Hart Barrels

DeathPenalty

New member
So I have an old flat-rear Savage that I want to sexy up a little . I'm really not a huge fan of the 30-06. It's way more gun than I need for even the local black bear, so I've decided to do a rebarrel to 6.5x55.

Hart is about 45 minutes from my house, and is really a bit of a local institution with all the old timer benchrest guys here (a mile away from the Remington factory in Ilion). How good are Hart barrels compared to the other guys like: Shilen, Broughton, Douglas, etc? I really like the idea of buying local, but if they are an inferior product then they are out.
 
You really can't go wrong with a custom tube. I've heard lots of good stuff about harts, but haven't tried one yet.
 
EJ, while I have heard a lot of people here on PM using Lilja barrels, I really want to know if there is anything substandard about Hart in particular compared to the "other guys." Sorry I was vague about that.
 
If it helps I've owned lija, brux, broughton, pac nor, rock creek, benchmark, kreiger, shilen and lothar Walter and they all shot fantastic.
 
I can tell you this- back when I had my .220 Swift built my gunsmith would only promise half minute of angle accuracy with either Hart or Krieger barrels as they were the only ones that he had used where he never saw a bad one.

I ended up with the Krieger but it was pretty much a coin toss.
 
I've got one on a 6br that shoots better than I can. Most often recommendations on which barrel maker turns out to be more of a popularity contest or the latest fad based on what someone keeps repeating on the internet. Before Lilja was popular it was Kreiger and before them it was Hart. Next year it will be someone else. Most likely the one who's got less lead time than the others!
 
I have had several rifles built and through the years the Hart's have held sub minute accuracy through higher round counts than any others. This could be due the cartridge they were chambered for and/or barrel dimensions.
If it were between the three you mentioned and a Hart I would buy a Hart next would be the Broughton, I am not knocking the other brands as I have owned several other top brands they all shot great.
I believe the gunsmith has as much input on accuracy and barrel life as does the barrel's manufacturer and the reamer used.
just out of curiosity why 6.5X55?
 
Originally Posted By: DeathPenalty How good are Hart barrels compared to the other guys like: Shilen, Broughton, Douglas, etc?

Not a dam thing wrong with a Hart......
 
Originally Posted By: DeathPenaltyI really want to know if there is anything substandard about Hart in particular compared to the "other guys."

That's not something you'll need to worry about.
 
That Hart Barrell noes no better, that and Krieger are the most used on the Palma Game (Long Range) Hart barrels are quite common on the Smallbore Prone competition.
 
arky65, I want a classic long action cartridge that punishes less than 30-06. It seems the 6.5x55 is loved by everyone that owns one. I also like the moderate, all-around goodness that people talk about with it.

I'm having Hart thread and chamber the barrel but doing the swap myself since it is a Savage. I'm also putting it in a walnut stock, replacing the current nut with a smooth one, and putting on a S.S.S. bolt handle. I'm debating whether I want to blast and gunkote the action black or keep it the rough blue that it is.

I'll post an update when I start moving on it.
 
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I found a good gunsmith and all he will put on rifles are Hart barrels.

I now have a 22-250, a 223 Rem and a 260 Rem with Hart barrels on them and they all shoot great.

The 1-8" twist 22-250 is very impressive, I have tried 4 different bullet weights and three of those were lead free bullets. I reloaded three different powder charges with those four different bullets and they all shot under 1" groups. What really surprised me was all the different groups hit in the same place.
 
When I had my 700 rebarreled by a known rifle builder in this area there were only 2 choices for the barrel, Hart and Krieger. I chose Krieger only because I researched the heck out of them. I doubt that I'd have gone wrong with Hart too.
 
Hart was the only place that would make a .204 AR barrel to MY specifications, and when I shot it, I could cover three shots at 100 yards with a dime.
 
Hart is and excellent barrel for sure. I'm a big fan of Hart barrels but there is probably 10 other barrel companies that are as good.

If you choose to go with a Hart barrel I'm sure you won't be disappointed but the same can be said for just about all the other top tier barrel manufacturers. I've personally had good luck with Hart, Lilja, Broughton and Douglas but haven't had a new Douglas barrel in over 30yrs so they could be different now, I don't know.
 


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