Uberti 1873 Rifle: 18" or 20"?

[vintagerifle]

I'm considering picking up an Uberti 1873 (Winchester copy) in .357mag/.38special.
I shoot mostly at paper, with the possibility of some small game hunting. I'm into accuracy more than just ringing a gong.
I'm wondering if anyone has any real knowledge about the ballistics / sight picture benefits of the 20" over the 18". I'm having trouble picking!
I suspect the 20" might be a bit more accurate, but the 18" will certainly be a bit lighter. I'm not a big guy so the lighter barrel is nice. Would the 20" actually be any more accurate?
C

 

[GRIZ22]

I dont think the 20 would be that much more accurate to make any difference. I have a 16" Rossi in 357 and I've found that trying out different loads or factory ammo shoots best has more effect than a few more inches of barrel.

 

[justin22885]

i like the 20 more.. you can hold more ammo

 

[RainDodger]

I have a 20" Uberti. I don't think you would be able to tell the difference, so I'd go with the 20" just for the magazine size, like Justin said.

 

[MEHavey]

Sighting precision (as opposed to accuracy) will not be a major*
real-world discriminator between the two barrel lengths.
Neither will weight difference for that 2 inches.

But get the 20" for classic appearance & balance. **
You'll never look back.


*
The front sight bead on the shorter barrel will cover/span a larger portion of any target.
Depending on your druthers for finer precision, that would suggest the longer barrel.

**
I speak from having two `73 Winchester/Uberti Commancheros: 20" 357 and 24" 44-40.
Both are tackdriving jewels with cast handloads.

 

[vintagerifle]

Good info so far! Interestingly, the spec capacity for both the 18" and 20" is the same, 10 rounds. Not sure how they get that to work, as the 20" really should hold more rounds...

Edit:
I asked my favorite vendor, and they said:
The 20 inch will hold ten 357 mag and eleven 38spc.
The 18 will hold nine 357 mag and ten 38spc

So it is a difference of one round.

I must admit, that if the 20" was available with the half round / half octagon barrel, I would just go that way, but that is only available in the 18", and I find it very appealing cosmetically.

MEHavey, thanks for the terminology clarification. After a bit of googling trying to learn about precision and accuracy, I have learned that longer barrels can add velocity, but do not clearly help precision or accuracy.
On the observed size of the front bead vs the target, I would assume I can get a smaller front bead if I want.

So it seems like this is just coming down to appearance, weight/handling, and round count. Am I missing anything? ;-)

 

[Speedo66]

If you're concerned about weight, keep in mind octagonal barrels, maybe even a half, add quite a bit.

On the Rossi's, the difference in weight between a 20" round barrel, and a 20" octagonal in .357 is 1 1/2 lbs.

 

[MEHavey]

...longer barrels can add velocity, but do not clearly help precision or accuracy...

While the jury is out on accuracy vs barrel length, the increased precision associated
with a longer sight radius is plain geometry (e.g., all other factors being the same,
a 16" sight radius permits ~15% more precision that a 14" radius.... and the angle
subtended by the large/small bead comes into play here too)

Now whether the actual shooter can take advantage of this is in whatever real
environment he's operating in at the time is another topic altogther.