Carbon Fiber Barrel Harmonics Video

Mike, there are a LOT of those CF barrels that have had to be replaced.

If you saw my sporter barrels shooting, you would wonder why you ever need a CF anything. The right gunsmith uses old school method indicating in the throat of the new barrel, a little bit of barrel analysis prior to chambering, an inspection of the chamber prior to him taking that barrel out of the lathe, and good quality barrels. Now throw on highly tuned reloads, you are shooting dot-size groups.

So, the CF barrel is an effort to solve a problem that does not exist. The real problem is Basically two categories :

A. Crooked chamber and/or poor-quality barrel, bedding, scope

B. Shooter does not know how to tune loads/clean a barrel

The video's on the harmonics do not mean anything unless A and B above are done correctly.

Lots of stuff is sold to shooters and how it looks, I prefer 2"-3" groups at 600 yards on sporter weight barrel hunting rifles. I can get almost 4 Brux barrels for the price of two carbon wrap barrels. I am tuning these sporter weight barrels to shoot 1/4"-3/8" groups at 100 yds.

So, where is the economics in the CF for me and guys that are advanced reloaders and shooters? I do believe that the CF is great for a pride of ownership issue and it sure is a sales Marketing point.
 
VinceMule said:
Mike, there are a LOT of those CF barrels that have had to be replaced.

If you saw my sporter barrels shooting, you would wonder why you ever need a CF anything. The right gunsmith uses old school method indicating in the throat of the new barrel, a little bit of barrel analysis prior to chambering, an inspection of the chamber prior to him taking that barrel out of the lathe, and good quality barrels. Now throw on highly tuned reloads, you are shooting dot-size groups.

So, the CF barrel is an effort to solve a problem that does not exist. The real problem is Basically two categories :

A. Crooked chamber and/or poor-quality barrel, bedding, scope

B. Shooter does not know how to tune loads/clean a barrel

The video's on the harmonics do not mean anything unless A and B above are done correctly.

Lots of stuff is sold to shooters and how it looks, I prefer 2"-3" groups at 600 yards on sporter weight barrel hunting rifles. I can get almost 4 Brux barrels for the price of two carbon wrap barrels. I am tuning these sporter weight barrels to shoot 1/4"-3/8" groups at 100 yds.

So, where is the economics in the CF for me and guys that are advanced reloaders and shooters? I do believe that the CF is great for a pride of ownership issue and it sure is a sales Marketing point.
Click to expand...
To your points, A & B scenarios above affect both barrels equally so that's a moot point to me.

I suppose economics come more into play if you are a target banger and go through potentially a few barrels on a regular basis. I am neither. I tune a load and may shoot 100-200 rounds per year to keep my long range hunting skills intact. Sure I would do the same with a spotter weight steel barrel but I've had less than good success shooting sporter weight barrels with a suppressor attached which I do 95% of the time.

I don't believe based on personal experience that the carbon wrapping process makes any barrel less inherently accurate. I believe there are plenty of other factors at play that can make any barrel inaccurate.

I have 2 rifles of similar build, one has a Remington Varmint contour steel barrel and the other has a CF HCA barrel. The steel barrel rifle is a 260AI, the CF barrel rifle is a 300 Norma improved. Both are 24" barrels, similar optics, etc…. The 260AI weighs almost 15#, the 300NMI weighs under 11#. That is significant on a hunting rifle, which is what I do.
 
It's decided. If your goal is cutting a little weight and you prefer the look of CF, buy a CF barrel. If your goal is saving a few coins and prefer the SS look, go with a SS barrel. I have both, but my next rifle will have a ??? barrel.
 
Pilsner said:
I've got a CF barrel at the smith right now being chambered in 6.5-284 Norma. What barrel length and velocities are you finding in your?
That's a good looking rifle btw!
Click to expand...
Thank you very much. It is a 26 inch 1:8 twist I could usually get 3000 ft./s or slightly above with a 140 grain bullet. The latest rendition is running suppressed so I cut it down to 22 inch this time around and went down to a 130 grain bullet to keep my velocities the same. Bill
 
I'm just not convinced of an advantage other than weight.
Both videos spewed what seemed like merchandising nonsense, given zero actual evidence. No measurements.

I don't see how reducing vibration amplitude through higher rigidity occurs without increasing frequency.
If you increase frequency, your tune would need to be that much sharper to catch the right timing.
But also, there are all kinds of barrel vibrations going back & forth, summing and subtracting, barrel twisting, recoil occurring -before bullet exit. By the time barrels in their video respond in a whippy kind of way, notice the bullets have already exited.
So I doubt it's clean like all these animated simulations.

I think they'd be better to say 'our barrels are lighter per diameter, and still shoot good'.
 
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338 dude said:
Thank you very much. It is a 26 inch 1:8 twist I could usually get 3000 ft./s or slightly above with a 140 grain bullet. The latest rendition is running suppressed so I cut it down to 22 inch this time around and went down to a 130 grain bullet to keep my velocities the same. Bill
Click to expand...
Good to hear. Mine is a 20" barrel and the can is in ATF jail. Got a pile of 129 grain ABLRs enroute along with Lapua brass.
The goal is 2900-2950 realm.
*Crosses fingers*
 
Mike, I do not shoot cans, thus your need for a stiffer barrel is spot on! Best wishes!

I did not mean to pick a fight over the CW. I have seen and have known first-hand horror stories, and it is a really messed up deal when one of these CW barrels is no good. Some of the barrels were purchased as part of a package in the factory rifle, and others were the barrel was purchased from the barrel maker, then their gunsmith installed the barrel.
 
My Bartlein 7mm 27" blanks
#3 ss; 3lb 13.4oz
#13 carbon; 3lb 9.0 oz

$350 for the weight savings
 
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VinceMule said:
Mike, I do not shoot cans, thus your need for a stiffer barrel is spot on! Best wishes!

I did not mean to pick a fight over the CW. I have seen and have known first-hand horror stories, and it is a really messed up deal when one of these CW barrels is no good. Some of the barrels were purchased as part of a package in the factory rifle, and others were the barrel was purchased from the barrel maker, then their gunsmith installed the barrel.
Click to expand...
I wasn't intending to be confrontational, I apologize if it came across that way.

CFW barrels are still a relatively new thing in comparison to CM and SS barrels for sure.

But so far all of my experiences (3 rifles currently) have been positive with CFW barrels.
 
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