18” barrel versus 22” barrel on .308?

engineerbrian · Nov 26, 2018

Is there really much benefit to having a 22” barrel rather than an 18” barrel?

I was looking at the Ruger American rifles in .308 and they come with either 18” barrels or 22” barrels. My preference is the 18” barrel since I’ll have a suppressor on the end of the gun and it will keep the OAL down.

I dont foresee ever shooting past 500 (at least not often) so is there really much benefit to the extra 4” of barrel length? Also, at what point does the extra barrel length come into play and is beneficial?

Uncle Duke · Nov 26, 2018

There seems to be agreement that between 18 and 22 inch, you're looking at 25fps velocity gain per inch of barrel.

So figure on 100 fps difference. That's with 168 grain.

steves1911 · Nov 26, 2018

Go with the 18" for supressor use. I assume your looking at the ruger american predator vs standard. The predator also has a heavier weight barell that wont heat up as fast. I run a 20" tube and push the 178gr rounds at just over 2500fps. Works fine out to 1000yds If I read the wind properly. I can get 2700fps out of the 168gr pills but havent pushed them out to long range to see how they behave. I have seen guys ring steel at 1000yds with a 16" 308 loaded properly.

engineerbrian · Nov 26, 2018

steves1911 said:
Go with the 18" for supressor use. I assume your looking at the ruger american predator vs standard. The predator also has a heavier weight barell that wont heat up as fast. I run a 20" tube and push the 178gr rounds at just over 2500fps. Works fine out to 1000yds If I read the wind properly. I can get 2700fps out of the 168gr pills but havent pushed them out to long range to see how they behave. I have seen guys ring steel at 1000yds with a 16" 308 loaded properly.

Yes, Ruger American Predator. Thanks for the info :thumbsup:

bigdv · Nov 26, 2018

I believe you will pick up a few FPS with the suppressor as well. Will be very little difference between a 22 inch barrel and a 18 inch barrel with a suppressor.

alucard0822 · Nov 26, 2018

Most 308 will loose about 100fps going from a 22 to an 18, suppressors raise it around 25fps, temp can raise it similarly 1 or 2 FPS per degree. They can be unweidly with a long suppressor, and losing a little weight at the end of the barrel can help balance, while a shorter barrel is inherently more rigid. Probably won't notice much of a difference at 500 yards, and it's still capable of going out further, but much easier to live with the closer you plan on shooting. IMO if you are going for ranges where 100FPS makes a difference, then probably better off with 6.5 creedmoore anyway.

gwchem · Nov 26, 2018

Make sure you factor in the price of replacing the garbage flimsy stock.

I have the 18" and it works well for deer hunting out to 250 yards. For long range shooting with a suppressor, I would imagine you'll want to upgrade anyway.

DutchV · Nov 26, 2018

Here's a guy with a lot of time on his hands. More data on this topic than you probably wanted.

https://rifleshooter.com/2014/12/30...ato-barrel-length-versus-velocity-28-to-16-5/

Short answer: Most loads will lose 100 fps or so from 22" down to 18".

kdmag88 · Nov 26, 2018

I've actually been looking into the same exact thing recently. From what I've gathered it comes down to practical use. If you only plan to shoot from a bench at ranges 600ish yards, the 22 is it. If you plan to hunt with it, walk the woods with it, possibly have to throw it up and take a fast shot, or possibly shoot with your off hand, the 18 is more practical. I was really trying to justify needing a 22" one but the more I realized I don't really need that extra weight, I think I'll go 18.

You could always split the difference with a 20"

woodline · Nov 26, 2018

I have a suppressed savage with an 18" barrel for 500 yards and in, and I really like it.

engineerbrian · Nov 26, 2018

Thanks for the info! I wont loose sleep over lossing 100fps.

I already reached out to Hog Sniper for pricing for the 18” .308 that takes AI detachable mags

antco · Dec 9, 2018

Get the 18” and don’t look back. Use good ammo.

Biggfoot44 · Dec 9, 2018

For the OP , go with the 18in, primarily due to OAL with suppressor .

In general ; don't obsess over the weight , in the sense of total weight . Pick whichever has the best offhand balance to you .

dreadpirate · Dec 15, 2018

engineerbrian said:
My preference is the 18” barrel since I’ll have a suppressor on the end of the gun and it will keep the OAL down.

Sounds like you answered your own question.

dreadpirate · Dec 15, 2018

engineerbrian said:
Thanks for the info! I wont loose sleep over lossing 100fps.

I already reached out to Hog Sniper for pricing for the 18” .308 that takes AI detachable mags

I will say this; I have a couple of Ruger Americans and I actually like the flush fit mags better. One exception being the 7.26x39, the Ruger Mini 30 mags are really nice and fit with zero play. The AR mags not so much.

lazarus · Dec 15, 2018

With a suppressor, 18”. If off a bench, doesn’t really matter, might as well get the extra velocity and go 22”.

No suppressor as a bolt gun, go 22”. That’s about the same OAL as an 18” semi auto with a muzzle device. A longer barrel also reduces muzzle blast and noise which is somewhat important when hunting, especially if you do not use ear protection when hunting.

Also reduced flash as the propellant burns more completely.

Just my 2 cents on it.

My 23” Sako .308 is about an inch shorter than my 20” AR in .223 with a 2.75” long linear comp on the end of the AR. I’d imagine an 18” SR-25/AR-10 build with similar muzzle device would be maybe an inch shorter overall...basically the same length as the 23” barreled Sako.

geda · Dec 15, 2018

lazarus said:
A longer barrel also reduces muzzle blast and noise which is somewhat important when hunting, especially if you do not use ear protection when hunting.

Also reduced flash as the propellant burns more completely.

Second this. I am not a suppressor expert...yet, but 308 was the first thing i tried to setup for hunting suppressed. There is a very large sound difference between a 20" mossberg MVP and a 14" TC pistol with the same suppressor. Then an even further difference for a 16" 300blk ruger american with faster burning powder powder. I have not even screwed a suppressor onto a 308 since I got my 300blk ruger american, it sounds like a 22 short.

geda · Dec 15, 2018

Also another data point, 16" ruger american + 8" silencer hybrid = 24" barrel is definitely getting into awkward balance and mobility. I am not a big man and I was getting hung up on sticks walking to the stand at 5am. An extra 6 inches would suck. I love cheap plastic stocks that cant get damaged while hunting, but this thing needs 2-3lbs of weight added in the butt end to balance the suppressor. It is too top heavy in a sling to carry without a hand on it, and hard to balance on a stand shooting rail. Thanks for reminding me!

18” barrel versus 22” barrel on .308?

The #1 community for Gun Owners of the Northeast

Member Benefits:

JMB fan club

Ultimate Member

Ultimate Member

JMB fan club

Ultimate Member

For great Justice

Ultimate Member

Ultimate Member

Active Member

Ultimate Member

JMB fan club

Ultimate Member

Ultimate Member

Ultimate Member

Ultimate Member

Ultimate Member

Active Member

Active Member

Users who are viewing this thread

Log in

Forum statistics