Handgun accuracy
- Thread starter mattgreennra
- Start date
really....WOW
THE DIFF IS ALOT MORE BARREL. That gives you 2 key elements of accracy. More velocity as bullet gathers more enertia from the pressure behind it for a longer time, and more rifling exposure that greatly increases the spin on the round. Flatter trajectury from the increased velocity, less drift from the increased spin. BIG advantage over 4-5 inches of barell with a rifeling of1 twist per 9 inches.
Pistol has advantage at short range because of quick presentation and target aquisition.
I didn't mean it doesn't make much difference in how accurate you are.
I meant it doesn't make much difference as far as practicle shooting goes.
(You're not always going to have a bench handy or time to hunker down when you need to shoot.
)As for the longer barrel making a gun more accurate at 100 yds. Not really if all things are equal.. Yes, it will develop a higher velocity with an identcal load , which will give a flatter trajectory, but that is a function of ballistics, not the inherant accuracy of the gun. As I said before, it's more a case of sight radius that gives a rifle an edge out to 100 yds. If you take a rifle, let's say in 44 Mag., work it's MV to be the same as the MV out of a 44 Mag revolver, the exterior ballistics will be the same, so range won't make that much difference. Interior ballistics, i.e. bullet weight, bullet shape, rifling TPI, also all need to be the same to make it a fair test.
allenomics
New member
Even the best, well regarded, expensive pistols can generate bad groups...if the shooter is sub par.
Can your friend hit paper at 150 feet?
Can your friend hit paper at 150 feet?
Tell ya what deadin.....you bring a your 44 mag pistol w/ a 22 inch sight attachment....I'll bring a 44 cal. rifle (Anyone know about a 44 cal rifle?) with the sights at 9 inches.
We'll get 100 meters apart and see eho hits who 1st and the most times.
OH....and why the hell do those silly soldiers bother with those bulky ass 22 cal m-16s for. silly guys could just strap on a pistol w/ a scope. Dumb military.
We'll get 100 meters apart and see eho hits who 1st and the most times.
OH....and why the hell do those silly soldiers bother with those bulky ass 22 cal m-16s for. silly guys could just strap on a pistol w/ a scope. Dumb military.
deadin is right. Increasing barrel length does not improve accuracy unless the bullet is only marginally stabilized. It does provide more velocity but higher velocity doesn't necessarily do anything for accuracy either.
There are various reasons why pistols are typically not as accurate as rifles, but barrel length is not one of them (other than how it relates to sight radius as already noted.)
Redo your scenario but this time hold your rifle out in front of you with both hands like a pistol--don't let it touch your shoulder. Bet the pistol guy wins every time.
Any way, I don't believe pistols are just as accurate as rifles--but I do agree that the difference isn't barrel length.
True.
I also agree that while consistent hits on an 8" target at 100 yards with a revolver is in the realm of reality, I'd say that it takes more than just a "pretty good" shooter.
OK....I'll hold the rifle straight out and you hold the butt of your pistol agaist your sholder....LOL. OR....we use em like they're supposed to be used excepting the sight radius as previously regaurded as being the only advantage. All this talk yet I am the only one to EXPLAIN why the reality is the advantage of flatter trajectory and more riffling exposure. Which IS actually the reason rifles hit better. You guys keep saying things like 'among other reasons..." and 'I believe this or that". Explain to mee how a slower bullet with less spin hits as well. But facts folks.....facts OK.
Bottom line is....accuracy = point of aim / point of impact. At 100 meters with a pistol at the SAME point of aim you WILL get a DIFFERENT point of impact. Not a problem with a riffle. THEREFORE. rifle IS more accurate at 5 meters......20 meters.....50 meters.....100 meters.
Pistols advantage.....fast presentation and target acquisition with anticipatable point of impact given point of aim at short range.
Lastly.....are longer barrel PISTOLS more accurate then short barreled? Is a S&W .357 w/ 4" barrel as accurate as the SAME pistol w/ an 8" barrel. ALL ballistics are equal. YUP!!!!!
Bottom line is....accuracy = point of aim / point of impact. At 100 meters with a pistol at the SAME point of aim you WILL get a DIFFERENT point of impact. Not a problem with a riffle. THEREFORE. rifle IS more accurate at 5 meters......20 meters.....50 meters.....100 meters.
