I've heard that muzzle loader barrels are often made of softer steel than smokeless barrels. That's not to say their quality isn't good because the steel easily exceeds muzzle loading requirements. But the rifling seems to wear out sooner or more easily than if it were a center fire barrel, especially given the lower velocity of the average BP loads. As good shooting as they were, I did hear that about Douglas barrels. And I've heard it said more than once about how fast accuracy dropped off for some TC or Lyman barrels after a relatively small number of years.
The major BP barrel makers probably all use similar softer steels even today.
Some of the better smokeless barrels are also known to wear out faster than others even though their makers are well known for making very accurate barrels.
Maybe that's how the manufacturers prevent wearing out a lot tooling while producing barrels, and to help keep their cost more affordable. Yet the barrels are used on some of the better brands of guns and for semi-custom made barrels, including for both muzzle loaders and smokeless guns. I doubt that they use the same steel for both, but maybe they use steel that's slightly on the softer side for both sides of the industry. However the happy trade off is that their accuracy is better than average.
I guess that my point is that using the harder steels is not the priority of some of the traditional muzzle loading barrel makers.
The major BP barrel makers probably all use similar softer steels even today.
Some of the better smokeless barrels are also known to wear out faster than others even though their makers are well known for making very accurate barrels.
Maybe that's how the manufacturers prevent wearing out a lot tooling while producing barrels, and to help keep their cost more affordable. Yet the barrels are used on some of the better brands of guns and for semi-custom made barrels, including for both muzzle loaders and smokeless guns. I doubt that they use the same steel for both, but maybe they use steel that's slightly on the softer side for both sides of the industry. However the happy trade off is that their accuracy is better than average.
I guess that my point is that using the harder steels is not the priority of some of the traditional muzzle loading barrel makers.
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