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Author Topic: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?  (Read 2375 times)

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Offline skarke

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Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« on: May 16, 2007, 02:26:14 PM »
I love my TCs, but all of my barrels are stock, except for one Bergara, which is nice.  I am looking for a .223, .223 AI, or maybe a .223 Wylde in a bull pistol barrel for my best easy open Contender that is about 15".  It'll be used for poking holes in paper from a bench at 100 to 200 yards .  I have 2 questions:

1.  Who has the best deal out there on quality custom work.  I'm looking at Coyote guns, but would love suggestions.  Price does matter, and of course, quality of work
2.  I'd love anybody's opinion on .223 versions.  Accuracy is paramount, and I'm looking for light recoil (i.e. bench shooting).  Anything that offers more recoil than a .223 is probably out.  If there is a more accurate cartridge with similar recoil, I'm definitely interested, I reload of course.
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Offline skarke

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #1 on: May 22, 2007, 01:33:12 AM »
Geez guys, I thought for sure somebody'd have some comments here. I'd settle for a list of who's making barrels.  I know the following:

SSK
MGM
Bullberry
Coyote

Any more?

I like the guy at coyote, and have owned one once, but I sold it (duplicate caliber and good selling price).  I think that I'll just order another from the guy, he does good work for a good price.
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Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children what it was once like in the United States when men were free.  Ronaldus Maximus

Offline Grumulkin

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #2 on: May 22, 2007, 02:59:33 AM »
If price does matter, maybe you shouldn't get a custom barrel.  The good custom barrels aren't cheap.

I have a factory 223 Rem. Ackley Improved bull pistol barrel for my Contender (not a G2 frame) that is good for less than 1 inch groups off the bench at 100 yards.  It's a mint condition barrel and I bought it cheap.

Another barrel maker I'd through out there would be On Target Technologies (OTT).
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Offline BeverlyHillbilly

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #3 on: May 22, 2007, 03:46:39 AM »

A good custom barrel will cost quite a bit more, but you can pretty much get any twist, throat cut to bullet and dummy round, profile, etc.  I have shot/sold/own all of the current custom makers.  You can always get a factory T/C or Bergara rifle barrel and have it cut down (use rifle forend).  That Bergara in 222 has been talking to me lately for myself  ;D  Also, rechambering is available by several of the custom makers and other folks out there.  I would avoid the Wylde chamber you mention, and would go with a chamber that is snugger to get all the accuracy out of a 223. 

Here is the order that I see custom makers:

1.  OTT
2.  MGM
3.  SSK
4.  Bullberry and EABCO Accuracy barrels
5.  Coyote
6.  Fox Ridge (only standard profiles and twist rates) and EABCO Fox Ridge orders
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Offline skarke

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #4 on: May 22, 2007, 12:36:02 PM »
RCampbell and Gremulkin,

Thanks a bunch.  I was quite pleased with the barrel I had from coyote (.84 out of a 15" 3030), but I was offered a good price and was able to use the money to get my boys a sightron sII on a bergara 7mm 08 that shoots great.  It was a duplicate caliber (3030), so I took the money and ran.

I will speak with each of these manufacturers about their products. If they are willing to do the custom work like I like it, then I'll go with one of ya'lls top recommendations.  Haven't spoken with the guys at OTT, they been doing it a while?

Dan
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Offline poncaguy

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #5 on: May 22, 2007, 01:06:27 PM »
I've had a stock 15"  223 barrel for 30+years, can shoot MOA at 100 yards...............
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Offline Grumulkin

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #6 on: May 23, 2007, 07:37:56 AM »
Quote
Haven't spoken with the guys at OTT, they been doing it a while?

Yes they have.
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Offline OLDHandgunner

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #7 on: May 24, 2007, 02:15:10 AM »
I own 3 carbine barrels from Bullberry for my T/C Contenders. One is in a 222. It is a 20" bull barrel. I bought it on E-bay at a good price. This is buy far the most accurate small caliber gun I have ever shot. (And I won't even say how good because we have these critics that are ready to pounce on anyone who has a great shooting rifle or handgun). Lets just say it consistently shoots tight clover leafs, if I do my part. The other 2 are in 30-30 Ack Imp & a 22 LR Match. Can't wait to try these out.
I also have a T/C carbine barrel in a 223 that shoots great.
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Offline HAMMERHEAD

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #8 on: May 24, 2007, 06:13:02 AM »
I have a MGM .357 mag barrel that I'm very happy with. Got it in only 4 weeks. My shooting buddy has a couple Fox Ridge barrels that he is happy with, including a 20" .233 AI barrel.
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Offline skb2706

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #9 on: May 24, 2007, 07:45:04 AM »
I have a few from all the major players. They all use excellent barrel blanks with potential for excellent accuracy. My issues come directly from some of their customer service ...or lack there of.

