- Thread starter Maggot
- Start date
I've developed an extremely scientific method of determining whether or not to keep shooting a precision bolt rifle based on barrel temp. Here it is:
Grab the barrel with your bare hand and squeeze as hard as you can. If you have to let go quickly, it might be to hot. If you have to let go immediately and say "Motherfucker!!!!!!!" it's officially to hot.
Shooting various competition under time constraints renders my method useless.
Grab the barrel with your bare hand and squeeze as hard as you can. If you have to let go quickly, it might be to hot. If you have to let go immediately and say "Motherfucker!!!!!!!" it's officially to hot.
Shooting various competition under time constraints renders my method useless.
I use the egg method.
If it's hot enough that I think you could reasonably fry an egg on your barrel, you should slow down your tempo.
If it's hot enough that I think you could reasonably fry an egg on your barrel, you should slow down your tempo.
Buy a stick on thermometer and measure it instead of guessing?
If it's a carbon barrel, as soon as mirage starts coming off the barrel. If it's a steel barrel, unless you're just cooking off rounds left and right, you should be fine just shooting 10rnds or a bit more.
Most people aren't shooting 10-20rnd strings with magnums. So they normally don't need to let anything cool down.
Most people aren't shooting 10-20rnd strings with magnums. So they normally don't need to let anything cool down.
That would only tell me the temperature, not if the POI itself is starting to wander from heat. I reckon the only way to really know is actual DOPE.
Speaking of dope, ughhh.....maybe yer target will tell you when poi shifts. At that point record the barrel temp for future reference.
If the barrel is too hot to hold onto then it’s likely your groups will open up. The number of rounds it takes to excessively heat the barrel will depend on your barrel profile. But 10 to 20 rounds fired in rapid succession will be enough to excessively heat most barrels.
When the barrel is cool enough to hold with your bare hand accuracy should return to normal.
When the barrel is cool enough to hold with your bare hand accuracy should return to normal.
Shit, build your own dope. Post up 6 targets. Shoot a 5-shot group. Shoot another. And another, etc, until you have put 30 shots down range in quick succession. Heck, get one of those thermometers mentioned above and have a friend record the starting and ending temp for each group. Now go down range and get the targets. Measure the groups. If you can’t tell any difference between groups 1 and 6, don’t worry about heat.
Evidence suggests that groups will open up, but the group center shouldn’t wander- at least with modern barrels.
Evidence suggests that groups will open up, but the group center shouldn’t wander- at least with modern barrels.
Thats more what I was looking for.
At $2 for each trigger pull m trying to keep it to a minimum but thats likely what it would take. Being as the MV is about 3K it heats up pretty quickly.
My original method is very unhealthy. If you can light a cigarette on your barrel, it’s time to either let the barrel cool off or try to figure out a way to disengage from the firefight. But then in those times, and especially those days, when it was safe to do so, I always smoked too much and Drank Way Too Much! But then smoking and drinking way too much is not safe is it? What a paradox 
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When at a match, which I still do some, I pray, when practicing, I check the temperature gauge on the barrel, when it gets to 110 or more, i give it a break. Back in my IHMSA days when we shot five shots in two minutes had the targets reset and continue for 40 or 60 shots, even then in the summer time, the barrels got really hot. The saving grace for my XP’s, I always shot light loads. If it was enough to knock down rams at 200 meters, it was enough.
I was very fortunate, I always could use the cooling off time, in 1971, the NVA were lying low, hoping we would go on and leave. All except for Mary Ann, for reasons they hold, they got pissed at Mary Ann and we lost a lot of good men that night defending that hill. History records that our team on that hill were dopers. Our team on LZ Chippewa was mostly southern boys who would drink when we were in the rear, but on the hill, we wanted our minds Clear. No drugs, not even to this day.
. When at a match, which I still do some, I pray, when practicing, I check the temperature gauge on the barrel, when it gets to 110 or more, i give it a break. Back in my IHMSA days when we shot five shots in two minutes had the targets reset and continue for 40 or 60 shots, even then in the summer time, the barrels got really hot. The saving grace for my XP’s, I always shot light loads. If it was enough to knock down rams at 200 meters, it was enough.
I was very fortunate, I always could use the cooling off time, in 1971, the NVA were lying low, hoping we would go on and leave. All except for Mary Ann, for reasons they hold, they got pissed at Mary Ann and we lost a lot of good men that night defending that hill. History records that our team on that hill were dopers. Our team on LZ Chippewa was mostly southern boys who would drink when we were in the rear, but on the hill, we wanted our minds Clear. No drugs, not even to this day.
Ever shoot ft/r class? 22 shot strings all day. It was never much of an issue with 308
