted May 12, 2009 Report Share Posted May 12, 2009 (edited) Proably one of the oldset question to keep being asked, barrel profile. Which one to chose. Spoke to quite few gun shop over the past few weeks about 22.250 rifles. About 50/50 split some saying have to use heavey barrel in this caliber and the other saying that a normal sporter barrel will be fine for the type of shooting that i will do vermin/fox or very small chance of use it on deer where legal. I can see that heavey barrel will give better accuary at long range over say 300yrd but how often i shoot at that ? As it's better shooting platfrom. Or am I better going down the line of a sporter barrel as I do about 50/50 back of truck/stalking. A few gun shops have said that i will a sporter out in as little 1000/1500 shots and a Heavey barrel will 3000/4000 is this ture. Need some help. Dave Edited May 12, 2009 by dave dog Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PAULT Posted May 12, 2009 Report Share Posted May 12, 2009 for the sake of an extra pound in weight id go for the heavier barrel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baldrick Posted May 12, 2009 Report Share Posted May 12, 2009 I ditched my heavy-barreled .243 for a .22-250 fitted with a standard barrel. For the shooting I do (a mix of foxing from the truck, hare/vermin shooting off the bipod and the odd foray after muntjac), I prefer the lighter weight. I tend to shoot little and often, so the lighter barrel's ability to cool down quickly is quite useful. I don't set much store in the concept of a heavy barrel being an advantage in standard British hunting scenarios. My .22-250 does Minute of Magpie at nearly 400 yards, and further load development would stretch that further. If I want to shoot over long distances, I tend to pick a larger rifle. I'm mystified about the claims that a sporter barrel has an inherently reduced life when compared to a heavy barrel. That smacks of uninformed ******** to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackbart Posted May 12, 2009 Report Share Posted May 12, 2009 I opted for the heavy barrel route on my 22-250,but that is just personal choice.I dont see how a lighter barrel will be shot out quicker than a heavy barrel as rifling is rifling and if it is so light that it wears quicker then it shouldnt have a proof and is dangerous. I prefer a heavy gun and as it is resting on a bipod 99% of the time the extra weight actually keeps it solid and steady.When i was looking for a fox gun i really fancied a tikka....until i picked one up and shouldered it and i hated it.There was five 22-250's in the shop and i would have bought the other 4 before the tikka.On the other hand if i wanted a stalking rifle the tikka would have come in the top 2. So it is a horses for courses thing,dont get hung up on names and image,just pick up as many as you can and pick one that feels right for you,whether that be light or heavy barrel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harnser Posted May 12, 2009 Report Share Posted May 12, 2009 Been there done that,done it all over the years and used all different weight barrels . My choise now is the lightest rifle i can find thats why my choise now is a loverly light weight m77 scout in .308 . Make no mistake a light weight barrel shoots just as hard and accurately as a heavy weight . It will heat up quicker ,but how many succesive shots do you take at deer or foxes ,1 or maybe 2 . Harnser . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcbruno Posted May 13, 2009 Report Share Posted May 13, 2009 I have owned alot of guns and i do like heavy barrel guns for target and bench competition work, and shooting at very long ranges. i know a fella back in saskatchewan Canada who is a retired game wardan and presently a gun writter an hunts all over Canada,USA, and South Africa and he routinley takes mule deer at 1000 m with a winchester heavy barrel 308 in the bad lands of southern saskatchewan where it is very wide open and nobody around for miles and miles. if you have a hunting area like this and finding a high feature and waiting with binos and a hb rifle invest in some good glass and good bullets then a heavy barrel rifle is great, but from my experience a sporter barrel does just about everything including those 500m shots if your keen and if you like to stalk or walk game trails all day long i think a cz or tikka sporter is all and more than you need. hope this helps as from what i can tell hunting and shooting ethics plays a little differently in the UK then in Canada but generally a keen marksman is the same where ever you go. Neil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cubix Posted May 13, 2009 Report Share Posted May 13, 2009 It's not more accurate, that's rubbish. It just heats up slower and so is more consistent for longer. even then, its not like a light barrel is shooting all over the place. If you shoot lots of rounds quickly at one time - rabbits, or targets, it would make a difference at long range, if not then there's no difference. For what you said, fox and deer you dont need one. Save the dosh and get anormal one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
