01-08-2019, 01:44 AM
grayfox Wrote:SS barrels are easier to JB-paste break in than nitrided, the nitride makes for a super hard surface, pretty much impervious to any JB-approach. Drawbacks to the nitride are that artifacts (small pcs of junk) can get baked in to the nitride finish, which won't come out to save your soul. Advantage to the nitirde is less wear during the shooting process, plus highest corrosion resistance, pretty much zero Corr. to speak of.
In material science as in life there is no such thing as a free lunch, there are advantages yes but for a real quality barrel you'll find them SS, not nitrided, for a reason.
All that being said I have both, my nitride Faxon gunner 16" is really good, my BA SS (and criterion SS) barrels are better however. Actually a couple of chrome-moly's too I just keep them cleaner and watch for rusting with that eagle eye a bit more.
I don't plan on living in a foxhole or out in the elements in pouring rain, you can keep SS clean with a little oil, it does have good (not perfect) corrosion resistance, more than Cr-Moly but true, not as much as a nitrided barrel.
If I were going to do hunting in a rain forest type of environment, like some places in Alaska or in sub-tropics, the nitride would have an advantage.... as long as the QC was really good and there are no bumps/artifacts/etc baked into the finish.
Hopefully, my match series Faxon 20" turns out ok being nitrided. I've read some good reviews and some where people weren't happy with the barrel. I'll be putting it downrange soon!