Nogunjoe,
I've read opinions from some very knowledgeable gunsmiths who's experience with carbon wrapped barrels dissapating heat is polar opposite to yours. Who & what are we to believe on this crazy interweb?
My 6.5SAUM has a 24" Bartlein #4 contour, with deep fluting. In a standard fill Micky GameScout w/Surgeon DBM & magazine, the rifle is under 8 lbs. (could have gone ADL and Edge fill on stock to shave a pound off, but didn't care to). Add in 25 oz. of scope + sling, and its still under 10 lbs. I pillar bedded the stock myself with MarineTex and left the entire barrel free floating. That sucker has ZERO POI shift due to heat. If it did, I wouldn't blame the barrel, I'd blame it on a lowsy bedding job, then hog it out with a Dremel and bed it again.
Were you implying that premium SS barrels were somehow not stress relieved enough to prevent POI shift during long strings of fire? If so, do you have any evidence or testing to support that implication?
Still not seeing what $900 is getting me? I could buy two more Bartlein #4s and have Carl Feldkamp flute them for that same $900.
Is the carbon barrel twice as accurate, for twice the price?
Is the carbon wrap tube half the weight, for twice the price? What is spending double getting me?
Still haven't seen any hard data for barrel blank weights? Is that because weight savings over a fluted, light contour barrel is negligible, at best? How many ounces of savings over a fluted SS barrel is worth an extra $450???
Does the carbon wrap barrel dissipate heat twice as fast, for twice the price? Would like to see independent testing to put this "heat dissipating" marketing angle to rest, once & for all. As if that really matters in a big game hunting rifle anyway, LOL? Big game shooting is a "one & done" endeavor, this ain't p-dog poppin'...