Thread: Barrel Lengths and Accuracy

From experience I have decided that longer thinner barrels are not necessarily less accurate but more difficult to tune. Also regardless of the dimensions nothing replaces quality/consistency of manufacture. I have had two Savage .308 target rifles with "Truck Axle" barrels, one shot fantastically and the other average. I also had a 300win mag savage hunting rifle with a long thin barrel that shot almost as good as the best of the two target rifles. That is until it had fired more than 5 rounds and groups started to open up.

Thicker barrels also tend to maintain performance after firing a few rounds, thinner barrels are more likely to distort and loose accuracy/change point of aim on heating. Once again it comes down to metallurgy and tuning of the barrel.