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Vudoo or b14r barrel upgrade

N

_newshooter

Sergeant of the Hide
Full Member
Minuteman
Feb 26, 2022
159
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Texas
Anyone have any thoughts on this?
I have a b14r 20" steel barrel. I feel eventually I wanted to buy a vudoo because its just really competitive.
The Bergara I have doesn't seem to impress me, granted I only shoot CCI and Sk+. It shoots just the same to me with both rounds truthfully.
Should I buy a barrel to make the b14r better or should I just plunge into a used vudoo. I saw a vudoo gen1.2 for sale that Ive been eyeing for a bit so theres that too.
 
_newshooter said:
The Bergara I have doesn't seem to impress me, granted I only shoot CCI and Sk+. It shoots just the same to me with both rounds truthfully.
Click to expand...
Replacing the barrel based on this alone is probably not a great move. I’d shoot some SK Match and LR match at least and see what that does

A new high end barrel or Vudoo may yield the same results if you just try these two samples as well
 
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My B14 R shoots great!! For a factory production barrel Bergara makes some pretty fine ones! I also put a 265$ TT 2 stage trigger( Special not Diamond) in mine, I would start there before you spend money on a barrel you probably don't need. Also get a decent scope with enough magnification and good enough glass that you can pick which corner of a 1" square you want to shoot at 50yds!
 
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Im a vudoo fan but the bergara’s tend to shoot super well. Try some more ammo, boresxope your barrel maybe you need to clean the chamber only. How many rounds down the barrel. My vudoos didn’t give consistent results until 1000 rounds down the barrel. Now you could clearly see they would shoot but it settles down around 1000. A different barrel could help, switching to vudoo could help but your current set up could be fine too just not enough information given yet.
 
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How many rounds through the Bergara? How do you clean it? Have you tried any better ammo?

Everyone knows I am a Vudoo guy but you should give the Bergara a fair shake before getting rid of it. If it still doesn;t do it's job with better ammo then get rid of it and get the Vudoo.
 
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First try some better ammo, SK match, Biathlon, Long Range, Eley Club. Eley Contact is shooting well for me in one of my B14R.
I got a EC V2 tuner for Christmas. I put it on one of my B14R's. it is now tuned for SK Long Range. I was able to get 2 lots of LR to shoot the same. I got a second EC V2 tuner for my other B14R, it is tuned for Eley Club. I got 2 lots of Club to shoot the same and shoot Eley Contact with that tune. Both gun shot very well before the tuners, but shoot better now.

First thing get better ammo before going with a tuner.
 
Last edited:
Realized I didn’t put enough info. Sorry about that.

I tried:
Eley club, match, tennex
Sk+, rifle match
CCI standard, mini mag, subsonic

The rifle shoots 1.4MOA at 100. That’s an average of 4 shooters behind the same gun. I have a T1x and I can shoot 1/2MOA at 100 with a good lot of CCI. So that’s where I’m getting at of wanting more out of the gun.

I also have A jewell trigger at 10oz on the b14r so I don’t think the trigger is the issue now as that’s the only upgrade.
 
Ultimately it's your decision to make. Vudoo makes a great rifle. If that's what you really want, get one if nothing else will make you happy.

Everyone's check book is different, but some choose to tinker with different rifles, until finally getting the one they really want.

If your rifle is at 1.4 MOA after the testing center visit with their best ammo.......I'd move on before upgrading it. The only question is where do you start, or just make the jump directly to Vudoo.
 
If you are 1.4 at best then you have a problem somewhere, putting the money into not only finding the problem but also fixing it, you will have more in the B14R than it is worth.
 
for me it is and easy choice, I would sell the Berg and By a Vudoo.. Nothing wrong with a Berg, it's the best bang for the buck in my opinion (which means very little to anyone but myself). If the Berg doesn't shoot though that particular rifle is not worth the money. If you have any fire in you to own a vudoo then buy the vudoo now because whatever you do to that Berg, it will never be enough and your just wasting money. Ask me how I know..Nothing against a RimX either, if you had mentioned that as a choice, I would have said the same thing about it as the Vudoo..If you want what is perceived to be the best, and inside you know you won't truly settle for less, the cheaper route in the end is to just make the jump.
 
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If you haven't tried taking the stock off and checking for paint on the bedding areas, I would do so. There have been instances of excess paint there causing issues. I would also try different torque settings on the stock bolts - generally higher that what is recommended has worked for me. maybe even pull the scope off and check the base screws and the ring mounting screws. It could be a physical imperfection in the barrel, but before I sold it I would check those areas.
 
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Owned a Savage Sport Striker once. Almost about as inexpensive a little bolt handgun as could be produced. Shot the lights out with the premium Federal Dimpled Gold Metal, not bad with Federal High Speed, could not hit a barn from five feet with some of the other brands, including Ely and Lapua. Sold it when I could no longer get the ammo it liked.

