I was planning to get a barrel band sling swivel for my new CZ 550 in .375 H&H, to replace the forend-mounted swivel that comes on the rifle. However, my local gunsmith said that accuracy would probably be better with a forend mounted sling swivel. His reasoning was that barrel-mounted slings (and the weight of the sling) affect the point of impact, and in a hunting situation can do so in inconsistent ways. (He was not just referring to using the sling in shooting. He said that even if the sling was not used to brace the rifle, the weight of the sling hanging from the barrel could change point of impact in somewhat unpredictable ways.) Does anyone agree, or disagree? It seems as though it would take a lot to affect point of impact on a .375.

I can't imagine that a .375 would notice anythin' from somethin' so light as a sling swivel. Admittedly, 've never done a before/after comparison and p'rhaps someone needs to do a bunch of 'em t'get a definitive answer but 've go $20 that says yer smith is gettin' all worked up over nothin'. One, yer won't be tryin' to shoot flies with that caliber. Two, it'd take a really light 'n' sensitive barrel t'be affected in that manner, IMO. Three, who puts that kind o' barrel on a .375 H&H? Damned tempest in a teapot, t'my way of thinkin'

No! I have several rifles w/ bbl. mounted swivels & the POI dosen't change just buy the sling being attached. Now if you use the sling for shooting, it can effect POI w/ lighter bbls.

I'd move it no matter what, mine bit me pretty good this year and that was with my deer loads!

I have used them on several original Brno 21H rifles. Accuracy was superb, but those particular rifles also have a screw and stud that anchor the barrel to the forend, just aft of the schnable.

Anything that you attach to a barrel will to some degree affect the harmonics of the barrel, whether you can measure it or even notice it is the question. Who knows, it might even improve the accuracy of some barrels. As far as the weight of a sling effecting the point of impact it would have to be a pretty heavy sling, my 375 barrel has a lot of steel in it and I can't believe the sling by itself would do a lot to it. Now if you're shooting with a tight sling you could possibly pull the barrel tighter into the stock and change the way the action and barrel sits in the bedding and maybe change the point of impact.

Like Fjold says, in THEORY... it probably affects the harmonics, but you'll never notice.

PS - Sounds like you should probably look for a new gunsmith too!

Good Luck.

And therory is all that is...or bunk...I have built and owned way too many barrel band swivel guns to buy off on that...many of them shot sub minute of angle...

Besides your talking about big bore rifles used for hunting, and that supposed minus 1/4 of an inch at the very most makes little difference on a Lion or Buffalo at under 100 yards...and the barrel band keeping the gun down low when slung is worth its weitht in gold...

As to harmonics whos to say the little added weight won't dampen barrel harmonics???

I would not own a 375 or larger with any other set up..and even my 330 and 9.3x62 have barrel band swivels...I doubt that your smith has ever tested a barrel both ways or that he has hunted dangerous game.

A barrelband swivel has not effected my .375 H&H at all.....find a new smith.

My 350 Rigby, 458 Lott and 500 Jeffrey all have barrel band from sling swivels, and I haven't had accuracy problems with any of them. All the barrels are fairly heavy contour as well.

That is one of the dumbest things I have ever heard.

here's a message for your "smith"




This is just too much fun.

Of course the sling swivel mounted on the barrel won't effect accuracy just sit'in there. It's when a tight sling is used that it will effect shot placement.

How much will it move the shot. There's only one way to find out. A thick heavy barrel will probably not be moved much, if at all. A thin barrel might be moved quite a bit.

On the other hand a forend mounted swivel will do the same thing "unless" the forend is free floated.

vapodog

I believe that's the farewell message to the dumbass liberals who supported Kerry.

Off the bench or shooting in the field without sling tension, you'll never know the difference. I have a .458 Win., a .375 H&H, and a .416 Remington that have barrel-mounted front sling-swivel bases, and accuracy is absolutely first rate with all three rifles.

Problems can occur if you want to use the sling as a shooting aid. Get into a tight sling, and your point-of-impact will likely change somewhat with a barrel-mounted front swivel base. How much is subject to the individual rifle in question and the actual amount of sling tension. Some rifles change POI a great deal more than others. At 100-150 yds., you're not likely to see a difference that is going to make any practical difference. You have to test your rifle to actually know up from down on this one.

AD

I haven't checked for that. My glass bedding job has a pressure point or band at the front end of the forend. I guess the sling would pull the barrel down against the forend, and my non-shooting hand would be pushing up against the same forend, and since the barrel and forend were already in contact, there would not be any movement. If the barrel was free floated, I'd have to admit to a theoretical change in impact that I might not notice with open sights at dangerous game hunting distances.

I only use a sling when shooting from sitting or prone, and I haven't done enough of either with my 375 to discern a difference in accuracy.

H. C.

I agree that the barrel sling mount versus the forearm sling mount can affect the POI somewhat. Common sense will tell us that. And as mentioned the barrel diameter also becomes a factor as to how much "flex" is going to be put on the barrel when the sling is used in hunting, i.e. wrapping it around the arm in the quick sling position for added stability. However, one point not addressed is how far back from the forearm sling one places his/her hand in shooting. I have short arms and the positioning of my hand gripping the forearm allows the recoil of my .375 H&H not to bother me in the least. I'm not long-armed so does not affect me much, however this can be a factor as to how close one positions his lead hand to the sling swivel mounting. On my .416 Rigby I have a barrel band swivel. The recoil increases quite a bit between the two calibers thus more jump/recoil. I would suggest closing your eyes and grabbing the rifle (carefully avoiding your wife's china cabinet) and throwing it up to your shoulder. Open your eyes and see how close your fingers are to the mount when the gun is in the natural shooting position for you. If your phalanges are within 3/4 to 1 inch you are probably going to get "nipped" by the recoil. How strong you are or how hard you grip the forearm is no factor. Recoil will win the battle! About that gunsmith....look elsewhere.

BB,

Not to worry, the small loads that a free sling exerts on a .375 barrel is neglible, but if you wrapped the sling tightly when attached to the barrel, you can change the harmonics as someone so rightly stated. It's a combination of tension outer fiber stresses on one side countered by compression fiber stresses on the opposite side due to the bending moment. I hesitate to use the sling for anything other than carrying during hunting for that reason.

Admittedly, I have never measured the effect of the tight sling on the barrel accuracy. But on some of the whip barrels on the Weatherby products it could happen. I just advoid using it based on what I have read, but to have a unloaded sling affect it due to weigh alone---forget it.

The smith may however may be referring to the induced residual stresses on the barrel with a braze or solder installation of the barrel band. Now thats different>>>>>>>>>>>

Dak

Listen to the knowledge of some...A barrel band swivel is for carrying the gun, not for shooting...

If one used the wrong solder and got too much heat on a barrel band he could possibly ruin the barrel, but a "gunsmith" is not going to do this...a butcher might.

Duh! I think I'd find a new Smith! Preferably one who has actually shot a big bore OFFHAND before at a real target. Take my advice and put a barrel band on the gun and PRACTICE shooting it offhand with a tight sling standing up at 50 yrds. -Rob