Sims Barrel De-Resonator

Joe Chicago · October 8, 2012, 12:16 PM

Has anyone here used a Sims Barrel De-Resonator or similar product? Do they really work? They get great reviews on Cabelas' website, but I am always a bit leery about online customer reviews.

http://reviews.cabelas.com/8815/2276...ews.htm?page=2

idek · October 8, 2012, 05:58 PM

I once tired one on a 22lr rifle. I didn't notice a difference one way or another. Maybe it would be different on gun with more recoil and vibration.

Creeper · October 8, 2012, 06:20 PM

The SIMS/Limbsaver De-resonator has been around for about 10-12 years... I think. Like a lot of barrel harmonic devices, it actually works on some rifles... and does nothing at all, or just the opposite on others. The most consistently successful harmonic devices are those frequently found on target and BR50 .22LR benchrest rifles.

If you don't mind me being really general in my observations, it seems to be that the larger and faster the caliber, the less effect it has. That statement is not 100% accurate however as I've seen one mounted to a Remington actioned, .220 Swift varmint rifle and it actually had the effect of cutting groups nearly in half... and on another Remy .220 Swift on the same day with the same ammo, it did nothing at all.
It'd be interesting to do a multi-caliber, big sample, controlled test on the thing, wouldn't it?

As they are not terribly expensive and you can play with them on just about any rifle (they're are only two sizes as I recall)... might as well try it out before you automatically toss them in the useless gimmick pile.

C

Groundhog34 · October 8, 2012, 06:51 PM

I tried them on a couple of rifles a 7 mag and a 300 mag. I could not notice any difference in accuracy in fact they seemed somewhat ungainly so I took them off and threw them away. The plus was they did not cost much.

warbirdlover · October 8, 2012, 11:47 PM

What groundhog said....

Picher · October 13, 2012, 06:52 AM

I tried a couple on my rimfire benchrest rifle and they seemed to work, but not as well as a weighted tuner near the muzzle.

There was a test that compared extremely large-diameter rimfire benchrest barrels, vs smaller-diameter barrels with tuners and the ones with tuners that were properly-adjusted shot better. Many people use 10.5 lb rifles with tuners for both that class, and the 13 lb and Unlimited classes...and win!

DPris · October 13, 2012, 12:39 PM

The key to using it successfully is to find the sweet spot on the barrel. You can't just stick it on anywhere & expect it to work.
Denis

Mobuck · October 14, 2012, 08:07 AM

I've got one on my Wby Vanguard .257 Wby. It does make some improvement and didn't take too long to locate in the right place. This is a fairly thin barrel shooting a lot of powder and seems to have some odd harmonics even when freefloated. The deresonator has been on the barrel for 3 years and still soft-I've been pretty careful about getting solvent near it.

Art Eatman · October 14, 2012, 09:38 AM

Purely in the FWIW, "What works for me" department:

On bolt-action rifles--and so far, those with wood-stocks--I free-float the forearm. I use a 3/4" strip of kitchen wax paper, folded back and forth, to make a shim. I try for no more than a five-pound pull to separate the barrel and forearm to insert the shim at the front end of the forearm. I trim the excess paper with a razor blade.

It has pretty much always helped reduce group size, and I commonly get sub-MOA afterwards.

My uncle's theory about this, from long, long ago, is that the shim acts much like the shock absorbers on a car, damping the spring vibrations. (Which, I guess, is why the Limeys call them "dampers".)

Much cheaper that a BOSS or other add-ons, and not visible.

PawPaw · October 15, 2012, 09:46 AM

I tried a de-resonator on both a .30-06 bolt and a .308 single shot, played with them a while and found that if you tinker with the placement on the barrel I could tighten my groups by about 1/4 inch at 100 yards. It was an interesting experiment, but the device was so darned ugly I took it off the rifle. My rifles are hunting rifles and that 1/4 inch simply didn't make enough difference to justify that blob on the barrel.

Still, they're reasonably inexpensive and they did work to a measurable degree. If that little difference matters, then it works.

Big Shrek · October 16, 2012, 12:27 AM

I took an actual LimbSaver leftover from one of my old bows, drilled the hole a bit bigger, and stuck it on a Marlin 795...
after fiddling around a bit, it seemed to help with strings of shots...but heck, ya never know what'll help or hurt...

