Does aftermarket barrel prevent or just reduce 'smiley' brass bulging?

[Clint007]

Just ordered a KKM barrel. Don't have my Glock back from Robar yet but ready to make rounds otherwise.

1) Question: Looking at pics, it still looks like a portion of the case is not completely supported by even the KKM barrel. Or am I not interpreting this right?

Eventually I'd like to make 10mm loads just shy of max.

2) Question: Looking for advice on how to disposition my brass. I've read that if I see a full smile, toss the brass. That's my instinct anyway. I don't need to ration brass, won't be shooting that much of this.

3) Question: A bulged but un-smiled case can be resized and re-used provided it can be resized properly (fit in a case gauge)?

C

[sqlbullet]

1.  No ramped pistol barrel is going to be 100% supported out into the extractor groove.

2.  An aftermarket barrel will have a little "more" support than a Glock factory barrel.  How much more depends a good bit on which generation Glock barrel you compare to.  Later ones are better.

3.  The aftermarket barrel will also be "tighter" overall in most cases.  This means less case head expansion and longer brass life.  It also usually may mean better accuracy, on a case by case basis. There are exceptions.

4.  I used to, but no longer reload brass that has a noticeable bulge on only one side.  Uniform expansion to .434" I accept, but if I can see a bulge, I skip it.  If I see two, I reduce the load.

[The_Shadow]

Using a pass through setup, prior to regular sizing, can really help and a necessity in my opinion for the 10mm, 40S&W, 357Sig, 9x25Dillon cases.  While it will not fix a SMILED casing, it works wonders for the rounded bulged cases.
I will say I haven't had a SMILED case in the 357Sig or 9x25 Dillon because of the great tolerance of the LWD barrel chambers.

[Texashogman]

What are the best aftermarket barrels for accuracy that are "fully supported" (glock 17L gen 1 is what I'm toying with replacing)

[sqlbullet]

KMM or Barsto...But you gotta shoot really good to be able to tell.  Very, very few shooters are gonna realistically shoot better than an OEM Glock barrel. 

[Spudmeister]

Every once in a while I am able to make up a load for a Glock that I am more accurate than.  While painting with a broad brush here... and except for some of my very worst loads....  you need to be able to shoot 6" or less groups at 50 yards (on demand) before you will become an OEM vs aftermarket barrel judge.  Make that 6" at 100 yards before you will become an aftermarket vs aftermarket barrel judge.  I have found a greater difference in the actual bullet/load than in any particular barrel.  If you get it all correct and if you are good enough, Glock's can be stunningly accurate. 

But I think it is important to point this out.  I have had Glock barrels shoot horribly with certain bullets.  Most are better of course.  But I have never had an aftermarket barrel shoot horribly with any bullet.  I have shot a lot of lead and have mostly used aftermarket barrels with good results.  However and with proper bullets, the OEM barrels do just fine.   So there a certain peace of mind that a quality aftermarket barrel can give you.  But outside of certain bullets the above paragraph is more relevant.   

[sqlbullet]

There are members here who have experienced significant accuracy degradation with aftermarket barrels vs factory.  It ain't common, but it does happen.  Probably the result of a large swing in stacked tolerance.

[Spudmeister]

There are members here who have experienced significant accuracy degradation with aftermarket barrels vs factory.  It ain't common, but it does happen.  Probably the result of a large swing in stacked tolerance.

Wow.  I had heard of reliability problems but not accuracy problems with aftermarket barrels.  Are you thinking of a certain brand of barrels? 

[sqlbullet]

http://10mm-firearms.com/gunsmithing/the-alpha-wolf-barrel-is-junk-compared-to-the-stock-g20-barrel/

This was the thread I remembered.

[Dave84]

What are the best aftermarket barrels for accuracy that are "fully supported" (glock 17L gen 1 is what I'm toying with replacing)

I've always heard great things about kkm. Lonewolf is a decent less expensive option. They now produce alpha wolf barrels which are made in the US, feature a black nitride finish and are fluted. I got one of these for my Glock 40. Nothing but good things to say about it really.

[Duck of Death]

I have a G29 w/a Storm Lake barrel.  Load is 13.5gr #9/180gr cast bullet.  I've loaded the Starline brass 12 times & still going w/them.   No problems w/ brass--fired measures .4280.

[Sailormilan2]

I'm using an unramped aftermarket barrel in my 1911.  Out of two boxes of full house Underwood loads I have had one very minor smiley.  However, it has a tight chamber. I have no problems using it with full throttle loads.

[sqlbullet]

I want to be clear that my comments and thread reference above in no way reflect my opinions of Lone Wolf.  I have several of their barrels and they all perform great for me.  I was just conveying that an aftermarket barrel is not a guarantee of an increase in accuracy, and that Glock barrels provide very good accuracy.

[Dave84]

I want to be clear that my comments and thread reference above in no way reflect my opinions of Lone Wolf.  I have several of their barrels and they all perform great for me.  I was just conveying that an aftermarket barrel is not a guarantee of an increase in accuracy, and that Glock barrels provide very good accuracy.

We can only be as accurate as that terrible Glock trigger allows us.