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.243 velocity from a 20" barrel

holybuck
I like the handling capability of a short bolt rifle. Should I be concerned about reduction in velocity from a shorter barrel? Will there be any negative affect for whitetail hunting at ranges under 150 yards with factory 100 grain ammo? Thanks in advance.
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9 comments

Date Votes
  • Sig220_Ruger77
    Shouldn't impact your results any at those ranges. I too am a huge fan of shorter barreled hunting rifles. I have a couple of rifles with longer and heavier tubes for plinking and range work, but I much prefer a nice short, light, easy handling rifle for the woods. When I first got into shooting and rifles I was a velocity freak. I had to find the fastest load(factory or handloads) that would shoot good in my gun. Had to have a longer barrel, etc. Over the years I realized that the first rifle I would grab on the way out the door for deer season was always my Ruger Ultralight with a 20" tube.

    Jon
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  • ern98
    I have a 6.5lb 7mmMauser with a 19.5" barrel on it. To compensate for the loss in velosity I shoot 150g bullets instead of 140g on the grounds that I will make up some of the enery in weight that I've lost in velosity. I also, like you say, keep my ranges closer in. Several times over the last decade gun writers have attempted to answer your question. One of the best attemts was where one guy took a couple of long barreled military rifles and start cutting the barrels back an inch at a time, recrowning and then test firing for velosity. The artical was either in rifle mag or rifle shooter and if you can hunt it up it would be a good read. The net result, as I remember, was different for the two rifles. One was like 25fps per inch and the other closer to 50fps per inch. And that there was a real difference when closer to the short side then the long.
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  • holybuck
    Good info so far guys. Jon0322-I used to have a ruger ultralight in .270 but sold it (recoil). One option I'm looking at is the new Weatherby carbine. Affordable and comes only in short actions w/20" barrel. There are'nt too many offerings in that price range for short handling rifles it seems. I just want to make sure I am not undergunned with a .243 for the hunting I do. Thanks again.
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  • ATHOMSON
    You should be fine with a 20 inch barrel. I hunt whitetail here in Texas with a 20 inch barreled 257 Roberts and I am comfortable with it out past 200 yds. I ain't lost one yet.
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  • Colt Super
    Is the Weatherby a Mark V action ??

    If so, I hadn't yet heard about it.

    Doug
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  • He Dog
    Each inch of barrel will roughly amount to about 50 fps +/- as barrel gets longer or shorter. So, dropping from a 24" to a 20" barrel costs you about 200 fps. Just a rough rule of thumb. That is not a huge loss; different ammo could result in that much change.
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  • Winston Bode
    I have a Remington 788 with an 18" barrel and I have not noticed any loss of velocity or any problems with the short barrel and 100 grain bullets in my handloads.

    Bode
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  • holybuck
    Doug wilson- No, the Weatherby is a vanguard synthetic carbine.
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  • tsr1965
    Don't discount the Remington Model Seven's either...especially the older ones. I have a 1987 Model Seven FS. It came from the factory with a Brown Precision FiverGlass/Kevlar overlay stock. I pillar bedded it, and removed the pressurepoint in the forend. It is in 308 Winchester, and has an 18.5 inch extremely thin barrel, and will put 3 quick shots at MOA. With the Leupold Compact 3-9x, mounts, sling and 5 rounds it weighs in at 6lb., 2 oz. it is an awesome hunting rifle.

    As for your question...you are talking about less than 200-300 ft-lb of energy...no the deer will not be able to tell.
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