Hello

I apologize in advance as I'm sure this question has been asked many times before.
I have a 30-06 with a 22" barrel and my question is, What would be the difference (pros or cons) between the 22" barrel compared to the 24" barrel. I do reload my own ammo.

Thanks in Advance.

Steve

Just about nothing....maybe 30 FPS difference.

vapodog,

Many Thanks, I didn't know that there would be so little difference between the two.

Thanks Again

quote:

Greed: 1. A word used by liberals because they have no clue about the laws of economics.
2. A word used by people that think others with more money than they have owe it to them...(see #1 above)

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Originally posted by vapodog:

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Ignored post by Rothke posted 11 April 2011 01:42

+2 ....about a year ago

I think it would matter more on if its a fast or slow barrel more than the 2" of length.

I had a 22" Winchester that was pretty slow and a 24" Interarms that is fast. I dont think it had a whole lot to do with the 2" difference.

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Originally posted by ted thorn:

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Originally posted by vapodog:

quote:

Ignored post by Rothke posted 11 April 2011 01:42

+2 ....about a year ago

+3

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Originally posted by Rub Line:

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Originally posted by ted thorn:

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Originally posted by vapodog:

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Ignored post by Rothke posted 11 April 2011 01:42

+2 ....about a year ago

+3

+4 What is the Rottenweed doing in this forum anyway?

Make that +5

Given the same load in each there can be 70 - 100 fps difference between most 22 and 24" 30-06 barrels. Depends mostly on the buring rate of the powder used and the bullet weight used. I prefer 24 - 26" barreled '06 but have used numerous 22" barreled ones with very satisfactory results.

Larry Gibson

Steve:

The chronograph will tell the story for your particular rifle 40-50 fps per inch? I also prefer the 24" length, especially with the heavier bullets and slow powders.

Jerry

6

quote:

Originally posted by Jerry Eden:
Steve:

The chronograph will tell the story for your particular rifle 40-50 fps per inch? I also prefer the 24" length, especially with the heavier bullets and slow powders.

Jerry

From what I've read, and some tests, it's the lighter bullets that benefits the most of longer barrels???

M

If the two shared the same contour with one being cut 2" shorter than the other, I'd think the biggest difference you'd notice would be in balance and handling. Taking 2" of steel off the end makes a bigger change to the center balance than the same weight taken off the middle.

If the two do not share the same contour where both equally balance, I'd then think the biggest difference you'd notice would be just the 2" difference in length. There have been a ton of great 22" featherweight 30-06 rifles out there over the years that shoot very well without any markedly noticeable performance loss compared to 24" sporters. I'd not worry about the two inches, but if it bothers you a bunch, replace the rifle with a 24" sporter.

Best

I'm with GaryVA here.

Balance and handling. Depends on what you like!

Ive pushed 165gr Hornady Interlocks to 2970 fps out of a 22 inch barrelled 30-06 Remington Mountain Rifle, using 60grs Winchester 760. That was a potent load (and please work up to that weight powder).

I've never owned a 24 inch 30-06, so I can't comment on the velocity difference sorry.

Cheers,

Michael.

7

Certainly there won't be enough difference to matter. Work up a good accurate load with your rifle, verify IT'S POI at the distances you think you'll be shooting, practice at the distances you think you'll be shooting, and then, go kill something.

8

I have both a 22" 30-06 and 24" and the downrange energy and trajectory difference is negligible.


ddj

You will experience some bit more muzzle blast, both because of the shorter barrel and because the muzzle is two inches nearer to your face and ears.

In terms of velocity, there is no way to tell exactly other than by cutting two inches off of a 24" barrel, and even then the velocity loss will vary to a significant extent with the load you are using. On average, you'll probably see about a 50-75 fps loss from a 24" to a 22".

I would (do) opt for the longer barrel in a .30-06, but if the particular application for the rifle makes a shorter barrel more desirable for weight and handling, then you're certainly not unreasonably handicapped by having two inches less room in the accelerator tube.

It is nearly impossible to predict with any accuracy BEFORE you cut the barrel, but most books guess about 50 fps. Of course it is kind of difficult to ADD 2 inches, so you never really know.

The main problem is people typically replace one barrel with another when they want a different length. Identical contour barrels of the same length can give very different velocities. I have 5 different winchester model 70 featherweights in 30.06. All have the same featherweight barrel and appear identical, excepting some wear, etc. All are factory original, without modifications.

Shooting the same handload in all five rifles through an Oehler Chronograph gives repeatable velocity differences between rifles of nearly 200 fps. The slowest rifle clock just over 2600fps with this 180 grain load, and the fastest rifle is just shy of 2800 fps. The other three are scattered around 2700-2750.

This is a comparably huge difference, yet the data for this handload shows very low SD in each rifle. The results a repeatable day after day. The best explanation is the slowest rifle is effectively "shot out", and this is the oldest rifle which I have shot the most. Its throat is pretty heavily eroded. But even the other 4 show a pretty wide velocity difference, more than would be expected by cutting or adding a couple inches of barrel. And yet they are supposedly identical barrels.

In the end, the answer to your question is, "it depends". Some barrels are just faster or slower than others. You could get a slow 24" barrel and gain nothing. You might already have a slow 22" barrel, so just an average 24" barrel might provide a significant increase. Without a chrony you will never know.

Bill

quote:

Originally posted by Stonecreek:
In terms of velocity, there is no way to tell exactly other than by cutting two inches off of a 24" barrel, and even then the velocity loss will vary to a significant extent with the load you are using. On average, you'll probably see about a 50-75 fps loss from a 24" to a 22".

Did a calculation in Qload with a 180 grain bullet and the difference was about 55 fps

quote:

I think it would matter more on if its a fast or slow barrel more than the 2" of length.

Agreed...but there are other things that might be important to you:

1) If using iron sights the sight radius will be longer and therefore to your advantage on the 24" barrel.

2) More importantly the noise of the bang and the muzzle blast will be two inches further from your ear. So you'll go deaf less quickly with the 24" barrel!

And, actually, the gun will be more pleasant to shoot for that extra two inches.

3) But on the downside you'll need a longer gun case and that may or may not fit easily in the trunk of your vehicle or the rifle into any gun cabinet etc.