He was right! Now, per inch, a straight is stiffer than tapered, but not overall and stiffness is gained or lost much faster with length than with diameter. I post this from time to time but it's a link to a bbl stiffness calculator. Play with it and it might surprise you a bit. It's part of his weight calculator program...another good tool.
Pro's and Con's to everything and also caliber specific im thinking ...some just tune easier than others also.
Fair enough but a couple of things. I should've mentioned that I was referring to actual bbl deflection and how that shows on target while tuning, with a tuner. The other thing though relates to your 1.250 straight contour. I like them btw, but they are not necessarily stiffer than a little smaller contour. Length is more critical to stiffness than od. Go back a couple of posts and see the link I posted. It has a bbl stiffness calculator built into the program. At the very least, it surprises a lot of people to find that a couple of inches can make a hv stiffer than a 1.250. Play with that program a little bit. It's pretty interesting. IOW, I'm agreeing with you but it might not seem that way until you put some numbers into that program for yourself.
Very true
Article,
A Look at the Rigidity of Benchrest Barrels - Lilja
While there are a number of factors that determine the accuracy of a rifle barrel, one of the more critical elements is its stiffness or rigidity. Obviously the larger in diameter a barrel is, the stiffer it will be. Almost as obviously, as the length of a barrel increases it becomes more...riflebarrels.com
Good article but his stiffness calculator is part of his bbl weight calculator program. Download it here..Article,
A Look at the Rigidity of Benchrest Barrels - Lilja
While there are a number of factors that determine the accuracy of a rifle barrel, one of the more critical elements is its stiffness or rigidity. Obviously the larger in diameter a barrel is, the stiffer it will be. Almost as obviously, as the length of a barrel increases it becomes more...
You can put all those dimensions into the program and it'll tell ya. You have to play with it because the outputs are basically just a comparative number. So you have to put your numbers in and then compare it to another set of dimensions. You'll figure it out pretty quick, though. Most br contours are either 1.200 or 1.250 shank od, for some distance, then taper to whatever, at a given length. Generally, at the same length the fatter bbl will be stiffer but there's a point of diminishing returns to that statement due to muzzle weight being more on a straight than on a tapered bbl. Just play with the program. I put a lot of emphasis on the way a gun handles and a nose heavy gun is not desirable. Balance means a lot. You can play with the weight calculator too and see what different contours weigh, at different lengths and how stiffness is affected.
