bushing vs no bushing barrel 1911 accuracy

Which is more accurate?

No bushing as in a bull barrel fit to the slide? Never seen one used for bullseye but surely someone's tried it.

Both equal and each has its proponents

If fitted right they are just as accurate. I don’t know anyone using one in bullseye right now but I’ve seen guns built for other sports using a bull barrel and they test out very accurately at 50 yards.

I had a Marvel built 9mm with bull barrel , was a 1” gun easily with proper ammo.

Mr keefer was working with coned barrels that showed excellent accuracy. He made his barrels.from blanks but Chambers custom and deep river have both sold threaded cones that would allow you to use quality match barrels and convert them to cone..

Actually there at least three options for 1911 platforms.

1. Standard barrel with bushing fit to slide and barrel

2. Bull barrel, fit to slide in lieu of bushing

3. Standard barrel, threaded, with cone, outer diameter fit to slide

IMO, 1 and 3 are most desirable. With wear, refit a bushing or cone. With 2 one would have to fit a new over sized barrel or weld up the slide.

Be aware of the rules on maximum diameter for barrels too

The coned barrel is the tightest setup you can get.  My gunsmith fits the cone to within .0005" of the slide ID, you can get just over double that with bushing but that doesn't include the tolerance between the bushing and slide.  I've got 2 guns setup this way, they're phenomenally accurate...

bull barrels( and I assume cone barrels) are not CMP legal. ok for NRA

This is my wadgun 

jglenn21 wrote:bull barrels( and I assume cone barrels) are not CMP legal. ok for NRA

CMP
Bull barrels specifically mentioned as not permitted. it goes to say "...Barrel may have an integral bushing or threaded sleeve that is made of the same material as the barrel, that has an external diameter of 0.700” or less and that is not longer than 0.800” when measured from the muzzle."  Threaded sleeve would be the cone, I presume. They limit size so that coned barrel does not end up being as heavy as bull barrel.

Interested
Thanks

having a cone < 1" long would be unique.. Max of .700 diameter could be an issue too but ......

It's funny. Some of the 1911s I tested on Vietnam were so shot out you couldn't hit a garbage can kid at 10 yards. Lol

With a bushing barrel, you have to have some amount a clearance between the outside of the bushing and the slide, and then between the inside of the bushing and the barrel.  With bull barrels and cone barrels, you only have to worry about the clearance between the barrel/cone and slide.  With one less One less clearance to worry about, it stands to reason that bull barrels and coned barrels would be more accurate.

That said, with a properly fitted bushing barrel vs a properly fitted bull/cone barrel, you're probably talking more about a theoretical difference than anything you'll actually perceive.

However, one other thing to consider, especially if you're running a slide-mounted scope; a bull barrel would add additional mass that would further resist the gun unlocking compared to a bushing barrel.  You'd have to fiddle with spring rates or increase your load to account for it.