What Barrel?

[El Zilcho]

I plan on purchasing a ULE body in the near future, rendering my twist lock useless. What are people's opinions on barrel selection for woodsball and occasional speedball? Length, material, brands, diameter, etc.
Thanks

[Frizzle Fry]

14" with porting. High quality.

Do you usually overbore or underbore? Use quality paint? Play at a field or in your back yard?

[athomas]

The best barrel is a round tube that you screw into the front of your body. It sounds sarcastic, but in reality there is too much emphasis placed on comparison between different barrels. Brands typically don't matter. The paintballs are the limiting factor not the barrels.

A 14" is an ideal choice for length. Its long enough to give you a sight line but not too long to get in the way. The porting helps reduce the shot noise. Just don't get too much porting or you loose too much acceleration and effectively shorten the barrel to the starting point of the porting. This will make it more inefficient. A bunch of small ports works really well at reducing noise while maintaining some acceleration along the barrel.

The barrel internal diameter is the most important feature. You need to choose this based on the size and quality of the paint you use. Ideally you want the balls you are shooting to barely touch on two points opposite each other in the barrel. In the real world, this is hard to achieve every time, especially if you are shooting field paint. If the paint is odd sized or has a habit of not being round, then choose a barrel that is oversized. Oversized is always better than undersized. It is more forgiving and will result in fewer barrel breaks due to poor quality out of round paint being shoved into the barrel.

[El Zilcho]

14" with porting. High quality.

Do you usually overbore or underbore? Use quality paint? Play at a field or in your back yard?

I usually opt for mid grade paint at my local field, Empire Premium Gold (I think) I have been told that it's .694.

As far as over/underbore, I don't really know the benefits either way, I usually buy paint and shoot it.

What do people consider to be "High quality" barrels.

[Frizzle Fry]

What do people consider to be "High quality" barrels.

High quality would be a well finished barrel made from quality materials with an attention to detail that is greater than average. Generally barrels from "low-end" companies and companies who focus production in crummy parts of Asia tend to be poorly finished, with inner barrel issues and barbs/sharp edges or inconsistencies in the anodizing or coating.

In my experience barrels from Palmers Pursuit Shop are of very good quality, and they can be made to meet your needs - keep in mind though that brass is more malleable and less durable than quality aluminum or stainless steel. As far as production barrels go, I've seen less variances with Lapco barrels than any other when it comes to one-piece unites, and I've found that the highest quality and best finished insert kits come from Sceptre.

I personally use Freak kits, because for quite some time they were the cheapest and most available insert kit out there and I own loads of markers that I like to make purdy with matched anodizing. I also tend to over-bore when using mid grade paint because a tight bore can cause issues when there are inconsistencies in the diameter of the ball.

[Carnage reigns]

I like the CP kit but it's all a matter of preference. I also like to use a cf tip. Again a matter of preference.

[robander3]

Sanchez Machine Barrel Kits

I'm a huge fan of these barrel kits, and other products.
There is plenty of porting on hte barrel and the inserts are backwards threaded so they never get "stuck" in the gun. Very nice craftsmanship and finish and bore accuracy.

I've used/owned the freak, DW fiber w/freak inserts, Sly Barrel kit and a J&J barrel kit and I prefer the SM barrel kit. Not to say that those aren't good barrels. Own personal observation is that the SM barrel kits are quieter and better made. They're all accurate if set up correctly...

EDIT: All my barrels are 14" and I find it a very comfortable length.
Except my minimag barrel

[going_home]

The Only Barrel I Use




Lapco barrel with Apex2 tip.


nuff said//

[Drix]

I've shot a stack of different barrels. I have an old J+J Ceramic 14" that I love, but realistically you just want something thats around a .689 and smooth, it doesn't matter

[Hobbez]

I wouldnt want to even guess how many barrels I've used in the last 20 years, but I do know that since the freak first came out, every other barrel that I have purchased to try, I've sold. I love to try new barrels, but I alway end up right back with the freak.

[redlaser666]

OP, you didnt mention your current barrel or a budget so I would suggest you start looking there first.

If your current twistlock barrel performs well and you like it you may consider going with the same brand if it is still available. If not here are a few of my favorites in no particular order, most can be found new or used.

> Lapco - many choices but I like the Bigshot the most.
> Smart Parts/GOG - freak inset based barrels, my favorite tip is the All American with lots of spiral ports
> DYE - I have used an ultralite with good results.
> CP - I have used their one piece barrels often, havent tried the two piece but hear they shoot good as well.
> J&J - I have used the Edge barrel system and it was nice, but it only came in dust finish when i got it.

There are many other quality brands out there that I have never tried, but like its been posted above, your painball choice will have a greater impact in accuracy than any barrel will. So in the end the choice you make will narow down to budget and what you think looks best on your mag.

Good Luck!

[Carnage reigns]

I wouldnt want to even guess how many barrels I've used in the last 20 years, but I do know that since the freak first came out, every other barrel that I have purchased to try, I've sold. I love to try new barrels, but I alway end up right back with the freak.

I'm too big of a klutz to own a freak kit. I would break bores constantly

[Henchman]

Every article I've read by knowledgeable people who have actually done real research on the topic, the optimum length was between 8-10". 10" really being the recommended length. Unported for efficiency.
This according to people like Tom Kaye and Glenn Palmer.

So, I would say get a 10" palmers brass barrel.

[kcombs9]

I used a freak kit with DW fiber 14" for long long time, sold it out for a nice karnivor kit. Have yet to shoot with it but the longer control bore will make it better then the freak and I spent the same amount of money on it as I did with my Freak set up, and I can choose 12"-14"-16" length

[Justus]

As long as the barrel is quality (not warped, smoothe bore, etc.), then it basically comes down to features and looks. That's why I've chosen a FLASC kit for my Etac. 9" unported control bores, a 3" or 5" double-ported extension, and tip of choice. I can even put my Apex2 barrel tip on it. It's an aluminum barrel, so it's lightweight.

Barrels I've used and liked very much would include the FLASC, Lapco, DYE Boomstick, and J&J. Get the features you want, get the look you want, get it all made by a respected manufacturer so you know it's quality, and you really can't go wrong.