Any one rebarreled with a shilen lately?

J E Custom said:
I guess I am out dated with my shilen barrel grades because I still own one that is not a match or select match and one that Is long gone. These were bough when Ed Shilen was still in it and I have talked to him personally several times about the difference in the grads and there prices.

He told me that they made barrels and after completion they were graded depending on where they fell in the tolerances. the prices were inline with the quality. being a bench rest shooter, he recommended the select match if accuracy was your primary goal and the match if good accuracy was required with reasonable cost. For other applications where distance and accuracy wasn't all governing the other barrels were plenty good (Still better than the current factory barrels) and many of these barrels were sold to other arms manufactures that didn't need the accuracy and didn't wan't the cost.They were still within normal tolerance. At one point I decided the select match was not that much more in cost for the increase in quality that I started ordering the select match and could see a difference it the match and the select match accuracy. The barrel is the heart of an accurate rifle So the select match was my first choice of the Shilen barrels and many years ago I started buying only the select match.

It is good that they only make two grades of barrels now but I still recommend the Select Match to those that want a Shilen barrel because I have had nothing but good luck with there best. I use other barrels and do the same in my selection. I buy the barrel with the most stringent requirements and tolerances.

No place to save pennies.

J E CUSTOM
Click to expand...
That's valuable information, thank you.
 
I also have a 26" shilen in 264....started its shooting as a 260 rem..shot excellent at 25"... was removed from that ruger and rebuilt to a remington and shoots okay as a 65284....noodlized barrel....
No other info....
 
After 30 yrs of smithing I still put shilens on a lot of guns. I've never got a bad one. I've put on 3 from brownels this last yr in 280AI and all are shooting under 1/2 with ease. I have a 300wsm that shoots 1/4 moa it's a select match. I would not hesitate at all to put them on my own rifles. A select match is stamped with the letters sm on the breech.
Shep
 
I have one on a savage 110 action. Very accurate but the chamber is rough and extraction is poor. I have been polishing it with a fired piece of brass and it is getting better .
 
Rough chamber is a gunsmithing issue. Not a barrel making one. Obviously the barrel was made well because you say it's accurate. Even if shilen chambered it it's no refection on the quality of their barrels. Best way to fix that chamber is to take it off and spin it up on a lathe with various grits of abrasive paper. 10 minute job.
Shep
 
25WSM said:
Rough chamber is a gunsmithing issue. Not a barrel making one. Obviously the barrel was made well because you say it's accurate. Even if shilen chambered it it's no refection on the quality of their barrels. Best way to fix that chamber is to take it off and spin it up on a lathe with various grits of abrasive paper. 10 minute job.
Shep
Click to expand...
Ok so we should expect to lap and polish chambers when they come as a prefit? And that's not a reflection on shilen? Get a grip
 
This spring I bought a Winchester that was rebarreled to .400 Whelen with a Shilen barrel, built to the original specs, so no head space issues, an nun-fired. So far I have worked up two loads for it. 300gr. hornady fp. and 350gr. swift a-fames, both shot very well.
 
J E Custom said:
I guess I am out dated with my shilen barrel grades because I still own one that is not a match or select match and one that Is long gone. These were bough when Ed Shilen was still in it and I have talked to him personally several times about the difference in the grads and there prices.

He told me that they made barrels and after completion they were graded depending on where they fell in the tolerances. the prices were inline with the quality. being a bench rest shooter, he recommended the select match if accuracy was your primary goal and the match if good accuracy was required with reasonable cost. For other applications where distance and accuracy wasn't all governing the other barrels were plenty good (Still better than the current factory barrels) and many of these barrels were sold to other arms manufactures that didn't need the accuracy and didn't wan't the cost.They were still within normal tolerance. At one point I decided the select match was not that much more in cost for the increase in quality that I started ordering the select match and could see a difference it the match and the select match accuracy. The barrel is the heart of an accurate rifle So the select match was my first choice of the Shilen barrels and many years ago I started buying only the select match.

It is good that they only make two grades of barrels now but I still recommend the Select Match to those that want a Shilen barrel because I have had nothing but good luck with there best. I use other barrels and do the same in my selection. I buy the barrel with the most stringent requirements and tolerances.

No place to save pennies.

J E CUSTOM
Click to expand...

I remember a 3rd grade as well. Hunting rifle grade or something like that. I have one from maybe 25 year ago. I think it's a match grade, but not sure anymore.

Seems like I remember a friend who is a BR shooter saying around that time that Ed said that the match vs select match difference wasn't all that great and he was just a savvy marketer/businessman who saw that select match vs match was more psychological than real.
 
The op asked if stolen barrels are good. Yes they are. The gunsmithing dept didn't make your barrel they chambered and threaded it. Yes it inexcusable to send out a barrel with a rough chamber. Should have been caught in quality control. No company can deliver a 100% perfect product 100% of the time. I am very sure if you talked to shilen they would make it right. If you live near Pittsburgh bring it to me and I will fix it for free. Chambers are not lapped they are just polished up. And sometimes the reamer or barrel steel can make a chamber more rough than others. Most chambers need very little polishing and the Smith probably gave it the usual polishing he normally does and didn't look in the chamber. Or he just forgot to polish it. It was surely a mistake on their part. And I bet they would insist on fixing it if given a chance. So I believe the op has gotten what he wanted to know. How many of you guys out their have had a bad experience with their prefits. Since I'm a professional gunsmith I have never bought a prefit except for some AR barrels. I hope you get yours squared away because it seems to shoot good for you.
Shep
 
25WSM said:
The op asked if stolen barrels are good. Yes they are. The gunsmithing dept didn't make your barrel they chambered and threaded it. Yes it inexcusable to send out a barrel with a rough chamber. Should have been caught in quality control. No company can deliver a 100% perfect product 100% of the time. I am very sure if you talked to shilen they would make it right. If you live near Pittsburgh bring it to me and I will fix it for free. Chambers are not lapped they are just polished up. And sometimes the reamer or barrel steel can make a chamber more rough than others. Most chambers need very little polishing and the Smith probably gave it the usual polishing he normally does and didn't look in the chamber. Or he just forgot to polish it. It was surely a mistake on their part. And I bet they would insist on fixing it if given a chance. So I believe the op has gotten what he wanted to know. How many of you guys out their have had a bad experience with their prefits. Since I'm a professional gunsmith I have never bought a prefit except for some AR barrels. I hope you get yours squared away because it seems to shoot good for you.
Shep
Click to expand...
Thanx for the offer, i made up a reamer with a fired case and a shaft to work on a drill, just need to grab some compound and it should be a gem. For the record, i would buy another shilen barre.
 
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