Coming from a pistol hunter using a 15inch 308 Encore barrel, velocity does drop, but accuracy does not in distances within reason as long as you find the right load. I have both a pistol barrel and a rifle barrel(24 inch) in 308 for my Encore and at 100yds, the accuracy difference is very little. The best I can get from the rifle is .75/inch. The pistol barrel won't shoot that good, but its still sub MOA.