are carbon fiber barrels the wave of the future?

[DJ Fergus]

I have a 26" proof barreled 7mm rem mag. They do have their advantage of being light and stiff. I don't see them being a huge market. It will be a been there and done that sort of thing for a lot of folks. The Savage CF barreled rifle is an excellent price.

 

[Kimber7man]

To me, the main benefit of CFW barrel is lightweight heavy contour threaded 5/8x24 for my suppressor.

 

[Braunschweiger]

No

There has to be a market for them to actually be the "norm" that market isn't in comp where the weight loss is pointless at best. Is it in hunting rifles? I doubt it for the vast majority, people want sub 500$ plastic fantastics now. "It's just a deer rifle" is common for new guys. They don't want to pay tikka prices, much less tack on another 300+ dollars.

the only market they can really hold is with high end hunting rifles, and that's simply not enough to become "the norm" Imo

I could not agree any more. Most of the fudds around here in central Missouri have never spent more than $1000 in their entire life time on hunting gear and Ammo. Do I blame them? No. They still kill deer.

 

[preventec47]

I would appreciate a careful breakdown of the cost benefit. So we know the cost is 50 to 100 percent more .... But what exactly is the benefit? Could it be accuracy ? I dont think so. Could it be longevity ? I dont think so. I guess the only possible benefit would be the savings of a pound, maybe two in a rifle that is designed for carrying. ie a hunters weapon that gets carried up mountains. An this weight savings like y would be in exchange for less accuracy and or longevity. Me personally, I like to pay more for the heavier rifles as recoil is a big concern and I am willing to carry extra weight for pain reduction and ability to shoot more powerful rifles. These are the thoughts of an amateur. Am I missing something here ?

 

[Tex_Hunter]

Savage was able to pack one onto a 1000$ rifle and keep their other parts similar cost. The similar rifle configuration without a CF barrel from savage is in the 700-800$ range. The sales for that rifle has been through the roof so I bet money on it other manufacturers and models will follow suit is my point. Maybe not mainstream but very close as the hunting world drives these type rifle sales.

That's not really that much cheaper... I recently bought a Bartlein #3B stainless steel blank that was $355 before shipping, you can find Proof barrels online for around $700-750, so basically Savage is charging around the same uplift for their CF barreled rifle as a Premium barrel maker charges for a CF barrel over SS. That's impressive that the whole rifle was that cheap to begin with, dont get me wrong, but the barrel upgrade itself pretty much costs what you would expect.

 

[Radman]

for myself anyway I don't foresee needing or wanting a carbon wrapped barrel anytime soon. Doesn't really improve anything in my inexperienced opinion and adds one more variable, one more complexity, one more manufacturing process in which something can go wrong, to account for. I like my rifle to be as simple as possible.

Agree. There are scuba tanks made of a thin, lightweight liner. (actual tank), wrapped in glass strands, (and/or other materials). These tanks are lighter, (like rifles, not always an advantage - especially u/w), & are actually rated for higher pressures than most steel or Al tanks. However, (largely due to submersion), they have a limited service life, (unless this has changed). In this light, but not for the same reasons, I'm wondering that if, in time, we'll discover that these unique barrels will have a service life since they too contain pressure? Just thinking out loud....

 

[Deleted member 103481]

That's not really that much cheaper... I recently bought a Bartlein #3B stainless steel blank that was $355 before shipping, you can find Proof barrels online for around $700-750, so basically Savage is charging around the same uplift for their CF barreled rifle as a Premium barrel maker charges for a CF barrel over SS. That's impressive that the whole rifle was that cheap to begin with, dont get me wrong, but the barrel upgrade itself pretty much costs what you would expect.

But a steel barrel doesn't not cost savage $350. I'd imagine more like 50-100$ max right? Unless the Steel barrels in that model are significantly more expensive to make than their other models that retail from 250-500$

 

[Radman]

I do not own one, but what I had seen for barrel weight did not impress me to spend 900 for a barrel. I would think one main advantage would be the stiffness vs steel, I would believe less barrel whip than a #5 Sporter, again I do not own one so I cannot say what are the benefits.

Interesting. I do not fault your thinking at all but I thought just the opposite. The only benefit I see is a slight weight savings. JMO

 

[Boneafide]

Until recently, carbon fiber barrels have been reserved for the expensive custom rifle market. We are now starting to see more and more barrel makers making these carbon fiber barrels and recently Savage has even released a production rifle with a CF barrel at a bargain if you ask me. Will we see CF barrels hit mainstream rifles? Will they become common place and basically end regular rifle barrels as we have today? Just curious. Partially because will this hurt the value of modern rifles. For example, a rifle from the 90s can still fetch a decent price since there aren't too many differences from them compared to rifles from a few years ago but if CF barrels become common practice, future generations may not want regular barrels making the common rifles now much less value. Thoughts?

