different barrels

[stav#69 0]

hi guy's. i,m about to buy a howa rifle with the deal they are doing, i,m either going to get 22/250 for mainly foxs or a 270 for mainly deer (woodland) now as i,m newish to rifles and the deal offers 2 different barrels, sporter weight and varmint weight. my question is what's the difference in the barrels and which do you lot think would be best for either rifle. many thanks in advance stav

[dave1372 83]

hi guy's. i,m about to buy a howa rifle with the deal they are doing, i,m either going to get 22/250 for mainly foxs or a 270 for mainly deer (woodland) now as i,m newish to rifles and the deal offers 2 different barrels, sporter weight and varmint weight. my question is what's the difference in the barrels and which do you lot think would be best for either rifle. many thanks in advance stav

 

I have a Howa 1500 in 22-250 with the stainless varmint barrel and laminated stock and although I love it, it is a heavy beast to be walking about with. If I was buying it again I would have gone for a lighter synthetic stock, still sticking with the stainless but with the sporter barrel for sure. If you are planning on shooting foxes out of a vehicle window then I would consider getting the barrel shortened slightly too.

 

Nearly forgot to explain the basic difference between the two barrels:

 

The biggest difference is the rate of heating and cooling. A heavy barrel will heat up more slowly (and consequently cool off more slowly) which is good for heavy rates of fire. Unless you are doing a lot of blasting, I would go with lightweight.

 

Theoretically, heavy barrel is no more accurate than light, but is likely to hold zero and groups better as it warms

Edited April 6, 2011 by dave1372