MagFed barrels - Rifled or not? That is the question
Feb 21, 2020 13:33:15 GMT -6
Jason @ NPPO likes this
Post by Haunt on Feb 21, 2020 13:33:15 GMT -6
One of, if the not THE most important piece of kit that will improve your performance is the barrel. Anyone in the speedballer world will sing the praises of bore matching your paint when shooting roundball. The same holds true in magfed. On occasion, I'll bust out the Freak barrel kit and size my barrel to the paint for some open play games. If you only plan on shooting roundball, the same rules mostly apply for magfed. Bore matching is the best way to go.
If you REALLY want to get into magfed, shooting First Strikes is what's up! They shoot farther and are waaaay more accurate than any roundball could ever hope to be. Combined with a rifled barrel and a properly zero'ed optic, you'll be one shotting fools with no problem (which saves a lot on ammo!). As for the barrels, the three most popular brands are Carmatech Nemesis, Hammerhead, and Lapco. I don't have any personal experience with Lapco, but they're a name I hear mentioned often. Most of my experience lies with Hammerhead and Nemesis. When it comes to rifling, I try not to dive too deep into the science of which brand is more accurate. Same is true with bore matching roundball. If you need high speed cameras and mathematical equations to tell the difference between the brands, then, in my opinion, there is no difference. HH and Nemesis both shoot straight as hell, and I can't visually tell the difference in performance, so they're both great. I prefer the Nemesis mostly because they just work. You pick your thread pattern, screw it on, and you're shooting lazer beams all day. Same is true with HH, but they require "fins", which is the same as bore matching. They sell fins for .683, .686, etc... Having to buy another attachment is the reason why HH is number two in my book.
So, with all that being said, the answer to the question is YES, you want a rifled barrel, but only when shooting First Strikes. In general, they don't provide any bump in performance when used with standard roundball. But, the REAL TRUE benefit of shooting First Strikes through a rifled barrel? Hearing the screams of Hopperators as the First Strike whistles passed their head! It's fantastic.
If you REALLY want to get into magfed, shooting First Strikes is what's up! They shoot farther and are waaaay more accurate than any roundball could ever hope to be. Combined with a rifled barrel and a properly zero'ed optic, you'll be one shotting fools with no problem (which saves a lot on ammo!). As for the barrels, the three most popular brands are Carmatech Nemesis, Hammerhead, and Lapco. I don't have any personal experience with Lapco, but they're a name I hear mentioned often. Most of my experience lies with Hammerhead and Nemesis. When it comes to rifling, I try not to dive too deep into the science of which brand is more accurate. Same is true with bore matching roundball. If you need high speed cameras and mathematical equations to tell the difference between the brands, then, in my opinion, there is no difference. HH and Nemesis both shoot straight as hell, and I can't visually tell the difference in performance, so they're both great. I prefer the Nemesis mostly because they just work. You pick your thread pattern, screw it on, and you're shooting lazer beams all day. Same is true with HH, but they require "fins", which is the same as bore matching. They sell fins for .683, .686, etc... Having to buy another attachment is the reason why HH is number two in my book.
So, with all that being said, the answer to the question is YES, you want a rifled barrel, but only when shooting First Strikes. In general, they don't provide any bump in performance when used with standard roundball. But, the REAL TRUE benefit of shooting First Strikes through a rifled barrel? Hearing the screams of Hopperators as the First Strike whistles passed their head! It's fantastic.
