Proof Research rifles and barrels.

[MCMXI]

I was fortunate enough to get a tour of Proof Research in MT this past week and I have to say that they have an outstanding facility with excellent equipment, knowledgeable and passionate employees (shooters/hunters), fantastic indoor ranges and very high quality products. I don't think that I'd buy one of their hunting rifles due to the cost and diminishing returns over the $3K price point, but I'm fairly sure that I'll have a Proof barrel or two in 2018. They offer barrels for Accuracy International rifles and I'd really like to find out how well they shoot. AI barrels have single point cut rifling as do Proof so it would be an apples to apples comparison to test 6.5 CM/. 308 Win and .338 Lapua Mag carbon wrapped barrels. I should have asked if they will profile and wrap customer barrels since I have a spare .300 Win Mag barrel.

Does anyone here have any experience with Proof products? Their bolt guns are built on Defiance actions and they even make their own stocks.

 

[Nature Boy]

I don’t, but as my FN SPR action sits here waiting for a future project, I’m back to thinking it will eventually end up as a hunting rig and a proof barrel would be perfect.

Be our guinea pig and get one!

 

[taliv]

i have a lot of friends that use proof barrels for PRS. due to the cost, and the rate at which they burn through barrels, most use the standard stainless proof barrels without the carbon wrap. their barrels shoot very well.
the proof guys (and their team) show up to most of the matches and are good dudes to hang out with

i have owned a few of the barrels. i have a carbon fiber one at my gunsmith now being chambered.

i'd recommend it without hesitation, as long as price isn't an issue

 

[tarosean]

They definitely seem to be skyrocketing in popularity.

I am interested in trying them out on my next project.. Just have to get off my rear and decide what cal. I really a want..

 

[IndianaBoy]

I've got a Larue coming for my build to dip my toe into PRS Gas Gun. Some friends of mine who really know their stuff use and swear by Proof barrels.

Depending on how I get drawn in, that may be my next barrel. It was a little spendy for me considering I bought the optic and the rest of the components last week.

 

[Gtscotty]

This is interesting, I've been looking at replacement barrels for my RPR, and Stocky's has Proof SS cut-rifled pre-fits for $436... Seems like a really good deal if they are decent. I was wondering if they were of the same caliber..... as the carbon wrapped versions.

I've seen a few of the carbon wrapped Proof barrels at matches and the owners I talked to were quite happy. The carbon wrapped barrels do seem pretty pricey for a PRS match rifle that you aren't really concerned about weight on, and are going to shoot a few barrels worth of ammo through each year.

 

[MCMXI]

Proof SS cut-rifled pre-fits for $436... Seems like a really good deal if they are decent. I was wondering if they were of the same caliber..... as the carbon wrapped versions.

As far as I'm aware, the only difference between the ss barrels and the CF wrapped ss barrels is extra machining on the exterior to remove material and the addition of CF. The CF barrels are obviously lighter when comparing the same profile and in theory should be stiffer. If weight isn't an issue I don't think that the extra expense of CF is worth it for the handloader but might work very well for those shooting factory ammunition. For example, I have five AI barrels with four from Lother Walther and one from Bartlein. They're all single point cut and they all shoot incredibly well to the point that I doubt I'd see a difference in precision with a Proof barrel comparing handloads for both. I'm not sure about a rapid fire test though where heat might affect precision. I've also owned three SPC Krieger barrels, two of which shot incredibly well and one I sold before finishing a project. My point is that any single point cut barrel should be outstanding with handloads so the the addition of carbon may or many not help. The carbon versions are for those who are concerned about the overall weight of the rifle. I might buy a 6.5 CM AI barrel from Proof so that I can run it head to head against my current Bartlein barrel to see if there's a significant difference in real world use and performance. I'm interested in a .338 LM AI barrel too since they offer a faster twist rate than my current LW barrel.

 

[taliv]

i'll bet money that if your sample size is big enough, you won't see a difference in accuracy, but you may see a difference in barrel life.
i still shoot bartlein (and bartlein offers custom twists, even gain twist from whatever start to whatever finish you want.)

 

[MCMXI]

i'll bet money that if your sample size is big enough, you won't see a difference in accuracy, but you may see a difference in barrel life.

I would agree re the accuracy/precision but are you saying that the CF wrapped barrels have a longer or shorter barrel life? Surely the bore would get hotter with a CF wrapped barrel due to the lower heat transfer rate of CF/resin so I would think that CF barrels would experience faster throat erosion. Just a thought at this point but Proof did talk about superior heat dissipation so maybe they've figured this out and it's a well-accepted feature of their barrels.

 

[taliv]

no, though you're right that's what they claim. and the first CF barrel i had was an 11" on a full auto lower and to be fair it did seem to cool off fast. and the second CF barrel i had was 17" on a 3gun rig, so i haven't personally tested precision or barrel life with any of mine.

but what i'm saying is that barrel makers don't all buy the same steel and some seem to be better than others, though they don't tell you when they change steels so caveat emptor