Any perceptible recoil difference between 18 and 20 inch barrels?

Correia

New member
Is there any perceptible recoil difference between an 18 and a 20 inch barrel?

I ask this because all of my shotgun shooting has been with 2 barrel lengths 18 and 30.

I've arranged for a test of the effectiveness of the Houge compstock at the next TFL shoot. So I procured 2 (what I thought were matching) 870s. One got the compstock, the other did not.

Well it turns out that what I thought was going to be an 18 inch with a 2 shot extension, (like my 870) has turned out to be a 20 inch with a 3 shot extension. Great deal by the way, P.D. trade in. Goregeous shape, 870 Magnum model, great blueing, hardly shot, just some dings from riding around in a police car. $185 out the door.

Now I cannot tell any difference between the two, but I'm fairly recoil tolerent. (at the last 3 gun match, my string time with 5 slugs was the same as my string time with 5 birdshot :) ) Do any of you think that the 2 inches of barrel will make any difference in this test? (I'm looking for 5 shooters of various sizes and experience levels to shoot string for time using slugs,bird, & buck with both guns). I have not weighed the 2 guns yet. But putting them side by side, they are very close. I actually think that the wood stock is heavier than the plastic stock, and it kind of balances out the weight of the extra barrel.

If any of you can feel a difference between the two I will probably just switch barrels back and forth during the actual testing on Saturday. I'm trying to keep this a realisitic test of the compstock, to see if it actually works as advertised.
 
Gonna make a difference. Exact angles, dimensions etc of the stocks probably make more difference tho.

Gonna be tough to get an objective comparison.

Sam
 
I own an 870 with an 18" bead barrel and a 20" rifle sight barrel and have never noted a difference in recoil regardless what round I was shooting.
 
NO

Ive got the 21" vent rib barrel on my HD gun. This makes the gun much heavier expecially when the mag extension and clamp are added. Actually swings and points more like a longer barrel and soaks up recoil. I don't plan on carrying this shotgun very far at all.
 
I've one of each, one 18" bbled w/i 2 shot extension and a 20" bbled version w/ 3 more. If blindfolded, I doubt I could tell the difference. Others might, dunno. I've never been anyone else.

Why not just move the 2 shot extension back and forth? There'd be maybe an oz of difference in 2" more or less of bbl.

And,$185 sounds like a very good price to me. Enjoy!!
 
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