Barrel Length??

[SuperCub]

Like Boomer said balance is everything.
You can make a short barreled rifle work well, but you need to pay attention to barrel weight.

Right! ..... MY 375 Chatfield-Taylor started at 24", but I had I cut back to 22". The improvement was very noticeable, but then the bbl is a bit heavier than most smaller cals.



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[Mighty Peace]

How is the #5 more accurate than the #4?

The fluting stiffens the barrel, more surface area for cooling. I went with a #5 just to have the same weight as a #4 after fluting-that was the main reason.

 

[SuperCub]

The fluting stiffens the barrel

How does fluting stiffen a bbl?





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[Boomer]

Did you take your 20" .375 to Africa?

Now there's a sore subject.

No I didn't take it. My travel agent had me going through the US to Amsterdam. I asked him repeatedly about issues related to transporting a firearm internationally, and he kept saying no problem. A short time before we were due to leave I found out about the intransit permits required, and of course by then I was out of time. I wasn't about to risk a $4500 rifle over a piece of paper, so it stayed home.

 

[Scott_N]

I voted 24".

 

[longbranch*]

Barrel length

I voted 24". I've hunted with pre-64 M70 .300 H+H and a Remington 700 .300 RUM, both with 26" barrels and found them "cumbersome" (that's a big word for me!) My "big gun" these days is a Mauser .375 Taylor with a 23" barrel with my other's being 24".
Geoff

 

[westcoaster]

I think that the ideal barrel length for an individual is pretty subjective. I have barrels ranging across the spectrum and rather like the way 24" and 26" barrels handle. For me, 22" is about the shortest barrel I am comfortable with. Again, for me, barrels shorter than 22" don't seem to "point" well and the rifle seem to handle awkwardly because they are so short.

About the only time I find longer barrels awkward is when I'm getting in and out of a truck - so it's not really an issue for me.