Tapered barrel qualities?

[Skychief]

Having only owned and shot straight octagon. and swamped barreled rifles, I as this question.   How do tapered-barrel rifles handle (balance, hang, accuracy, etc, etc) in comparison to straight octagon barrels?

I am thinking about a small caliber Hawken rifle and need to decide between straight octagon or tapered barrel.

Thanks very much, Skychief.

[smylee grouch]

I have several and love every one. But I have several of the other type too and love every one too. Straight tapper barrels might be better for some aplications than others but I really like them in half stock hunting type guns.   Smylee

[BrownBear]

Glad you narrowed it to Hawkens, because I can be the most help there.  I've got a couple of them, both 58 caliber- one with a 36" barrel tapered 1 1/8" to 1" and the other a 26" barrel tapered 1 1/8" to 15/16".  I also have three 58's with 1" straight barrels- two with 28" and one a 32" straight.

Here goes the subjective stuff.  The one with the 26" taper actually weighs more than the 28" straights.  But it feels absolutely "whippy" when you mount and swing it, more like a modern upland shotgun with the COG right between your hands.  The rifle with the 36" taper weighs a whopping 12 pounds, yet balances better for my tastes with a little less muzzle weight than the 32" straight weighing 3 pounds less.  The 28" straights feel like they have a little less muzzle weight than a 50 cal Lyman GPR with its 15/16" barrel if that's a useful comparison, and they weigh a little less, too.  Overall they feel quicker or more lively, whatever you want to call it, due both to the lighter overall weight and less muzzle weight.

Lotta comparisons to ponder, but overall the taper really improves the Hawken handling for my tastes, though retaining a little more muzzle weight than the swamped barrels I've handled.  I've got longrifles with 39" and 42" straight barrels, and they all feel to me like they "need" swamps.  I'm not sure I'd like as radical weight shift as a swamp on a Hawken if such a thing was made.  That 26" 58 cal with the radical taper is reminiscent of a swamp feel-wise.... A dandy for quick field shooting, but it's an absolute stinker for deliberate offhand shooting typical of small game shooting with a smaller caliber gun.

[northmn]

I have a rilfe built around a 54X42 inch barrel tapered from 1 inch to 7/8 inch.  It is a Tennessee styled rifle and handles very well.  While I likely did not need to, I soldered on the front sightin stead of dovetailing it due to the thinner walls.  It puts the weight where it belongs.

DP

[Swampwalker]

Tapering the barrel greater or lesser amounts merely changes the balance point of the gun.  A shorter or a tapered barrel shifts the balance point rearward, and makes the rifle feel more lively and easier/faster to swing and shoulder.  The trade off is stability, as many find weight-forward rifles steadier to aim from the offhand position.

[doug]

     I have a rifle with a barrel which is both tapered and swamped.  I like it very much and it seems to shave about 1 lb off of a barrel which is swamped only

cheers Doug

[bob in the woods]

Doug.....tapered and swamped ?   If you cut the end off a swamped barrel, you get a tapered one don't you ?

[doug]

     I am tempted to say that you get a carbine :>)  :>).   I am guessing that the tapering and swamping combined got rid of about 1 1/2 lbs of metal.  I am not a fast shooter and the light weight (42" x .50 cal) allows me to hold a lot longer than a heavier barrel.  I was shooting a 42" x .54 cal swamped only barrel which was noticeably lighter than a straight barrel.  This gun is noticeably lighter yet.  I suspect that the light weight probably gives me one or two extra hits by the end of a 25 shot trail and 2 - 2/12 hours of walking and shooting

cheers Doug