Barrel choices

[Raven001]

Stupid questions but got to ask. :confused:

Now that I find myself needing cocker barrels, I am confused by the choices available.
Namely the two part barrels vs. the one length barrel.

Other than efficiency (air) is there a proven advantage or disadvantage to the two-stage barrel over the one continuous i.d. barrel?

If not, what kit is better in terms of smoothness of finish, durability, sizing consistency, price and of course, availability in the great white north (Lapco, Evil, Empire, WGP, JJ, etc).

No need to mention the Freak system as I have seen it and don't like it at all... :(

[teufelhunden]

STO Kaner. But only if you've got 'Cocker threads, because if not you shouldn't be using a kit [well, more or less].

2 piece vs 1 piece is really nothing, except for the ability to change tips/backs.

[lord1234]

Sanchez Machine barrels all the way!

[jayloo]

When asking about barrels you will never get a solid consensus. The vast majority of differences eventually come down to personal preferences.

I have owned freak and pipe kits and many J&J, DYE barrels and a bunch of others. As of today I use the 2-piece DYE ultralite and I only take it apart to clean it.

My 2 cents.

[Raven001]

When asking about barrels you will never get a solid consensus. The vast majority of differences eventually come down to personal preferences.

I have owned freak and pipe kits and many J&J, DYE barrels and a bunch of others. As of today I use the 2-piece DYE ultralite and I only take it apart to clean it.

My 2 cents.

I'm not looking for consensus on what is the "best barrel". What I want to know is

first, is there a performance difference between the 2-piece barrels with the back half one i.d. and the front a larger one (other than air consumption) over the 1-piece barrel that is one consistant i.d.?

second, the construction quality of the barrels available in either format i.e. durability and roundness and especialy if it says it's .689 when will it be .689 (weather affects metal to some extent no?)

One reason why I would not consider the Freak system is because I saw it and it did not look as though it would last to long in my abusive little mitts... ;)

[zeroack]

I just recently picked up a CCM barrel kit. I was a little worried about how well it would shoot given the control bore is only 2 inchs long. Well after two good long outtings I can say it's awesome! Mine came with seven sizers for matching paint. It shoots darts and is very quite. It does mess up the ballance on some markers due to the fact it weighs nothing.
You get a chance check them out...

Zero

[Flow_Tech]

powerlyte Scepter..ALL THE WAY

[Mister Sinister]

If you check the diameter at the breech and at the muzzle on alot of one piece barrels you will find they are different. My stiffi barrels go from .689-.700 my angel infinity barrel does the same. So in this way they would be the same as a 2 piece. As too why exactly they do this I dont know. I do know this though my Stiffi's do rock. Then again so does my Empire kit. :)

[Dayspring]

Ditto.

The smoothest inserts, true bore sizes, locking inserts (no orings). By far the best I've used.


powerlyte Scepter..ALL THE WAY

[richie]

I bought the hype,then bought the barrel.This thing is great.It is super light,super quiet,and so far seems to be strong.I love it.I also like the dye ultralights.

[professor_chaos]

I would have to agree, the powerlyte scepter kit is my first kit and undoubtably my last. As well all know it's all about paint to barrel match so (imo) you should just get a kit rather than spending almost the same amount of money on a good one or two piece barrel. www.topchoicepaintball.com has the cheapest scepter kits I've found. You won't be disappointed. As far as the one piece vs two piece I dont really think threre is a certain advantage to either one. Check out some of the reviews at www.pbreview.com hope that helps :headbang:

[Adrenaline_Junkie]

cough*Switch or Lucky 15*cough

[elpimpo]

STO Kaner. But only if you've got 'Cocker threads, because if not you shouldn't be using a kit [well, more or less].

.


huh?

[RoadDawg]

Well Kaner's are good kits. No inserts, 4 backs and three tip lengths (old kits) not sure about the new kits. They come from Sanchez I believe but have the WGP logo added on. Anyhow. They are fantastic barrels. Quiet compared to a pipe (I can get several in SoCal to agree with me on this) and is probably the best honed barrel. Even after several months of my own use and several months of the previous owners use all inserts and tips look amazingly clean and unmarked. I'm 100% happy with them.


lpimpo- huh?

