Barrel Weight

[schofieldbob]

Looking at a Shiloh with a 34" std weight octagon barrel. What's the difference between std and heavy weight?

[august west]

This photo from the website shows a rifle with the standard weight barrel:
https://shilohrifle.com/rifles/1874-sha ... -clone-en/

The "Quigley" rifle comes standard with the standard heavy weight barrel.
https://shilohrifle.com/rifles/1874-sha ... -clone-en/

[SSShooter]

What is your intended purpose with the rifle? 34" can be 'long' for most shooting. Especially if it includes any off-hand work.

[kenny sd]

my Shiloh 40 70 SS with the standard 30 inch bbl. weighs 10 pounds

works fine....heavy enough. Ken

IMG_2736.JPG

[schofieldbob]

What is your intended purpose with the rifle? 34" can be 'long' for most shooting. Especially if it includes any off-hand work.

99% will be off sticks for competition, rarely off hand for SASS side matches.

[schofieldbob]

I guess I did a poor job of asking my question. My intended use is BPCR style shooting, my concern is will I regret not having the heavier barrel? My current Sharps is a Pedersoli with their 30" barrel and it weighs 10 lbs, the rifle I'm looking at weighs 11 lbs, so I'm not going any lighter.
Thanks

[martinibelgian]

Well, that 'rarely' will be all but impossible with the 34" heavy, and quite ungainly with the 34" standard. Reason? Too much weight forward, in front of the left hand. OTOH, it will be quite stable on X-sticks.

[bpcr shooter]

target of silhouette shooting??

[schofieldbob]

Mostly target, but I'd like to try silhouette. New to Sharps, but I've shot my Highwall in 38-55 quite a bit.

[mdeland]

As with most things we continue with in our lives our perspectives change with time and experience. I used to focus more on barrel shape, weight and length than I did stock fit and overall balance of the complete package. It worked for me because of body strength from a life of physically hard work. As I've gotten older and have begun to loose the strength and coordination that aging imposes on our bodies I have come to appreciate the benefits stock fit and balance afford that could have been aiding my shooting all along. The old adage of "To soon old , to late smart" applies here!
Many of the shot gun techniques of fit and balance can be applied and of equal advantage to the rifle shot as well even with the much broader spectrum of positioning used ie. offhand, sitting and prone.

[schofieldbob]

As with most things we continue with in our lives our perspectives change with time and experience. I used to focus more on barrel shape, weight and length than I did stock fit and overall balance of the complete package. It worked for me because of body strength from a life of physically hard work. As I've gotten older and have begun to loose the strength and coordination that aging imposes on our bodies I have come to appreciate the benefits stock fit and balance afford that could have been aiding my shooting all along. The old adage of "To soon old , to late smart" applies here!
Many of the shot gun techniques of fit and balance can be applied and of equal advantage to the rifle shot as well even with the much broader spectrum of positioning used ie. offhand, sitting and prone.

Good advice, Thanks

[SSShooter]

Unlikely that a 34" heavy barrel would make weight for BPCR irons. Might not with a scope, as well. A 30" heavy full octagon might not make weight for irons. You could ask Kirk for some guidance on making weight versus your preferred cartridge, barrel length and configuration.

[martinibelgian]

Weight isn't the important point, weight distribution is. And if we're talking recoil, stock shape and fit above all... Weight alone will mitigate recoil, but if the stock doesn't fit, it will still hurt.

[John Bly]

The Shiloh with a 34" standard weight barrel will make weight easily for silhouette or target competition. It might be a little muzzle heavy offhand but will be be good on the sticks. A heavy weight barrel would add probably more than a pound in that length. Some 30" heavy weight rifles have trouble making weight with dense wood and pewter tips and steel butt plates.

[gunlaker]

I actually liked my Shiloh LRE with a standard weight 34" barrel for offhand shooting. It felt as stable for offhand as a 30" heavy barrel to me. Mine definitely was well under the weight limit. I should add that it did not have a pewter tip, nor did it have a metal buttplate. I think the pewter tip looks really nice but it's unnecessary weight that moves the balance point too far forward. However, I'm pretty far from being a championship chicken shooter

Chris.