221 fireball barrel questions

F

fusionrider

Guest
I am looking for a good barrel for a .221 fireball.


What twist would be best for 50-68gr bullets?


Rifling: 3, 4, 5, or 6 groove?


brand: pac-nor, lilja, hart, or shilen?


When finished it will be only 22 or 20 inches long and have a fairly heavy contour. Any experiences or opinion is appreciated. Thanks
 
What type of rifle? Savage, Rem, Custom Action? I would get a Shilen...do you know who the smith will be? If not, where do live. The number of grooves really don't matter but use a 1-14 twist.

Hovis
 
I am going to do the job myself on a custom action but I have never really looked into any barrel preformance under 6mm, so I am interested in finding out what works well for .22's
 
The Fireball.......

does not have enough capacity to develop the velocities necessary to maintain stability in a 14" twist. A rifle length barrel won't boost your velocity a bunch more. A 12 will do okay for 50s, (& was why fireballs(XP-100s) had 12" twists; XPs w/pistol-length 14" twist barrels wouldn't stabilize 50 OR 55 grainers.) probably not for 55s. A 10 nor 9 would work for the 55s, 60, 62, 64s; 68s?? Once again you're running into capacity vs. energy situations. Just what are you going to use it for? I mean you said it was to have a fairly heavy barrel...? With a 68, even a 60, you are looking at seating depth considerations, powder choices may become more limited......then you have to wonder, "wouldn't a .222 be better, but not TOO much??" People can give you more precise information, if you more closely define your parameters.
 
I was thinking the lack of speed would have an effect on the twist needed. Thanks Brian for the information. Ill start with the 12" twist but who makes the best .224 barrel? would I regret going for the pac-nor vs a lilja or shilen? and where does Hart stand in terms of accuracy or quality?
 
There are many.......

good barrel companies on the market, & your selection is subjective until you have more experience & can make more of an informed decision. In the beginning you'll probably be governed by: cost, and/or method, do they HAVE, or how long will it TAKE to get: profile, material, twist, etc. Once you get in & get your feet wet, w/one or two, you'll see how things have worked for you, etc. Its like Driver's Ed., to a degree, & a couple years down the pike you may appreciate the analogy. As long as you maintain a healthy curiosity, see if you can find a mentor, & always ASK questions; if someone gives you a short answer, stop & think, it may have been as a result of trying to emphasize something important you may not be seeing. But, its always easier to handle stupid questions than it is to handle stupid actions, so don't be afraid to ask, because everybody started the same way, & 99.9999% of shooters are really good, polite(just listen to the exchanges you hear when two happen to bump into each other at a gun show: 'scuseme'scuseme)people who enjoy sharing their knowledge. They genuinely WANT you to be successful & get great results, you'll see. Oh, yeah, and DON'T be, (taking some material from a comedy show, here), afraid to utter those three little words that strike fear into every man's heart: "I DON'T KNOW"!!......And everyone WILL live happily everafter.....
 
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