how much velocity gain from polygonal rifling
- Thread starter gofastman
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LawofThirds
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Apparently...not much. The lone wolf barrels generally show about a 20 fps spread (either up or down) from the polygonal rifling.
It does seem low, but remember that polygonal rifling is usually faster than conventional rifling (better seal, I believe), any velocity you'd gain from the longer length would first have to off-set that lost
usp9
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The figure I've seen used is a 3% gain in polygonal barrels, however, not all barrels are equal. The quality and process of the machining varies greatly among both conventional and polygonal barrels. A match grade conventional barrel may be close to or as well sealed as a polygonal tube.
Steven Camp wrote this Sig 225 test, in which he purposely compares it to a Glock of similar ilk. Excellent article. The comparison is near the end. The results seem to indicate that the polygonal does offer higher velocity, if only slightly.
http://actionsbyt.blogspot.com/2008/05/stephen-camp-sig-sauer-p225.html
Steven Camp wrote this Sig 225 test, in which he purposely compares it to a Glock of similar ilk. Excellent article. The comparison is near the end. The results seem to indicate that the polygonal does offer higher velocity, if only slightly.
http://actionsbyt.blogspot.com/2008/05/stephen-camp-sig-sauer-p225.html
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The main benefit to me with polygonal rifling is easier cleaning. The fouling seems to scrub off noticeably easier with polygonal rifling. There is only a marginal increase in velocity (the manufacturers really exaggerate this too much). Better accuracy? There are so many other more important factors that effect accuracy I have a hard time believing it really makes a difference. It's more of a marketing ploy. I wouldn't feel more compelled to buy a gun just because it had polygonal rifling.
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