Free floating barrels and battle rifles

[DMK]

I noticed that many battle rifles such as the K31, M39 and Springfield '03 seem to have their barrels floating the entire length of the handguard, but have the handguards fit tight right at the end. Do you think this was done to provide support for bayonette use? Some say that pressure at the end of the long barrel helps to make it more accurate, but civilian sporting rifles and modern sniper rifles don't do that. They fully free float. I noticed that even some sniper rifles built from battle rifles, such as the Swiss ZfK55 and the Enfield L42 have fully free floated barrels.

So which is better? Fully free float or support at the end?

 

[Roudy]

To free float or not to free float

DMK,

Afraid I won't be a lot of help. Theoretically free floating should improve accuracy, however I have several rifles, mostly battle rifles that are not free floated and shoot very well. I have a Stevens 30-06 that looks like the barrel is leaning very hard on the left side of the stock, but it shoots well enough for varmits using 110 grain bullets (not much left of the varmints by the way )

My "opinion" is that if I was going to design a rifle primarily for accuracy then I would design it to be free floated. Battle rifles are designed to not only be 'reasonably' accurate but to survive the rigors of the battlefield.

 

[30Cal]

Service rifles tend to have a bunch of stuff hung off the barrel (handguards, bands, gas systems, etc), so they don't generally respond to freefloating well (or consistantly). Typically they shoot better (more consistantly) with a little pressure up at the forend which helps dampen some of the vibrations induced by all the "stuff."

Ty