Pistols advantage.....fast presentation and target acquisition with anticipatable point of impact given point of aim at short range.
Lastly.....are longer barrel PISTOLS more accurate then short barreled? Is a S&W .357 w/ 4" barrel as accurate as the SAME pistol w/ an 8" barrel. ALL ballistics are equal. YUP!!!!!
A flatter trajectory makes it easier to hit objects at undetermined ranges since one needn't estimate the range as carefully, but once you dial in a range, you'll find that the issue isn't one of accuracy but one of range estimation. (i.e. once you get the range estimation problem out of the way, the fact that the rounds get there slower won't have a significant effect on the ability to make little groups until you get to the point that wind becomes a major contributor).
Rifling exposure is a non-starter. As long as there's enough rifling to get the bullet spinning at the proper rate (and an inch or two is all it takes) then more rifling exposure does nothing to improve accuracy.
The bottom line is that barrel length is really not a contributor to accuracy. In fact, all things being equal, a shorter barrel will actually tend to shoot more accurately because it's stiffer. It's not uncommon to see "bloop tubes" added to iron sighted match rifles--these tubes allow the actual rifled part of the barrel to be short while the sight radius is kept long or perhaps extended.
The PRACTICAL reasons that rifles tend to be more accurate than pistols have to do with:
1. Increased stability due to a shoulder stock and better control of the firearm.
2. Increased sight radius.
3. Fewer moving parts in the barrel/chamber/sight system. (No revolving chambers as in a revolver, sights tend to be mounted directly to the barrel rather than to a separate slide, barrel tends to be fixed to the receiver as opposed to moving separately, etc.)
Rifling exposure is a non-starter. As long as there's enough rifling to get the bullet spinning at the proper rate (and an inch or two is all it takes) then more rifling exposure does nothing to improve accuracy.
The bottom line is that barrel length is really not a contributor to accuracy. In fact, all things being equal, a shorter barrel will actually tend to shoot more accurately because it's stiffer. It's not uncommon to see "bloop tubes" added to iron sighted match rifles--these tubes allow the actual rifled part of the barrel to be short while the sight radius is kept long or perhaps extended.
The PRACTICAL reasons that rifles tend to be more accurate than pistols have to do with:
1. Increased stability due to a shoulder stock and better control of the firearm.
2. Increased sight radius.
3. Fewer moving parts in the barrel/chamber/sight system. (No revolving chambers as in a revolver, sights tend to be mounted directly to the barrel rather than to a separate slide, barrel tends to be fixed to the receiver as opposed to moving separately, etc.)
oldbillthundercheif
Moderator
A longer barrel does not make a projectile spin faster. A barrel with a fast twist will spin the bullet like all hell, a barrel with a slower twist will spin it less. The twist rate of the barrel determines the rotational velocity of the projectile.
A ballistician may word it differently, but them's the facts.
A ballistician may word it differently, but them's the facts.
I see the validity in the STABILIZATION issues....OK
But the rest of your facts don't weigh in against my question about the S&W revolver. SA has no issue of revolving cylinder and does NOT have more moving parts than a rifle, Barrel is fixed, sights are on barrel. Is the 4" barrel weapon as accurate as the 8"?
But the rest of your facts don't weigh in against my question about the S&W revolver. SA has no issue of revolving cylinder and does NOT have more moving parts than a rifle, Barrel is fixed, sights are on barrel. Is the 4" barrel weapon as accurate as the 8"?
All else being equal the shorter barrel has a slight theoretical advantage.
PRACTICALLY, it will be easier to shoot the 8" more accurately due to a longer sight radius and perhaps due to having a bit more barrel out front to provide stabilizing weight.
But looking at it from a theoretical standpoint--shooting both under identical conditions with perfect sight alignment the 4" should be more accurate since a shorter barrel is a stiffer barrel (all else being equal.)
That assumes that you're not on the hairy edge of a stabilization problem. If you are, adding a tiny bit more velocity might help stabilize the bullet.
The twist rate determines how many inches it will take the bullet to complete a rotation but if you want to know the how fast the bullet is spinning (rotations per minute or rotations per second) you must take the forward velocity of the projectile into account as well.