Looking at one of these rifles in the 20 barrel. Has anyone shot one and hows the muzzle blast from such a short barrel? manageable?
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Looking at one of these rifles in the 20 barrel. Has anyone shot one and hows the muzzle blast from such a short barrel? manageable?
Any guesses on muzzle blast from a 20 WSM barrel?
The muzzle blast is pretty stout with my 24" barrel and I get a fair amount of vertical lift off the front rest when I shoot it. I imagine it will be a little worse with a a 20" tube. If 20" floats your boat, go for it, but it seems a little short to me. I have a Kimber also with a 24" barrell. A 24" tube is not at all unweildy on a sporter gun.
Can't really say about the noise - I wear ear protection when shooting from the bench and sponge plugs when hunting (I use these for Elk mainly).
Elkbane
I bet it will get your attention, that's for sure! The best part will be the fire ball coming out of the barrel. ;)
I don't think that the blast will be unbearable, certainly less than having a muzzle brake on there. As for the 20" barrel, I say go for it. There's nothing better than a nice short barrel when working through heavy brush. An extra 4" of barrel is just enough to catch every branch you go past. And if you go with the 300 WSM, you'll still get at least 30-06 performance from the rifle.
Andrew