Brenda’s 541S shoots high speed 22’s with bench rest accuracy, shoots 2 inch groups with standard speed. Go figure, but it put plenty of squirrel and Dumplins on the table through the years. (Brenda IS a GOOD Shot!)

Point, 22’s are notorious for the ammo they prefer. If you have not tried as many various brands as possible, spending money on barrel upgrades is a waste of your time. (And money) My opinion, your milage may vary.
 
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I’d try different ammo. My B14r hung right with my factory Vudoo with the ACE barrel. The B14r is also much less picky on the ammo it preferred. I replaced the Vudoo barrel and now it performs how I want. My B14r, as well as many friends, tends to like SK LR match or biathlon over the others, as well as certain lots of SK std+.

For these half moa groups with cci std. at 100….how consistent was that?
 
_newshooter said:
Realized I didn’t put enough info. Sorry about that.

I tried:
Eley club, match, tennex
Sk+, rifle match
CCI standard, mini mag, subsonic

The rifle shoots 1.4MOA at 100. That’s an average of 4 shooters behind the same gun. I have a T1x and I can shoot 1/2MOA at 100 with a good lot of CCI. So that’s where I’m getting at of wanting more out of the gun.

I also have A jewell trigger at 10oz on the b14r so I don’t think the trigger is the issue now as that’s the only upgrade.
Click to expand...
search on this site and other site, about Tuners. I have a few out there. Tuners do work. My guns shot well before the tuner, but shoot better now. The EC V2 tuner is $255, if it does not help the B14R, it will fit your T1X.
 
_newshooter said:
Anyone have any thoughts on this?
I have a b14r 20" steel barrel. I feel eventually I wanted to buy a vudoo because its just really competitive.
The Bergara I have doesn't seem to impress me, granted I only shoot CCI and Sk+. It shoots just the same to me with both rounds truthfully.
Should I buy a barrel to make the b14r better or should I just plunge into a used vudoo. I saw a vudoo gen1.2 for sale that Ive been eyeing for a bit so theres that too.
Click to expand...
I wouldn't judge a guns accuracy based on the way it shoots cci anything. It's crap ammo, SK Match on the other hand is not that bad. and some lots can be really good. Just remember that changing barrels is like rolling dice and a barrel is not the only part of a gun that determines how accurate it is!
 
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I've never been a fan of doubling my investment in any gun in hopes it will perform X % better. In the end, you end up: a) upside down and never able to recoup the extra investment at sale. b) with a gun you still don't love.
If you want the Vudoo then get the Vudoo. At least you can get most of your money back if it fails to excite you with cheap ammo.
 
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WeeHooker said:
I've never been a fan of doubling my investment in any gun in hopes it will perform X % better. In the end, you end up: a) upside down and never able to recoup the extra investment at sale. b) with a gun you still don't love.
If you want the Vudoo then get the Vudoo. At least you can get most of your money back if it fails to excite you with cheap ammo.
Click to expand...
I agree about doubling your money on a cheaper gun. You will get very little back on a upgrade. I disagree about getting most of your money back on a Vudoo. I'm not picking on Vudoo's. Any custom gun, you will not get most of your money, you would be lucky to get 1/2 to 2/3 of your money back. As with any custom gun, it just does not happen. The only one that comes out is the guy buying it.
 
_newshooter said:
Realized I didn’t put enough info. Sorry about that.

I tried:
Eley club, match, tennex
Sk+, rifle match
CCI standard, mini mag, subsonic

The rifle shoots 1.4MOA at 100. That’s an average of 4 shooters behind the same gun. I have a T1x and I can shoot 1/2MOA at 100 with a good lot of CCI. So that’s where I’m getting at of wanting more out of the gun.

I also have A jewell trigger at 10oz on the b14r so I don’t think the trigger is the issue now as that’s the only upgrade.
Click to expand...
How does it shoot at zero range? I zeroed mine at 35yds, but up to 50 would be fine. That rifle should shoot one hole at zero range, mine does and so do a lot of others here too. What did the 100yd groups look like? Was wind a factor? It doesn't take much to blow that little bullet off, even at 100yds.
 
All else being equal a new barrel on a bergara and a new barrel on a vudoo will shoot the same. The action is just a feeding tool. Generally all the bergaras I have seen shoot. My guess is you haven’t found the right lot of ammo. It doesn’t matter what brand action is used without the right lot of ammo it’s just not going to perform at its potential. 1/2” groups at 100 consistently is a tall order for any gun with the best ammo and perfect conditions.
 
