Proof SS or Wilson combat super sniper

Jmccracken1214 · Monday at 9:58 PM

Looking at picking up a new barrel.
20” proof stainless
Then at half the cost of the proof, the Wilson 22”

I know cheaping out usually doesn’t work out but I see good reviews for both. Trying to justify if the proof will give me $300 more than the Wilson

oldrifleman · Monday at 10:07 PM

In MY opinion Wilson combat barrels are a B and Proofs are an A-. I am Betting opinions are going to be 50/50

matt33 · Monday at 10:35 PM

Sometimes a cheaper barrel will meet my expectations, but it took me a while to accept that rolling the dice isn't a gamble I'm willing to take these days. In the past, I've spent untold number of hours and hundreds of dollars of ammo and reloading components trying to polish a turd.

I'd buy the Proof SS; I have one and it gets close to my Bartleins in performance.

Rob01 · Monday at 10:47 PM

Not looking at a PVA? For $399 not a bad deal at all and good barrels.

whatsupdoc · Monday at 11:12 PM

I have used a couple of proof barrels and they are not bad, I also bought a super sniper and returned it.
The reason I returned it was because the bore had chatter from the button and I know cleaning this barrel will be a pain in the ass. I would rather pay more and get a barrel that is easy to clean than save some cash and have a barrel that will be harder to clean.

tomme boy · Monday at 11:33 PM

Wilson Combat barrels are not that good. They are relying on the 1911s name to make them look good. And you will not get any customer service if you have a problem.

OREGUN · Monday at 11:33 PM

jeesus really? It been 2 hours and NO ONE has said GBPSE?

The barrel is THE ONE THING THAT REALLY MATTERS! There are no sweet deals.

The question the OP should have asked is “who makes the best barrel I can buy and where are they currently in stock.”

BillyBeards · 2025-07-22T07:52:26-0400

I was having the same type of debate with myself and ended up spending the money on a Proof 18” CF that I found here on the forum.
First shots this weekend and I was very happy. Easily 1moa with the IMI 77gr ammo I was shooting and with only a 10x scope, better glass coming.
I have no experience with Wilson but I felt like I’ve heard enough good things about Proof to make my purchase.

DeathBeforeDismount · 2025-07-22T07:56:19-0400

I would do a craddock rtr for $350 before just about anything short of a cut rifle bartlien/kreiger/crb chambered by a wizard. I have a few proofs including 2 on ars and they are not worth the money.

diggler1833 · 2025-07-22T07:58:38-0400

I have three Wilson Barrels, and all three will consistently shoot sub-minute. That being said, all three look as good as any Savage barrel through a borescope... the chatter from the button is very real.

I have one Proof, and need to shoot it more before I give my opinion on it... but the lands and grooves are certainly done much better IMO.

padom · 2025-07-22T08:00:43-0400

The proofs on AR's I shot werent worth the money at all. And the 6.5cm large frame gasser barrels had gas port sizing issues.

I have a 16" and 20" Wilson Combat and they both shoot very very well. I picked them up on a sale a few years ago to see how they would shoot and they have been excellent.

A lot of other options out there but I'm just giving feedback on the 2 barrels mentioned by the OP.

padom · 2025-07-22T08:13:29-0400

Here some targets testing powders with the 60 TMK @ 50yd with a red dot out of the 16" Wilson Combat.. I gotta find my targets for the 20"

60 TMK RE15

60 TMK H4895

60 TMK AR Comp

DeathBeforeDismount · 2025-07-22T08:21:14-0400

I think the main problem with proof is they are a high volume production shop. You may get a barrel cut with fresh single point cutter/reamer or one towards the end of its life.So its a crapshoot. At the price they sell for, I would rather spend similar/tad more and get something almost guaranteed to be a hammer.

A proof blank is much more likely to shoot chambered by a competent smith than a proof chambered prefit in my experience. Every proof prefit I have has been marginal.

MontanaMan · 2025-07-22T09:59:24-0400

DeathBeforeDismount said:
I would do a craddock rtr for $350 before just about anything short of a cut rifle bartlien/kreiger/crb chambered by a wizard.

Hard to argue with this; I have some Craddock's (not RTR's, but same blanks) & they shoot very well.

But I also have 2 of the lightweight, 16" WC barrels that I put on light builds not expecting too much, but both have turned out to be right at MOA guns. No experience with the Super Sniper versions. If you can catch a sale, they come pretty cheap. I think I paid around $150 for each of mine & they look good through a bore scope.

