457 IBI barrel is finally here

[Kisssofdeath]

Finally got here today. Barrel is 20". Cannot get threaded directly from IBI. Stainless finish is the only option. Barrel shank OD and length is exactly the same as the factory barrel. Until I test some ammo I see no point in playing with the headspace. I just want to see what happens first. Barrel cost $319 + shipping.

This has the Callfee 4 chamber. Bullet will engrave the rifling different depending on ammo used. Here are three different seating depths, there may be more. For anyone who does not know, I am showing is how much case is remaining out of the chamber when the bullet touches the rifling.

For comparison here is the Win 52D chamber on the T1x IBI barrel.

Too windy to shoot today unless I shoot some cheap stuff.

 

[Frankr]

KoD.
Very nice looking. Can’t wait for the range report.
Any reason you went with them over Bartlien (spelling?) which you can get threaded?

 

[Kisssofdeath]

Bart uses a Bentz chamber. Plus they cost too much. I would never consider any barrel when a bullet doesn't engage the rifling. That's why I sent my Lothar Walther barrel back months ago. Didn't even mount it.

 

[Frankr]

Totally understand. Although it seems that Nakoa1 has 2 bartlien barrels that shoot really well.
Maybe his is a modified bentz *shrug*

remind me. Is the IBI barrel choked towards the muzzle?

 

[Wrencoforge]

Shoot it! shoot it!! shoot it!!!
Very curious/excited to hear how the IBI with calfee chamber shoots! Been considering this barrel for my tikka

 

[nakoa01]

I cant wait to hear about this. I am selling a 10/22 to fund another cz 457 barrel project.

 

[SanginSpecial]

Hey KOD...

Just curious which 3 ammos you used to show the differing amounts of "stick out", and which is which in the photos?

 

[Kisssofdeath]

Hey KOD...

Just curious which 3 ammos you used to show the differing amounts of "stick out", and which is which in the photos?

I knew someone would ask me that. I can't be certain on the 1st two, but it was the RWS line. I checked Geco Match "made by RWS", RWS R-50sc and RWS Pistol Match 250. The one sticking out the farthest was represented by Eley Team an EPS style bullet and SK Flat Nose Match.

 

[nakoa01]

How does the 52d shoot out of the t1x?

 

[littlepod]

How does the 52d shoot out of the t1x?

52d shot spectacular out of my T1X. It just is harder to close the bolt due to the super tight chamber. I was routinely shooting in the .6's @ 100 yards with Pistol Match Special and Center-X.

 

[Kisssofdeath]

How does the 52d shoot out of the t1x?

Shoots really good. Maybe not as good as littlepod shot. I shot the 457 IBI today, will post results and a little write up later. I'd have to compare ammo to ammo out of both barrels to see which performed the best. If I had to make a guess the 52D chamber is more accurate.

 

[Wrencoforge]

From Littlepods reports, the 52d seemed too tight.. at least for the Tikka.. doesn’t have much camming action when the bolt closes.
Seems like the calfee may be a nice compromise. Good accuracy, but gun still feeds smoothly.

Sorry KOD, I guess this isn’t even a T1x thread..

 

[Kisssofdeath]

Well, jury is still out. It was a wishy washy day anyway. I got a late start at around 1:30. Wind was blowing most of the time with a break here and there. Shot 4 targets (200 rounds) and stopped because I was waiting way to long between shots. I know some shots were taken when they shouldn't have been and after finishing up the 4th target I stopped and started mowing grass, weed eating and yard cleanup. After awhile when my arms settled down I started shooting again around 7:30. Shot 4 more plates and had to get the flashlight out to finish up. But, the wind had died down considerably. I'll finish up later.

 

[Kisssofdeath]

I was hoping to get to shoot some today but it appears the weather will not cooperate at the moment. So I'll post the targets from yesterday. Targets will be posted in the order they were shot with the top target being the first. I believe the barrel is more accurate than what the groups suggest. Barrel was wiped out in the beginning but no cleaning was done throughout the test. The first four targets were shot with windy conditions that forced me to wait between shots. If needed I will give a brief commentary above each target.

The 5th group shows a destroyed group. It was just bad shooting on my part.

