I have a Ruger No3 action and I am going to barrel it with an octagonal .45/110 barrel. I have been going through the various .458 barrels on the Green Mountain website and I am just trying to determine the correct external dimensions that I will need for the Ruger action.

My intention is to create a blackpowder cartridge rifle for shooting in the Big Game Rifle 'Black powder express' event, so I am looking at a length of around 26 to 28". The barrel needs to be heavy enough to withstand the rapid fire events (without starting to glow red-hot!) but light enough to allow comfortable and accurate off-hand shooting.

Any advice, comments or information on appropriate barrel profiles would be appreciated.

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The most you can go to is 1.200 at the receiver end because of the hanger, from that point it becomes a personal thing as to what you can handel in lenght and taper. How do you rapid fire a single Shot ?.
Ruger # 1 Guy

quote:

How do you rapid fire a single Shot ?.
Ruger # 1 Guy

As fast as your little hands will go!

Yes, it does sound odd but there are a couple of timed events where you are required to fire quick shots - 2 shots offhand in 10 seconds and this is repeated 4 times. And the barrel gets bloody hot!

Thankyou for the info and I am trying to decide on a balance between a hefty barrel to soak up the heat and a lighter barrel for off-hand shooting.

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Start a new trend, an octogon barrel with the flats fluted. Pleanty of metal to absorb the heat, pleanty of surface for cooling. It would really give the gun writers something to expound on.

Bwana Bob,

Several years ago I built what I called a Ruger #2. #3 action with #1 type wood. It was a 45-120 and I used an inch and an eighth to one inch taper on a 32 inch barrel. It weighed twelve pounds but balanced well and shot even better. Today I would do a 1.200" round barrel and make it thirty inches long.

I'm building something similar this winter on the Steve Earle built Frank Wesson Number One Long Range rifle action.

Rich