For that reason I chose either MGM or OTT as Fred at Bullberry either doesn't own a calender or hasn't figured out how to use it, SSK doesn't have time for questions and answers and the rest I have dealt with are great 'smiths but they are not great communicators (failing to return calls, stalling, no email.....all not my problem). Its my $300-$500 and I don't let their lack of CS work for me.
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Offline skarke

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #10 on: May 24, 2007, 08:28:37 AM »
Thanks to all of you.  I visited with a couple of friends in Corpus Christi last night that shoot silhouette, one of which has a barrel from Coyote in 7mm TCU.  He is VERY pleased, and like I said, mine was pretty nice as well.  I wish that I'd have kept it, but I came out good on the other end.  Also, every time I emailed the guy, he returned my contact immediately.  I also know that price doesn't always correlate to quality, and sometimes you find a guy that does good work for a fair price.

I know a little about machining and welding, and it seems that, with a good blank, the rest of the work is quite straightforward.  It is all in the set up.  It is hard for me to understand why, or where, there is $350 plus in labor to manufacture one of these things.

I know that this is a cottage industry, but man, $550 for a basic 15" .223 stainless from one manufacturer makes me want to order a good kelbly manufactured as a pistol (for the three lettered guys), and mess with screwing the barrels on and off.

Bottom line, all of your info is extremely helpful to me.  With 4 kids, money is a little tight, but I love BR pistol.  It is fun to go out to the range and shoot tight groups with a pistol while most other shooters are struggling.  My next purchase is the Burris 3x12 AO fine for whatever barrel I order.  I'm selling some nice Nikon IS Binos to pay for this stuff.  Nice glass, but I don't use them enough to keep $1100 in them.  ;)
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Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children what it was once like in the United States when men were free.  Ronaldus Maximus

Offline fyrepowrx

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #11 on: May 25, 2007, 12:47:17 PM »
of the 6 dozen or so tubes i have. most are customs of some sort, and i've had pretty fair luck from most makers.

OTT makes what may be the most consistently accurate, with chambers cut to your specs. MGM is my personal favorite by far...i've got 16 or so of theirs so far, all have been perfect, & were received in about 4 weeks.

SSK makes great stuff, but only if you know exactly what you want...they have not been terribly helpful in answering questions. Still i have 8 of theirs, and they all shoot great.

I dont have the patience to wait on a new Bullberry...if they promise 3 months, expect to see it in 6 months (maybe!) I have plenty of his barrels, but all bought used, no problems with fit, finish, or accuracy.

The most inaccurate barrel i've ever laid hands on was by Coyote...its was a 16" .357 max belonging to a good freind & it wont consistently group 6" at 50 yards. A close runner-up was a 8" coyote .22 that would not reliably hit a pop can at 25 yards. The .357 Max was sent back twice & so far they've not made good on it...i'd avoid their barrels at all cost. A bargain barrel is not cheap at all if it wont do what you bought it to do. 

A few of the TC custom shop tubes i have are real shooters...but some were only so-so on accuracy.

hope that is of some use....





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Offline skarke

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #12 on: May 26, 2007, 07:54:53 PM »
Verrrrrry helpful.  I guess that I was just lucky with the short timer 3030 from coyote.  Interestingly, I just bought a .223 super 14 contender barrel off of Ebay with a mount for $140 that appears to be near new.  After a little wipeout, the bore and rifling cleaned up nicely, is centered, cleanly cut, and the rifling is shiny with no pits or dark spots.  I'll let you guys know how it shoots, but I took many of your advice and started with a stock barrel.  This has been a valuable and educational discussion for me.  I appreciate your help.
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Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children what it was once like in the United States when men were free.  Ronaldus Maximus

Offline rickyp

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #13 on: May 27, 2007, 03:54:04 AM »
I have a bullberry on order right now I placed the order March 30 2007 I called last Friday to see how much longer I was told they where expecting in a bunch of barrels Monday and if they get a 357 barrel in it Will be in the next batch if not it will be about another month or so.
and what I ordered is nothing special  just a blue 12" 357 magnum barrel with match chamber and I am getting a little P.O. at the wait
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Offline 7-30 Waters

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #14 on: May 27, 2007, 02:22:20 PM »
All my barrels are from Bullberry except for one T/C rechambered to 357 Maximum by David White.  My shooting partner has barrels from T/C, Bullberry, and OTT.  His last barrel form OTT took over six months to be completed.  Depending on what time of the year you order, yes you can wait up to six months for a barrel. 