Geco Match didn't perform too bad. I may adopt this as my go to or generic use ammo in lieu of the CCI SV because of the easier chambering in match chambers.

Shooting RWS Target Rifle always makes me want to try RWS Rifle Match.

When I first shot Fiocchi Official 300 months ago it was on fire. Every brick after that has not been as good.

RWS Super Pistol 250 is really cheap for a premium line ammo. It produced a few great groups but overall it wasn't consistent. But, I always wonder if I did something different on all those "off shots".

Except for the Terrible 7th group this is a really good ammo. If you notice 8 out of 10 groups have 4 shots touching. 5 of those 8, the stray round was to the left. Makes me wonder if it was something I did??

Fed GM Match was not bad. Had the typical stray shots as before which somewhat raises concern. More testing needed.

Fed GM Ultra Match gave me the best groups of the day. If you compare this target to the others it will appear to not be much different. The big difference is the lack of stray rounds shot with the Ultra Match.

There you have it, the first round of IBI with Callfee 4 chamber test. For now, with what's been tested I think the barrel has great potential considering all the random flyers. I still have Lapua, Eley and SK to shoot. I may try to round up different Eley, Lapua and SK than what I have. I will shot today if possible. Tomorrow higher wind is predicted and after that it's predicted to rain here all week.

 

[littlepod]

Are you going to run your special B14R wolf match extra through it?

 

[Kisssofdeath]

No, I only have 4 boxes left. If I can get a case I will.

 

[SanginSpecial]

I knew someone would ask me that. I can't be certain on the 1st two, but it was the RWS line. I checked Geco Match "made by RWS", RWS R-50sc and RWS Pistol Match 250. The one sticking out the farthest was represented by Eley Team an EPS style bullet and SK Flat Nose Match.

Interesting that there is that much difference in stickout between brands.

The reason for asking has to do with comments from folks who have designed chambers for specific ammo brands. I figured there would be slight variations on dimensions of cartridges from manufacturer to manufacturer, but there is a significant difference between the Eley and RWS offerings in your photos.

Looks like it's time to start measuring ammo varieties and start logging data.

 

[Kisssofdeath]

Interesting that there is that much difference in stickout between brands. I know, this is the first time I checked multiple types of ammo in a barrel. I tried the RWS first because it was what I had closest to me. When I saw how far the RWS round fell in, prompted me to start checking different ammo because not much bullet would be seated in the rifling and that was concerning to me. And that's what lead to the discovery. If I had measured Eley or Lapua first I would never never known.

The reason for asking has to do with comments from folks who have designed chambers for specific ammo brands. I figured there would be slight variations on dimensions of cartridges from manufacturer to manufacturer, but there is a significant difference between the Eley and RWS offerings in your photos. Evidently you are correct, those people were "in the know" far before I was.

Looks like it's time to start measuring ammo varieties and start logging data.

My answers in orange.

 

[Kisssofdeath]

Well, got to shoot some today after all. Waited late, wind died down but started raining on me while shooting the Eley targets. I still haven't shot Lapua ammo. Overall this barrel shoots a lot of ammo pretty good. A lot of the groups could have been fantastic if it hadn't been for one shot out of the five. Jury is still out on which is the most accurate, the IBI with Win 52D chamber or this Calfee 4. When all testing is finished I will create some side by side photos comparing the same ammo out of each barrel. Same as above, targets will be shown in the order they were shot with the top being the first. Commentary added as needed.

SK Pistol Match. Probably the best value ammo for sale. I'm talking cost per performance. Scope was never adjusted, shot the first 5 low and right for a 3/8" group. Next the shots literal started climbing and remained somewhat high and right.

SK Pistol Match Special shot a little tighter groups than the Pistol Match.

SK Rifle Match. Never ceases to please me in anything I shoot it in. All groups "other than the first two" are just fantastic as a whole.

SK Flat Nose Match. This ammo seems to be good, not as good as Rifle Match and it cost a little more. Overall, the groups were larger than the Rifle Match.

Eley Team. Probably never buy this ammo again. Cost around $12 a box and has never kept up with SK Rifle Match at $7.50 a box.

Eley Edge. Although I believe it is better than Eley Team, at $10 a box it still falls in the same category.

