New barrel or set the chamber forward???????

[Mule]

So what calibers and/or barrel types is it worth the time/money to set the chamber forward to remove a sloppy/worn throat versus just going ahead and rebarreling. The cost for setting the chamber forward seems to run 1/3 to 1/2 the cost of a new barrel so I was looking for some wisdom on this matter.

Thanks

Mule

 

[Fiftydriver]

Depends on your goals for the rifle and what caliber your barrel is to be honest.

Give us a little more information and you will get better responses.

For instance, if you want a 1000 yard rifle, rebarrel. If you want a generally purpose hunting rifle, rechambering in most cases will get you a rifle that will work fine as long as there are no mechanical issues with the barrel.

Kirby Allen(50)

 

[MachV]

For me the desicion to set a barrel back or replace is easy...if I'm the one that wore it out.If the barrel shot good when it was young and I liked it =I rechamber! If the barrel was a little fickel and never shot exeptionaly well I rebarrel.
The only exeption has ben the Ruger VT in 223.Its ben set back twice only because I want to keep the original finish.It shoots alright but would prefer to start with a different barrel if I could match the finish.

 

[Mule]

220 swift in Rem 40-x just purchased used and I have not had a chance to shoot it yet. Throat appears visually to be a little worn but I will not know the state of affairs until I loose some rounds downrange. It will be a varmit gun for about out to 500yds depending upon barrel results.

I have observed several barrels which were bad after 3k rounds and so my question is how much to set it back and if this caliber is hard not only on throat area but also on the entire length of the barrel

Thanks

Mule

 

[rotorhead]

There are several things to look at. I do what Mark V said.
The next thing is go shoot it all barrels wear differently, at different times I should say, just because it has had 3K rounds through it doesn't mean its a goner. Alot of people think that a 220 swift is a barrel eater but I have not seen that to be true. If the accuracy isn't as good as you would like try some of Tubbs throat maintenance bullets they cost about 25 - 30 bucks this is the cheapest way to go to start with. If this doesn't work then send it to Shawn or Kirby or Ray Montgomery in Colorado he will do it for 125-150 for a rechamber a new barrel fitted and all will run about 500. The swift is a great round but if you rebarrel I would go with a faster twist so you at least have the option to use the larger bullets. Good luck
Rh

 

[dbhostler]

Before doing anything, I would find someone with a borescope and find out how much barrel you will have to cut off.
db

 

[J E Custom]

If you are looking at the same cartridge I recommend
a new barrel because you may not be able to clean up
the throat with out removing the tenon and re threading
so machining cost would be about the same as on a new
barrel.

If rechambering to a longer cartrige you mite save the
old barrel but it is still a gamble.

Some barrel makers thread and short chamber there factory
contours saving lots of machine time cost.

Just some more options to think about /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif
J E CUSTOM

 

[Gene]

Here is advice from my benchrest gunsmith: Examine bore with bore scope. If it is not severely fire cracked, and round count is not high, re-bore. If the round count is high (my 6PPC was at 1,200 rounds)its probably OK to re-bore, and you can expect to get another 500 - 700 rounds from it. Cost was $125. BTW, my re-bored Hart 6ppc shoots fantastic.

 

[EddieHarren]

Gene, what did you rebore it from?