I have talked to a guy who is wanting to sell his m700 BDL Varmint Special in 6mm. I have not seen the gun yet since he lives over 3 hrs away. He said that he traded for it and it appears to have an aftermarket barrel. Is there a way that I can tell who made the barrel? He said there some markings on the side of the barrel. Could that indicate who made it?

He also said that the action and barrel appeared to be "parkerized", what does that suggest, some kind of coating?

One last question, what is the easiest way to determine twist on this barrel? I want a fast twist for heavy match bullets.

Thanks.

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Is there a way that I can tell who made the barrel

Probably not. There's so many barrel makers out there that identifying the barrel is a fluke.

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some markings on the side of the barrel. Could that indicate who made it?

All the aftermarket barrels I've bought have markings on the breech end and none on the diameter of the barrel. Any marks on the side were put there by the smith that installed it.....likely is that the MFR of the barrel is not there.

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"parkerized", what does that suggest, some kind of coating?

Yes....intended for serious rust prevention. It's usually dull and dark colored.

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what is the easiest way to determine twist on this barrel?

Use a cleaning rod with a snug cloth patch and run the rod slowly thru the barrel.....the rod will turn with the rifling and you measure the length the rod moves in the time it takes to rotate once. Use a tape measure

Thanks for the info. I couldn't find anything on the forum using the "search" function about aftermarket barrel id, but thought I would try again.