Structured barrels?

Every time I see structured barrels, I always wish 1) they could be manufactured more reliably and inexpensively, 2) the voids could be filled with a lightweight material with high thermal conductivity, and 3) they didn’t look so freaking weird.

The science behind structured barrels all makes sense - same principles as carbon fiber wrapped barrels. But the economics behind structured barrels don’t make sense.

Varminterror said:

Every time I see structured barrels. . .

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Interesting points. I bet that within a decade 3D metal printing will be able to achieve at least most of that, perhaps still requiring a finish pass on the bore surface. It's getting very good at high-strength, high-strain parts.

Appearance is something you get used to. With developing 3D CNC milling technology those barrels could probably be produced in quantity for competitive cost, and if their performance is also superior to traditional barrels, I think that combination would get them accepted by shooters pretty darn fast.

edwardware said:

I bet that within a decade 3D metal printing will be able to achieve at least most of that,

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I have seen a 3D printed 1911 barrel, with the makers branding printed into the rifling, a thousandth deep, clearly seen by a bore scope.

Perhaps even woven between that self assembling graphene fiber.

When additive manufacturing becomes more common place, I imagine very complex and intricate designs, all hidden within a veil of beautiful stainless.

Or maybe not.
Maybe our barrels turn into radiators, with the bore hidden layers deep inside, and an ugly but functional heat dissipator and sound moderation device making up the tube.
A clever end cap could make the structured barrels internally liquid cooled. For the hot relays in the desert.

Neat stuff to think about.

What can be built and what can be built economically at a standard which satisfies the application are often very different things.

Given the insular air channels, I’m not convinced the current long-bore drilled structured barrels can truly be kept cooler on the bore surface than traditional barrels, so SOMETHING needs to be in the voids to conduct heat away from the bore, else they’ll end up hotter than a traditional barrel. External barrel temp is related to bore surface temp - but barrel life for a bolt action rifle, especially a massive ELR rifle as they were shooting, really isn’t measured in barrel surface temp.

If those air channels were to port to the outside diameter of the barrel near the chamber end, I wonder if a compact ring manifold could be made to fit those ports and plumb that manifold to a battery powered blower?

Too impractical and heavy?

Something like this but with the small tubes on the inside diameter.

View attachment 997091

Duplicate nature, it's already been done!

jski said:

I saw this and wondered about this rethink of barrel construction:

Anyone with any experience with structured barrels? Any thoughts?

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Looks like an answer to a question that nobody asked. I wouldn't want one.

Picher said:

Looks like an answer to a question that nobody asked.

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You mean "How do we get a rifle to shoot with consistent precision, regardless of bullet weight or powder used?"

Or "How do we make a barrel with no harmonic vibration (dead barrel) to impact precision?"

I can think of at least three other methods used to deaden barrel harmonics and several to tune harmonics to match the ammo used- all trying to answer the above questions. You know- the ones no one is asking?