libs Posted May 13, 2009 Report Share Posted May 13, 2009 Why do target rifles both small and fullbore come in the heavy variety....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cubix Posted May 13, 2009 Report Share Posted May 13, 2009 Because they are fired a lot in quick succession and it slows down heating of the barrel and changes in the harmonics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
libs Posted May 13, 2009 Report Share Posted May 13, 2009 You have obviously never sat in for a card of .22 prone. Minimum of 10 mins on each detail, and little over 15 shots will be fired, so I don't think heat is an issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Browning Posted May 13, 2009 Report Share Posted May 13, 2009 A few gun shops have said that i will a sporter out in as little 1000/1500 shots and a Heavey barrel will 3000/4000 is this ture. Absolute rubbish! If I were you I would stay clear of those gunshops in future and find one that knows what they're talking about. No need for heavy/varmint profile barrels unless you intend to do lots of papaer punching in long sessions. I have a sporter weight barrel on my 6mm BR and it will shoot the 'nads of a magpie at 500 yards with great regularity..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest topshot_2k Posted May 13, 2009 Report Share Posted May 13, 2009 heavy barrel on my .17HMR as i shoot alot when laping rabbits, lighter barrel for centrefire as it has less use Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcbruno Posted May 13, 2009 Report Share Posted May 13, 2009 like the fellas are saying a heavy barrel is no more capable of launching projectiles on its own and like what was also said the barrel heats up a little slower thats why both snipers and target shooters use a heavier barrel as you are going to be cycling more rounds quicker, however a heavy barrel off a bipod making a heavier and more steadey platform may for some shooters offer increase in acuracey and less recoil as the gun is heavier and will expell less recoil but for hunting i don't know why so many people swear by a heavy barrel i would hate walking around in the mountains with one and another disadvantage is if either a game animal and or a dangerouse predator presents itself quicky a sporter barrel rifle is better for quick snap shooting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJLeslie Posted May 18, 2009 Report Share Posted May 18, 2009 I opted for the heavy barrel route on my 22-250,but that is just personal choice.I dont see how a lighter barrel will be shot out quicker than a heavy barrel as rifling is rifling and if it is so light that it wears quicker then it shouldnt have a proof and is dangerous.I prefer a heavy gun and as it is resting on a bipod 99% of the time the extra weight actually keeps it solid and steady.When i was looking for a fox gun i really fancied a tikka....until i picked one up and shouldered it and i hated it.There was five 22-250's in the shop and i would have bought the other 4 before the tikka.On the other hand if i wanted a stalking rifle the tikka would have come in the top 2. So it is a horses for courses thing,dont get hung up on names and image,just pick up as many as you can and pick one that feels right for you,whether that be light or heavy barrel. You say you didn't like tikka, what breed of rifle did you go for then? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackbart Posted May 18, 2009 Report Share Posted May 18, 2009 You say you didn't like tikka, what breed of rifle did you go for then? Winchester 70 ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njc110381 Posted May 19, 2009 Report Share Posted May 19, 2009 I found that when I had my heavy barrelled .223 it made me slightly less keen to get out of the truck and walk! With a scope, mod and bipod on the thing it weighed a ton! Unless you plan to fire lots of shots quickly go for a sporter. They're much more user friendly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macca Posted May 19, 2009 Report Share Posted May 19, 2009 A few gun shops have said that i will a sporter out in as little 1000/1500 shots and a Heavey barrel will 3000/4000 is this ture Dont go to those shops, they are full of it - greatest load of garbage Ive heard for a long time. Most throat erosion occurs in the first 2 inches from the chamber. This is under the knoxform of the barrel . This part of the barrel is usually the same diameter whether is be a sporter or varminter. If you want a walk around rifle that shoots infrequently - sporter is the way to go. If you shoot predominantly from a vehicle and weight is not an issue - then a varminter. My main gun is a Sako with a varmint weight barrel as I shoot from vehicles or from my quad bike. A moderator on a sporter barrel acts similarly to a barrel tuner and can in fact improve accuracy. Choice of rifle style really depends on how you are going to use it - in a hunting situation you are really not going to notice any significant difference in accuracy Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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