I placed an order with Bullberry for a 357 Herrett in March but have learned to be patient.  In fact I told them I don't need the barrel till September.  Never had a bad barrel yet.  All shoot with superb accuracy so I feel the wait is worth it.
 
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Offline Davemuzz

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #15 on: May 30, 2007, 11:36:46 AM »
Bullberry would be the last place on earth I would order a custom barrel from. Fred scratched the heck out of my Contender frame because he made me a junk 223 barrel that would not properly lock up. It would not lock up on my frame or my shootin buddies frame.

If Fred built toothpicks, I wouldn't buy 'em off of him. He would tell you God made your teeth wrong.

Dave
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Offline skb2706

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #16 on: May 31, 2007, 09:13:04 AM »
Quote from: Davemuzz on May 30, 2007, 11:36:46 AM
Bullberry would be the last place on earth I would order a custom barrel from. Fred scratched the heck out of my Contender frame because he made me a junk 223 barrel that would not properly lock up. It would not lock up on my frame or my shootin buddies frame.

If Fred built toothpicks, I wouldn't buy 'em off of him. He would tell you God made your teeth wrong.

Dave

He never got over the "I can't read a calender" issue with me. His four months turned into a long nine. Waiting is for idiots, quality work can be done in a timely manner, I know, I've seen it happen.
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Offline skarke

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #17 on: May 31, 2007, 10:32:41 AM »
Again, thank you all for your responses.  This has been great for my knowledge of custom barrels, and yes, quality work can be done in a timely fashion.  It is inexcusable to take 9 months to complete a task that is practiced, jigged, and virtually repeatable on one barrel to the next.

BTW, I had mentioned that I was ordering a 3 x 12 burris LER, but just won and received a 3x9 burris LER on Ebay, sweet.  The only complaints are that it could have a little better eye relief at 9 power, it seems to max out at about 13 inches, and the crosshairs could be finer, they cover about 1/4 inch at 9 power.  Glass is outstanding!!!
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Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children what it was once like in the United States when men were free.  Ronaldus Maximus

Offline Chris Potts

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #18 on: June 08, 2007, 03:18:06 PM »
I just took my coyote 357 max barrel out to the range for the first time.  Needless to say I was a little worried after seeing the problems that some of you have had.  I know that mine is only one barrel, but it shoots extremely well.  I have no complaints.

Chris
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Offline buffalohunter

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #19 on: June 09, 2007, 09:41:18 AM »
I would recommend SSK or OTT for a custom TC barrel, I have 2 SSK barrels and am very happy with there work, several people I know have OTT barrels and I have heard nothing bad about there barrels. I plan on getting a couple od OTT barrels this year, this is just my opinion. LATER

Good Shootin
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Offline skarke

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #20 on: June 23, 2007, 04:03:51 PM »
Chris, thanks so much for the reply.  I must say that the gentleman at Coyote is very responsive to queries, and will pick up the phone.  He also guarantees his work.  He said that if I had any problems, that he'd make it right.  However, I am also hesitant to order from him, given certain comments to my post.  I would like to know if anyone has had Coyote work on their Coyote problem barrels.  If so, what was the outcome?  The censored guy seems to think that he does pretty good work.

Obviously, SSK and OTT are apparently top manufacturers of excellent barrels.  They just break the bank for a basic custom barrel at $500+.  I'm sure they are good, but whew, that takes food off the table.
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Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children what it was once like in the United States when men were free.  Ronaldus Maximus

Offline Chris Potts

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Re: Which Custom TC Barrel Manufacturer?
« Reply #21 on: June 23, 2007, 04:55:35 PM »
Skarke,

I was out at the range again today with my barrel today.  I continue to be very pleased with the barrel.  Like you said he was very good whenever I had any questions.  I think that it is hard to beat his barrels for the price.  Also I had the barrel in 5 weeks.  If I remember he told me it would be 5-8 weeks, so I guess that I got my barrel on the quick side even for him.  I am sure that the other guys are as good or maybe better but they cost significantly more also.

Chris
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