Long vs short barrel question

[38-72]

What are your thoughts on a short barrel backhawk (say 6 inches) vs a longer barreled gun (say 10 to 12 inches or even longer) for shooting pistol long range targets a 50 to 100 yds?

 

[mindustrial]

The longer the barrel, the easier they are to shoot more accurately, the harder they are to carry around all day. All about compromise.

 

[sourdough44]

MUCH easier to carry the shorter one. I'd never go over 7.5 inches.

 

[Short Barrel]

I wouldn't call 6" short or 50 yds a long shot.I hunt with 4"-5.5" barrels and take shots out to 100 yds when conditions are right.

I'm not knocking the longer barrels either.I like the way the shorter ones carry and figure I am carrying them a lot more than I am shooting them.Shoot the one you like and that feels best to you.

If I were shooting silouhettes or some other long range work,I would probably go to longer barrels.I probably wouldn't go over 7 1/2" on a hunting gun.

 

[mindustrial]

My problem is I can't see 100 yds. Put a scope on your revo, it becomes more combersome, but then you don't need as much bbl length. :?

 

[BearHawk 357]

The longer the barrel, the easier they are to shoot more accurately

This statement is 100% true. The problem is.....it's only true in theory, or as they say, "on paper." I have found that I shoot most shorter barreled revolvers better than the longer barreled guns. I have tried to wrap my brain around why this may be the case and here is what I have come up with:

I hold the shorter barreled guns more steadily due to the "center-mass" of the gun being closer to my hand(s). Also, I think this may be happening: What if you flinch/pull/ or jerk your guns, even if only just ever-so-slightly, when you fire them. Most of us do. So, I think of things in this way:

Think of a 10 incher vs. a 5 incher. A bullet will be in the 10 inch barrel roughly twice as long as it spends in the 5 inch barrel. Even though we are talking about minutely small fractions of time.....it is still SOME amount of time. I figure that this small (yet longer) amount of time that the bullet stays in a longer barrel can be enough to throw off your accuracy.

Think of it this way: If during your normal flinch/pull cycle you move the gun a total of 6 degrees. Maybe you are only getting to 3 degrees of movement with the shorter barrel before the bullet is well on it's way down range. Perhaps with the longer barrel example you are able to reach the full 6 degrees of movement before the bullet leaves the muzzle. Couldn't this happen?

I know that I just opened up a huge can of worms. However, while there are tons of other factors that will effect accuracy, I believe that the scenario that I have just stated could hold some validity as well. Sight radius and higher muzzle velocity seem to always come up when people talk about longer barrels. However, I'm not so sure that these two factors add much real world advantages to accuracy as some folks may claim. Each gun shoots differently but some principles seem to hold true.....most of the time.

Another reason that I belive my theory may hold some value is because I notice better accuracy with faster loads sometimes. I feel that the slower rounds are staying in the barrel for a longer amount of time thus allowing more time for the flinch/pull deflection to take effect on the bullet, which may be throwing off it's intended point of impact. Who knows?

TMI? Perhaps. Just don't count out the short barreled revolvers for ranges between 50 and 100 yards. We all have our little "ideas" as to what may be happening when we shoot. No matter what really causes our shots to miss our marks sort of becomes a moot point to some extent. I say this because I'm going to shoot my way and you are going to shoot yours. I saw a guy shoot a small balloon at 200 yards with a FA revolver, with a barrel that was shorter than my pinky finger, chambered in a 22 lr. Even a belt-buckle novelty gun can be shot well at longer distances with the right amount of practice.

Just get yourself a gun that feels right to you and learn to shoot the crud out of it. You simply can't go wrong with any Ruger revolver. This is especially true when it comes to a gun that you intend to use as a shooter.

 

[flatgate]

They All Are Good. I don't have one bit of a problem with packin' a 7-1/2" gun around in the woods and that barrel length seems to be about the easiest to shoot "in all situations". Sure, the short barreled guns are a wee bit lighter, but not much when one installs a steel or brass "recoil reducing" grip frame.

So, there's no way we can answer YOUR question. WE can only offer our preferences and observations.

Shucks, once in a while it'll seem appropriate to have more that one revolver on board....

JMHO,

flatgate

 

[Cherokee]

It depends upon the shooter. My first center fire was a Ruger FT 10" 357 Mag that I carried all the time when in the Everglades many years ago. Never had a problem and made some great shots with it. To this day, I can not shoot anything less than 6" with much accuracy. My compromise is 7.5" for general use.

 

[Jimbo357mag]

Longer is better.

...Jimbo

 

[Short Barrel]

I thought this was long.

 

[sixshot]

Short Barrel, I love it when you show some of your beautiful scrimshaw works, just amazing! How's the bears coming up your way, we leave friday.

Dick

 

[WESHOOT2]

My longest is a 7.5" 357 Redhawk, and that's as long as I'll ever go.
Balance.

We have a 'gong' range at our F&G club, the closest being 70 yds, and I can ring it regularly with any of my centerfire guns, to include 4" GPs and 5" 1911s and 4-5" Witnesses and 5.5" Redhawks, too.
Surprising what's possible with practice........

 

[Short Barrel]

Dick it is slow right now which is typical here.I saw one good track on the 17th,probably made a couple days before.It evidently just got up to shake his legs,get a drink and go back to bed.No real feed for them here yet but it is coming.

I have a bowhunt scheduled for the first week of June in Northern Saskatchewan.

I'm looking forward to hearing some .480 bear stories.Hope you get a colored one.Good luck.

 

[maxpress]

the most accurate BH in my hand is the 7.5. any longer is to much and tends to "wander" on me. course the 5.5 is so close i dosnt make a practical difference.
friend of mine brags on his 10" and really is impressive with it for how little he shoots but i just find it to barrel heavy to keep steady off hand.

 

[EarlFH]

Longer is better.

...Jimbo

Jimbo357 mag,

Is that one of the ones made for the English market? Looks like it should come with a carriage!

EarlFH

 

[maxpress]

need cross sticks for that or a bench :lol:

 

[BGoff_SC]

To each his own. When it comes to short barrels... the Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan 44 Mag.

 

[Bucks Owin]

Oh goody, here's my chance to drag out a target shot at 140 yds with the ol' avatar 10" .44 FT. Plenty of luck here no doubt, but I've never been able to top it with any other sixgun, including a very accurate 8 3/8" M29-2...

LOVE them "Long Toms".... (BTW, was using a "flatgate recommended load" of SR 4759...Thanks amigo! :wink

 

[Tommy Kelly]

I prefer shorter bbl's. I have cut 2 back to 4 5/8" that came with 7.5". To me the 4 5/8" is the perfect pistol bbl length. For some strange reason I shoot better with short bbl's. I still have several 7.5" guns but enjoy the 4 5/8 ones and carry them mostly. I have a ruger alaskan in 454 and a 500 S&W 4". I'm not a target shooter but shoot very well with my short guns. I don't miss often but when I do its me not the gun.