AusVarmint

I am getting a 20 Vt and had discussed with the Smith the finished barrel length.I had decided on a 24" length. Which to me is 24" from the end of the chamber/Start of the rifling.Anyway i was in the study the other night doing some research and read where the barrel was measured from the bolt face That would leave me with a usable length of just over 22" I had to make a phone call and add 2" has anyone else ever been caught.

so that makes it a 26" barrel. If they measure barrel lenght as the rifled bit handgunners would be screwed. My racegun includes the compensator plus chamber in barrel length as far as firearms are concerned that's all legal.

im certainly no expert but i was always under the impression that the length was the TOTAL length of the finished barrel, including the threads etc inside the action.

The measure on barrels is normally from the face of the breech to the muzzle.

The breech is where the firing pin comes out and hits the primer - AKA the back of the cartridge space.

The muzzle is the very furthest forward part of the barrel, be it compensated, silenced or normal.

The ONLY difference for this (and where MISSED may have understood it wrong) is the measure of a revolver barrel. They are measured from the forcing cone to the muzzle. The chambers are not measured. So a 6in barrel on a 357 Magnum revolver is longer than a 6in barrel on a Desert Eagle by the length of the loaded round (1.59in) and the clearance between the chamber and the forcing cone (~ 40thou). This would make a 6in 357 Mag revolver barrel actually 7.6in long if measured the normal way.