Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Gunsmithing 1)Douglas rifle barrels.. Do we like them ? 2 Cut vs. Button

I feel more better now than I ever did about my '06 project coming home with a Douglas on it...thanks guys!

Mickey, that's the one I talked to you about Cerekoting the aluminum trigger guard.....I'll go get that next weekend and it will be on it's way.

My 6BR Douglas barrel cleans up more easily than the Shilen barrel on my .280 AI (And the Shilen isn't at all tough to clean or bad to foul).

HBB

MC,

I like Garys barrels.Very much so. Have a couple HV tubes of his laying around here.They shot as good as any that ive tried.
I never considered him to be rude.Ive always said he is,
"hard to talk to", <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />,Actually now a days we have a great relationship.I send him a check with a description of what I want.And 6 weeks later a barrel shows up.
I dont think we have to worrie about him winning any Mr. Personality contest.But he does what he says he going to do,Thats all I require.
dave

I've got rifles with Hart,Shilen,K&P,Lilja,Broughton,Lilja,
Kreiger,Chanlyn,Pac-Nor,Wise-Mcmillian,Douglas,Gillard plus afew others. My first rifle I had rebarrel was back in the 60's and I am by no means an expert in barrels.
I've only had two bad barrels and I never got to shoot them gunsmith called me said he had to make a speical pilot for his reamers since he didn't have one large enough, they were being chamber for my Br rifle in 6ppc. One was a McMillian other Pac-Nor both barrels were replaced.
I think it was Dick Wright who used a Douglas barrel in his 22 short BR rifle for awhile. I've got one of Douglas xx barrels on a sako action in 243 and it's a good shooter, barrel broke in real nice. Got one of Forbes Ultra Light Model 24 rifle with a Douglas barrel again good shooter solid 1/2" at 100yd same as my other hunting rifles with a Lilja,Kreiger,Kostshyn or K&P barrels. If Douglas made a 1/14 twist 6mm XX barrel I would try it in one of my tight neck rifles to see how it shoots.
I don't own a bore scope so really cann't comment on what inside on any of my barrels other than they shoot. Some barrels doesn't mater who's barrel might take alittle long to finally settle in and shoot same with cleaning.
I've got button and cut barrels in same caliber, one rifle I used same gunsmith so had same barrel lenght,twist and chamber the cut was faster by 30fps on same load.
You can get a good barrel but takes a good gunsmith to chamber one so to me the barrel is 10% other 90 goes to the gunsmith. Just my .02

Douglas makes a 1-14 twist 6mm barrel. I shot them for years on my benchrest rifle. In fact, I have one on a Shilen DGA right now.

Gary loaded with me and a couple of other guys at the Super Shoot once. We loaded under the same awning for a week and he was rude the entire week. Homer Culver was there at the time and Gary sucked up to Homer like a teeny-bopper around the captain of the football team.

Allan Hall tells of the time he visited Gary's shop and asked to see Gary's operation. Gary refused to show him around which was kinda insulting. It would be like Charlie Sisk coming to see me and I wouldn't let him in my shop. Gary may make a good barrel. I was shooting one of his barrels at that Super Shoot but that was the last one I ever bought. If a customer wanted a Schneider barrel I'd buy one in a heartbeat because I'm here to serve the customer but none for me.

I like Douglas barrels. But I like Hart, Shilen, and most factory barrels too. I think that most factory and after-market barrels have the capability to produce good groups if the they are installed properly, good loading technique is used, and the guy behind the trigger can actually shoot. I believe that NULA uses Douglas barrels and they are known to be pretty accurate rifles.

FWIW, when I buy Douglas barrels directly from Douglas, I always pay a little extra to buy XX air-gaged select barrels.

Jeff

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As for benchresters not using Douglas you need to understand that benchrest shooters are really lemmings that have not fallen off the cliff yet. It's a case of 'monkey see-monkey do'. Seely Masker made the comment once that if he won the Super Shoot with a small paddle wheel on the side of his rifle you would see half the guns on the line with paddle wheels at the next Super Shoot.

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" /> [/quote]

I know of one "Lemming" who is in the BR HOF and one of the countries best gunsmiths who has forgotten more about the building of precision rifles than you will ever know. Please be careful how you cast aspersions as your ignorance of the subject is readily apparent.

BH,

try as I might, I can't see the point of your post. Its not important that you "know of" a Hall of Famer, neither is it relevant that you may know the best gunsmith that ever lived. Was there any intended purpose to your statement?

Whoa Hoss!

Your calling Mickey Coleman ignorant on the subject building precision rifles leads me to believe that you don't know a buttstock from a brickbat.