Teulfelhunden thinks that a kit is only good for cockers. All other makrers should use big bore barrels only. Well this was according to his pbreview post a month or so back.

[elpimpo]

wow, thats pretty gay,

[ilikePB]

I really like my 7 piece Empire kit. It's light, has a real good hone, and shoots real straight. Plus, I got it for $120.

[C_22]

14" .692 two-piece DYE Ultralight! :headbang:

[FallNAngel]

Teulfelhunden thinks that a kit is only good for cockers. All other makrers should use big bore barrels only. Well this was according to his pbreview post a month or so back.

I can see why too. With an open bolt gun, the ball is shot as soon as the bolt closes. On a closed bolt gun, the only thing holding the ball in place is the barrel itself. Paint/barrel match is much more important on a closed bolt marker.

[GT]

first, is there a performance difference between the 2-piece barrels with the back half one i.d. and the front a larger one (other than air consumption) over the 1-piece barrel that is one consistant i.d.?

second, the construction quality of the barrels available in either format i.e. durability and roundness and especialy if it says it's .689 when will it be .689 (weather affects metal to some extent no?)



1. I would think it would take more energy to push out a PB, if it was a snug fit, on an single bore barrel.

2. I have yet to see any real evidence that barrel kits make that much of a difference, i.e. pb match. To be perfectly honest I believe that paint, roundness, has more to do with accuracy than anything else.


What is the best barrel?

for me? its a stiffi, its light and shoots like any other barrel out there.

[elpimpo]

so you like stiffis huh. ssorry dude i had to say it

[SlipknotX556]

I like CP 1 pieces, dye ultralights, those are the 2 best barrels I have owned.

[trains are bad]

wow, thats pretty gay,

maybe so, but I agree

Also agree with this:



I have yet to see any real evidence that barrel kits make that much of a difference, i.e. pb match. To be perfectly honest I believe that paint, roundness, has more to do with accuracy than anything else.


My favorite barrels are Lapco bigshots, CP, any smooth one piece. I have more than one because of different lengths and for very rough paint matching--I still like my paint to roll through.

[GoatBoy]

So out of 21 replies, I saw like only three that even remotely attempted to answer the guy's questions. That's... kind of sad. Do you guys always answer questions without reading them?

It's evidently not hard to make a straight, smooth, single piece barrel. So I don't think you'll see many manufacturing issues with them. I have J&J ceramic and Lapco's; I prefer to use the J&J's myself because of the length. They've proven pretty durable, but then again, I do take care of my stuff. I personally haven't seen any warping of dimensions due to any weather conditions.


Multi-piece barrels, however, are more difficult to manufacture. That makes them more expensive, and more prone to ... problems like things not lining up, etc. That's why most of these guys get lost in their wiz-bang neato spiffy features of their barrel kits, as opposed to actually answering your damn question and saying why exactly multipieces are better.


The "advantages" of multipiece are this supposed paint matching system, maybe a little more quietness due to more than half of most barrels being basically dead weight, and being able to change tip lengths and such.

The disadvantages are costs and possible issues with things not fitting together properly. I think that the companies are getting better at making the barrels, so the risk might not be as much as it used to be. Plus, you have a joint that dirt and paint likes to get trapped up in.


Single-piece barrels? They're easy to make well, and make cheap.


Personally, I don't really care for paint matching. I just put the J&J on and go; the only reason I have paint problems is when it's deformed. As long as it's round, I can't tell the difference between paint that averaged .689 and paint that averaged .686, aside from maybe chrono speeds.

[Raven001]

I thank those who took the time to tell me more than just "ACME" barrels rock dude :headbang:
(hope the ACME people don't sue me).

I've been out of paintball for about 5 years and while some mfg's like J$J and Lapco are still around and known to me, a lot of companies are unknown.

Since there was always a debate about paint to barrel matching and accuracy, I was hoping time had provided evidence that one was better than the other. I'm surprised to see that that has not happened.

In the end I think I will stick to what I know and just go with a J&J ceramic one piece and either a Lapco autospirit or CP in the .685. Should meet my needs and not bust the bank.

Cheers to you all....

[GT]

just go with a J&J ceramic one piece .


those are nice to. usally can be found pretty cheap