October 8, 2012, 12:16 PM	#1
Joe Chicago Senior Member Join Date: November 11, 2011 Location: Chicago area Posts: 277	Sims Barrel De-Resonator Has anyone here used a Sims Barrel De-Resonator or similar product? Do they really work? They get great reviews on Cabelas' website, but I am always a bit leery about online customer reviews. http://reviews.cabelas.com/8815/2276...ews.htm?page=2

October 8, 2012, 06:20 PM	#3
Creeper Senior Member Join Date: September 9, 2008 Location: Woooooshington Posts: 1,797	The SIMS/Limbsaver De-resonator has been around for about 10-12 years... I think. Like a lot of barrel harmonic devices, it actually works on some rifles... and does nothing at all, or just the opposite on others. The most consistently successful harmonic devices are those frequently found on target and BR50 .22LR benchrest rifles. If you don't mind me being really general in my observations, it seems to be that the larger and faster the caliber, the less effect it has. That statement is not 100% accurate however as I've seen one mounted to a Remington actioned, .220 Swift varmint rifle and it actually had the effect of cutting groups nearly in half... and on another Remy .220 Swift on the same day with the same ammo, it did nothing at all. It'd be interesting to do a multi-caliber, big sample, controlled test on the thing, wouldn't it? As they are not terribly expensive and you can play with them on just about any rifle (they're are only two sizes as I recall)... might as well try it out before you automatically toss them in the useless gimmick pile. C __________________ Shoulder Drive Nicholson Club

October 15, 2012, 09:46 AM	#10
PawPaw Senior Member Join Date: December 24, 2010 Location: Central Louisiana Posts: 3,137	I tried a de-resonator on both a .30-06 bolt and a .308 single shot, played with them a while and found that if you tinker with the placement on the barrel I could tighten my groups by about 1/4 inch at 100 yards. It was an interesting experiment, but the device was so darned ugly I took it off the rifle. My rifles are hunting rifles and that 1/4 inch simply didn't make enough difference to justify that blob on the barrel. Still, they're reasonably inexpensive and they did work to a measurable degree. If that little difference matters, then it works. __________________ Dennis Dezendorf http://pawpawshouse.blogspot.com

October 16, 2012, 12:27 AM	#11
Big Shrek Senior Member Join Date: August 6, 2009 Location: NorthWest Florida Posts: 1,358	I took an actual LimbSaver leftover from one of my old bows, drilled the hole a bit bigger, and stuck it on a Marlin 795... after fiddling around a bit, it seemed to help with strings of shots...but heck, ya never know what'll help or hurt... __________________ Marlin Specialist Calico Specialist A gun should be a tool in the hands of a deadly weapon, not a deadly weapon in the hands of a tool.

October 8, 2012, 05:58 PM	#2
idek Senior Member Join Date: August 20, 2009 Posts: 903	I once tired one on a 22lr rifle. I didn't notice a difference one way or another. Maybe it would be different on gun with more recoil and vibration.

October 8, 2012, 06:51 PM	#4
Groundhog34 Senior Member Join Date: December 15, 2007 Location: Alabama Posts: 196	I tried them on a couple of rifles a 7 mag and a 300 mag. I could not notice any difference in accuracy in fact they seemed somewhat ungainly so I took them off and threw them away. The plus was they did not cost much.

October 8, 2012, 11:47 PM	#5
warbirdlover Senior Member Join Date: December 13, 2009 Location: central Wisconsin Posts: 2,324	What groundhog said....

October 13, 2012, 06:52 AM	#6
Picher Senior Member Join Date: December 14, 2004 Location: Maine Posts: 3,694	I tried a couple on my rimfire benchrest rifle and they seemed to work, but not as well as a weighted tuner near the muzzle. There was a test that compared extremely large-diameter rimfire benchrest barrels, vs smaller-diameter barrels with tuners and the ones with tuners that were properly-adjusted shot better. Many people use 10.5 lb rifles with tuners for both that class, and the 13 lb and Unlimited classes...and win!

October 13, 2012, 12:39 PM	#7
DPris Member Emeritus Join Date: August 19, 2004 Posts: 7,133	The key to using it successfully is to find the sweet spot on the barrel. You can't just stick it on anywhere & expect it to work. Denis

October 14, 2012, 08:07 AM	#8
Mobuck Junior member Join Date: February 2, 2010 Posts: 6,846	I've got one on my Wby Vanguard .257 Wby. It does make some improvement and didn't take too long to locate in the right place. This is a fairly thin barrel shooting a lot of powder and seems to have some odd harmonics even when freefloated. The deresonator has been on the barrel for 3 years and still soft-I've been pretty careful about getting solvent near it.

October 14, 2012, 09:38 AM	#9
Art Eatman Staff in Memoriam Join Date: November 13, 1998 Location: Terlingua, TX; Thomasville, GA Posts: 24,798	Purely in the FWIW, "What works for me" department: On bolt-action rifles--and so far, those with wood-stocks--I free-float the forearm. I use a 3/4" strip of kitchen wax paper, folded back and forth, to make a shim. I try for no more than a five-pound pull to separate the barrel and forearm to insert the shim at the front end of the forearm. I trim the excess paper with a razor blade. It has pretty much always helped reduce group size, and I commonly get sub-MOA afterwards. My uncle's theory about this, from long, long ago, is that the shim acts much like the shock absorbers on a car, damping the spring vibrations. (Which, I guess, is why the Limeys call them "dampers".) Much cheaper that a BOSS or other add-ons, and not visible.