What's your purpose in making such an asinine statement?


HBB

Well I do realize some people are not as sharp as others so I will make this crystal for you:


The individual I speak of is Speedy Gonzalez who is in the BR HOF and one of the best Smiths in the country and have quite a few of his rifles in my safe. I have spent hundreds of hours in his shop and have never seen a new Douglas barrel being chambered in a competition or hunting rifle. To cast aspersions about a class of people one is not familiar with is not responsible. Maybe this individual is just jealous or does not posses the knowledge, skill, experience or equipment to take advantage of the best materials and equipment required to make precision rifles I don�t know�sounds like a hacksmith to me.

Are we clear now or do you need further information?

Please continue speaking about yourself as I believe Mickey is "familiar with the BR Crowd".......

Hey gents, don't feed the trolls. Just ignore the fool.

All you will hear is how he is best friends with Speedy, Speedy is the only smith who knows how to chamber a barrel, you hunt behind a high fence, blah, blah, blah.

Not really worth the time, IMHO.

Those that matter know Mickey's reputation.

The only Speedy Gonzalez I know is a little mexican mouse on the Tune Network....my kids get a kick out of him....

Mickey Coleman will build my next Rifle.....

How 'bout it Mick? Wanna do a 25 Souper with a Douglas Tube?

'Course it'll be a lowly huntin' rifle....... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

I know very well who Mickey is been on his site (I was being sarcastic) before but kind of pisses me off to be referred to as a "lemming" even though I do compete at 1k most of my shooting is done at the ranch. When people make a statement about their clientele it would seem that it would be rather hard on business but maybe he does this as a hobby for him and does not care if he pisses off business. This is why we live in a county that you can spend your money with who you choose.

People from Kalifornia who hunt high fence really don't count. Go back to Starbucks and then out for some Toro. While you are here every weekend stroking your barrel so to speak I am out shooting most weekends and working on the ranch. This last weekend besides lighting off some very large piles of cedar and other hard woods I found time to shoot a couple of hundred rounds at the 600 and 1200 yard gong targets--how was your weekend? Next weekend will be doing more shooting as we are done with the burning for this year.

Well gee.....

I do believe that Mr. Coleman was talking with tongue planted firmly in cheek. I certainly thought that I understood the context with which he meant.

It would appear (to me at least) that his simple attempt at levity was certainly lost on some of the responedees herewith. I certainly got a chuckle out of it. Too bad that others failed to see the humor in it.

I do hope the esteemed Mr. Coleman is not as thin-skinned as it appears that others so obviously are.

As far as Douglas bbls go, it seems to me that not everyone wishes to build or can afford a $3K custom rifle. For those good folks, I would think that Douglas bbls are certainly adequate. I believe that I might have 2 or 3 my own self. They sit in the safe amoungst the Kreigers, Pac-Nors, Liljas, Shilens, et.al and I haven't heard any complaints! They are not my barrel of choice, unless I'm building a toy on the cheap. But for a hunting rifle, I can't see that it matters who pushes or pulls the spud down the hole. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> JMHO.

Grasshopper

The barrel is the cheapest piece of the puzzle. There generally isn't $100 difference in price,within the Makes thus far mentioned.

I can't cuss Douglas,nor are they my first choice....................

Exactly, so why not just buy the best available?
Benchrest guys do not use douglas barrels because they are the best going or even comparable with the better makes. As with many things you pay for what you get.
BTW not to name drop, but my smith is in the BHOF or has guns in it( I cant recall which). I wouldnt call him a lemming at all and he is not a BS'er either. When he builds hunting guns his first choice is Lilja, for bench guns Lilja, Broughton and Krieger. He along with many other quality smiths do not have anything good to say about Douglas.

BTW I dont have anything against a guy building a budget gun, but call a spade a spade. Douglas is a lower eschelon barrel maker. Cast in this light why not just go with a Adams & Bennet, which is much cheaper than most barrels?

The beauty of Douglas barrels is that Mickey likes them. Mickey's got my business and I'll use the barrel he recommeds. Have you not noticed that he's gone to bat for Douglas? I'll bet (and it'd be a safe bet) that if I was not satisfied with the barrel that it would be replaced with little to no cost for me. If a gunsmith swears by a barrel you better know I'll use it. That way if its a dog there's a better chance he can work it out with the barrel maker. I've a feeling that if I had Mickey barrel a Schneider and it didnt work out he'd tell me to shove it up my ass. Well, maybe Mickey wouldnt but most others would. For me, Douglas is cheap insurance!