Ron Smith gain twist?
- Thread starter matt88
- Start date
I don't know if there is a great advantage with gain twist barrels and modern cartridges as I have not experimented with them...
Originally they were a benefit when black powder rifles went from using round ball to a elongated slug. The slow twist it starts at allowed the lead bullet to engrave properly and at the end the twist had increased enough to stabilize the longer projectile. A quick twist right at the start caused a lot of lead smear and fouling and loss of accuracy. You had to keep the velocity lower.
One of the most successful accuracy men back in those days was named Pope. I believe he thought a slight gain twist with round balls made a better gas seal.
Hopefully Bill Leeper will jump in here as I know he is experienced with Ron Smith's gain twist barrels...
Originally they were a benefit when black powder rifles went from using round ball to a elongated slug. The slow twist it starts at allowed the lead bullet to engrave properly and at the end the twist had increased enough to stabilize the longer projectile. A quick twist right at the start caused a lot of lead smear and fouling and loss of accuracy. You had to keep the velocity lower.
One of the most successful accuracy men back in those days was named Pope. I believe he thought a slight gain twist with round balls made a better gas seal.
Hopefully Bill Leeper will jump in here as I know he is experienced with Ron Smith's gain twist barrels...
Any advantages which gain twist barrels may have are largely unproven. There is a possibilty of increased velocity due to a better gas seal and I must say, the gain twist barrels I have used have shown good velocities. 3050 fps with 107 grain bullets from a 26" 6BR ain't bad.
Accuracy with the gain twist barrels is neither better nor worse.
Drawbacks? The only real drawback is that you are stuck with a given barrel length once the barrel is installed. Shorten it and your rate of twist is reduced. Not a big deal since most don't shorten barrels all that often!
I personally think the rate of gain should be moderate. For instance;if I want to finish off with a 10 twist, I don't want to start any slower than about 18. This is my opinion only to be taken for what it's worth. Regards, Bill.
Accuracy with the gain twist barrels is neither better nor worse.
Drawbacks? The only real drawback is that you are stuck with a given barrel length once the barrel is installed. Shorten it and your rate of twist is reduced. Not a big deal since most don't shorten barrels all that often!
I personally think the rate of gain should be moderate. For instance;if I want to finish off with a 10 twist, I don't want to start any slower than about 18. This is my opinion only to be taken for what it's worth. Regards, Bill.
Mystic Precision
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I too have never shot a Smith barrel so the following is from viewing a rifle with a twist barrel and from others/article.
The barrel I have helped work on shot well but not bughole BR well (but that could be related to a ton of other variables). It was quite consistent over a variety of loads.
This seems to agree with other shooters, a RIFLESHOOTER article, and speaking to Ron himself. Seems to be a thought that these barrels are more forgiving and stable even when they get very hot. That consistency helps scores over long strings of fire like F class.
Of course, there are no shortage of top barrel makers using a conventional twist that have similar traits.
I have heard that some CAST BR shooters are using the gain twist with good results but that could just be because the barrels are well made. I have a Douglas that shoots well and has conventional twist.
Nothing definitive. Give them a try, maybe it will work for you. At worse, you will have a quality barrel made by a Canadian.
Jerry
The barrel I have helped work on shot well but not bughole BR well (but that could be related to a ton of other variables). It was quite consistent over a variety of loads.
This seems to agree with other shooters, a RIFLESHOOTER article, and speaking to Ron himself. Seems to be a thought that these barrels are more forgiving and stable even when they get very hot. That consistency helps scores over long strings of fire like F class.
Of course, there are no shortage of top barrel makers using a conventional twist that have similar traits.
I have heard that some CAST BR shooters are using the gain twist with good results but that could just be because the barrels are well made. I have a Douglas that shoots well and has conventional twist.
Nothing definitive. Give them a try, maybe it will work for you. At worse, you will have a quality barrel made by a Canadian.
Jerry
In Major Ned Robert's book on Muzzleloading rifles he indicates that the gain twist barrels did not give any advantage in shooting round balls. He also indicated that the gain twist barrels were looked on favourably by the marksmen using paper patched lead bullets in the heavy target rifles of the day.
44Bore
44Bore
