Bull Barrel 1911?

Traditionally, a bull barrell has thicker walls; this leads to decreased flex and strain under rapid or sustained firing conditions.

I see none I prefer the original bushing set up

I personally like taking the gun apart with a bull barrel over one with a bushing. Not everyone agrees with me. But, I think its faster and less hassle. No need to mess with overly tight bushings. And, the recoil spring is held captive.

I had a bull barrel 1911 in the 1990s. And, I have one now. I love it. Here is a pic of the barrel on my current one:

That would really depend on how the barrel & slide fit... Ever take a 1911 and give it a shake? Each 1911 has it's own rattle...

You might also notice that some with bull barrels are rated to fire "45 Super" rounds, as long as you change out the recoil spring.

Shipwreck - who makes that pistol in the pic?

I prefer the traditional set up.

A bull barrel makes the gun muzzle heavy. That makes a big difference when switching from gun to gun.

Recoil can feel exaggerated from the extra muzzle inertia.

Barrel muzzle to slide fitting is critical to get good accuracy. If the gun is fired a lot there will eventually be wear. You must replace either the slide or the barrel.

Disassembly is different, but not really an issue.

Accuracy depends upon the barrel. A bull barrel in and of itself is not more accurate than a conventional barrel. I have seen bull barrels with over 30,000 rounds through them that still shot the X ring. I have seen conventional Colt barrels do the same.

Shipwreck - who makes that pistol in the pic?

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That's a pic of the barrel in my Custom Springfield pistol. Came from their custom shop after a 11 month wait.:

When I first got it and I had aluma grips on it:





And now I have pachmeyer's on the gun:

Thanks for all of the replies, which one would you say might have better accuracy if any?

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On the 1911 forums - the claim is made that if the gun is made correctly - the bull barrel will be more accurate. But honestly - with a well made 1911, it probably doesn't matter. The gun will shoot better than you can anyway.

shipwreck, I love that gun. Every time I see it I think about calling SA to have one built.

Thanks - It is a great looking gun

If Ed Brown made a bull barrel version of a 1911, I'd have bought that when I got my Special Forces.

I don't believe a bull barrel would be more accurate than a standard. I think accuracy depends more on the precision with which the rifling is cut or formed and how tight the internal dimensions are held. Of course fitting a barrel into a slide and frame introduces other variables that aren't present when testing from a fixture. I have had Wilson bull and standard barrels fitted into a gun and shot from a Ransom rest and there was no appreciable difference. They were both extremely accurate. Many people will choose the bull for the extra weight and the different recoil impulse it provides. A bull bbl. will delay unlocking slightly.

Greater mass in the bull barrel due to *ta da!* the bull part of the barrel! Not that big a difference ... you can probably tune the FPS radius & mainspring weights to provide the same unlock time on a bushing barrel.

/Bryan

...........and , the most important reason.......LOOKS GREAT !!!

"unlocking" here refers to the action of the slide and barrel moving back and the barrel being pulled down by the link to allow the breech to open. Think of it like this - the recoil energy is not really "reduced", it's just spread out over a longer period of time so that the perception is less recoil. With a bull barrel and a square edged firing pin stop the difference is noticeable. Some shooters like this feeling and some don't.

Great photos. Does anyone have photos showing the differences between the bull and the bushing barrels?