What is more accurate a 17 inch barrel vs. 24 inch featherweight barrel?
I know there are people here who would know.
Consider two barrels from a quality maker such as Douglas, Shilen, Pac-Nor, Lilja or other top tier barrel makers.
Both in 260, goal of weight about 30-32 ounces in stainless, and accurate enough to hunt to 500 yards.
One barrel would be 24 inches, would have to be featherweight profile to make the weight.
The other would be 17-18 inches, could even be a Striker barrel. Could be pretty heavy profile at that length.
Being a hunting rifle, there would be no 5 or 10 shot groups. Just one group of 3 shots.
Both properly broken in and using hunting rounds
Not which one you prefer but which would be the most accurate?
What is more accurate a 17 inch barrel vs. 24 inch featherweight barrel?
A 17" 260 will be able to get 120s around 2800fps, 140s around 2600fps, with moderate loads.
In the shorter tubes, Varget or 4064 might provide a touch more velocity than H4350.
I get 2700fps in my 20" 260 with 140gr Hornady HPBT and 43.0gr H4350 and LOVE it.
Most folks that say "if you want a short barrel get a 308" haven't ever tried a short 6.5 and are ignorant of its real-world performance capabilities.