Barrel Choice on Tikka
- Thread starter SPACEFORCE
- Start date
A 20 inch barrel will handle and balance differentialy that the 16. This can be a factor in PRS style matches for shooting off barricades. If you’re doing stuff in the field I’d probably go with the 16 inch just for portability and weight. Accuracy and velocity differences are going to be pretty unnoticeable between the two. I personally don't like the look of shorter barrel bolt guns, and that’s pretty much the sole reason I have a 20 inch on my rifle.
- Location
- Port Edward BC
When I bought mine from Precision Optical I phoned them up and talked to the owner. He asked me what kind of shooting I did and other questions that I can’t recall. In the end he suggested that I get the sixteen inch model. So I gave him my credit card and it was on its way. Never regretted it. Always had long barreled .22 LR before. It is quick to shoulder and it’s dead accurate. Probably not much different than a 20” really but I really like mine.
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A T1X rifle with a 20" barrel is 37.8" long. The 16" version is 33.7" long, less than a yardstick. Both are less than the average height of a 4 year old child in Canada.
In the scheme of things, a 20" .22LR barrel isn't really a long one. In the not-so-distant past 20" would have been considered a relatively short barrel.
There's the idea in vogue today that the shorter barrel will give faster average MVs (it may) and that faster MVs is an advantage. There is no advantage to faster ammo when it comes to accuracy performance. The most practical advantage to a shorter barrel is in jurisdictions that allow the use of suppressors.
The bottom line is that best way to decide which barrel is best for a shooter is by evaluating how the rifle balances, at the shoulder and in other circumstances.
In the scheme of things, a 20" .22LR barrel isn't really a long one. In the not-so-distant past 20" would have been considered a relatively short barrel.
There's the idea in vogue today that the shorter barrel will give faster average MVs (it may) and that faster MVs is an advantage. There is no advantage to faster ammo when it comes to accuracy performance. The most practical advantage to a shorter barrel is in jurisdictions that allow the use of suppressors.
The bottom line is that best way to decide which barrel is best for a shooter is by evaluating how the rifle balances, at the shoulder and in other circumstances.
