cut barrel?

[sureshot2040]

i have a savage model 12 heavy barrel in 308
i like it alot but it seems a little muzzle heavy and kinda unweildy in the woods
should i have a gunsmith buddy i know chop it to 20 inches and recrown the muzzle??
he says he can do it for 30 bucks and i know his work is excellent
would cutting the barrel affect accuracy?? out to around 400 yards??
thanks
sureshot

[poncaguy]

I just had my Model 12 308 cut to 18 1/2", improved accuracy and a pound lighter too..................

[LaOtto222]

Cutting a barrel down should not effect accuracy. It may help in that department (less barrel whip). You may have to adjust your powder level a little to realize it, maybe not. It will effect muzzle velocity some. About 25 - 50 fps for every inch cut off. It is a crap shoot here a little. There are many factors that effect this. Powder burn rates, bullet weight, barrel friction. There are two schools of thought. Short, light and handy; long to get as much velocity as possible and/or to cut down recoil and muzzle blast. I have cut down barrels before for a variety of reasons. I have never regretted doing it. If it was me, I would cut it down and never look back for the reason you sited, handier. Good luck to you

[smittty]

Cut that baby!  The loss in velocity is insignificant.  I hear the 25-50 fps per inch often and its BS.  25 to 50 units is a huge "range" per inch.  I've also read its 10 fps per inch, and that's BS too.

Every caliber will be affected differently but for the most part, the loss in velocity is not significant, up to a point.

For example, the 30-06 shot from a 28" barrel and 20" barrel, will have an insignificant difference in velocity for the purpose of a hunting rifle.  Every inch shorter than the 20" length will have an increased loss per inch.  A barrel length of 18.5" would be the minimum for the 30-06 before the loss starts to be significant.

I cut my 30-06 down to 18.5" and it shoots great, under 1/2" at 100 yards and without a noticeable loss in bullet drop from its previous 22" length.  I shoot at distances up to 300 yards with this rifle. Our range only goes out to 300 yards so I don't shoot any farther but I'm thinking its time to bull-dose to the 400 yard mark!

Cut that barrel down to 20"!

Smitty

[baja]

Sorry to step no this thread but i picked up a 110E in 7Mag and there's a bulge about 5 inches from the end i was thinking about cutting it down and having it re-crowned what do you guys think the barrel would end up around 19 inches.

[poncaguy]

with a 7mag it would really be loud and a lot of flash, but I would to get rid of the bulge

[sureshot2040]

hey pards
i saw this back at the top so i figured i would do an update
i changed the scope over on this to a nikon 4.5 x 16  mildot with side focus
and she shoots well under a dime at 100 yards
i have been deer hunting with it and have dropped three bucks (two nice eights and small six)
so for now i dont want to change anything
maybe later
thanks
sureshot