Shilen barrels...

[chucksniper]

has a 16 week wait on orders. Are they really the best?

[Michael Eichele]

IMHO, no. I think shilens quality could use a boost. Or at least a few years ago they did. Maybe they have stepped up to the plate more recently.

Lilja, Hart. Krieger. In that order. This is however, only my opinion.

If you want a awesome barrel in a month or less, call Hart.

[B23]

In my humble opinion there is no such thing as "the best" when it comes to rifle barrels. Some are certainly better than others and different manufacturers can make you specific twists, depending on their method, but I would say there is no less than about 10 barrel companies that could be considered "the best".

Since there are many "best" to choose from call some of them up. See who treats you the best. There are 3 huge factors I consider before making any sizable purchase. Quality and reputation of their rpoduct. How is their customer service and how close to me are they.

Lilja is always MY first choice. Dan has ALWAYS answered/returned either my call or email that day. Their customer service is top shelf. Their product is top shelf and they are within a couple hours of where I live. Had a friend that used Lilja on a rebarrel. They accidently sent the wrong twist and his smith who I will not name did not check the twist rate before he installed it. I'm still a little disappointed it wasn't checked for correct twist rate prior to install considering how easy they are too check but none the less Lilja made good on it and took care of everything in a very timely manner.

[chucksniper]

checked for correct twist rate prior to install.... thank you for that reminder!!!!

How about the correct caliber... I suppose it stamped on the barrel.

[TOM H]

Originally Posted by chucksniper

has a 16 week wait on orders. Are they really the best?

Last year I had a 30-06 build used a Lilja,Bartlein barrel this year got 257Wby/30-06 used with Shilen barrels they were the select match grade SS.

You always hear story about barrels etc. I spread my barrels around used a Broughton on a 300WSM,Lawton 270WSM,Kreiger 280AI,Hart 243AI ,Shilen 22-50AI,Hart 270,Lilja 270 plus others.

Lots of good barrels out their today and I've never had a a problem with a Shilen barrel always used the select match.

As to the twist most barrel have that marked on the chamber end of the barrel my gunsmith always give me that end case anything happens and barrel is send back.

One advantage to Lilja barrels is he normally keeps some in stock has them post on his site and if something that you can use cuts down on the wait. You also might check with some of the sponors here and see what their wait time is.

[chucksniper]

Lilja doesn't have savage barrels. Anywhere else I can look? I'm looking at Mcgowen.

[edge]

I did not see what caliber or taper you were looking for, but Midway carries some Shilen Savage barrels. They also have barrel blanks that your gunsmith could chamber, crown, thread, and taper for you.

I am sure there are other places too!

edge.