MarkCZ said:
I agree about doubling your money on a cheaper gun. You will get very little back on an upgrade. I disagree about getting most of your money back on a Vudoo. I'm not picking on Vudoo's. Any custom gun, you will not get most of your money, you would be lucky to get 1/2 to 2/3 of your money back. As with any custom gun, it just does not happen. The only one that comes out is the guy buying it.
Click to expand...
In his post he was talking about buying used, the Gen 1.2 for $1400..That is a good deal. I very seriously doubt he would lose 1/3 to a half on that transaction down the road.
 
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Lastsaint21 said:
In his post he was talking about buying used, the Gen 1.2 for $1400..That is a good deal. I very seriously doubt he would lose 1/3 to a half on that transaction down the road.
Click to expand...
I was talking about a new one. He would not loose much for $1400, but the guy that is selling it for $1400 is taking the hit.
 
Fowlmaster said:
All else being equal a new barrel on a bergara and a new barrel on a vudoo will shoot the same. The action is just a feeding tool. Generally all the bergaras I have seen shoot. My guess is you haven’t found the right lot of ammo. It doesn’t matter what brand action is used without the right lot of ammo it’s just not going to perform at its potential. 1/2” groups at 100 consistently is a tall order for any gun with the best ammo and perfect conditions.
Click to expand...
Too say an action is just a feeding tool is probably the most inaccurate statement I've ever heard made on this forum!
 
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littlesister said:
Too say an action is just a feeding tool is probably the most inaccurate statement I've ever heard made on this forum!
Click to expand...
Considering i have a terminus 223 that wouldn’t shoot until the bolt was swapped. Everything had been changed except the action and bolt
 
littlesister said:
I wasn't aware that CCI was offered in different lots. Someone correct me if I'm wrong !
Click to expand...
Well they must produce ammo in lots based on tooling and component changes, thus they have different lots. This is no different than any other ammo manufacturer like Eley or Lapua. So, ya they have different lots.
 
TheGrabiod said:
Considering i have a terminus 223 that wouldn’t shoot until the bolt was swapped. Everything had been changed except the action and
Click to expand...

Broncovan said:
Huh?
All ammo components are produced in lots. If you look on any box, there'll be a lot number somewhere.
Click to expand...
Yes I understand that but I have never seen CCI offered in different lots for purchase so that you could order several different lots to test and then order more of that same lot. Getting far afield of the OP. I'm done!
 
The CCI SV lot # is on the box flap inside. It is pressed into the flap, not printed. They are hard to see. The plastic 100 rd box are printed on the box.
 
Most ammo the lot # is so the manufacturer can identify all of the ammo made with certain components on a certain line so if there is a problem say with a double powder charge they can recall ONLY the defective ammo and not ammo that would not be affected by the defect.
That same lot number on the positive side identifies the lot# where the combination of those particular components used shoot well in your particular rifle.

Things like many grocery items for instance may use the date of manufacture to track any defective product but works on the same principle.
 
Thanks for the replies everyone.

Just finished a comp and got a decent standing. Turns out that even doing the vudoo method of cleaning, what I noticed what works best for my Bergara is to season it with a box of 50 then pull a bore snake through it.

Groups tightened up significantly. Weirdly it'll shoot 15rds of a tight group then start opening up again. So not sure if my gun needs more of a break in or what, but it has at least 3000rds through the chamber. No definitive cleaning schedule.

I'l probably play around with cleaning and see what it likes best

As for the vudoo route I was thinking of earlier, might just get one anyways and try out a tuner on the Bergara stock barrel because it shoots good clean, just need to find the "sweet spot" for cleaning because if pulling aa bore snake after 15shots is what works, guess ill be doing that in comps haha
 
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My Bergara doesn't particularly care for CCI SV. It does like SK+ and SK Match. If you haven't tried any Lapua Center X or better I would highly suggest it. Mine is significantly better with Center X than CCI or most lots of SK+. Some Center X lots are certainly better than others of course...in any case, if you're not shooting "premium" ammo I think the ammo is probably the limiting reactant in your equation. At the same time, if you really want a Vudoo, you're probably going to keep finding excuses to get one and won't be happy until you do (at least that was the case with me :)
 
I decided to swap barrels on my B14R Carbon. I got it to shoot fairly well but was looking for much more. I am getting a 24" MTU, 1-16 4 groove Lilja fit right now. Should have it done next week some time. Targets to follow.

Brad
 
_newshooter said:
Anyone have any thoughts on this?
I have a b14r 20" steel barrel. I feel eventually I wanted to buy a vudoo because its just really competitive.
The Bergara I have doesn't seem to impress me, granted I only shoot CCI and Sk+. It shoots just the same to me with both rounds truthfully.
Should I buy a barrel to make the b14r better or should I just plunge into a used vudoo. I saw a vudoo gen1.2 for sale that Ive been eyeing for a bit so theres that too.
Click to expand...
I would take the barrel/ action out of the stock and check it closely. I would use an inch lb torque wrench and start at 15inch lb+ and move up in 5 inch lb increments to look for the rifles sweet spot on your action screws for the tightest groups. I would also remove and reinstall my scope and check your picatinny rail screws. I would clean the chamber or the first 2" of the barrel very well to make sure there is no carbon ring affecting accuracy then patch out the rest of the barrel. Good luck I hope you figure this issue out. I went the Vudoo 360 route in a Ravage / Ridgeback 20" mtu, if you love 22lr I highly recommend the jump
 
My bergara has been plenty accurate, but my Vudoo is a bit more accurate and the bolt open/close is the biggest improvement over the Bergara.
 
