Which would you buy 20" or 26"? After the first of the year I'll be in the market for a heavy barrel 308 and have narrowed it down to one of these but not sure which barrel length that I want. I have a VLS in .223 with a 26" barrel so the need of a different gun case is not a factor. I also reload and am thinking that the Sierra 168 gr Matchking will be the bullet that I'll try to build a load around. The local range extends out to 300 yards so most of my shooting will be at that distance and I'm not to concerned about a bullet stabilizing out past that distance. As money becomes freer I'll probably put a better stock on it but for awhile I'll be using that factory stock.
Remington 700 308 Varminter barrel length
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For paper-punching, I'd go with the 20" barrel. You could get a bit more muzzle velocity with the 26", but I doubt that it would be of any help for smaller groups.
An empirical discovery about "best" barrel length is in this article:
http://www.angelfire.com/ma3/max357/houston.html
"But no bit of information was, Virgil believes, more valuable than a little advice Jim Gilmore passed along. Jim said a barrel MUST be 21 3/4” long for optimum accuracy. That precise length, he stated, sets up a vibration pattern that duplicates well from shot to shot. Virgil faithfully followed that advice on his guns.
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Through the years, the Houston Warehouse shooters were able to rate the relative accuracy of the various benchrest calibers — .22, 6mm and .30. In the perfect conditions of the warehouse, the .22’s outshot them all, followed closely by the 6mm’s. The .308 calibers were a not-too-distant third. The most accurate .30 caliber ever to find its way into the warehouse also belonged to Virgil. The rifle, built around a Shilen DGA action with McMillan barrel, shot consistently within a few thousandths of .100". The barrel length? You guessed it: 21 3/4"."
You could begin with a 26" and then shorten it to 21-3/4".
An empirical discovery about "best" barrel length is in this article:
http://www.angelfire.com/ma3/max357/houston.html
"But no bit of information was, Virgil believes, more valuable than a little advice Jim Gilmore passed along. Jim said a barrel MUST be 21 3/4” long for optimum accuracy. That precise length, he stated, sets up a vibration pattern that duplicates well from shot to shot. Virgil faithfully followed that advice on his guns.
<Snip>
Through the years, the Houston Warehouse shooters were able to rate the relative accuracy of the various benchrest calibers — .22, 6mm and .30. In the perfect conditions of the warehouse, the .22’s outshot them all, followed closely by the 6mm’s. The .308 calibers were a not-too-distant third. The most accurate .30 caliber ever to find its way into the warehouse also belonged to Virgil. The rifle, built around a Shilen DGA action with McMillan barrel, shot consistently within a few thousandths of .100". The barrel length? You guessed it: 21 3/4"."
You could begin with a 26" and then shorten it to 21-3/4".
243winxb
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Reloadron
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Have a custom 700 BDL that I like in 308 with a 26" barrel. Not to say 26" is better but shoots fine for me.
Ron
Ron
It is about bullet speed and how much you really want. I often see people agonize over 2" when that much just isn't enough to matter. Six inches however is enough to be a game changer. A 20" gun and a 26" gun, even in the same caliber are really 2 very different guns.
As a rule I tend to prefer guns with barrels on the shorter end of the spectrum. Less weight to carry, easier to maneuver in tight spots and they balance better to me. A few FPS is not that important for most of my uses.
At 300 yards the longer barrel doesn't help enough to matter. At those ranges I'd go with the 20" gun. If I ever thought I might eventually start shooting at really long range I'd seriously consider the 26" gun. I've handled a couple of the Remington 5R's with 24" barrels. That seemed just right for an all around length on a target gun.
As a rule I tend to prefer guns with barrels on the shorter end of the spectrum. Less weight to carry, easier to maneuver in tight spots and they balance better to me. A few FPS is not that important for most of my uses.
At 300 yards the longer barrel doesn't help enough to matter. At those ranges I'd go with the 20" gun. If I ever thought I might eventually start shooting at really long range I'd seriously consider the 26" gun. I've handled a couple of the Remington 5R's with 24" barrels. That seemed just right for an all around length on a target gun.
FYI.......Don't know what rifles you are looking at but with some, the twist rates are different between barrel length. It might not mean much currently at only 300yds but if in the future you want to get out further later on personally I would opt for a 1:10 over a 1:12.
I have five 308's with barrels from 16" to 30" and they all work for their intended purpose.
I have five 308's with barrels from 16" to 30" and they all work for their intended purpose.
I ve the 700 ADl Varmint in 308. It came with a 26" barrel. Accuracy was around .65moa. I took the rifle to Precision Armaments and had it cut down to 20" with a recessed target crown. A couple of weeks ago I had the gun on the 200yd range and managed a group that was .307 center to center. This was after I tweaked the load a little. But after cutting the barrel the groups shrank into the .4's
20" is all you need for good accuracy out to 400 yards from a.308.
But make sure your trist rate matches the bullets you are shooting.
The heavier the bullets, the faster your twist.
But make sure your trist rate matches the bullets you are shooting.
The heavier the bullets, the faster your twist.
.308 Barrel
A lot of people use 20" in thinner barrels because it gets rid of the 'twang' in the barrel. If you are using a bull barrel, this is really not a problem. If you look at the experts shooting F-class TR and shooting sub 5" groups of 10 at 1,000 yards; their barrels run 29-32" long...
A lot of people use 20" in thinner barrels because it gets rid of the 'twang' in the barrel. If you are using a bull barrel, this is really not a problem. If you look at the experts shooting F-class TR and shooting sub 5" groups of 10 at 1,000 yards; their barrels run 29-32" long...
If you're only shooting 300yd, 20" is plenty and will make for a nice handy rifle.
A 26" barrel will get you the velocity to stay supersonic at 1000yd with a 175gr bullet.
A 26" barrel will get you the velocity to stay supersonic at 1000yd with a 175gr bullet.
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