Another round of real world results to help with your decision making or thought process, if you have either on the subject. Other than that, consider it entertainment. As mentioned, I still need to shoot my Center-X and Pistol King. 750 rounds and still haven't cleaned the barrel. I know it's gun/ammo dependant but I do believe it should take no more than 10 rounds "if that" to settle a barrel down. Realistically, 5 should do it if at all, sometimes just one.

Forgot to add some range photos.

 

[Wrencoforge]

Starting to look pretty good!

 

[BJG56]

KOD, I always appreciate your write-ups. This one is no exception. You are one of the more erudite members here on the Hide IMHO.

 

[Kisssofdeath]

Thanks guys, appreciate the comments.

 

[Kisssofdeath]

This will be my last update for a while. I'm thinking about taking the barrel to my machinist and have him take .005" or whatever off the shoulder of the barrel. This will close the headspace gap and if it's to much I'll get or make spacers to set the headspace. It this point I don't know what the headspace is. I believe I will sacrifice some feeler gauges and see if I can at least determine if the headspace can be worked with.

Anyway, here is what I'm getting. As you can see the barrel is very capable of shooting tight groups. The stray shots could be me but I always call my shots if I know I messed up. These stray shots felt good. I may be asking for too much IDK. If I do have a "stray" shot it needs to be like group #6 where the stray shot takes the overall group out to only 1/2" and not 5/8" like some of the others.

 

[littlepod]

Flyers look a little to the left, perhaps wind?

 

[Kisssofdeath]

Flyers look a little to the left, perhaps wind?

Unfortunately no. The wind flags were calm.

 

[nakoa01]

Left flyers for me are always too much of my fat cheek in the gun. Pushes it left. Too much shoulder pressure high and left. Stay in the gun too long then who knows. Depends on the ammo. Some high some low. And if I am shooting center x or the Vudoo doesn't seem to matter. Anything else must be done in rythym or it sucks. Why I have no idea.

 

[littlepod]

Left flyers for me are always too much of my fat cheek in the gun. Pushes it left. Too much shoulder pressure high and left. Stay in the gun too long then who knows. Depends on the ammo. Some high some low. And if I am shooting center x or the Vudoo doesn't seem to matter. Anything else must be done in rythym or it sucks. Why I have no idea.

How much does your Vudoo weigh compare to your other rifle? I notice that with a 15lb rifle on a 22, you don't have to do much for it to shoot pretty. Shoot a 8lb rifle and have bad fundamentals and things can throw flyers. Recoil pulse on a 22 is pretty long for that 22 to be in the barrel, but on a 15lb rifle it doesn't move at all. 8lb rifle still has some recoil.

 

[nakoa01]

No idea what they all weigh but the tikka is the lightest. And vudoo heaviest. But my vudoo is a 16in barrel. So it's not as heavy as some out there. It has made me see why heavier is better.

 

[Kisssofdeath]

Shot the 457 a couple of days ago. Shot with zero wind for the first time ever. Pretty happy with the results.

Here are some 100 yard groups on a different day. A friend of mine invited me to the Greenville Gun Club, my first time shooting at 100 yards. There was some wind this day.

 

[littlepod]

From looking at it all, safe to say that Win52D was tighter groups overall?

 

[Kisssofdeath]

From looking at it all, safe to say that Win52D was tighter groups overall?

Yes, that would be a correct statement. I wish I had gotten the 457 with the 52D chamber. The 457 has controlled round feeding so it would feed even better than the T1x.

 

[45ACP223]

Looks like the 457 IBI barrel is giving you flyers, just like my stock MTR barrel. Other than those flyers, the groups look really good. Did I say, I hate those damn flyers, whether it's ammo, barrels, or operator error, they drive me crazy! Other than a new barrel, I've done some more mods to my MTR (changed stock to an AT-One pillar and bedded, modified the firing pin for better ignition??, shimmed the bolt to get an idea of if 0.042" headspace makes a difference. Doing everything I can short of a new barrel. Now if the ranges here would open up I could get out and try both the modified MTR, and my new Vudoo.

 

[Kisssofdeath]

Yeah, a few flyers but nothing like before. Have you noticed a significant different with any ammo when changing the headspace by shimming the bolt?