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Talk me out of a med Palma...

N

NJRaised

Sergeant of the Hide
Full Member
Minuteman
Feb 7, 2021
246
110
Port Murray NJ
Decided to rebarrel my R700 to 6.5 Creedmoor. I rarely get past 6-700 yards due to living in NJ. Maybe 5-6 times a year I’ll get to shoot at 1000.

first time rebarreling a rifle, decided on a 24” 6.5 creed, bartlein 5r, SS, 8 twist, med Palma. Spartan rifles will be doing the work.

i shoot mostly from bench or prone, some coyote hunting. I don’t do prs. Any issues with the 24” med Palma???

thanks
 
I just did a 6BR Med Palma. At first I thought it looked too skinny. But with a suppressor on it looks great. And I appreciate the weight savings. 12 round shot strings don't heat it up as bad as I thought it would. I think I'll keep using it going forward as the rifle is a bit handier than the M24 contour I use to have!
 

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Great choice
 

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All the Palma profiles are excellent.
I like the medium Palma or medium varmint for my 260.
 
Other than having a little more shank, and a little longer overall(which can be cut off of course) , the med palma is almost identical to the Rem Varmint. Pretty good all around long range profile.
 
Like the others have said - no need to talk you out of it. I love my medium Palma barrels. Not too heavy, not too light. Solid choice
 
I like mine.
Sounds like a good choice to me.
 
It all depends on the feel YOU want. I happen to like a little MUZZLE weight in prone without an OVERALL rifle weight increase so typically spec a LITE PALMA taper or Rem Varmint (max) and a longer barrel. I generally sense a neutral feel from a rather short/heavier barrel profile and I have never shot as well with a rifle set up that way. I'll shoot any weight/length barrel from a bench but if hunting I still like a lighter profile and muzzle weight.
 
I've shot a ton of Palma type contours. Mostly med and hvy contours. They shoot just as good as any straight taper type barrel does.

I wouldn't go any lighter than a med contour if putting a suppressor on it.

The palma contours we make have 3" breech lengths. The Rem. Varmint factory is only 2" (including the breech threads) so the breech length on the palmas we make is actually a little longer. The med. palma and RV contour other than the breech length are almost identical otherwise.

The palma/RV contours are a nice cross between a sporter contour barrel and the heavier straight taper barrels. So for the guy shooting Palma prone sling type matches, across the course shooting it is very popular and out to 1k yards (I've even used mine out to 1200 yards). Also using it as a carry gun for varmint hunting but want to keep some weight down vs. the str. tapers it is also very popular as well.

It will work fine for ya.

Later, Frank
Bartlein Barrels
 
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Ok, I’ll be honest...I hated my Medium Palma barrel. My Surgeon started with a 20” MTU (.308) then when it died I had a 27” med Palma (.308)... hated how it looked, hated how it handled, it shot ok but couldn’t take the heat like the MTU. The day that barrel died was a joyous one. I run a M24 contour back at 20” now, much happier.
 
It depends on your stock and other component choices as well regarding balance. I couldn't decide between a medium or heavy palma, so I ordered a Marksman contour from Bartlein which is right smack in the middle of the two. I am very happy with it in a KRG Bravo :)
 
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Rudy Gonsior said:
Ok, I’ll be honest...I hated my Medium Palma barrel. My Surgeon started with a 20” MTU (.308) then when it died I had a 27” med Palma (.308)... hated how it looked, hated how it handled, it shot ok but couldn’t take the heat like the MTU. The day that barrel died was a joyous one. I run a M24 contour back at 20” now, much happier.
Click to expand...

And that's why they make both. Everyone's happy.
 
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I am going with Med Palma because I don't want to go any lighter for when I shoot longer strings, but I don't want to go any heavier for walking. Amazing how much more miserable a hike becomes with an extra pound or two on a rifle.

The DT is likely getting a truck axle though...
 
Perhaps I'm the odd-duck in the room. But, I have personally always liked the looks of and shooting capability of heavy, straight tapered barrels. Particularly on bolt action rifles. I have an 1:8 MTU on my 6.5 Creedmoor and a 1:9 M24 on my Rem. 700 .308. I'd rather lug the heavier weight, knowing it will shoot very well than skimp out on a few pounds or ounces for a smaller diameter.
 
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ColinW said:
Perhaps I'm the odd-duck in the room. But, I have personally always liked the looks of and shooting capability of heavy, straight tapered barrels. Particularly on bolt action rifles. I have an 1:8 MTU on my 6.5 Creedmoor and a 1:9 M24 on my Rem. 700 .308. I'd rather lug the heavier weight, knowing it will shoot very well than skimp out on a few pounds or ounces for a smaller diameter.
Click to expand...
I am with you. As others have said we got all the flavors for all the different tastes. But yeah I will sweat my nutsack off carrying a little bit beefier rifle with a MTU or M24 barrel just so I can throw her down and let her do the work when we get there. Honestly after lugging 30lbs 50cals through every climb and place for a living a 15lbs rifle vs a 17lbs is kinda like whatever.

Don’t get me wrong I like lightweight things in just about every category but I like my barrels like my milkshakes...thick. 😂
 
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Rudy Gonsior said:
Ok, I’ll be honest...I hated my Medium Palma barrel. My Surgeon started with a 20” MTU (.308) then when it died I had a 27” med Palma (.308)... hated how it looked, hated how it handled, it shot ok but couldn’t take the heat like the MTU. The day that barrel died was a joyous one. I run a M24 contour back at 20” now, much happier.
Click to expand...
You might have liked it if you had it at 20” like the two you did like or at least hate it less.
 
Rudy Gonsior said:
Ok, I’ll be honest...I hated my Medium Palma barrel. My Surgeon started with a 20” MTU (.308) then when it died I had a 27” med Palma (.308)... hated how it looked, hated how it handled, it shot ok but couldn’t take the heat like the MTU. The day that barrel died was a joyous one. I run a M24 contour back at 20” now, much happier.
Click to expand...

I have a similar evolution and experience with these barrel contours.

My first precision rifle was a GAP Crusader in 6.5 Creedmoor, which originally had an M24/40 contour. When that barrel burned out, I decided to try a Hawkhill "marksman" contour, which is a palma style contour that sits between the medium and heavy palma's. I really disliked how it handled and balanced, and went to an MTU contour after that. My current preference is MTU and Heavy Varmint contours.

The lightest I will go is a heavy palma contour, which is currently what's on my wife's 6BRA rifle.

It all comes down to the mission and your personal preferences. There's plenty of options, and you basically have to try them out for yourself to see where your preference ends up laying.
 
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