Interesting point

29 January 2010

Can’t do the math here (on bus), but someone claims that the lifetime of a barrel is 4 or 5 seconds – the bullet in contact for a fraction of a second with each shot, and 10k shots or so. Higher-end barrels last a shorter time, of course.

This entry was posted on 29 January 2010 at 17:29 and is filed under Shooting Stuff.

7 Responses to “Interesting point”

  1. Sharp as a Marble - Short lived when you think of it in those terms Says:

    29 January 2010 at 19:21

    [...] Blog Title Home About Me Contact RSS Login << Doesn't seem silly to me. | Home Short lived when you think of it in those terms Ry [...]

  2. Robb Allen Says:

    29 January 2010 at 19:22

    I did some basic math with 3,200 fps and a 20″ barrel (.223) and yeah, it’s pretty much 5 seconds. Granted I used muzzle velocity which isn’t totally accurate, but still.

  3. SayUncle » Interesting Says:

    30 January 2010 at 6:59

    [...] Measuring barrel life in seconds. [...]

  5. Hank Says:

    30 January 2010 at 8:48

    Well, let’s assume a uniform acceleration through the barrel for a first approximation. That would mean the average velocity in the barrel would be half of the muzzle velocity. So the 5 seconds looks more like 10 seconds.

    However, if you postulate that wear is a function of bullet velocity, the muzzle end of the barrel would show wear long before wear would show near the chamber. If so, perhaps you could greatly extend the life of your barrel by occasionally cutting an inch of barrel off the end. Of course, you should use a scope instead of iron sights if you opt for this solution.

    Hank

  6. Robert Says:

    30 January 2010 at 16:13

    Makes sense. When the bullet exits the case mouth the pressure and heat on the throat is at it’s max….for a millisecond. Like flicking a welding torch in there. I haven’t been through ten barrels on my National Match AR….but it’s close.


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