what kind of velocities do you get in your

[thelaw]

used to load for a rem. 700 w/22" barrel and could never get better than : 2875fps w/ 150gr., 2750 w/165gr and 2600fps w/180gr. these handloads were with a variety of different powders and bullets. do you think with a 24" barrel they could be much improved on. i'm debating between a .30/06 (if its possible to get better velocity) or a .7mm rem. mag. either one with a .24" barrel. any suggestions?

[longwinters]

Generally speaking, looking in my reloading books, the 30-06 is hard pushed to go over 2900fps even with a 24" barrel with average loads.  If you load on the hot side you can get to that 3000fps mark.  Longer barrels do give more velocity but the only way to really know how much is to shoot thru a chrony.  I suppose you could figure to get at least 100fps with the 24" over the 22".

With the 7mm Rem Mag a relatively light load with 150 gn bullets will get you 3020fps and hotter loads to around 3200fsp.  

LW

[Lawdog]

thelaw,

My favorite load out of my .30-06, which has a 25” barrel, gives 2,894 fps. with Nosler 165 gr. Partitions.  It also gives me the best accuracy too.  Lawdog
 

[longwinters]

Lawdog,

What is that 25" barrel on?  Is it a custom order job or does the manufacturer just manufacture with that option.?  Sounds quite intriguing.
Finally, what would lead you to go with the 25" over the more standard 24 or 26"?

LW

[Val]

My model 70 Winchester classic with a 24" barrel gets me just over 2800fps (chronographed) with 165 grain Hornady or Nosler pellets. These loads with IMR 4350 are selected for accuracy and not muzzle velocity.

[rickt300]

My Springfield with a 2 groove 23 inch barrel commonly gets 2850 with H4831 with the 180 grain Speer Hotcor and gives very good accuracy too.  The load is the max in the Hodgen manual #25 and appears to give mild pressure.  The primer is CCI 250.

[Steelhead]

On my 25" 30/06 I get 2960fps with 165 Hornady behind some W760, the 180's are a tad over 2800fps with IMR-4350 and the 150's do 3050fps with Imr-4350.

In my 22" factory rifle I get 2900fps for the 150's (same load), about 2800 with the 165's and 2700 with the 180's.

[Lawdog]

longwinters,

What is that 25" barrel on? Is it a custom order job or does the manufacturer just manufacture with that option.? Sounds quite intriguing.
Finally, what would lead you to go with the 25" over the more standard 24 or 26"?

The rifle started out as an NRA new - unfired 1917 Enfield that I got for my father(I was trying to make him into a big game hunter not just birds and small game(never did)).  I customized it in high school shop class(try that now a days) with the help of my teacher.  The barrel is the original one that we cut down, re-contoured and polished.  I choose the 25 inch length because at the time I was reading White Hunter by J. A. Hunter and it there he stated he preferred the 25 inch barrel in bolt rifles.  I have 4 other rifles(.25 Savage, .257 Roberts, .300 Savage(Rem. M722), .30 Gibbs) that have 25 inch barrels.  Now I usually cut my barrels to at least 24 inches in standard caliber’s and 26 inches in magnums.  I really don’t care for shorter barrels and can find no one that can give me a valid reason to cut a barrel to 20 - 22 inches.  I know all about the arguments for short barrels in the brush but when every bird hunter I know agrees that the prime barrel length for a shotgun used for the brush is 26 inches(even in pumps and auto loaders) why would anyone need a shorter length barrel on a rifle?  Small groups and tight lines to you.  Lawdog
 

[Rick Teal]

I've found that trying to get a few extra fps out of a rifle doesn't pay the dividends one might anticipate.  Usually all you get is more recoil, muzzle flash and shorter barrel life.

I only shoot 180 grain in a 30-06.  I had a Remington 742 with a 22" barrel that would give me 2600 fps with factory loads.  I developed a deer load that gave me 2471 fps.  When I switched to a Remington 760 carbine with an 18 1/2 inch barrel, I still got 2470 fps with this load.  I later developed a moose load that gives me 2630 fps in this gun.

I believe that if you increase your barrel length by two inches you could get anything from 20 to 100 fps more velocity (probably more like 50 fps), however, the advantages you might realize from this would be negligible, and not worth the cost.

[longwinters]

I guess it makes sense.  I had a 30-06 with a 26" barrel.  Can not say I ever noticed much difference over a 24".  But then I never shot a bullet out of it thru a chrony either.  For me I would not want anything under 22" and would typically prefer 24".  I would imagine all of your Weatherby's are 26" ay?

Long

[Lawdog]

Long,

I would imagine all of your Weatherby's are 26" ay?

Yeah, every Mark V wears a 26 inch barrel.  In fact even Winchester at one time offered their M94 in a 24 inch version.  I have 3 of them(.25-35, .30-30 and .32 Win. Spec.) and each one has a factory 24 inch octagon barrel with full tubular magazines.  I believe the shortest barrel I have is on a Ruger Mini-14(22 inches, they didn't offer a 24 inch barrel) I had ARS do one of their accuracy jobs on.  As for short barrels performance wise, I had a close high school buddy that took a M98 Mauser .308 Win. and cut the barrel down to 20 inches so it would handle better in the brush country of Coastal Northern California and the muzzle blast hurt the ears of everyone that was near, no one would hunt with him.  He sold the rifle and got a used custom Springfield that was much nicer on everyone’s ears.  Lawdog