Bull or no bull?

[Highstandardguy]

I've haven't considered the MK10 and KMK10 to be bull barrel models since someone pointed that they are, in fact, tapered to the muzzle. The 4", 5 1/2", 6 7/8" and 8" models are pretty much the same diameter for the full length of the barrel. So, is a bull barrel just a fat barrel or one of constant diameter? I've seen allusions to both definitions.

So what say ye?

 

[contender]

I tend to think that they are a "bull" bbl, due to the terms being carried over from rifles. I sporter weight rifle has a skinnier tapered barrel, and then when a company installs a heavier, "bull" bbl, they call it a bull, even when tapered a bit. I have a Remington BDL in .222 that is like that.
And if I recall correctly, Ruger calls them "bull barrels." Good enough for me.

 

[Highstandardguy]

Only one of mine is.

 

[Kevin]

I have a 5 1/2 inch which is a "bull barrel" I'm not sure if it's tapered or not. If it is it couldn't be tapered very much. Is this what you are asking?

I also have a 6 7/8" heavy tapered target match. But it has a pronounced taper.

Some pictures would be helpful to explain what you mean.

 

[Highstandardguy]

Tapered means that the barrel is a smaller diameter at the muzzle than it is at the receiver. I'm not asking about the tapered target models, only the "bull" barrel models. Since the MK10 and KMK10 are the only bull barrel models that are tapered I don't think a picture would help much.

 

[Kevin]

Sorry, ok I went back and re-read your original post, I see what you are talking about. I would say, no, if the barrel is tapered it is not a bull barrel. To be considered a bull barrel it should have the same diameter the full length. Otherwise it could be called a heavy taper barrel or something similar.

What do you think about all this?

 

[Highstandardguy]

I think that 3 is not a significant statistical sample. Maybe more will respond. Probably mostly just opinions but we'll see.

 

[gtxmonte]

A "bull barrel" on a Ruger pistol, is a larger diameter barrel that has no taper. If it DOES have a taper and a large diameter that is considered a "heavy taper" barrel

 

[contender]

Our own RENE guide uses the Ruger factory info to describe the barrs.
"4B"; 4" bull barrel
"512"; 5-1/2" bull barrel
"678"; 6-7/8" tapered barrel
"8"; 8" bull barrel
"10"; 10" tapered barrel
"G"; Government bull barrel
"GC"; Government Competition slab-side bull barrel

So, by this, the 10" models are actually a tapered barrel. I stand a bit corrected on this.

 

[Highstandardguy]

Can we infer from this the the Hunter models are also bull barrels?

 

[contender]

According to the RENE, the MKIII Hunter is listed as;
"678H"; 6-7/8 fluted Hunter barrel.
Nothing mentioned about it being a "bull barrel."

Now, the RENE info may be Chad's definitions, & not always taken directly from Ruger's official designation info.

 

[CraigC]

"Bull" barrel might not be 100% technically correct but IMHO, it's close enough to qualify. It's definitely what one would consider a "heavy barrel" with no pronounced taper.

 

[gtxmonte]

Can we infer from this the the Hunter models are also bull barrels?

I got to ask.........why does the exact nomenclature, or what someone calls it matter? It boils down to two choices from Ruger. The standard barrel or a heavy barrel. As discussed here, the heavy barrels come in many configurations. Bull, heavy taper, slabside, fluted.............So to make it simple, the barrel is standard or heavy

 

[Highstandardguy]

I got to ask.........why does the exact nomenclature, or what someone calls it matter?

Inquiring minds want to know.

 

[mohavesam]

From my days with Mr. Atkinson, the "bull" barrels on the early pistols were cost-saving methods to eliminate machining time and costs. His opinion was that the rifled bar stock need only be auto-polished (a 45-second process) at a time when the machining and processing with the taper/radii, muzzle band, sight slots and pinning etc. was over half the cost of a barrel at the time. Supposedly WBR wasn't particularly fond of the unfinished look but found people would buy them anyway, and he could punch 'em out like corn through a goose. Literally a ten-minute part after cutting to length.

This was all at a time when S&W and Colt were spending extra minutes/hours contouring their handgun barrels with the associated polishing costs (lots of tooling wear on some multi-contoured barrels). But then again, I still hear lots of oohs and ahhs when folks handle Mountain guns and older S&W guns with more curves than a playmate (me too).

-Interesting that the RENE and factory desgnation calls the "slab-sided" barrels as "bull" barrels. Although there is no taper or compound contour to be sure, it is a bar-stock profile with a simplified modification. Still much cheaper to build than a tapered barrel.

Not to lose much sleep on the issue, but the long pistol barrels mentioned in the OP are indeed machined to a taper, and that process denies the straight bar-stock definition of a "bull" barrel. There are plenty of conflicts-in-term in the machining world, and firearms manufacturing/marketing have their fair share.

 

[gtxmonte]

Contender touched on this being brought over from rifles..........not sure I agree with that. In the rifle world, they have always pretty much been referred to as "heavy" barrels or sometimes a "varmint" barrel, or even various stages of "contour", such as a varmint contour, Palma contour, Sendero contour, etc. But even with rifles, anything labeled "bull" generally had the same diameter from breech to end of barrel. You don't see many true Bull Barrel rifles, once you get away from rimfires, because of the weight. I do have a true bull barrel rifle in 6mm bench rest caliber, but man is the thing a tank. Just the barrel weighs 10 pounds

 

[Highstandardguy]

Not to lose much sleep on the issue, but the long pistol barrels mentioned in the OP are indeed machined to a taper, and that process denies the straight bar-stock definition of a "bull" barrel.

Always wondered why Ruger tapered the 10" barrels unless it was to reduce muzzle weight. Any ideas?

 

[eveled]

I never knew it was tapered until now, I always wondered why the 10 inch wasn't a heavy tapered barell.

 

[contender]

gtxmonte, I said it was a possibility that the nomenclature was brought over from rifles. But as you've pointed out, there are other terms used as well, so my "thinking" was wrong.

Now, unless my faded memory is wrong, (again,) the original 5-1/2" bull bbl MKI was built to allow it's use in competition where barrel length was an issue. And target shooters wanted as heavy a barrel as they could get. I recall that Jim Clark Sr. was one of these folks. But it also makes sense to just cut barrel stock, polish it & sell it w/o machining it.

 

[CraigC]

IMHO, it's a little more aesthetically pleasing for a pistol barrel that long to have a slight taper.