Barrel length, powder burn...question...

[hawken_cougar]

i have a barrel that i would like to shorten...its a gonic 16" 209x45 magnum, 1:16 twist barrel used on a contender pistol...i would like to shorten it for the comfort of shooting...i use only 10" barrels and am used to that length...my questions are concearning what length i could go to without losing muzzle velocity, acuracy, etc...how long does the barrel need to be to efficiently burn the powder? (my loads range from 65-85gr) im thinking about taking the barrel to 12 inches...any help would be appreciated...overall if it seems like im losing more than gaining by shortening the barrel, ill just leave it...also, i never plan to use it as a short rifle barrel so the 16" doesnt matter to me...

thanks

hc

[1sourdough]

 I think if you went that short & tried to shoot full power rifle type loads you could have a fair amount of muzzle blast & loss of velocity. That's the reason M-Ls have the long barrels, to get the most out of the relatively slow burning powder. If your other 10" barrel is the same black powder cal you could compare chronograph speeds. There also should be some data on a M-L site about velocity loss. Is the idea to hunt at this new length or just recreational shooting?