GreyWhiskers
69 Cal.
Curious about the common rate of twist in a flintlock .50 cal pistol barrel. Similar to rifles? GW
Rate of twist?
- Thread starter GreyWhiskers
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Pistols will have a significantly faster rate of twist than the same caliber rifle because their velocity is lower. You're trying for the same revolutions per second spin to stabilize the ball. Less velocity means you have to increase the twist.
Off the top of my head I think you're looking at around 1 in 18", but would have to look it up.
Off the top of my head I think you're looking at around 1 in 18", but would have to look it up.
Guest
At normal pistol ranges twist rate should not be a factor the average shooter considers. Most shooters agree that there is no advantage for a rifled bore over a smoothbore at 25 yards. If one can not tell the diference between rifled and unrifled why should 1/16, 1/48 or 1/66 matter unless it was making the gun shoot WORSE than a smoothbore?
I once owned a .38 pistol with a worn out bore. It keyholed every 158 grain bullet I shot from it but still managed to keep every slug in the kill zone at 12 yards and on the shilouette target at 25. It would have probably done much better with a round ball!
Single shot Pistols were always considered close range personal defense weapons and the vast majority of them were never rifled. Rifling is an attempt to turn them into the long range tools they never were.
If you are building a pistol for serious target work or long range shilouette shooting worrying about twist might be in order, but that is not "normal use or range" for a pistol.
I once owned a .38 pistol with a worn out bore. It keyholed every 158 grain bullet I shot from it but still managed to keep every slug in the kill zone at 12 yards and on the shilouette target at 25. It would have probably done much better with a round ball!
Single shot Pistols were always considered close range personal defense weapons and the vast majority of them were never rifled. Rifling is an attempt to turn them into the long range tools they never were.
If you are building a pistol for serious target work or long range shilouette shooting worrying about twist might be in order, but that is not "normal use or range" for a pistol.
GreyWhiskers
69 Cal.
Thanks to everybody for the info. I was curious because I talked to a guy who had made a rifling jig for pistols he made and it was set at 1 turn in 20". Guess he had it right. GW
grey whiskers said:
Serious target pistols might need a faster twist but the 66 twist will shoot very well in a 54 with 50-60 grains of powder. 1.5" at 25 yards.
Would hit a small buffalo steel silhouettes (same as NMLRA target) at 50-75 if I could hold it.
I have killed one deer with a 72 twist 54 pistol but it liked a lot of powder. Finished off a wounded but on his feet Antelope some slob had shot hours before with a short barreled 50, friend killed a wounded cow elk (guy he was guiding shot a front leg off her) with it after I traded it to him.
They will shoot far better than a smooth bore even with short barrels. In the hands of a good pistol shot they will do some pretty impressive things.
Only fast twists I had was a pair of belt pistols. I used one 12" GM 54 pistol barrel for both. These were 22 twists. They were pretty noisy if more than 35 grins of FFFG Swiss was used.
Dan
