There's been a lot of marketing names for barrel (and other) steels and speculation associated with these names. As steels evolved, it was common for steel makers or consumer level manufacturers/marketers to put catchy names on the steel used in the products. Some was based on some factual aspect of the steel or its manufacture, some on nothing more than marketer's perception of what the public might think.
The LC Smith line comes to my mind as the classic marketing labeling. I've often wondered if there were any difference in the steels of the numerous labeled barrel steels in this product line.
The shroud of speculated mystic strength properties has grown and spread over the decades for the names like Krupp, Whitworth and maybe a few others. What's the 'real deal' on how they stack up to todays highly controlled process vac-arc steels common to barrels like 4140? TBD.
While Zircon's work was intended to shed some light into vintage barrel metals, it would not flesh out these questions completely. Hopefully, Zircon will find the time from the demands life and career to continue his efforts to test the samples and provide more insight into our guns.
