how to order a custom barrel??

[vendetta333]

hey guys, hope this is in the right area, plz excuse me mods, if not, and of course move it.
anyway, i read till there is no tomorrow here, and all over the web to learn as much as i can. so my question is, can anyone give me maybe a check list, pointers, what have you on what to tel krieger, hart, etc. about what i need out of a custom barrel? i want absolute field reliability! first and foremost! next i would like to be able to shoot VLD's and other such match and long ogive hunting bullets. what sort of things do i ask for? type/length of throat, tolerance on how tight the chamber is, etc. i know that a tighter chamber leads to better accuracy and is kinder to the brass, but not sure exactly how tight or loose to go. looking at building my first all custom rig, but not sure how to go about the barrel portion. my biggest concern is "iraq reliability". thanx for all info. and no disrespect to our troops, just my best expression lol

 

[lazylabs]

Do you plan on having the barrel maker actually install the barrel? The specs you mention are mostly and issue for the smith barreling the gun and not the actual barrel manufacturer. If your having someone else do the chamber work then they can help you make those decisions and then have them order the barrel and they can work the specs they are looking for. If your going to have the barrel maker do the work they will get all those specs worked out with you. It's just best to get a smith lined up and have those questions talked over. Barrel makers need to know:

material, moly or stainless
contour
length
twist rate
number or lands/grooves
bore dia(only same let you specify this)
groove dia(again only some)
some button guys have different grades(go with the best possible)
some offer lapping as an option but most quality barrels are lapped

So first find out who is doing the work and then just let them guide you along the way and then get second opinions or verify with others if you choose to second guess them.

 

[vendetta333]

ok, how bout the chamber work, and install then? cuz i got that other stuff dialed

 

[LouBoyd]

ok, how bout the chamber work, and install then? cuz i got that other stuff dialed

To get the throat you want send a dummy cartridge to your gunsmith with the bullet you want to shoot seated to meet your requirements.. I tell the smith I want the dummy cartridge to touch the lands he cuts with zero jump. It's up to me then to make a proper dummy cartridge.

If you can't load a bullet and case which meets your own requirements it's not likely your smith can make a chamber you'll be happy with. If so then pick a different cartridge, bullet, or action which will work together. I always send two dummy cartridges (no powder or primer) made as identically as I can with a bit of loctite to keep the bullet from slipping. Use brass prepared the way you plan to shoot it.

Some smiths will send you a copy of their chamber reamer drawing if you ask. Specifying other chamber dimensions is likely to require a custom reamer. If that's needed buy the reamer you want directly from a reamer manufacture using a detailed drawing and send your reamer to your smith with the order.

How about hearing from gunsmiths as to that they want from their customers. The above is what I concluded from discussions with Hart and Pac-Nor.

 

[vendetta333]

thanx for the great advice. that all seems so common sense haha, i didnt even think to send a dummy round. does anyone have any magical number for tolerances around the case and the likes? again, i want iraq reliability. but i also dont want the chamber to be too unkind to the brass and my accuracy. any happy middle?

 

[Glock119]

There are no magical numbers that will work perfect with every cartridge. Lets use just one dimension and the .308 win for example where the neck sizing for a standard chamber might be .344 to 346 +/- a bit. then you have a guy who wants a little tighter neck maybe something in a match grade but still extremely reliable his reamer might have a neck of .343 and some reamer makers do a .342 as a match grade and I have see others who shoot .340 neck and turn their brass. while a chamber with a neck of .340 in a .308 win would not be reliable for a hunting or tactical rifle it does just fine as a target rifle and those looking for accuracy. If your looking for "Iraq dependability" with "match accuracy" I would first decide what my wants and needs were. I would then pick a caliber that would allow me to meet or exceed those needs and expectations. I would then focus on finding one of the high quality smiths who specializes in what it is your trying to build and then I would ask his or her opinion for components base on your needs and the round you have chosen. I would then talk to them about chambering, the pros and cons of different lengths and dimensions and how the one they were recommending could work to meet your needs. I would then buy the best components I could afford based on what the smith and I felt was the best for my needs. I would then hand them over to the smith and let them do what they do best..make your dreams a reality.. And if you decide you want to try and build it yourself and thus is why the question then call the people who specialize in the tooling that makes the chambers. You can contact any one of the several high quality reamer manufactures that are talked about on this forum and they would be more than happy to help answer your question based on your needs. Just a heads up there are more reamer combinations for many of the standard cartridges than you could shake a stick. Good Luck

 

[Glock119]

PS: Lazylabs explained it perfect. if all your looking for is chamber dimensions then I would list the caliber example 300 win mag so others could post chamber specs (dimensions) they have found that worked for them or as stated call one of the reamer manufacturers.

 

[rscott5028]

Just don't get too carried away.

If you design a rifle around a non-standard custom grind and/or special throat/freebore/lead angle etc, then it could be your own special secret weapon that will outshoot everything on the planet. ....Or, you run the risk of it not shooting well with the desired setup. ...and, maybe it won't be great with any loads.

Find a reputable smith and discuss it with him and see what he's comfortable doing.

He may well request a dummy round. Or, he may already have a proven setup.

-- richard

 

[vendetta333]

thanx for all the info guys. im hoping to build up a couple custom savages. one long the other short in 30-06 AI and 260rem respectively.