I'll try this a different way. Why do barrel band sling swivels appear mostly on old Rigby's, Mausers, Westley Richards etc. What are the advantages and disadvantages of this system? I have a #1V with forend mounting and am thinking of modifying to use barrel band since I am concerned about tension on the forend affecting accuracy caused by weight bearing while carrying the gun.

Ancona: Putting the band on the barrel does two things in particular that I can think of. The first being that it lowers the height of the rifle when carried on the shoulder so it is less likely to catch limbs etc. The second and probably the reason you particularly noted it on the English rifles, many of which were chambered in hard recoiling cartridges for dangerous game is to move the swivel where your forward hand will not be impacted by the swivel when the rifle is fired. Many of the English stocks had relatively short forends and putting the swivel on the forend was a virtual guarantee of a nasty swivel/hand contact. The sling was primarily used as a carrying aid on these rifles, not a shooting aid. best.

Thanks again Stocker. So in the case of my 7MM Mag #1, with the trimmer than Alex Henry forend, it is probably not an essential modification and will not preserve accuracy any more than my forend mount. Is that pretty much your assessment? I've been pondering this for a long time so I appreciate your input.

Ruger #1s are, by the nature of the barrel hander, a different breed of cat. I would not want to attach a sling to the forend, especially one any smaller than the big beavertail they put on some of the rifles.......put it on the barrel, you will be happier.

You might check with John Lewis of Carolina Precision Rifles (posts here on occassion) as he is considered one of the better 'smiths for getting max accuracy out of #1s.

Ancona: My guess is that the #1 will probably not be happy when the sling is used tight as a shooting aid no matter where you placed the swivel.
To simply carry the rifle it may make no difference where it's at. I carried a heavy #1 varminter with a forend swivel stud (long foreend) and over a period of years zero was never affected by the mere act of carrying it. If I had used the sling as a shooting sling (which I never did with taht rifle)it would have changed the pressure system I installed in the hanger and would have affected zero in all probability. A sling swivel placed on the barrel will also change results if you use the sling as a shooting aid , that is, with the sling wrapped and tight on your arm.
I suggest if you have a forend stud currently installed go to the range and test it using a tight sling and see what the effect is on accuracy.

On the other hand if you like the look of the barrel ring and are trying to convince yourself just do it or you'll always wonder. best