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308 Barrel length opinions?
updated 11 months, 1 week ago
2 Members
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8
Posts
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I have a 1/10 heavy Palma bartlein barrel that’s 26”. It is just SO LONG with a suppressor. This gun was recently assembled with all used parts by me. I’m also curious if my bolt handle is too close and if taller rings would fix that.
I’m new to long range shooting and was curious if I’d be an idiot to cut this down to 22”? I am planning to load my own 178ELDM’s when I get my press mounted.
I will be shooting this in the occasional match that does get over 1000 yards (obviously not the optimal cartridge for that but I want to stay with 308 for work reasons).
I’ve only shot this at 120 yards so far and all of my groups were around .75-1.25 inches (off a bipod prone, wind blowing around the cardboard target)
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IMO, 308 needs all the help it can get on velocity. I run a 26″ barrel with either a brake of a 4.5″ suppressor (Area 419 Sidewinder and Maverick, respectively) on mine, and don’t find the length all that much of an issue. The 26″ also replicates my 26″ barreled 6GT match rifle.
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There’s nothing wrong with a 26″ or longer 308 barrel. Mine is a 30″ and it is great for 1k.
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If you want to stick with .308 AND go beyond 1000, its best to accept that you need velocity to get the performance you likely desire and that generally means a longer barrel. Even more so because you plan on loading the heavier 178’s vs running the 155’s for all they are worth.
Because you haven’t shot the 308 long range yet, run this season with the barrel long to get a feel for it’s performance. Especially when the wind is blowing more than the target around.
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Match and “work” rifles usually aren’t the same. Build another if you need something more manageable for work.
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I’m running a 28″ barrel with 7″ suppressor. Keep it at 26″ and get all the velocity you can. Will definitely help the .308
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A quick Google search says the optimal length for .308 is 24″-27″ so I would just stay where you’re at or if you must just drop 2 inches so you still get that velocity you need.
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The short answer for LR .308 is it needs all the velocity you can give it, and that means a longer barrel than you would probably otherwise use on a 6 or 6.5mm gun. There are people here using 30″ barrels on their .308s. Keep the 26″ for sure, don’t cut it or you’re going to demolish your range, holds, etc.
Also PS what are the deets on that Manners? I am looking to order one soon.
