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Posted: 3/5/2008 2:21:17 PM EDT
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I'm assembling a primarily range gun with HD 2nd priority. If I primarily shoot at a 100yard range will I get better accuracy going with a 16" barrel as opposed to a 14.5"? Side note: I really wish I could get this forum search to work. Does anyone know why I can never get any results? Thanks in advance. |
| To be honest you won't tell a difference between 14.5" and 16". I would go with the 14.5" since its easier to use for CQB. I personally use a 11.5" barrel in my SBR for home deffense and get good accuracy at 100 yards. Of course if i'm shooting at say 600 yards then a longer barrel is better. Accuracy is more dependent on the quality of the barrel and ammo. |
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Velocity does not = accuracy. Consistency = accuracy. Shorter (14.5-16") barrels also have less flex than a similar contorured 20-26" barrels. Longer barrels = more velocity = less drop @ range. If what your worrying about is effectiveness at range, like p-dog hunting @ 250 meters, then more velocity is good. If you want a consistent arc of travel, then velocity can play against you. Especially if your pushing your pressures. |
Please scroll down this thread, WES seems to shoot sub-moa with a 7.5" barrel at 100 yards. Clicky |
Consistancy more closely equals Precision. If your intent is to hit a specific spot with the bullet, then the distance of the POI from that spot is accuracy, the closer the POI, the more accurate -- but accuracy can be measured with a single event. The ability to maintain repeatable results over several samplings is precision... think of this as group size. If you shoot a 1/2MOA group that is 2" from the POA, then precision is very good, while accuracy is not that good. By adjusting the sights/optics to move the group to the POA, so that you have a 1/2MOA group dead on the X -- then you have a high degree of precision and accuracy. Oh... BTW, barrel length can affect accuracy, but more as a secondary function. Long barrel equals higher velocity... higher velocity equals faster spin rate of the bullet... faster spin rate equals higher stability factor. If you have a projectile and RoT combination that produce a low stability factor, lengthing the barrel will raise the factor and show a result of improved accuracy... and precision |
Yeah, but you won't have that problem unless you're shooting the wrong ammo with the wrong twist. You can philosophize and mesmerize with words all you want. But a longer barrel doesn't necessarily mean better accuracy. There are alot more factors involved than length. And some have tested shorter to be more accurate due to it being stiffer. But I will admit that even that is not necessarily a blanket YES every time. As far as what the OP asked, the 1.5" is not what will make a difference in accuracy at all. |
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Many truths in this thread. A shorter barrel is stiffer than a longer barrel of equal profile. Greater velocity does equal greater spin rate which does equal better stabilization if your desired bullet batches your rate of twist. Accuracy and precision being different is weird. I can't think about that right now. Sounds like voodoo. Here's why longer barrels are consistently more accurate than shorter barrels. VELOCITY! Not higher velocity, but more consistent velocity. A lot of things happen to powder on the way down a barrel that affect burn rate from shot to shot. The longer the powder is contained in the barrel, the more likely it is to get a full burn. In a shorter barrel, standard deviation is, in general, much wider than it is in longer barrels. Consistency equals accuracy. |
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