Well let me tell you this I have one on a 6.5-284 norma. For hunting and I can shoot 6 rounds of it and still hold on to barrel

Until recently, carbon fiber barrels have been reserved for the expensive custom rifle market. We are now starting to see more and more barrel makers making these carbon fiber barrels and recently Savage has even released a production rifle with a CF barrel at a bargain if you ask me. Will we see CF barrels hit mainstream rifles? Will they become common place and basically end regular rifle barrels as we have today? Just curious. Partially because will this hurt the value of modern rifles. For example, a rifle from the 90s can still fetch a decent price since there aren't too many differences from them compared to rifles from a few years ago but if CF barrels become common practice, future generations may not want regular barrels making the common rifles now much less value. Thoughts?

Until recently, carbon fiber barrels have been reserved for the expensive custom rifle market. We are now starting to see more and more barrel makers making these carbon fiber barrels and recently Savage has even released a production rifle with a CF barrel at a bargain if you ask me. Will we see CF barrels hit mainstream rifles? Will they become common place and basically end regular rifle barrels as we have today? Just curious. Partially because will this hurt the value of modern rifles. For example, a rifle from the 90s can still fetch a decent price since there aren't too many differences from them compared to rifles from a few years ago but if CF barrels become common practice, future generations may not want regular barrels making the common rifles now much less value. Thoughts?

I have one on a 6.5-284 norma for hunting with I can tell you that I can shoot 6 rounds out of it and still hold on to the barrel it does not heat up as fast as a steel one

 

[Tex_Hunter]

But a steel barrel doesn't not cost savage $350. I'd imagine more like 50-100$ max

Thats not the point... steel barrels probably dont cost Proof or Bartlein or any of the others that much either.

The point is that adding carbon to the barrel seems to cost around $300-400 to the consumer across the industry whether it is a cheap rifle like a savage or a top end premium rifle like a CA or just a barrel blank from Bartlein or Proof.

You pointed out that Savage made a cheap rifle with a CF barrel, sure, but in reality adding the CF barrel costs exactly what you would expect it to over the base non-CF model. That's the point

 

[Baker Alvin]

S&W Victory 22 carbon fiber on it's way. Be my first carbon fiber.

 

[Deleted member 103481]

Thats not the point... steel barrels probably dont cost Proof or Bartlein or any of the others that much either.

The point is that adding carbon to the barrel seems to cost around $300-400 to the consumer across the industry whether it is a cheap rifle like a savage or a top end premium rifle like a CA or just a barrel blank from Bartlein or Proof.

You pointed out that Savage made a cheap rifle with a CF barrel, sure, but in reality adding the CF barrel costs exactly what you would expect it to over the base non-CF model. That's the point

I did not point that out, that was someone else

my point was only that comparing a custom cut rifled blank to a custom CF barrel may not be directly analogous to savage offering proof barrels instead of a savage barrel. There are many considerations under that broad point. Maybe savage got a deal from proof that is not sustainable for other manufacturers? Maybe the profit margin on that specific gun is not realistic for many offerings... or even that one in the future.(this has been known to happen many times before) maybe proof won't be able to make enough profit with the demand they got for tossing savage a wicked deal... who knows?

i will say I HIGHLY doubt savage has the same investment in each steel blank as Bartlein, I bet it's not even close.

and if that's the case we have a few options

savage is making less on this rifle than the steel version or Proof is making less on these barrels than their other ones.

is it sustainable? We will find out!

 

[Backcountry sports]

Until recently, carbon fiber barrels have been reserved for the expensive custom rifle market. We are now starting to see more and more barrel makers making these carbon fiber barrels and recently Savage has even released a production rifle with a CF barrel at a bargain if you ask me. Will we see CF barrels hit mainstream rifles? Will they become common place and basically end regular rifle barrels as we have today? Just curious. Partially because will this hurt the value of modern rifles. For example, a rifle from the 90s can still fetch a decent price since there aren't too many differences from them compared to rifles from a few years ago but if CF barrels become common practice, future generations may not want regular barrels making the common rifles now much less value. Thoughts?

I think is just another phase

 

[Sanford338]

Until recently, carbon fiber barrels have been reserved for the expensive custom rifle market. We are now starting to see more and more barrel makers making these carbon fiber barrels and recently Savage has even released a production rifle with a CF barrel at a bargain if you ask me. Will we see CF barrels hit mainstream rifles? Will they become common place and basically end regular rifle barrels as we have today? Just curious. Partially because will this hurt the value of modern rifles. For example, a rifle from the 90s can still fetch a decent price since there aren't too many differences from them compared to rifles from a few years ago but if CF barrels become common practice, future generations may not want regular barrels making the common rifles now much less value. Thoughts?

Had a custom built 338 RUM back in the mid 90's.. it's the most accurate large magnum I own. 1/2" string 5-shot. Wasn't sure about it at the time, but I had read up on it and decided to take the plunge. Glad I did... it is becoming more mainstream now as prices have come down. I own 4. They're all very very accurate. I believe it's all customer preference.. but for me personally, I'm sure I'll have more built with carbon wrapped barrels... when I find another caliber I can't live without..
Good Shooting and Good Hunting to All