These threads come up every once in a while, and I've been considering some things, so I'm going to post here.
Quick notes:
Some rifles seem to stabilze these without any modifications to the bullet.
Those rifles seem to be the standard twist rate (1:16).
Lightly Paco'ing the bullet always stabilizes it.
Some that have the 1:9 twist say it's not really all that accurate.
The faster a bullet spins, the more likely it's impurities will show up as wobble( read, overstabilized).
So,... maybe we could say that 1:9 is really too much. It may be plenty to keep the bullet from tumbling, but too much and causing a wobble. Maybe something like 1:14 or 1:12 in a standard length barrel would be good. Now, notice I said standard length. Why are some barrels stabilizing fine? At least two reasons likely. One, is that they may be a shorter barrel. It has been posted that 22LR ( exceptions being the Stinger and Super Max) make maximum velocity out of a 16-18 inch barrel. Most barrels are like 20-22inches. That will slow the bullet down, and also slow down the spin. That would seem to be even more likely in a subsonic bullet. So we'd probably get a lot closer to stabilizing an SSS with a shorter barrel. The second reason I could see some barrels stabilizing it, is they aren't giving the bullet an extra reason to start tipping over. Ie,.. they have a good crown. With a bad crown, it will take more spin to keep the bullet from tumbling. I think with a shorter barrel and a good crown, you might be able to stabilize it without modifying the bullet. And if it does stabilize, it will be more accurate than a 1:9 twist. Benchrest shooters always try to go with the lowest possible twist required to stabilze a bullet. That way the impurities don't show up as much.
Maybe some of those that have backbored barrels can speak up on if they've tried the SSS since then. I plan on doing it to my .22 soon. Even if it doesn't get the SSS fully stabilized, it should make it a lot closer, and also help out with other rounds.
Gene
Quick notes:
Some rifles seem to stabilze these without any modifications to the bullet.
Those rifles seem to be the standard twist rate (1:16).
Lightly Paco'ing the bullet always stabilizes it.
Some that have the 1:9 twist say it's not really all that accurate.
The faster a bullet spins, the more likely it's impurities will show up as wobble( read, overstabilized).
So,... maybe we could say that 1:9 is really too much. It may be plenty to keep the bullet from tumbling, but too much and causing a wobble. Maybe something like 1:14 or 1:12 in a standard length barrel would be good. Now, notice I said standard length. Why are some barrels stabilizing fine? At least two reasons likely. One, is that they may be a shorter barrel. It has been posted that 22LR ( exceptions being the Stinger and Super Max) make maximum velocity out of a 16-18 inch barrel. Most barrels are like 20-22inches. That will slow the bullet down, and also slow down the spin. That would seem to be even more likely in a subsonic bullet. So we'd probably get a lot closer to stabilizing an SSS with a shorter barrel. The second reason I could see some barrels stabilizing it, is they aren't giving the bullet an extra reason to start tipping over. Ie,.. they have a good crown. With a bad crown, it will take more spin to keep the bullet from tumbling. I think with a shorter barrel and a good crown, you might be able to stabilize it without modifying the bullet. And if it does stabilize, it will be more accurate than a 1:9 twist. Benchrest shooters always try to go with the lowest possible twist required to stabilze a bullet. That way the impurities don't show up as much.
Maybe some of those that have backbored barrels can speak up on if they've tried the SSS since then. I plan on doing it to my .22 soon. Even if it doesn't get the SSS fully stabilized, it should make it a lot closer, and also help out with other rounds.
Gene
