Anybody use magnum sporter/light varmint barrels?

["HeysKSFirefighter]

Both my current rifles have 26" varmint barrels which fall between Savage varmint & Sendero contour, and I'm thinking I'd like to shave a little weight on my next build which I intend to be a dual purpose hunting/tactical rig in 260 Remington.

I know shorter barrel length will save weight & help balance the rifle, and I'm leaning towards 22-23" now...but I'm also thinking I could use a lighter contour, either light varmint or heavy/magnum sporter (similar to Shilen #5 or #4).

Anybody else use similar weight barrels on their rigs?

And perhaps a silly question, but thinking down the road where I'll hopefully have a suppressor, are there any issues threading a muzzle with a diameter as little as 0.660", or using a can on a barrel with a thinner contour?

 

[raptor99]

Re: Anybody use magnum sporter/light varmint barrels?

Soninlaw has a 280 with a heavy sporter or magnum weight barrel and it is a hammer out to a 1000yds.

 

[Force_Multiplier]

Re: Anybody use magnum sporter/light varmint barrels?

I've played w/ a couple Savage Predator Max 1s...6.5CM and 260...
they're "magnum" contour, I think they're about perfect for a hunting/range rifle... anything you don't have to run long strings through

 

[SSSamurai]

Re: Anybody use magnum sporter/light varmint barrels?

One small issue is that you won't have much shoulder left for the suppressor/brake to fit against. Something you could do to help that would be using 9/16"X24 tpi instead of 5/8".

 

["HeysKSFirefighter]

Re: Anybody use magnum sporter/light varmint barrels?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: SSSamurai</div><div class="ubbcode-body">One small issue is that you won't have much shoulder left for the suppressor/brake to fit against. Something you could do to help that would be using 9/16"X24 tpi instead of 5/8". </div></div>

Thanks for that...I'd rather keep things "standard" and keep the 5/8 threads.

A 24" Criterion heavy sporter is .705" at the muzzle while the light varmint is .729"; at 22" they measure .711" and .759" respectfully. I presume that is enough for a good shoulder?

 

[3DHUSKER]

.730 is as small as I go for 5/8 threads.