Good Men,
I recently put together a 30-20 with a ratchet barrel. I have notice that it takes 8-10 shots before the barrel settles down and starts to print. The bullets I am using are a 130 grain Lyman, and 155 grain RCBS flat nose. Both cast to a #2 Lyman alloy, with a velocity at 1375 fps. Barrel has less than 500 rounds thru it. A bit perplex as I have never had a gun do this. So school this ole boy a might.

Mech

I would try some 25-1 alloy and bump the velocity up 100fps or more.

Thanks for some insights. Hopefully with a bit of patience I learn what is the root cause. The fun is in the "what makes it tic".

Thanks once again,

Mech

Doesn't Shilen mfg a ratchet .22 rimfire barrel?
beltfed/arnie

beltfed wrote on Feb 18^th, 2026 at 2:35pm:


Yes, they do.  I have one on my Stevens 44.

Wayne

[/quote]

Yes, they do.  I have one on my Stevens 44.

Wayne [/quote]

Wayne, what’s the length of and twist rate on that barrel?
Moose

[quote author=37263B22302E2220430 link=1771289848/11#11 date=1772649547]Hi Moose,

It's setup for .22LR with a 16-twist Shilen ratchet barrel.  I had Tom Klinger out of Florida install the barrel & cut it to 20"  The shorter barrel balances better for me when shooting the chickens off-hand.  My chicken scores have subsequently improved. And it's sufficiently long (min. is 16" for .22LR) resulting in an increase in velocity over the original longer barrel.  And I shoot scope so don't need the longer length, a benefit when shooting iron sights.  In addition to how it looks, it balances very nicely.  I foresee 6 or 7 chickens & 5-in-a-row in my future.   

Wayne[/quote

Wayne, you’re certainly onto something here. I think you’re killing two birds with one stone by shortening your barrel. First, you’re tailoring the rifle to fit your needs, in this case the balance is crucial. The second and I consider most important is the confidence in your equipment. I think that there’s positive effects when you believe there’s advantages in your gear. Nothing is better than actually seeing improvements in your game, and chicken scores going up really feels great. Congrats on your successes, your scores show your gains.

One of these days, I’d love to test shoot your rig to feel the balance differences. I’m curious what your total weight on the rifle is? I bet it’s not much different from mine, but the center of gravity is certainly closer to you. 
 
Another question, do you clean your bore afterwards or just leave it fouled? Which leads into, have you noticed an improvement in groupings after shooting through a break in period? 

The Shilen ratchet barrels no doubt perform well, what ammo does yours prefer to eat?

Moose