Suppressed boltgun barrel length

[ThisGuy918]

Searched this for quite a while with no definitive answer so here goes.

I just picked up a .308 Remington 700 SPS varmint with a 26" heavy barrel. It is not threaded at the current moment.

My question is am I better off having the barrel threaded at current length or having it cut to length X and have it threaded? What are the pro's and con's of each? There is no specific suppressor in mind or particular ammo load and I have no problem with the current barrel length.

This is a pure range gun being utilized from 0-1000 yards, no hunting or dragging it through the mud. Most of its life it will be used at or around 100 yards at places like mytrle grove and other ranges with the occasional trip to a long range.

 

[razorV23]

Midcounty Gun Shop just cut my 26" Savage to 20" and threaded for my YHM Phantom. Haven't shot it yet, but Mike did a great job. I picked 20" cause with the can on its back to about 26". Almost bought a Rem 700 AAC with the 20" barrel, but it was more cost effective to cut the Savage.

 

[SCARCQB]

20" is about right. The engineers at AAC already did the research and came up with this( 700SD). It is the right mix of stiffness and barrel length to provide optimum performance.

 

[ThisGuy918]

Interesting. What is the cost of a cut and thread? Wondering if it wouldn't be better to just pick up an sps tactical and leave this one alone.

 

[SCARCQB]

Interesting. What is the cost of a cut and thread? Wondering if it wouldn't be better to just pick up an sps tactical and leave this one alone.

Thats what I did... the SPS varmint has a 26 " 1:12 twist barrel. Cutting it down to 20" will not resolve the requirement for a faster twist rate. a 1:10 twist is needed to stabilize heavy subsonic projectiles.

I went with the Tactical SD for a suppressed bolt-gun.

 

[Markp]

Depends, are you going to run sub-sonic ammo? Barrel length is less of an issue if you are running sub-sonic, personally, I would cut it back a lot in that case... If you are running super-sonic ammo, I'd imagine a longer barrel (to a point) would be helpful. (As others have said, 20" seems like a good place to start.)

 

[ThisGuy918]

I think I am going to take scar's advice but with a twist. Instead of an 700 sps tactical in .308 maybe make it a 300 blk out. Has that been done? A 300 blk out bolt gun?

 

[SCARCQB]

I think I am going to take scar's advice but with a twist. Instead of an 700 sps tactical in .308 maybe make it a 300 blk out. Has that been done? A 300 blk out bolt gun?

Boltguns in 300 blackout are available on a custom ( barrel change) basis. It will set you back quit a bit. While the 300BLK is a good round, I would still prefer the 308 over that. Having the ability to go stealthy ( subsonics) and reaching out ( supersonics) from the same gun makes sense.

For the 300BLK.. I would keep that in an AR platform. It is optimized for that function. Any mods that are required are simple , cheap and can be done at home with simple tools and mechanical ability.

 

[ThisGuy918]

Good point. I just found it to be a very interesting round. Something just a little different from the norm.

 

[NateTheShake]

Thats what I did... the SPS varmint has a 26 " 1:12 twist barrel. Cutting it down to 20" will not resolve the requirement for a faster twist rate. a 1:10 twist is needed to stabilize heavy subsonic projectiles.

I went with the Tactical SD for a suppressed bolt-gun.

So here's a question regarding twist rates.

I am torn between the 700 SPS Tactical and the 700 SPS Tactical AAC because I may (read: probably will) be suppressing it in the future.

That being said I still want versatility out of the platform such as being able to shoot standard ball ammo as that is what I will probably shoot with for just a fun day at the range. Will a 1:10" twist degrade the performance with lighter (~147grain) ammo?

 

[herr.baer]

So here's a question regarding twist rates.

I am torn between the 700 SPS Tactical and the 700 SPS Tactical AAC because I may (read: probably will) be suppressing it in the future.

That being said I still want versatility out of the platform such as being able to shoot standard ball ammo as that is what I will probably shoot with for just a fun day at the range. Will a 1:10" twist degrade the performance with lighter (~147grain) ammo?

No it won't. Faster spin doesn't come into play until you spin them so fast you tear the projectile apart.

 

[SCARCQB]

No it won't. Faster spin doesn't come into play until you spin them so fast you tear the projectile apart.

+1

I shoot military surplus ammo ( 147-149 grain) out of a 1:10 20" AAC SD unsuppressed most of the time.

I also found out that instead of using a thread protector for unsuppressed shots, a compensator can be screwed in place to help dampen recoil and muzzle rise. With a comp in place, my optics stay on target on recoil. For night shooting, a flash hider can be installed.attachments also protect the muzzle/ crown... other uses for those 5/8x24tpi threads.

 

[NateTheShake]

+1

I shoot military surplus ammo ( 147-149 grain) out of a 1:10 20" AAC SD unsuppressed most of the time.

I also found out that instead of using a thread protector for unsuppressed shots, a compensator can be screwed in place to help dampen recoil and muzzle rise. With a comp in place, my optics stay on target on recoil. For night shooting, a flash hider can be installed.attachments also protect the muzzle/ crown... other uses for those 5/8x24tpi threads.

Good to know. That's what I figured.

Yeah, that was another selling point to the threaded barrel. I was going to put a muzzle device on there when I got it as opposed to the thread protector.

 

[ThisGuy918]

Made a couple phone calls to get some manufacturer info/suggestions. They concured with what Scar said about barrel length and twist rate and it was recommended to not use the rifle I have in current configuration. Not that I couldn't but to get optimum results a different twist rate was highly recommended. Now if I could find some optics and a good stock I would be good to go.

 

[BenL]

I have a Savage 10FLCP-K in .308 with a 1:10 24" barrel, and can tell you with an AAC 762SD, it becomes unwieldy to shoot off-hand. I shoot 175gr SMK exclusively.

For Bench or prone it's fine, but off-hand is a bit harder. If I want to shoot quietly, I switch to the 300BLK.

 

[Engage Armament]

I think I am going to take scar's advice but with a twist. Instead of an 700 sps tactical in .308 maybe make it a 300 blk out. Has that been done? A 300 blk out bolt gun?

AAC Micro 7. I own one and love it thus far.

 

[ThisGuy918]

BenL what kind of scope do you have on your savage? I am in the process of aquiring a scope and like the looks of yours.

 

[rsideout]

Looks like a Nightforce NXS 5.5-22x56. Nice scope That will set you back about $1,600.

 

[ThisGuy918]

Ouch that is a little rich for my blood. I bet it's awesome.

 

[BenL]

BenL what kind of scope do you have on your savage? I am in the process of aquiring a scope and like the looks of yours.

It's a Nightforce 5.5-22X50mm Zero Stop with 1/10 mil adjustments, an MLR reticle, Badger Ordnance rings, and 20MoA base.