LW AF Barrels compared to LW barrels in other guns?
I believe (but dont know for sure) that LW make different grades of airgun barrels. I am not talking about external finish or material or options like threaded end. I am talking about straightness, smoothness, consistency, barrel crown. I have seen the fantastic accuracy Ted has achieved with his EDGUN and it got me wondering. How different is the barrel in the EDGUN from that used in the AF guns. My belief is that ED probably buys a higher grade barrel. I am wondering what would differentiate the specifications between the 2.
I am not an expert in airgun barrel technology. Most of my understanding comes from experience with powder burners. I know there are different twist rates and when you get to true match barrels the grove tolerances and smoothness of the bore simply jump to another level. A good match barrel looks like a mirror inside under a microscope. In comparison a barrel on production gun can look like a metal file that has been in an accident. An exaggeration – yeah – but you get the idea. Vastly different. The lands have obvious defects. They vary in width, depth and have significant tooling marks. Not so in the match barrel.
I have heard the term choke applied to airgun barrels. I understand the term appied to shotgun barrels where it describes a constriction in the bore near the muzzle that provides a specific shot spread. Since an airgun only shoots 1 pellet the same definition cant apply. What does choke mean in an airgun? Does LW choke the barrels? How does choke work in an airgun?
Here is a link to a video comparing barrel finish that shows what I am talking about.
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I did a rather limited search on Pologonal barrels and seemed to me that semi auto and full auto guns was the intended use, being to allow longer period of fouling/leading/loading of the barrel between cleaning and accuracy problems.
My opinion you gonna get what you pay for and more precision manufacture of a barrel will cost more. Mass production costs less per unit and a single barrel to your spec is gonna cost a pretty penny/ Pfennig and you’ll be needing to call LW and talk to ’em about exactly what you want.
A production of one/prototype barrel cost would be astronomical?
Sam 😯
I would do a search on the LW poly barrels. There has been a good bit of talk about the .25 versions here.
Not saying my gun is not accurate, in my case if I do my job it makes the connection. Rater I was thinking more from the POV that LW barrels are on guns that span a wide range of prices. I just cant quite wrap my mind around the idea that they are all using the exact same barrel.
LW site only show 1 barrel price , which means only 1 public grade. My guess is that any upgrade is custom order. No telling what range of custom specification is available. Also – and I found this interesting – they have a polygonal rifling option. I have never seen anybody say they are using a LW polygonal rifled barrel. Perhaps that says it all – but I still wonder how they perform.
I sent them a note asking if they have any specs on the barrels.
Ed has stated the Edgun barrels are made to his personal specs I believe.
Probably best to ask LW as the only options they list are diameter, caliber, and rifling type. A lot of people say the BSA hammer forged barrels are of superior quality then the LW barrels. But both work great in my eyes. However if your thinking the AF gun is not accurate it may not be setup all that right or you may have a early gun or.
Here is a link to a video comparing barrel finish that shows what I am talking about.
In a choked barrel the last 1.5″ or so reduces slightly. If choked correctly, this will slightly increase fps as it ‘spits’ the pellet out, and it also allows the pellet to engage the rifling even more closely just prior to exit.
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That’s a great video. Thanks for posting it Tom. 😀