Perhaps we can't use what might be a better barrel steel because no one who is using so-called 'better" barrel steel is making barrels in the calibres and sizes in the designs we require.
It has now taken 3 years to get to this stage, after my first conversation with Jason, at Dixon's 2 1/2 years ago. We are now promised a 15 bore and perhaps larger bore sized barrels by next Christmas. I think that's wonderful and will be shooting a Rice barrel after that happens. I certainly have no complaints over the strength of my seemingly thin, 1 1/8" .69, nor has my buddy Keith with the same outside size barrel in a Getz .75 cal. barrel. Had that Getz barrel of Keith's been around 90" twist with only .005" to .006" rifling depth, I'd have one in .69 right now.
I've seen in print here at ALR that Rice uses 12L/14 - I thought everyone knew that - pretty sure they did. I've never seen any form of proof that they use 12L14, merely been said here that they use that material - I can accept that as truth, I guess.
I've seen several posts there stating that Colerain, Rice and Getz all use that material. I know a LOT of gun builders here use those barrels and in my 3 or more years of being here at ALR, I've never heard of one of them having a problem.
Bob - perhaps you've already forgotten all the barrel-steel theads of the past, recent past and 'before' that went on right here at ALR - all the talk about 12L14 being an inferior material but never any proof that one of the non-Douglas barrels blowing up as we were promised was happening.
That Douglas barrels or a single Douglas Barrel burst, I've no problem with - I know of one. I've seen a Douglas barrel that burst - Taylor has it in his rafters in the basement. We also know why it burst - the ball was set down about 1 1/2" off the powder charge due to fouling baldy there, so the owner then fired it - all $#*! broke loose and the hammer was never found - the barrel turning into a partially peeled banana, from the breech forward 1/2 way to the muzzle. Was it the barrel's fault, or the barrels steel's fault? - not that I could see nor even start to lay blame on the barrel itself.
I do happen to know that Don and now John Getz use 12L14. I also know that Don breeched both ends of a barrel, loaded it with powder, screwed in the solid plug & put fire to the vent. The entire charge fizzed out the vent and didn't blow up - interesting, but not scientific enough for those scientific thinkers who "think" that that steel is not suitable for a muzzleloading barrel because LaSalle says it isn't gun barrel quality steel - which wording sounds like modern gun steel to me.
I would then surmise that LaSalle will not call the 12L14 'Barrel Quality Steel' because some idiot would then make a .300 Magnum out of it and perhaps - - cause injury to himself or others and sue for damages.
We can all make 'guesses' as to how good something is or isn't. Everyone has an opinion myself included. I wonder if years of use with repetitive concussions of firing is any good as in indicator of worthiness, or is someones guess or opinion a more accurate measure?
Roger Fisher has to date fired over 50,000 shots out of a Getz barrel. Roger Fisher is not known to use squib loads, but loads that actually shoot accurately - therefore they are not squib loads, yet all that hammering, relatively high pressure that we know is developed in the smaller bores, has not crystallized that barrel to where it failed, a barrel that has actually shot 'slick' 3 or 4 times now. By what we've read here from the experts about shock loading crystallization, etc of the 12L14 barrels, it should have self-destructed many THOUSANDS of shots ago - but hasn't, nor has any Getz or Rice, Large, GRRW barrels Taylor's has been using in his rifles since 1974.
As far as any barrel of decent manufacture of any of the users of 12L14 blowing up, I'd suspect the person loading & shooting it, before I'd blame the barrel steel itself.
