I'm considering having a Ruger No. 1 Medium rebarreled to .300 H&H. I'd like to keep the rifle as compact as possible. What's the shortest reasonable length I can go to without seriously sacrificing performance? Also, would adding a removable muzzle brake be worth the expense?

[ 05-05-2003, 01:07: Message edited by: Urodoji ]

For every inch of a "standard" 26" 300 H&H barrel you might loose 25 fps. There is nothing wrong with a 22" barrel. It will still have a lot more power than a 30/06.

The 26" #1's seem like a good idea on paper but they are kind of heavy. Nothing wrong with a shorter barrel at all.

It would have been a removable brake of course...

You might find muzzle blast noticably more in a 22 inch 300 mag barrel than in a 26 incher. And velocity loss per inch is greater with large capacity cartridges than smaller ones.

Maybe 24" is a happy medium then. Just a bit shorter, but not too much so.

I don't think that you will find the recoil of a 300H&H in a heavy #1 bad at all.

Good point. Maybe the removable brake wasn't such a hot idea. I think I will have the barrel cut to 24 inches though. Thanks.

No, this one will have iron sights on it. Actually, I'd like to replace the single blade rear sight with a 3 leaf setup.

I would not own any 300 with a 22" barrel, I have a chronograph that will put that idea to rest and I have tested them many times over the years...

The Ruger no.1 is a short action and with a 26" barrel, which is what all magnums need, it is about the same as a short barreled bolt gun in over all length...

With iron sights the 26" barrel will give you a much better and clearer sight picture and it will balance much much better for off hand shooting...

I shot a 26" Ruger no.1 in 338 for sometime and it was just a fine rifle..be sure and get the classic Henry forend with that 300 H&H...

At www.24hourcampfire.com a smith by the name of Sisk did some recent testing of velocities after cutting barrels back an inch at a time.

Would it be better to start with a No. 1 Tropical, or a No. 1 Medium Sporter? Would the extra weight of the tropical model be beneficial?

The extra weight in a 1H Tropical comes from the barrel contour...the actions are the same. I agree that a 26" barrel has great balance. I have a 1S in .338 and it balanced very well. Hope this helped you.

Yeah, the Tropical barrel is a bit thicker. I know the cons to a heavier rifle are basically more to carry, but what are the pro's, if there are any?