And a shorter barrel is easier to tune, and get shooting good groups.
20 inch vs 22 inch barrels
- Thread starter Caper3006
- Start date
It's a great all around cartridge. I've owned both standard and Ackley versions. One of my favorite walk around hunting rifles is a 788 carbine in 7mm-08 I bought about 45 years ago. 18 inch barrel. Great to carry. Very accurate. Powerful enough for any game I hunt. - dan
What a great thread. This is something I have always wondered as I'm so attracted to shorter barrels (16.5-20"). And as a new reloader I'm discovering that my inexpensive Savage 110 20" barreled 7mm08 is capable of producing ragged holes at 100yds with monoliths and bonded bullets like the Barnes TTSX and Nosler AB. I have owned so many short barreled firearms in a variety of calibers, but eventually sold them for one reason or another. I recently had a beautiful older Win model 70 .243 Carbine that I now kick my butt for selling after discovering the world of reloading.
To the OP - do not hesitate to buy a 20" barrel rifle due to reservations of accuracy. Like others who, have waaay more experience than myself, have stated - the 20" barrels are not less accurate they simply produce less velocity. Yet it is so negligible than your white tail deer or whatever game animal you're chasing will never ever know the difference at the distances you described.
Good luck with your journey
To the OP - do not hesitate to buy a 20" barrel rifle due to reservations of accuracy. Like others who, have waaay more experience than myself, have stated - the 20" barrels are not less accurate they simply produce less velocity. Yet it is so negligible than your white tail deer or whatever game animal you're chasing will never ever know the difference at the distances you described.
Good luck with your journey
I build a lot of custom rifles, and my favourite barrel length has settled at 21 inches. I have done a few at 21.5". I handload, so to offset the slight velocity loss, I load a faster burning powder so it all gets burnt in a shorter distance. I have several 375 H&H custom barrelled rifles in the 21" length and the chronograph puts them all within 50fps of a 24" barrel. The Browning X-bolt is the best bang for your dollar today in my humble opinion. It sports a 60 degree bolt lift, tang safety(my favourite safety style) and a detachable rotary mag. I have 3 X-Bolts and they all shoot under an inch out of the box.
TheMinusHuman
CGN Regular
- Location
- Chilliwack BC
Oh ya then a 20" barrel is all you need and it'll be much nicer to move around with. I have a .308 with a 16" and it's so nice to hunt big bush with.
- Location
- Saskatchewan
I'll be the dissenting voice. Short barrels have become very stylish for hunting rifles recently, and have a lot of supporters. Not me.
I have ( and like) a couple of rifles with 20" and 18" barrels. For me they are specialized tools that definitely give up some performance in order to increase "handiness".
They also sacrifice steadiness on target from unsupported shooting positions, greatly increase muzzle blast, sacrifice some velocity, and sacrifice the subtle dynamic handling characteristics of a well-balanced firearm.
If you like that, that's why there's market choice.
I have ( and like) a couple of rifles with 20" and 18" barrels. For me they are specialized tools that definitely give up some performance in order to increase "handiness".
They also sacrifice steadiness on target from unsupported shooting positions, greatly increase muzzle blast, sacrifice some velocity, and sacrifice the subtle dynamic handling characteristics of a well-balanced firearm.
If you like that, that's why there's market choice.
Not refuting what you have said, but I must add that I have many with 21 inch barrels that shoot well under an inch, and chrony quite high with the right load. I love the H&H as a cartridge. I am getting 2700fps out of a 300g bullet, hot load -yes in a 21.5" barreled Model 70 and it shoots 5/8" all day long. Several of my custom Rugers do the same.
I definitely agree. On the off hand shooting that is why there in hevey and reverse tapered barrels. My going from a heavy 26" 300wm to a lighter 19" 300wsm was a challenge at first. But some range time helped with that. My muzzle blast is still less than the guy at the next bench with a muzzle brake. I never here the first shot on a animal anyway. But you definitely don't want to shoot more the that without protection. Mouse fart loads in 16" 308 aren't pleasant either.
