I'm having trouble with this, i ask people if it is better to have a long barrel or a short one and everyone has something different to say. what do you think? Is it better to have a longer barrel than a shorter barrel?
........Depends on the how, the where and what the rifle will be used for and the personal preferences. You should also know the advantages with a shorter barrel and the dis-advantages.
The only real or main advantage for a longer barrel vs a shorter one is added velocity. A longer barrel does not necessarily mean better accuracy, but on the other hand, shorter barrels can be inherently more accurate because they have less barrel length to writhe, vibrate or resonate due to their shorter lengths.
Shooting from the bench, the shorter tubes will heat up faster than the longer barrels, which is why I take at least 2 to 3 minutes in-between my shots with my compact Ruger. And, I certainly don`t do any rapid fire while on any hunt.
Yes! They will be noisier. But all this biz about additional muzzle flash is over-rated and over exaggerated hype. My 300 WSM compact has no noticeable daytime muzzle flash and I don`t hunt in low light or in darkness anyway.
If you`re thinking of a shorter barreled rifle, certain cartridges imo, are well suited and are great performers from the shorter tubes without sacrificing too much velocity to the longer barrels. The overall velocity loss difference between my rifle and two 24" 300 WSMs I`ve tested, was only 4.2% to 4.5% using identical loadings.
Where the shorter barreled rifles really excel is with their carrying ability, handling in the field, manuverability in their quickness to point, manuverability as truck guns, saddle guns, as stand guns and are better suited for the thicker timbers and brush. When the rifle is slinged on my shoulder, the muzzle is well below the top of my head which is great in the brush. I can also carry the rifle by its pistol grip, with my arm down at my side, with the muzzle well above the ground when pointed at the ground.
I happen to really enjoy carrying around and hunting with a 35.5" long rifle that has the performance of a 26" barreled 30-06 AI which is about 11" longer in OAL.
I`ll gladly compromise a little velocity along with having a louder report, in return for more important advantages.
In any discussion between longer vs shorter barrels, velocity loss is the top subject of conversation. Most criticize the shorter tubes because of what is automatically perceived as an enormous amount of velocity loss, which is simply not true. Maybe in the `ol days, but not anymore with todays more modern and refined powder technology.