What is the best custom barrel on the market?

Between 2 buddies and I we have used numerous Douglas, Bartlein, Schneider, Obermeyer, Rock Creek, Broughton, PacNor, Kreiger (and probably 1 or 2 others that I can't quite recall at the moment. I think one of SuperSeals rifles wears a Shillen?).

None of those barrels have disappointed, all have shot very well.
 
I've just used Douglas and Krieger. Both shot well, but I think the Krieger has the slight edge. My dad has a Douglas on a 300 WSM that won't shoot under an inch at all. Might just be because something was screwed up when it was put on.
 
I bet they all turn out a bad barrel every now and then, I guess we've just been lucky so far and haven't had one.
 
Originally Posted By: brdeanoI bet they all turn out a bad barrel every now and then, I guess we've just been lucky so far and haven't had one.

That's very true and I'd bet that every manufacturer you listed will stand behing their barrel if you can show em that it's truely a bad barrel and not the result of improper chambering and/or installation.
IMO,,,, The choice of Gunsmith is far more important than the Barrel maker.
I'm a Pac-Nor fan because of customer loyalty more than anything else, but I wouldn't hesitate to use one of the barrels you mention. Heck,,,,,, one of the best shooting rifles I've seen was an old Herters (BSA) in 243 that had been rebarreled by Shaw with one of their cheapest CM barrels...

edit; The one exception is Douglas,,, they're very good barrels,, but I think people like em just so they can say "Air Gauged" when they talk about em..
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There is no best one. I have barrels from maybe a dozen custom manufacturers. Except for only a couple I'd buy any of them again. The one favorite is a Lothar Walther.
 
The gunsmith that built my Swift was known for his bench rest guns and after trying many different barrels over the years told me that the only ones that he had never had a bad one were Hart and Krieger. He did mention that almost all were pretty good barrels, but he only guaranteed match grade accuracy with Hart and Krieger barrels. Needless to day, I had him install a Krieger for my Swift and for sure, it did not dissapoint.
 
Originally Posted By: RustydustThe gunsmith that built my Swift was known for his bench rest guns and after trying many different barrels over the years told me that the only ones that he had never had a bad one were Hart and Krieger. He did mention that almost all were pretty good barrels, but he only guaranteed match grade accuracy with Hart and Krieger barrels. Needless to day, I had him install a Krieger for my Swift and for sure, it did not dissapoint.

Well,,, on the flip side,,,, a friend recently had his 527 Kevlar Varminter in 204 rebarelled with a Kreiger by a local smith,, and it doesn't shoot near as well as the factory barrel did..
Kinda makes my point about the Smith being the most important part of the equasion..

Sounds like you simply have a good Gunsmith that could probably make any of the top end barrels work..
Don't blame you for going with the barrel he recomended one little bit though, since Krieger has a great reputation,, and he's the one you're gonna be talking to if it doesn't shoot..
I don't put much store in BR this and BR that. Mainly because the barrel that wins the championship that year is what everyone raves about untill the next year.. Truth is,, just about any of the top-end stuff can win on any given day,, and most have.
JMO
 
As far as I know ALL the custom barrel makers do a 100% quality control check, and I believe they all air gauge their barrels. They all also have similar tolerances.

That's basically what you are paying for when you buy a "custom" anything, tighter tolerances and 100% quality control.

I've bore scoped (not air gauged) a number of custom barrels and they all look about the same until you get to the chambering, particularly the transition area between the throat and the bore. I've seen some with machine marks where the reamer left off and others where the transition was smooth as glass.

That of course is (usually) a reflection on the gunsmith who cut the chamber, not the barrel maker who sold the blank.
 
Originally Posted By: RustydustThe gunsmith that built my Swift was known for his bench rest guns and after trying many different barrels over the years told me that the only ones that he had never had a bad one were Hart and Krieger. He did mention that almost all were pretty good barrels, but he only guaranteed match grade accuracy with Hart and Krieger barrels. Needless to day, I had him install a Krieger for my Swift and for sure, it did not dissapoint.


Agree 100%, Also give Brux a look also. ed
 
Originally Posted By: brdeanoBetween 2 buddies and I we have used numerous Douglas, Bartlein, Schneider, Obermeyer, Rock Creek, Broughton, PacNor, Kreiger (and probably 1 or 2 others that I can't quite recall at the moment. I think one of SuperSeals rifles wears a Shillen?).

None of those barrels have disappointed, all have shot very well.

Correct, the one AR has a Shilen. Shoots very well.


Redtail204, pick a custom barrel company and go with them. They all shoot excellent as Brad mentioned.
 
I'm partial to Shilen...Admittedly I haven't owned barrels from everybody but all of the Shilen bbls I own are 100%.

I even bought a few of their "lone Star" grade bbls back in the day and was totally impressed by the quality of these "seconds". I dont shoot in comp any more but im an accuracy freak....shilen gets my nod.
 
I have a friend that has an ER shaw barrel on an AR and it is really accurate. it cleans up very easy and it dose not get hardley any copper in it at all. I was very impressed with the shaw barrel so thats who i sent my weatherby to. I do really like shilen as well. Like said above just about any of the barrel makers these days are going to produce a quailty barrel. Im haveing shaw do all the machine work and installing the barrel. That away if something for some reason i have a problem they did all the work.
 
All these replys and I cannot believe nobody has mentioned Lilja! They are TOP knotch as well!
 
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Originally Posted By: Kino MAll these replys and I cannot believe nobody has mentioned Lilja! They are TOP knotch as well!

Yep,,, Lilja's one of the best.
 
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