SmallCaliberCentral

hi, my 204, weatherby sub moa varmint, usually a .5 to .6 shooter has started shooting horrible looking groups. well not that horrible but they average just over an inch. i shot 8 5 shot groups over the weekend, 1 was under half an inch. the rest were all 1 inch and over. I'm thinking the barrel is done. ive got upwards of 2500 shots through this thing. i guess its time for a new one. So i'd like some suggestions on a good barrel manufacturer. i've asked around a bit the names that have come up so far are lilji.

I wanna go on a faster barrel twist a 1-11 or a 1-10. probably 24 inches long.

this wouldnt be a small investment for me so i dont want to take a gamble in if it will be a half inch shooter or not.

sam: If your barrel is truly shot out at 2,500 rounds, you have another option too....have a smith set the barrel back a couple of threads and rechamber. This would be much less expensive compared to a new match quality barrel.

Most all the custom makers will produce sub MOA barrels these days. I've got Shilen, Hart, Douglas, Pac-Nor, Lilja, Donnelly (no Krieger....yet), and they all are .5 MOA shooters; you won't go wrong with any of them. My last custom 204 barrel came from Pac-Nor, and while the barreled action was in their shop, I had them blueprint the action, crown, fit and chamber the new SS Super Match 24" 11 twist barrel to my M700 action. They also duplicated the Remington Varmint coutour, so fitting it back into the H-S Precison stock was a snap. I'd do it again in a heartbeat. Turn around time was right at 12 weeks.

You may have seen it here before, but here's the rifle in question ("Wicked Wanda") with the new PN 11 twist SS Super Match barrel in the field:



Do note that some of the good custom makers do not offer .204" barrels (yet).

If I was shopping for a new custom barrel for one of my 204's, I'd contact Pac-Nor, but that's me. I've got six of their barrels, and every one is tip-top qualilty and shoots bugholes with the right loads. Good luck with the quest.

i talked to a gunsmith who has changed a few 204 barrels, he said 2500 to 300 shots and there usually done. i might try setting the barrel back an inch but its inly a 22 inch barrel to start with.

I hope your gunsmith is wrong, cause mine has over 2400 rounds thru it. My last groups experimenting with 10X were in the .3's and .4's.
My shooting buddy is waiting to get his action and new Pac-Nor bbl back from them as we speak. Can't wait to try it out and see how it shoots. He went with a 1-12 twist on his. Keep us posted on what you do with your .204.

well every barrel will be different. its gotten quite warm alot of times but it was really really hot once at a match. 31 shots in 5 min. i will probably have it rechambered and see what happens

also what barrel twist would u go in for the 39 and 40 gr bullets. I'm not really interested in shooting the lighter bullets.

sam: I went with an 11 twist PN barrel just for shooting the 39gr SBK and the 40's. It does extremely well with both.

Personally I think any 12 twist 204 barrel is on the edge of being able to properly stabilize the 40's...some 12 twist barrels will shoot them fine, some flatly refuse to do so with any degree of accuracy. The 11 twist solved the problem completely, at least for me. HTH

With all due respect for previous posters, setting a barrel back on a hot varmint round is a temporary fix and not a solution.

It works OK on a larger caliber hunting rifle, but seldom works well on a high velocity varmint rig. With a high pressure round like the 204, the barrel has erosion in places beyond the barrel throat that could jump up any time in the future and bite you.

They put threads on a barrel so they can easily be spun off and replaced when needed. You'll be happier going that route in about 99% of the cases...

PacNor offers some good barrels at good prices... And get something faster than a 12" twist barrel...

JMO - BCB

l

Another option would be to get a new howa barreled action for 300 some bucks. Mine shoots as good if not better than my buddys sub moa varmint.

Why not give Weatherby a call? Maybe they can rebarrel it for a competitive price. Weatherby offers cut riled barrels as an upgrade on custom and factory rifles. Just an alternative to explore. Pac-Nor barrels are very good, I have several. Pac-Nor does the work right on time as advertised. If you want to try a cut rifled barrel Kreiger can do the whole job, but the wait is extended. Plan on spending $500.00 +/- for a rebarrel.

