Pardini SP 5” vs 6”

other than other than an extra inch in iron sight radius, Can anyone tell me the difference between the 5 inch and the 6 inch bull’s-eye versions of the Pardini SP?

Is there a noticeable difference in the balance?

If all things are equal, it seems as though a shorter barrel should be preferred and would allow less surface area for a shooting in the wind.

Hey Henghold:

When Pardini came out with the longer barrel it was pre covid and a number of us were frequently shooting at the Demmer Center at Michigan State University.  

One of our fellow competitors got a 6 inch barreled Pardini and with the most of us being bullseye shooters and a couple of us engineers, we put the 6 inch barrel to the test, using our own firearms, our own grips, and our own red dots and recorded the results.  

Every one of us scored higher scores with the shorter barrel then the longer one.  

My conclusion is that the longer barrel exaggerates trigger pull errors and throws a bullet a little farther out then the shorter barrel for us mere mortals.  Now I am sure that Brian Zins could discern any accuracy advantage of the longer barrel but for us, master level, master wannabes, and expert level shooters, it was obvious we all shot better with the shorter barrel.  

with that being said, whenever a new shooter is contemplating a new Pardini, I always recommend that they get the short barrel.  

and you really do not need the compensator either.  It gets fouled up with debris, ruins accuracy, and is hard to clean.  

Regards, 
Crankster

I am a crazy Pardini buyer and have had several 5" and 6" SP's and HP's.

The "qualitative" conclusion I have have come to so far is that a dedicated EIC SP22 with 6" barrel and Bullseye anatomical grip is an excellent tool for 22 EIC.

For International you are obliged to use the 5" iron sight barrel anyhow, with an ISSF compliant anatomical grip.

I now have Aimpoint 9000's (because that is what I have on my 1911's) on my SP22-5 Bullseye 22 and HP32ACP-5. The heavy sight has hurt the balance and probably my scores too - I intend to do a more quantitative evaluation of that when I get back from the summer tour, but I definitely feel more comfortable with a 5" barrel in a red dot 22 gun.

I tested 5" vs 6" 32ACP barrels quite a lot (with red dots) and concluded that the 6" offered little or no benefit in accuracy, was not so comfortable for me and I preferred the balance of the 5".

For International CF (with 32SWL) you are obliged to use 5" barrel and ISSF compliant grip in order to "fit in the box".

YMMV

Great feedback gentlemen. Thank you very much.

I have thought about using the Pardini HP in 32 acp for international 25m rapid fire. Is that cartridge legal as well as effective for that event?

International CF - requires lead bullets. AFAIK, everyone uses 32SWL or 38Special with wadcutters.

Not sure whether 32ACP with lead bullets is acceptable - don't see why not - and it is only at 25yds/meters, so T&B LSWC should work OK.

But you need to carefully read the rulebook.

6 inch with 2 weights = 5 inch with all weights if I remember it right. Difference is that this weight is more forward and feels heavier. That was not a good feel.. As others said longer bullet time in the barrel additionally hurts the results and exaggerates errors.

Moderators, we keep getting same topic every now and then. Can you please sticky below weight pics for reference?

hengehold wrote:Great feedback gentlemen. Thank you very much.

I have thought about using the Pardini HP in 32 acp for international 25m rapid fire. Is that cartridge legal as well as effective for that event?

You can use the 32 ACP (with lead bullets) for International Centerfire. International Rapid Fire uses 22LR for the event. 

You will need the 5in barrel though, as previously mentioned.

Thanks to all for the great feedback. Sounds like the 5” option is the obvious choice here. The added bonus is that I can use it to dabble in the 25m international events also.

No benefits discussed when using the 6” version instead.

Comments about the 25m center fire are also appreciated.

-TH

RoyDean wrote:I am a crazy Pardini buyer and have had several 5" and 6" SP's and HP's.

The "qualitative" conclusion I have have come to so far is that a dedicated EIC SP22 with 6" barrel and Bullseye anatomical grip is an excellent tool for 22 EIC.

For International you are obliged to use the 5" iron sight barrel anyhow, with an ISSF compliant anatomical grip.

I now have Aimpoint 9000's (because that is what I have on my 1911's) on my SP22-5 Bullseye 22 and HP32ACP-5. The heavy sight has hurt the balance and probably my scores too - I intend to do a more quantitative evaluation of that when I get back from the summer tour, but I definitely feel more comfortable with a 5" barrel in a red dot 22 gun.

I tested 5" vs 6" 32ACP barrels quite a lot (with red dots) and concluded that the 6" offered little or no benefit in accuracy, was not so comfortable for me and I preferred the balance of the 5".

For International CF (with 32SWL) you are obliged to use 5" barrel and ISSF compliant grip in order to "fit in the box".

YMMV

ISSF center fire pistols are allowed a barrel length of 153mm (6 inches more or less). My Manurhin Match with the 6" barrel fits in the box.

Unfortunately, AFAIK, a Pardini HP 6" with an anatomical grip does not "fit in the box". But a 5" does.

YMMV

I have both the 5 and the 6 inch for both the 22 and 32 ACP. I sold the 5 inch ones for a reason