As far as moving them through the bush I personally don’t see much of a difference in barrel length between 20 and 22”. More about how you carry the rifle.
I would go with whatever barrel length satisfied my velocity, powder burn and or weight requirements. Obviously not choosing a super long barrel for the brush.
I would go with whatever barrel length satisfied my velocity, powder burn and or weight requirements. Obviously not choosing a super long barrel for the brush.
Fully depends on the bullets you are using. Those three cartridges can have a massive difference on game, even when compared to themselves.
.264 you can load from ~80-160 grain bullets
.284 you can load from ~90-195 grain bullets
.308 you can load from ~90-250 grain bullets
Of course different twist rates than the standard will be needed on the 7mm-08, and 308 to be able to run the bullets on the top end of the weight range. But massive performance difference on game, and that not even taking into account bullet type, or even their bullet diameter. When the 308 is loaded with some old 220 grain round nose bullets, yes you can get very good velocity with Ramshot Big Game, or RL17 powder, the 308 is very capable of punching well above what people think it is. For closer range shots. Same goes for the other two rounds when loaded heavy. A 160 grain woodleigh weldcore in my Creedmoor is absolutely devastating to all north american game.
But if someone is running loads on the light end, especially those that are lightly constructed, the effect on game drastically changes. People tend to just lump close cartridges all together, or base one cartridge on its performance with one bullet. The rabbit hole, if your willing to go down it, goes much deeper than 129 or 140 grain 6.5 Creedmoor, 120 or 140 grain 7mm-08, and 150 or 180 grain 308 loadings. Bonded, Partitioned, Protected Point, Round Nose, All the Lead Free types, Hollow Point, Match...ect ect. Just changing bullets type, not even grain weight persey, has a vastly different effect on performance on game.
honestly doubt anyone would ever know, including the animal, if it was shot with a 100 gr TTSX from a 6.5 Creedmoor or a 180gr 308 load of your choice.
I sure can't
Well except on the shoulder haha
Any of em with a properly constructed bullet for the animal is devastating.
Another rifle you could look for with a 20" barrel in 7mm-08 is the Remington Model 7. They also made them with 18" barrels if I remember correctly, depending on the version.
You could also look at the Browning BLR for a handy lever action. They have terrible triggers, but once you're used to it, can produce decent to excellent accuracy with its preferred load.
As for accuracy, there are no guarantees...find the ammunition or handload that your rifle likes. This will provide you with its (rifle's) best potential.
Shorter barrels are definitely handier to pack and out into play quickly when still hunting the thick bush (where many lever actions shine), or within the confines of a blind or stand.
As stated, handle before buying, then you won't be disappointed afterwards.
What hasn't been mentioned to any degree above is that many manufacturers are now offering shorter barrels on their rifles, as many other countries allow the use of suppressors, which adds length and weight to the barrel, and reduces the handiness factor.
It does improve the muzzle blast experience for the shooter, the game animals shooting at, and any others in the vicinity.
You could also look at the Browning BLR for a handy lever action. They have terrible triggers, but once you're used to it, can produce decent to excellent accuracy with its preferred load.
As for accuracy, there are no guarantees...find the ammunition or handload that your rifle likes. This will provide you with its (rifle's) best potential.
Shorter barrels are definitely handier to pack and out into play quickly when still hunting the thick bush (where many lever actions shine), or within the confines of a blind or stand.
As stated, handle before buying, then you won't be disappointed afterwards.
What hasn't been mentioned to any degree above is that many manufacturers are now offering shorter barrels on their rifles, as many other countries allow the use of suppressors, which adds length and weight to the barrel, and reduces the handiness factor.
It does improve the muzzle blast experience for the shooter, the game animals shooting at, and any others in the vicinity.
pete dobinson
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Courtenay BC.
A scaled down action and stock make a bigger difference to me over +- 2" of barrel length. If I added 2" of barrel length to my browning micro, I probably wouldn't notice anything out in the field.
