I am posting this on another thread but,I ordered a 23" 270 win bbl from a custom maker and the bbl from muzzle to END (finished length) was 23".I was under the impression that a bbl length referred to the rifling length,not overall finished length.Am I confused?

Yep, your confused.
Barrel length is measured from the bolt face to the muzzel (not the length of rifling).
Don't feel bad, because your not the only one that's misunderstood this issue.

Yup, barrel length = Bolt face to muzzle. The term "usable barrel length" sometimes refers to the distance from the base of the seated bullet to the muzzle and is used primarily in interior ballisitcs discussions.

Malm

The ATF measures the barrel from boltface to crown.

When you order a barrel, you might get asked "that entire length or from receveir to crown" They are asking, do you want the shank measured, as well. If you want it to be 23" from the end of the receiver, tell em... if you want it to be about 22.25, then tell them from the boltface.

It's a confusing issue, and shouldn't be.

jeffe