I wonder if that might be one kind of innovation that through testing,CVA determined that it leads to improved accuracy. Maybe the slit improves barrel harmonics, or somehow allows for less pressure and stress to be puton the barrel once it gets hot and expands.
Just because we might not know or understand the reason for anew design, doesn't necessarily mean that it's for the worse, or that it's only done to save money or to make production easier. It could bethe idea of an innovative engineer,and which hasone of the followingconsequenceswhencompared to the previousdesign; the new barrel lug is either better, worse or doesn'tcreate any significant change.
Two of these three possibilities are not bad, only one of themis.
It's difficulttojudgethe lug designwithoutagoodnumber ofconsumer tests and feedbacks.
Companies that innovate can sometimes find a new formula for success, other times they risk failure. It's hard to imagine that they would want to intentionallychange a previously successful design if they knew in advance that it wouldonlylead to worse performance.
While anything is possible, fair & scientificevaluations need to be basedonfacts.
Thanks for sharingall of thepictures and info.