In the type of barrel the OP is looking for, besides the obvious choice of Craddock (Rock Creek buttoned barrels), WOA also is a hard to be choice, IME.

MM

wvfarrier · 2025-07-22T10:02:10-0400

I have a wilson ss 308 win barrel on my SASS. It is very accurate with heavies but does not like anything under 165gr.

padom · 2025-07-22T10:23:09-0400

MontanaMan said:
.....WOA also is a hard to be choice, IME.

MM

I dont know if you are aware but WOA sold to a guy out in California in the last 60 days... I would not hesitate to recommend WOA in this situation , I have many of them in the safe that hammer...

But I dont have any first hand experience or data of WOA barrels since the sale and I also havent seen any real data on barrels coming out of the new shop....

padom · 2025-07-22T10:29:56-0400

Screw it, I guess we will find out.

WOA has Krieger, Shilen Ratchet and Geissele 5R Cut rifled barrels all in stock.. I already have one of the Geissele 5R cut rifled from John right before he sold and it hammers..

I just placed an order for 1 of the Kriegers and 1 of the Shilen Ratchets. See how they look and shoot compared to my Bartleins, Geissele, Krieger, and Wilson WOA barrels before they sold

Geissele Service Rifle Barrels, 1-7 Twist

Geissele Service Rifle Barrels NEW! White Oak Precision Service Rifle barrel made on a Geissele 5R, cut-rifled, 1-7 twist blank. Bill Geissele puts just a slight amount of gain in each barrel. This ensures that the bullet is always being slightly acceler

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Shilen Ratchet 1-7.5 Twist Service Rifle Barrel

We have been offering our Service Rifle barrels turned on Shilen 1-8 Ratchet blanks for several years now and they have turned in great performances. Some shooters feel that they wanted a little more twist for the heavy 600 yard loads – in response to th

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White Oak Precision - Krieger Service Rifle Barrels

Our White Oak Precision Service Rifle barrel is profiled from a Krieger cut-rifled blank. This is the same AR15 service rifle barrel that has won championship matches all around the United States. White Oak Precision Service Rifle barrels are ch

www.whiteoakarmament.com

MontanaMan · 2025-07-22T11:11:25-0400

padom said:
I dont know if you are aware but WOA sold to a guy out in California in the last 60 days... I would not hesitate to recommend WOA in this situation , I have many of them in the safe that hammer...

But I dont have any first hand experience or data of WOA barrels since the sale and I also havent seen any real data on barrels coming out of the new shop....

No, I was not aware that they had been sold; thanks for that info & update.

MM

brazz04 · 2025-07-22T18:59:58-0400

I pretty much only buy proof prefits because I never want to wait on barrels. I also never see a need on my end for crazy accuracy. If the gun can consistently do .75MOA 10 round groups, I'm more than happy with that.

My 223 wylde Proof CF Tikka does .7 MOA 10 round groups with both 75gr ELD handloads and Freedom munitions 69gr cheap stuff.

The new proof 22" AR barrel does about 0.85 on average for a 10 round group. Shot a .88 MOA 10 round group at 300 yards with it this weekend. The big plus there being it was a discontinued barrel that I paid $480 for.

My 7PRC would consistently shoot about .7 MOA as well out of a Tikka Proof CF barrel. Never shot 10 round groups with this, but it's a hunting rifle, so wasn't concerned with that.

All with no wait times. Bought them and they were all to my door in a few days. It's the route I'll continue to go.

thedude824 · 2025-07-23T00:54:37-0400

I base how much I’ll spend on a barrel on my accuracy expectations for the rifle. I’ve been able to develop sub MOA loads for a Colt HBAR, a couple Criterion hybrids, and every one of my 3 RTR barrels. I put an 11.3” Wilson Combat 300blk out barrel in my new SBR build. As long as I can get a load that does 1 MOA I’m happy.
If you are limited to factory ammo I would consider a higher end barrel or if you’re looking for the sub 0.8 MOA. I have nothing to back that up, just my opinions. Actually I did build an 18” AR10 for a friend with a Wilson Combat Super Sniper barrel. It wasn’t my choice, but he got it in sale. He says it easily shoots just under MOA with FGMM 168 grain.

Proof SS or Wilson combat super sniper

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