Caliber recommendations for 26" barrel?

[grimjaw]

What caliber would perform best out of a 26" barrel? I don't necessarily mean which caliber is the most powerful, but instead which caliber achieves its best performance out of that particular barrel length. For instance, for the best velocity out of most .22LR cartridges, a barrel length of 18"-20" is usually recommended. I don't know about powder burn rates, but if someone wants to point me in the direction of reference material, that would also be appreciated.

jmm

 

[Rem700SD]

what's the bore diameter of that bbl? Are you working from a blank, or just an idea at this time?

 

[grimjaw]

Bore diameter can be anything, but I'm not considering rimfire cartridges.

jmm

 

[camp_13]

338 win mag is often in 26".

 

[Art Eatman]

Somewhat overbore cartridges--.25-06, .270, .30-'06 and suchlike--benefit from a 26" barrel, as do all the long-case magnums.

Cartridges like the .308 were designed with barrel lengths around 20" in mind.

This is an area for study involving powder burn rates, bullet weights and the variations of pressure vs. time and barrel length.

Art

 

[Jim Watson]

Here is the list of "optimum barrel lengths" from the Savage board. I don't agree with all of them, else why would a Palma shooter use a 31" .308 barrel? I think there is more to that than sight radius. But here it is for what you can get out of it.

Below is a list of optimal barrel lengths for the various chamberings offered by Sharp Shooter Supply. Fred has experimented with the barrel length on all of the below calibers, and found that the specified barrel length provides the greatest velocity without excessive pressure.

.17 Mach IV - 23"
.17 Rem - 23"

.20 Tactical - 24"
.204 Ruger - 24"
.20 BR - 24"

.221 Fireball - 22"
.222 Rem - 22"
.223 Rem - 22" (slow twist)
.223 Rem - 24" (fast twist)
.22 BR - 24"
.22-250 Rem - 25"
.22-250 Ack. Imp. - 26"
.220 Swift - 26"
.22-243 Ack. Imp. - 26"
.22-6mm (224 TTH) - 26"
.223 WSSM - 24"

6 PPC - 22"
6mm BR Norma - 24"
6-250 - 24"
.243 Win - 24"
.243 Ack. Imp. - 26"
.243 WSSM - 26"
6mm Rem - 26"
6mm Ack. Imp. - 27"
6-284 - 27"

250-3000 Savage - 24"
.25-06 Rem - 26"
.25-06 Ack. Imp. - 26"

.260 Rern - 24"
6.5x55 Swede - 26"
6.5-284 - 27"

7mm BR - 24"
7mm Rem Mag - 26"
7mm RSUM - 26"
7mm-08 Rem - 24"
7 STW - 27"
7mm WSM - 26"

.308 Win - 24"
.30-06 Spfld - 24"
.300 Win Mag - 26"
.300 WSM - 24"
.300 RUM - 27"
.300 Whisper - 16"

.338 Win Mag - 24"

 

[Ol` Joe]

I`ve read somewhere that most if not all centerfire cartridges will continue to gain some velocity with barrels longer then 24". I don`t know if it`s true, but most will supposedly continue to gain after 30".
I don`t know if this is what you`re looking for, but you shouldn`t lose any preformance with a 26"bbl with any centerfire cartridge.

 

[grimjaw]

you shouldn`t lose any preformance with a 26"bbl with any centerfire cartridge.

I see some leverguns out there with 26" barrels, but supposedly the chamberings were less than optimal when combined with that length. Examples would be .357/.44 Magnum, .45LC, .30-30, and .45-70. I don't have facts to back that up, which is one of the reasons I was asking.

Thanks for the chart, very helpful.

jmm

 

[Ol` Joe]

you shouldn`t lose any preformance with a 26"bbl with any centerfire cartridge.

I see some leverguns out there with 26" barrels, but supposedly the chamberings were less than optimal when combined with that length. Examples would be .357/.44 Magnum, .45LC, .30-30, and .45-70. I don't have facts to back that up, which is one of the reasons I was asking.

Thanks for the chart, very helpful.

jmm

I should have phrased that as bottle neck cartridge. The straight walled cases can have bores with large expansion ratios. I heard once the 22 in a 4" pistol barrel has the same expansion ratio as a 308 in a 22", if I remember right. As long as there is enought residual pressure in the barrel to push on the bullet it wont slow down, and enought will keep it speeding up.
I believe though the 30-30 will still not be dropping any velocity at 26" It might not gain much over any extra added inches but won`t be slowing down at this lenght, though I can`t prove it. Same with the 45-70.

 

[Fatelvis]

270 Weatherby mag. I will do anything... but Brown Bears.

 

[DMK]

Wouldn't this depend heavily on the loading of the cartridge?

I mean saying 30.06 will work most efficently in a 24" barrel doesn't really take into account the gazilians of different loads available just in commercial cartridges.

Or are we saying that the best load can be worked up if shot out of a 26" barrel?

 

[grimjaw]

DMK, I should have specified in my first post. I would only be using factory loadings. I don't have the room right now for a reloading setup. I realize there's still some wiggle room for the bullet weight. But feel free to discuss questions along the lines you posed, answers are always good.

jmm

 

[Richard.Howe]

If I had your barrel, a little money, and the right action -- I'd build myself a 6.5-284

Awesome little cartridge if you reload...

 

[artherd]

.338 Lapua Mag