Then you may want to try a real extensive cleaning, concentrating on the throat area with some carbon solvent - i.e. BoreTech's C4 Carbon Remover. The problem is most likely related to throat erosion and fouling.

One other technique is to use a fire lapping compound to clean up the throat, polishing it to remove roughness. Because there are no .204 fire lapping bullets available, check http://www.pufflon.com/FireLappingFiller.html if you would like to try this technique. In many cases accuracy can be restored for awhile. Be sure to use only the fine and/or extra fine grade.

Bayou City Boy wrote:With all due respect for previous posters, setting a barrel back on a hot varmint round is a temporary fix and not a solution.

It works OK on a larger caliber hunting rifle, but seldom works well on a high velocity varmint rig. With a high pressure round like the 204, the barrel has erosion in places beyond the barrel throat that could jump up any time in the future and bite you.

They put threads on a barrel so they can easily be spun off and replaced when needed. You'll be happier going that route in about 99% of the cases...

PacNor offers some good barrels at good prices... And get something faster than a 12" twist barrel...

JMO - BCB

l

I agree 100%, and couldn't have said it better. And a .204 can must certainly be shot out at 2500 rounds.

Mike

l[/quote]
I agree 100%, and couldn't have said it better. And a .204 can must certainly be shot out at 2500 rounds.

Mike[/quote]


Yep, don't spend money on a tube with 2500 rds through it.
snipersam, you are correct when you say all barrels are not equal.

My first Savage tube had 4000-5000 rds through it. Gotta admit the last 1000 or so were more of a learning expierience=)
Even without a borescope I can look in the chamber end and see 4"-6" of some really Nasty Stuff=) Setback would be a waste.
Still have that barrel. I'm fairly certain I could screw it back on and with the proper/extensive bore prep the first five shots would start with a 0 or 1. I did say it taught me some things. Its all in the bore prep. A false hummer if you will. I'd bet most 204 barrels are capable of it. After 5 shots it will turn copper to plasma and all bets are off=)
That barrel killed paper well. 5 under a dime at 200yds was quite normal.


2nd barrel I never shot much. Garenteed in writing to be a Savage factory tube. I'm quite certain its an Adam and Bennet. Without Savage stamp its not legal for factory class so I have no use for it. Its gonna be rechambered soon as a slave barrel to my 20 Beggs.
(Sorry folks but I have a Bartlien 11.5 twist and a 20 Beggs reamer and FL die. Seems like a great combo)

3rd Savage barrel was a chrome moly FV model. Thing was basically shot out straight from the factory. Lands were so shallow I knew it would'nt last long. Most accurate barrel I ever had for the first 5-8 shots. First 5 were just about quarenteed to shoot a .3 at 200. My old ppc can't do that normally (its tired). After that carbon fouling took over and it went wild. After roughly 1500 rds of futile attempts to tame it it was done.

4th Sav tube I went back to stainless. Very nice barrel. Rough as he!! from the factory but my first was too. Odd thing I've noticed with my small sample. The rough ones turn out to be the best=) 2500+ rds through it and still going SEMI strong. Its had its ups and downs. When new it shot 40 Bergs and Benchmark into ridiculously small groups. Then the 26gn Barnes VG came out and I just had to beat it hard at 4600fps+.
Never could shoot the 40's after that. Went back to the 35 Bergs and coaxed it back to life eventually. I'm not the first guy to ruin a good barrel.

5th barrel another stainless. This one has been a bugger. Should be the best as far as I'm concerned. Never coppers, and carbon is almost nonexistant but its stuck at aggs of .5moa. 1000rds through it now and its just showing signs of tightening up. Just found out today it will shoot the 40V-Max pretty good. Factory 40's it throws wild but my witches brew concoction seems to be working. This one is really a mystery to me.
But its the mysterys that keep us entertained