All "good" barrels are NOT created equal. Are they?

[Abubaca]

So this is probably one of those endless debate threads, but I'm relatively new to paintball forums, so pardon me if I stir the pot. ....so, when I picked up my Resurrection a few years back, a couple guys at the field with Snipers said they had great results with the .675 and .680 barrels. I had a Dye UL with a .688 that was performing meh....ok, but within a few weekends, I found the .680 Empire barrel was the ticket. Somewhere between then and now, I picked up 2 NIB UL backs off craigslist for $40. .684 and .680. .....still.....the .680 Empire outperformed. ....I had been using the .680 empire on the Rez, and the .680 and .685 UL on the Mag until this weekend, where I gave the Empire barrel a go in the Mag and it was glorious! .....so my question/statement:

First, I think I may just pick up one of those open box Empire .675/.680/.685 kits off Ebay for $65 so I have TWO, one for each...

...and second...what are you guys using for a modern barrel? (-for those not using old school twist locks.) I thought DYE and Freaks had the market, but in looking around...and from my experience....in two totally different valve/gun set ups, they weren't that great. ...I have about $300 retail worth of DYE UL barrels just sitting there, going unused.

[JKR]

My favorite barrel by far...LAPCO!

[Nobody]

1) if you want another Resurrection barrel kit, PM me. I have one that i will never use and will give you a great price.

2) most importantly, if all barrels have the same finish, accuracy is dependent upon the quality of the paint. Have misshapen, oblong, oily or inconsistent sized suspect paint; accuracy will suffer. Sometimes 1 piece barrels shoot great that day, sometimes 2 piece fixed bore, sometimes a freak back is good.

For barrels that i use. I have a collection of Dye, freak, Lapco (old Lapco when Colin was still around), and a PE Shaft 2 or 3 barrel i got with my Ego6. But mostly i use my Inception Designs Stella barrel, in fixed and freak backs. The Empire barrels are progenitor to the Stella, as the guy who designed the Empire kits, makes the Stella now.

[dboggs79]

The only barrel kit that I would ever use instead of the Empire kit would be a Stella or Lurker. The Empire kit really is a great barrel in my opinion. The longer bores makes a big difference.

[going_home]

Freak Stella.

Nuff said.

[athomas]

All barrels are round tubes that guide the almost round paint as it accelerates away from the bolt.

As previously mentioned, the inner surface of the barrel has a lot to do with accuracy. Any barrel that does not impart a spin on the ball will be accurate and it doesn't matter what the bore is. Smoother finishes have a better chance at keeping the ball from starting a spin.

An ideal barrel fit for the paint you are using gives the best efficiency and consistency from shot to shot. Barrels that have bores that are larger than the paint are more forgiving for paint that is not perfectly round or for paint that is more fragile. Longer barrels are easier to sight with, but shorter barrels have less chance to impart a spin, so a shorter barrel will be more accurate on average than a long barrel. Howerver, a barrel that is way too short will be horribly inefficent. A barrel that is too long will also be less efficient, but not as much as one that is too short.

So, if you want a really accurate barrel for all paint and don't care about efficiency, use a slightly overbore barrel that is about 5 inches long. If you want one that gives best efficiency and really good accuracy use one that is about 11 inches long and matched to the paint.

If one of your barrels is performing better than another, then use it. It probably has a smoother control bore than the others you are using.

[OneSelfLost]

I have an 18" CP barrel that has a mean right hook.. and a mean left hook.. Its all around crap. Haha. In my own experience, I've had really good luck with a rifled Invert barrel and a WGP kaner.

[cockerpunk]

"accuracy problems: buy better paintballs"

WDP angel LCD manual circa 2000

truer words have never been spoken in paintball.

[wetwrks]

I also like scepter barrels.

[Dayspring]

I also like scepter barrels.

I have used both the original Scepter and the 2nd version (still have that one). Love them.

Currently using the Stella kits.

[d4m4don3]

what happened to Mann's barrel test?

[rawbutter]

what happened to Mann's barrel test?

He finished it.

http://www.pbnation.com/showthread.php?t=2218018

[ghost flanker]

I underbore by about .003" to .005" (for efficiency) when using inserts and I don't have issues with breaking paint any worse than when I overbore using twistlock barrels. I should note that I live in Southern California where it's fairly arid (minimal paint swell here).

As far as accuracy is concerned, I don't see a noticeable difference between barrels, so I tend to just go with what looks good on the gun and call it a day. Whether the upgrade barrel is longer, shorter, underbored, overbored, matched bore, smooth bore, rifled, 1 piece, 2 piece, red piece, blue piece, they all pretty much shoot about the same. Of course, there are exceptions, like the Flatline barrel which purposefully imparts spin, or defective/damaged barrels where the honing is ruined. But for the most part, I think that more expensive barrels offer little accuracy improvement, and that expectation bias affects people's own perceptions far more than they realize.