I’ve been looking for a new barrel for my G19. I’ve been looking at all the major manufacturers but came across S3F Solutions and noticed they claim to have the “most accurate” Drop In match grade barrel and that it is mathematically perfect with 0 run out. So I’ve been holding out on buying a barrel to see people’s reviews/opinions about them.
I’ve seen only a couple reviews on YouTube but didn’t have any side-by-side comparison against other barrels.
Do any of you guys have first hand experience?
I’m looking for a new barrel to use for hunting and to get a threaded barrel.
Ive never seen or come across anything proving how good they claim to be. All ive seen is S3F pushing them with the “mathmatically perfect” pitch, and people buying the small batches.
I think the price, coatings offered, threading option, and fluting option are why people are buying them.
They seem pretty cheap for the options you can get.
The hype is a reason why I’ve waited to buy a barrel. Could of bought one from their last batch but wanted other people to be the testers and hopefully post reviews. Aaron Cowan of Sage Dymamics gave a review but he didn’t say anything that set it apart from other barrels which I’m glad. I’m afraid some people like his status do reviews to help promote a business in return of free gear/equipment.
S3F does claim that their barrels are capable of 1/4" at 25yds but so does Wilson Combat.
Just curious and hoping others on this site have experience with the barrels…that is all.
These claims are typically out of a ransom rest and match ammo. So most shooters will be let down.
I have a friends that got one of these barrels and it most certainly improved their groups.
With that said, before buying ANY companies drop in barrel, always measure your factory barrel (checking the fit between the barrel hood and the slide). If you are under .003 on a feeler gauge, then I would say leave it alone (as most people wouldn’t know the difference between a barrel fit of .001-.003).
Then, after measuring the fit, be realistic about your ability to shoot at 25yds. If you cannot shoot a 90 or above on a NRA B8 target, don’t bother with a new barrel (as you have other issues going on).
I run a Wilson Combat barrel in an older Gen3 G17. I went with it after a bunch of people I really trust spoke highly of it. I wanted to shoot lead out of the gun and viewed switching to conventional rifling a must (even though some would argue it).
To be quite honest, the difference between the Wilson and the factory barrel inside of 25 yards is quite minimal. When you start to back up to 50 yards and further the difference really becomes noticeable.
