Hi folks, I have few quick questions. I am in process of building a Savage .223 range gun off of a Stevens 200 action. I have been looking for a varmint barrel for quite some time now and recently found a good deal on a brand new Savage 12FV takeoff barrel, which is 26" long and of course is a varmint contour (I believe ~.805" muzzle diameter).. However, I am looking for something more in the range of 22-24". My question is this, if I bought this barrel and sent it to a competent gunsmith (I'm thinking adcofirearms.com) to have them cut it down, re-crown, and possibly even thread, would I lose any accuracy? I know the velocity may drop a bit, but I'm not worried about that. The other thing is, how would it effect the taper/ muzzle diameter? Can anyone give me an approximate idea of what the muzzle diameter would be after I cut it down from 26" to say 22"? I still want some taper, I don't want it looking like a bull barrel.

Thanks