.204 Ruger and barrel length

T

tylerw02

Guest
I have a 700 SPS V in .204 Ruger I bought for a donor gun that I was thinking about cutting down the barrel length on and using. Its now a heavy 26" and I'm thinking of cutting it down as far as 20 or 22" so that it will handle better in and out of the truck and cut down the weight somewhat for offhand shooting when necessary.

If I do so, how much of a compromise in velocity will I be seeing over a 24 or 26"? I've seen many sporter style .204 Rugers with 22" bbls. Anybody who has one, what velocities are you getting? I know on a .223 or .308, 20-22" only loses about 25-50 fps to a 24" most of the time, but the .204 Ruger has a higher powder/bore ratio. Would a faster powder like 10x allow me to get about the same velocity in a shorter bbl than I'm getting with BL-C(2) and RL15 in my other rifle?
 
Tylerw02: Personally I would leave the barrel at 26"!
Make "do" on the truck exiting situation!
I have several Rifles with barrels longer than 27" and they and I (at 6' 3" in length!) get in and out of vehicles just fine!
My friend Ben has a 338/378 Weatherby with a 30" barrel and he has no problems with that monster in exiting vehicles.
The extra barrel length and mass will do you good in increased velocity, flatter trajectory and a steadier sight picture under field conditions.
The 204 Ruger I am guessing would loose about 180 to 240 FPS, MINIMUM, with a 6" decrease in barrel length.
All four of my 204 Ruger Rifles have 26" heavy barrels on them.
If I could I would add 2" onto each of them - I would.
Best of luck with whichever way you decide to go.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy
 
Thanks for the replies, guys.

I did a search and found the Bullberry article that is also linked on 204ruger.com. It seems he came up with a 23" being ideal velocity-wise, getting more speed than the 24". Looking, I may go with a 23" or 22" from the drop in velocity of anything below 22".

Varmintguy,

I love a good heavy barrel for prairie dog hunting and set position shooting, but the purpose of keeping this SPS V is to keep me from selling it and buying a Remington Light Varmint and to give me a lighter rifle to fill the role my .17 Ackley Hornet filled until I get around to building another (traded it for a custom 1911 and came out quite well).

I intend to shoot out of the truck (in places where it is legal to do so) and as a walking varminter that will be easier for off-hand shooting. I don't disagree at all with keeping a 26" bbl for the varmint fields and bench shooting, but I have a very accurate VLS that already fits that role. It appears from the Bullberry article that in theory, I might gain some velocity but cutting it off. That is not at all unheard of, there is usually a sweet spot for burn rate, bore diameter, and charge. I've seen .308 Wins get additional velocity being cut from 26" to 24 or 22". Meanwhile, some cartridges stand to gain from going to 28" instead of 26"! I guess its just a matter of what powders you use in many cases.
 
tylerw02

I have two CZ 204s. Both have been short chambered and use 223 brass. The original is 26" varmint barrel. My latest is a CZ pencil barrel which I have cropped and recrowned at 19". I set up the screens and fired ten rounds with each rifle. One of my loads was 23.5gr H4895 with a 39gr Sierra bullet. The average difference was 136fps. Five rounds thru each rifle of 21.5gr H4198 with 39 Sierra gave me a difference of 123fps. These are mild loads. A little over 3500fps in the shorter barrel. It was not convenient to cronograph the 21.5" barrel since I altered the chamber and cut the barrel at the same time. Kenny
2nasffq.jpg
 
tylerw02

I have two CZ 204s. Both have been short chambered and use 223 brass. The original is 26" varmint barrel. My latest is a CZ pencil barrel which I have cropped and recrowned at 19". I set up the screens and fired ten rounds with each rifle. One of my loads was 23.5gr H4895 with a 39gr Sierra bullet. The average difference was 136fps. Five rounds thru each rifle of 21.5gr H4198 with 39 Sierra gave me a difference of 123fps. These are mild loads. A little over 3500fps in the shorter barrel. It was not convenient to cronograph the 21.5" barrel since I altered the chamber and cut the barrel at the same time. Kenny

72c2ll.jpg
 
tylerw02 said:
I have a 700 SPS V in .204 Ruger I bought for a donor gun that I was thinking about cutting down the barrel length on and using. Its now a heavy 26" and I'm thinking of cutting it down as far as 20 or 22" so that it will handle better in and out of the truck and cut down the weight somewhat for offhand shooting when necessary.

If I do so, how much of a compromise in velocity will I be seeing over a 24 or 26"? I've seen many sporter style .204 Rugers with 22" bbls. Anybody who has one, what velocities are you getting? I know on a .223 or .308, 20-22" only loses about 25-50 fps to a 24" most of the time, but the .204 Ruger has a higher powder/bore ratio. Would a faster powder like 10x allow me to get about the same velocity in a shorter bbl than I'm getting with BL-C(2) and RL15 in my other rifle?
Click to expand...

I have the same thing in a 700 sps,let me know what it does if you cut the barrel,i would rather have a 22 inch barrel if it will shoot and not lose much Vel.
 
rhaney2 said:
I have the same thing in a 700 sps,let me know what it does if you cut the barrel,i would rather have a 22 inch barrel if it will shoot and not lose much Vel.
Click to expand...

Roger...
I cut one of mine off to 22", lost 78 fps using the same load for a 20 shot average. Your MPG may vary.

Bill
 
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