Heavy barrel necessary for long range ? I have a Sig 970 in 300win. and it is the most accurate arm I own and is capable of 1/2 inch groups or less was thinking of buying a Rem, 700 xcr tactical long range in 300 win. wish I could find a heavy barrel and bolt for my Sig.so far I have just been playing with a tactical program and shooting rocks at the farm out to about 800 Yrds just for fun .Me and my friends have been having a good time with the ballistic program. so what do you guys think?
Heavy barrel needed for long range?
- Thread starter DEZ
- Start date
Mystic Precision
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Summerland, BC
Any contour can be accurate at LR. The only question is for how many shots.
The heavier the contour, the more heat the barrel can absorb before warping.
ALL barrels warp to some degree as they heat up.
I have a Savage 7RM with a sporter contour that will shoot sub MOA a very long ways out for the number it carries in its mag in the cooler months. In the summer, it walks after the 2nd shot.
Top quality match barrels in a heavy contour usually maintain their accuracy even when the barrel gets quite warm. A positive byproduct of their stress relieving done during manf.
If you need barrels, I can certainly offer you Shilen blanks. Then a smith can machine as necessary to install.
Jerry
The heavier the contour, the more heat the barrel can absorb before warping.
ALL barrels warp to some degree as they heat up.
I have a Savage 7RM with a sporter contour that will shoot sub MOA a very long ways out for the number it carries in its mag in the cooler months. In the summer, it walks after the 2nd shot.
Top quality match barrels in a heavy contour usually maintain their accuracy even when the barrel gets quite warm. A positive byproduct of their stress relieving done during manf.
If you need barrels, I can certainly offer you Shilen blanks. Then a smith can machine as necessary to install.
Jerry
It certainly isn't NEEDED to be able to shoot long range, however most rifles used for mainly for target shooting will have a heavy barrel. This is mostly due to the fact that the heavy barrel takes longer to heat up to the point where accuracy drops off, but should also add some stiffness that will perhaps increase accuracy.
If you only want to shoot a few rounds and then let your barrel cool, an accuracy lightweight barrel will do just fine.
Edit: Looks like Jerry beat me to it...
If you only want to shoot a few rounds and then let your barrel cool, an accuracy lightweight barrel will do just fine.
Edit: Looks like Jerry beat me to it...
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- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
I've done some acceptable long range shooting with a sporter weight barrel, but as stated above, heat is not your friend. For the first cold barrel shot it should make little difference, given two barrels one a sporter and the other a heavy contour of equal quality. You wouldn't expect a barrel from an off the shelf rifle to shoot with an expensive custom barrel regardless of contour.
BigUglyMan
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- New Scotland
Stiffness is the real key in precision shooting. The stiffer the barrel, the better it will shoot, given quality construction, chambering, mounting and all the like. As a rule, a heavier barrel will be stiffer than an equal-length light contour barrel.
Big JD-From the hills
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Saskatchewan.
The added weight also aids in accuracy as recoil characteristics are changed with the added weight
The harmonic effect is more pronounced with longer and with thinner barrels. You need more mass to offset harmonics or you need to find a node where the harmonic effect is less noticable.
Quite frankly though, a match barrel with a proper chamber cut for the type of bullets you are using in the twist to properly stabilize them will blow away 95% of all factory barrels.
Quite frankly though, a match barrel with a proper chamber cut for the type of bullets you are using in the twist to properly stabilize them will blow away 95% of all factory barrels.
No I can't hit anything off hand but I have shot a heavy and a light barrels in the wind and it is easier to hold in the wind if your gun is heavier. You could add more weight in other ways but with the heavy barrel you get the accuracy advantage in multiple shots, it is a pain to carry though. I find in this game when you gain some you lose some. I do shoot to the limit of my scope which is 1056 yards and no it is not offhand it is from a bi-pod and on the ground. I was just trying to give some friendly advise but I guess thats not allowed.
Lots of good info here so I will try to stay away from the ground already covered.
In my experience adding appropriately balanced mass to a rifle system can help promote more consistent shot placement by providing a more stable (less easily disruptable) shooting platform.
My two 338Edge rifles (a 9 pound hunter and a 16.5 pound LRT) are a good (albeit extreme) example of this. Dry firing the hunter with a 30 power scope reveals slight movements not easily seen at hunting magnification while he LRT is like dry firing a stone. As shooting conditions become less stable the lighter rifle amplifies trigger control or shooting form related issues much more than the heavy rifle.
I would suggest that the heavier the trigger and the less stable the shooting position the more likely (within reason) additional weight will help.
If your rifle is balanced weight rearward and feels "vague" or floats around on the bipod then I would suggest that a heavier barrel should provide some improvement.
I'm not familiar with the exact model of Sig rifle you have, but I will say both that you need to look at your rifle as a system as well as how you implement that system in the field or on the range....Adding a heavy barrel might make your rifle more consistent, but the weight and its relationship to the rifles overall balance must be considered.
Heavy barrels fix neither poor trigger control nor bad shooting form.....Check the nut behind the trigger before all else!
Good luck!
In my experience adding appropriately balanced mass to a rifle system can help promote more consistent shot placement by providing a more stable (less easily disruptable) shooting platform.
My two 338Edge rifles (a 9 pound hunter and a 16.5 pound LRT) are a good (albeit extreme) example of this. Dry firing the hunter with a 30 power scope reveals slight movements not easily seen at hunting magnification while he LRT is like dry firing a stone. As shooting conditions become less stable the lighter rifle amplifies trigger control or shooting form related issues much more than the heavy rifle.
I would suggest that the heavier the trigger and the less stable the shooting position the more likely (within reason) additional weight will help.
If your rifle is balanced weight rearward and feels "vague" or floats around on the bipod then I would suggest that a heavier barrel should provide some improvement.
I'm not familiar with the exact model of Sig rifle you have, but I will say both that you need to look at your rifle as a system as well as how you implement that system in the field or on the range....Adding a heavy barrel might make your rifle more consistent, but the weight and its relationship to the rifles overall balance must be considered.
Heavy barrels fix neither poor trigger control nor bad shooting form.....Check the nut behind the trigger before all else!
Good luck!
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- Location
- Virden, MB
Even on a bipod and bag the gun moves a little in the wind. I agree that a heavier gun is easier to hold still.
