AI tests; Fluting a barrel reduces its accuracy

Brian564

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Found a very informative page, and one bit in particular was very interesting to me about the effect of fluted barrels on accuracy. Here is the bit

One design change that resulted from AI's exhaustive accuracy testing and development of the PSR [Precision Sniper Rifle] is the removal of flutes from the barrels. Engineers at AI decided to isolate the barrel flutes to see what impact they had on accuracy. The engineers attached a laser to the rifle's receiver, another to the barrel, and a third to the scope. All three dots were zeroed at the same point, then they started shooting the rifle. They discovered that, no matter which fluted barrel they used, the dots would diverge as the barrel heated. The dots from the devices mounted to the scope and the receiver would stay in place, but the barrel's device would manifest a point-of-impact (POI) shift. The POI shift from the warming barrel greatly diminished when they used barrels without flutes.
Engineers determined that the flutes never heated evenly, causing the POI shift. I hope the results of this test gain wide circulation through the sniper and long-range shooting communities to help eliminate some of the ignorance that surrounds the perceived advantages of barrel flutes. Flutes are great for shaving weight, but this is the first test I've heard that provided empirical data detailing what happens when the barrel is fluted. This should be the death of the "they cool a barrel faster, so they're more accurate" argument, listed among flutes' virtues. Our goal is and should always be to mitigate the effects of heat; fluting exacerbates it.

Source

Bartlein Barrels | PrecisionRifleBlog.com

Enjoy it.
 
thats what "BO" Clerke told me in the 90'S when I worked for him, he had already done testing in that arena, said it was a waste of good bbls. William
 
While I don't disagree with their test results with the lasers I find it interesting they didn't provide the results of their real world shooting data. Without seeing their complete test set up and protocol I take this with a grain of salt. Fluting takes rigidity out of a barrel so I can agree that it has the potential to affect how it shoots as it heats up but if done correctly how bad is it?

I don't flute my barrels because of the cost vs gain (lighter weight) to me personally. However I've seen enough fluted barrels shoot great that I wouldn't hesitate to buy one if I got a good deal on one.
 
Barrel Fluting = POI Shift


And here is some additional content from the link in the original post of this thread that didn't get copied.......

The AI study seems like pretty convincing evidence. Once again, I requested research data from Accuracy International related to these tests, and have yet to see anything. That's too bad. I'd like to see the data before I can have full confidence in that it was applicable across the board (regardless of rifling method, flute depth, number of flutes, length of flutes, barrel contour, etc).
 
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I've always felt that it created uneven heating of the barrel. This was just based on the looks nothing scientific. When I read shilen's view of fluting I thought they would know I defer to that view more than any other due to an article that was just posted today about the Warehouse in Houston. I read that years ago and found that it was mostly shilen barrels used to shoot most of those .06 and under groups for years not 1 or 2 aggs.
 
Shilen voids their warranty if a Shilen barrel is fluted, per their website. I would suspect the professionals at Shilen and AI have researched this extensively and do know what they're talking about when it comes to accurate barrels. The different types of fluting I've seen are aesthetically beautiful and some are works of art, but are they as accurate? The argument is right before our eyes when seeing the Davidson brothers shoot fluted barrels to a mile quite accurately every week on their TV show. I think I'll pour another cup of coffee, sit back and watch this thread explode.
 
I find this funny...All of my fluted Sendero SF barreled rifles shoot bughole groups and lights-out...

However, if they're talking about fluting sporter barrels, then yes, this test probably has feasibility, and the results would make sense to me.
 
Right away I see a problem with their test as it relates to long range hunting. The long range hunter does not fire groups at game. I won't even fire a group of three shots without letting the barrel cool before the third shot. A five shot group would take me all day. The idea is hit the game on the first shot. A second shot, if necessary, should finish the hunt.
 
+1 wildcater
There may be some seriously good learning potential in the test. But it could never be implied that fluting hurts accuracy without a mountain of qualifiers attached to the declaration.
 
They did a decent job of testing but there is alot of opinion thrown into the conclusion even with "engineers" doing the testing. I don't think you could ever overcome the variables enough.
 
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