I had been taught that the gain twist advantage was accuracy. I had not heard they were faster, but it makes sense that the less twist at the breech, the less initial resistance.
According to those who have shot Harry Pope's rifles said that they started with a 1 in 16 twist and finished
with a 1 in 15 and 3/4 at the muzzle.The last inch of the muzzle in any rifle will determine accuracy.
Bill Large made them for round ball guns and they worked really well and while no chronograph was available
they seemed to give higher velocity.I helped Bill make a rifling guide for one type but do not remember the
start or finish of that one system or any of the others.Bill told me of going to Aberdeen proving range to try
to find out why the 8.8 cm (88 millimeter) gun the Germans used was such a fearsome performer and after
hearing it go off one time told them it had a gain twist and it DID. The twist was not a noticeable radical type
but enough to get the job done.I talked to a former Panzer 2 Commander (King Tiger) and he said the 88 was
a feared gun used with a tank as a platform and he said he examined the remains of Shermans and Russian T34's
and couldn't understand why America sent people into combat with such a sorry tank when they had to know
what they could encounter. He knew the Russkys didn't care one way or the other about tanks or troops.
Bob Roller