_newshooter said:
Realized I didn’t put enough info. Sorry about that.

I tried:
Eley club, match, tennex
Sk+, rifle match
CCI standard, mini mag, subsonic

The rifle shoots 1.4MOA at 100. That’s an average of 4 shooters behind the same gun. I have a T1x and I can shoot 1/2MOA at 100 with a good lot of CCI. So that’s where I’m getting at of wanting more out of the gun.

I also have A jewell trigger at 10oz on the b14r so I don’t think the trigger is the issue now as that’s the only upgrade.
Click to expand...
Then just shoot the T1x lol .5 in at 100 is better than most vudoos anyways. That’s insanely good groupings
 
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Broncovan said:
I've shot a 100yd 5 shot group in the. 6's with my bergara.... Once.

So that qualifies as all day long, doesn't it. 🤣
Click to expand...
Yep. I just took mine out for the first time a few weeks ago. I shot 4, 5 shot groups at 100 yards with CCI standard just to see what it could do. Three of the groups were 1-1.25 moa. The fourth group I’ll post a picture of. So I think maybe I’ve got a pretty good shooter on my hands. Well yesterday I brought a whole pile of ammo to test at 50 yards to see if it could be a good factory class bench rest rifle. Well not one flavor of match ammo would consistently shoot under .5 inches at 50 yards. So I scrubbed the chamber for carbon and ran some patches down the tube, re-torqued the actions screws to 65” lbs, and we’ll see where that gets me later this week.
 

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hafejd30 said:
Replacing the barrel based on this alone is probably not a great move. I’d shoot some SK Match and LR match at least and see what that does

A new high end barrel or Vudoo may yield the same results if you just try these two samples as well
Click to expand...
I agree. But not about the ammo. .22 LR is one of the most demanding cartridges to shoot well. The projectile's barrel dwell time is very long compared to centerfire cartridges. Thus, every slight inconsistency on the part of the shooter behind the rifle is magnified dramatically.

Before making any big money decisions always check yourself. Spending money will not make anyone a better shooter.

I know - been shooting for 60 years, I revisit my rimfire build, shooting often when the wheels come off my centerfire shooting. And at 50 yards. Four things matter for me - in this order, and the shooting discipline is irrelevant:

The hold (rifle is asleep, crosshairs not moving AT ALL), very slow trigger press while maintaining that hold, cheek weld pressure, and the way my firing hand holds the rifle. All of those have a serious impact as to where the rounds end up, and there's a lot more.

And someone else agrees. I read this from a championship caliber shooter just yesterday - it matches my process:

"90% of my focus after I’m dialed in is in the trigger pull. The other 10% is in the cheek weld and the crosshair to target relationship....

I guess because I’ve been shooting for so long that my focus is not so much on my breathing is it is on my trigger pull. I know that my focus is so intense that my breathing is slowed considerably. My heart rate is pretty much non-existent. After many years of zoning in on targets my body has subconsciously adapted, I feel as though the rifle is an extension of my mind, everything comes together subconsciously."

"BTW, anyone looking to improve their centerfire rifle skills should spent a LOT of time behind the trigger of an accurate .22 rifle. Rimfire practice, even at 50 yards, really helps improve your focus and trigger control. I have a couple of 10/22s I accurized myself, and they are tack-drivers."

Link to the article:

https://www.accurateshooter.com/shooting-skills/bugholes-from-bipod/
 
Last edited:
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I am definitely not a vudoo fan boy ( they are unquestionably great rifles but I don’t have a desire for one for my particular circumstances) but I don’t think it is sensible to take a say 1k bergara, spend 500-600 on a good barrel, ( which puts you within 1500 bucks of a vudoo anyway less if you go used)and if you are not satisfied at that point, take a loss and end up with a vudoo anyway. While obviously a good barrel is critical to a good shooting rifle other factors ( headspace bedding trigger etc) all have an influence on accuracy as well.
from my standpoint, troubleshooting the bergara and optimizing performance by looking at all the little things that go into best performance is option one,
option 2 is to just spring for the vudoo
I have been into guns for a long time, and what I have learned ( maybe just my personality but others have agreed) is if you really want a particular gun, “settling” for something less than what you intended just doesn’t cut it. Sooner or later ( usually at far greater expense) you will end up with your originally intended product.
 
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