Why Use an Aftermarket Pistol Barrel

When you’re ready to take your shooting experience to the next level, aftermarket pistol barrels are a great way to upgrade your pistol. Custom barrels can help you improve accuracy, control recoil, or add to your gun’s aesthetics. Conversion barrels can even change the caliber of your weapon to give you more stopping power or make plinking at the range more affordable. Before you spend your hard-earned money, let’s take a look at some common gun barrel features to consider.

Custom Pistol Barrels

Aftermarket pistol barrels are popular gun customizations because they offer so much potential for changing the way your firearm performs in the field or at the range. The barrel contains and directs the force of the exploding propellant as it converts to expanding gas that pushes the bullet out of the gun. On the way, grooves in the barrel impart spin that helps stabilize the projectile in flight. As the bullet leaves the gun, some barrels are designed to use the gasses behind the bullet to help control recoil, hide the flash of firing a round, or enter baffles that minimize the decibel level.  

Glock Conversion Barrels

Conversion barrels are a specialized class of aftermarket pistol barrels that go beyond tweaking performance to changing a fundamental aspect of your firearm: its caliber. Outwardly, conversion barrels look much the same as your OEM barrel, but you’ll notice the bore size is different. The breech part of the barrel, where a round is loaded into by the action of the slide, also has different dimensions to accept a cartridge of the converted caliber while positioning the round for proper striker placement.

Conversion barrels are usually meant to do one of two things:

• Moving Up in Caliber – These aftermarket pistol barrels alter your gun to shoot larger, heavier, and often more powerful rounds. Glock conversion barrels can be used to change 9mm models into .40 S&W or .357 Sig handguns. Because these two rounds are relatively close in dimension, this is usually a straightforward process of dropping in a new barrel and using an aftermarket slide that fits the larger barrel’s circumference. The end result is a powerful, accurate pistol that packs more punch than the OEM model. 
• Moving Down in Caliber – It’s far more common for aftermarket pistol barrels to convert your gun to a smaller caliber. First, this can help you change from a powerful and harder-to-control round to one with more manageable performance, like moving from .40 S&W to 9mm. This simple drop-in barrel customization is all some shooters need to excel on the range while still giving them a firearm with plenty of stopping power. 

Another common conversion barrel customization across both handguns and long guns is to change the weapon to a .22 LR caliber firearm. This is more extensive as it often requires an aftermarket pistol barrel, custom slide, and alternate magazine, but the impact on your pocketbook can be undeniable. These rounds are usually far cheaper than their larger counterparts, making them perfect for extended target sessions at the range where you need to focus on your fundamentals of marksmanship.

Which Aftermarket Barrels are Right for You?

There are a few things to consider when you’re looking for an aftermarket pistol barrel for your gun. By considering these points, you can make sure you’re investing your firearms customization budget in components you’ll be happy with.

• Materials – Your custom barrel should be made from a strong, durable metal, like forged stainless steel. This provides the strength and resiliency needed to safely channel the expanding propellant gasses from a cartridge to push a bullet downrange.
• Engineering – Your barrel needs to be designed to the exacting tolerances that allow for a smooth-cycling weapon, from loading a new round into the chamber to firing it accurately and then allowing for a clean extraction before the process repeats.
• Finish – Your barrel’s finish helps protect it from the environment and the corrosive effects of propellant residue. A nitride finish that bonds with the underlying steel to create a protective barrier for a longer service life is an economical choice that sets the standard when it comes to barrel finishing.
• Conversion Barrels – If you’re considering using a Glock conversion barrel in your gun, ask yourself what your goal is in swapping out your weapon’s caliber, and then choose the barrel that best meets this need.
• Porting – Porting involves adding small machined holes or ports to your gun’s muzzle to channel and direct a portion of the propellant gasses. This can be a great way to control muzzle-flip with more powerful rounds.
• Threading – Threaded ends make it possible to screw certain gun accessories to the end of the barrel to enhance the shooting experience. While the most well-known of these is the canister-style suppressors to reduce the decibel level of firing the weapon, there are other threaded components. Flash hiders and muzzle breaks (which operate similarly to porting to help control recoil) are legal upgrades in most places that don’t require a federal NAF tag for purchase or ownership.

Why Patmos Arms Aftermarket Pistol Barrels Our Choice

Patmos Arms pistol barrels are made from nitride-coated forged stainless steel and manufactured to meet or exceed Glock’s specifications for their handguns and compatible commercial and 3D-printed frames. This gives you the strength and durability you need paired with drop-in convenience as a baseline standard and not an optional upgrade. TiN (gold) and Chameleon PVD (oil slick) finishes are available on some barrels to help your premium upgrade stand out even more.

Order Your Glock Conversion Barrels

With JSD Supply, you’re getting practical aftermarket pistol barrels, slides, and accessories that help your weapon do more so you can shoot better with a custom gun you’re proud of. Sign up for our emails to get the latest custom gun news delivered to your inbox. Order your conversion and specialty barrels from JSD Supply today.