300 Win Mag

[Oregonhunter]

I have hunted with the 300 win.for about 16 years now and it has never let me down,used it for Elk,Deer and Bear.

Just my two cents but if I had the choice between a 300 win and the Weatherby I would go with the Winchester round.

I also hunt with a 300 Rum but I would rather hunt with my 300 win,I have'nt killed anything with the Ultra that I couldnt have used my 300 Win on.

Dont blame you for the not wanting to use a brake,those things are LOUD! I havent put one on my 300 yet and dont think I want to.

Good Luck!

Rob

 

[SeniorSendero]

Dakor, I'm new to this forum so bare with me. I just acquired a Sako .338 lapua several months ago. Its only a trg-s lightweight sporter but oh boy, what a cartridge. It has a brake on it but from what I have seen,that is not factory to have a brake. If there was ever any reason for product liability in firearms, it would be for releasing that rifle from the factory without a brake. When my bro-in-law fired his for the first time, it left blood and snot on the gun, and were not sure where the blood came from other than maybe his tear ducts.

I'm putting together a custom LR rifle this summer and its definately going to be chambered for the .338 Lapua.

Senior Senderos

 

[dakor]

Well in response to that I like my eye balls where they are at

So I think I will stick to the 300 Win Mag. If I really want a big boomer I will build a 375 H&H some day from what I hear the recoil is less then a 338 Win Mag. As for the fluting I am getting to different story's so I dont know what to do there

[ 03-25-2004: Message edited by: dakor ]

[ 03-25-2004: Message edited by: dakor ]

 

[Brian Rybicky]

Dakor,

If weight is the only issue, get it flutted, But if your doing it for cooling save your self $100 and go with the bead blasting.

Brian

 

[Oregonhunter]

For what its worth I agree with Brian, Flutting in my opinion is more for weight reduction than anything else.

I have both style barrels and to be honest,both heat up and both dont shoot as accurate as when they are cool,keep in mind this is just what I have noticed.

There are a lot of barrel makers out there so I cant speak for all barrels,there are also a lot more guys here that can cover this subject better than I.
If it were me and I wanted to build a lightweight gun I would look at all my options and go with the gun and barrel I thought would offer the best of both worlds,
Weight and accuracy and dont forget the appeal of the gun to you. Remember your the one who has to look at it all the time! I dont think you can go wrong if you choose the one that you like best,the last flutted gun I bought was for weight reduction and I thought it looked nice with the fluttes.

I personaly like a gun (if for hunting)to have a little weight to it.seems to be easier to hold steady off hand and settles on the target faster,the weight I shoot for is around 8-9.5 pound range with the scope,bi-pod and such.

Whatever you decide have fun and happy shooting!

Rob

 

[dakor]

Well thanks for all the suggestions. After talking to my gun smith I am building a 300 Win Mag with a # 5 Fluted Lilja with a 27 1/2" Finish and a 1 and 10 twist. Now I need to come up with the cash

 

[John Burns]

The .300 Win Mag is an awesome hunting round. No way you can go wrong with it. If you ever get to the point you need more you are truly a master of the rifle.

Barrel flutings main advantage is cooling time. By fluting your barrel you will be able to get more practice in the same amount of time. Most of us practice more when the weather is nice and barrels cool slower the warmer it is.

Whether this is worth the expense is a personal determination but I never have as much time to practice as I want and waiting for the barrel to cool seems like a poor use of what time I have.

As to rigidity a more rigid barrel will vibrate faster and more than a less rigid barrel. To reduce barrel vibrations you want to increase weight and decrease rigidity. The reason a heavy barrel shoots better is because it is heavy not because it is more rigid.

 

[Nate Haler]

when you flute a barrel, you've just reduced its strength. Period.

John Burns, you're wrong. Shorter, stiffer barrels are more accurate than longer, whippier barrels.

And the only reason to flute a barrel would be for weight reduction. Any so-called gain in cooling potential would be virtually unmeasurable.

[ 04-01-2004: Message edited by: Nate Haler ]

[ 04-01-2004: Message edited by: Nate Haler ]

 

[John Burns]

Nate,

I have measured the cooling effect on gun barrels that were fluted and not fluted and I know there is a difference. We use an oven to heat barrels and actions to 300 degs to cure finishes and I can absolutely tell you a fluted barrel will cool about twice as fast.

As to the barrel issue I base my opinion on real scientific data gathered by Harold Vaughn and presented in his book "Rifle Accuracy Facts". Harold used an accelerometer on the muzzle to MEASURE barrel vibration and goes into great detail on cause and effect. I have spoken to Harold and believe his data is absolutely correct. If you have access to some other real data concerning barrel vibration please let me know, as I would be very interested.

A way to better understand barrel vibration is to think of spaghetti noodles. It is easy to make an uncooked noodle vibrate but very difficult with one that has been cooked.

With steel gun barrels it is not possible to reduce the rigidity without reducing the strength so we are stuck on that account but any weight we can add, especially to the muzzle will reduce barrel vibration.

Barrel vibration is a sine wave that starts at the action between the locking lugs and the recoil lug. The "stiffer" and lighter your barrel is the faster the wave will travel down the barrel and the more your muzzle will move. This is why the carbon wrapped barrels are a step in the wrong direction.

 

[dakor]

I will get to the point on this about fluted and not fluted I want someone to try tell me that a Barrel that isnt fluted will shoot better than a fluted barrel of the same contour because I would like to see it. If that is the case somebody better call Weatherby about their Accumark and Remington about the Sendero and let them know a fluted barrel will not shoot. As for a fluted barrel cooling faster yes it will science has proven more surface metal in contact with air will cool down faster that is why engines have cooling fins.

[ 04-02-2004: Message edited by: dakor ]

 

[MachV]

Years of prairie doggin have taught us that a flutted barrel WILL cool faster than a solid...provided they are both put in the shade with the chambers open

Coarse if your not prairie doggin the flutting may a waste of funds.
Have had a 300Winmag for six months now and still havent fired it,thats just plain wrong

[ 04-02-2004: Message edited by: Mach V ]

 

[John Burns]

Different style of flutes are better at cooling. The typical 6 flutes with a 1/8th radius cutter does increase surface area but by going to a .062 radius cutter and doing 12 or more flutes the same weight reduction will give twice as much surface area gain and help cooling even more. Looks cooler too.

Again for me the gain is in getting more shooting done in a limited amount of practice time.

Mach V,

I heard a new gun will "Go Bad" or spoil in situaions like that, kinda like milk if you don't drink it. Get out and shoot that thing before something horrible happens.

 

[trader388]

ok so flutes cool faster and they reduce weight. But which is more accurate? (Fluted or not fluted)

[ 04-03-2004: Message edited by: trader388 ]

 

[MachV]

The one that shoots the smallest groups

Dont realy mean to be a smarta$$ but every barrel is an idividual.