Ar15 barrels

[mahiman]

Currently have a wylde barrel. Looking at getting a new barrel for my AR15. I know it will be in 223 rem. 20 to 24” length for more precision for hunting.

My question is twist for 20 to 24” for a 65 to 75 223 rem grain match Hornady hollow point bullets?

Manufacturers for good stainless barrels price and quality?

Thanks for the help!!!!

 

[Rudy Gonsior]

I’d stick with the Wylde chamber if I was you, dropping to the .223Rem chops out any 5.56 loads which is potentially 150-200fps difference. Accuracy wise I doubt you’re going to be able to shoot/see the difference between a .223Rem chamber and a Wylde.

As for barrel length I’d personally favor towards a 20” with the SDM profile for any sort of hunting that has me walking about but I suppose if you’re sitting on top of a P-Dog town then a 24” with a straight Bull barrel is the ticket and nets you that last bit of velocity.

Twist rates of 1/8 or 1/7 is what you want. 1/9 is going to put you right on the ragged edge of stability with the 75gr class projectiles.

When it comes to manufacture, you’ll most likely get what you pay for. A lot of guys will play the lottery game of budget barrels but I called it a lottery for a reason. You might luck out with a great sub-MOA shooter for $150-200 from whatever budget barrel brand but for every one of those Cinderella stories there’s probably 3 or 4 other guys that bought the same barrel but struggle to squeeze 1.5-2.0 MOA out of it. Simply put the quality control and lot to lot consistency just isn’t for those price points. In a lot of cases by the time you realize that your barrel isn’t going to “break in” or that there isn’t a load under heaven that’s ever going to shoot, you’ve probably paid the same price you would have for a Bartlein or a Krieger done up right.

 

[XLR308]

White Oak Armament is a good place to start, I have one of their 24" 1-8 twist varmint profile barrels that has exceeded my expectations and is pretty mellow on load development and runs everything from 50gr ballistic tips to 75amax accurately with various powders.
I can't remember but want to say it is a Wilson blank they also have Krieger and Shilen.

 

[longshot2000]

loaded question, and lots of emotion around answers. Personally, I am a barrel and scope nerd. 18" barrel is generally not stable. Douglas seems to do a good job. Bartelien is always a good answer. Kreiger and Lilja have awesome offerings. Criterion has excelled at semi-production barrels. Then, you need to get a great barrel smith to chamber and to work the outside diameters. CLE is awesome at that. Craddock is good, and as time goes by more barrel makers are better than last year...

 

[AMP!]

Maybe I’m just lucky, but I’ve shot MOA or better, pretty consistently, out of my WOA and Ballistic advantage AR barrels. I generally stick to 1-7 twist rate, and either a .223 wylde or 5.56 chamber. My DDM4V11 was the same results. Always between .7-1.2 MOA, better or worse was often the shooter or the wind gusts, but she always stayed in that range.

Forgot to mention that’s always with “heavier” ammo like mk 262 or similar.

 

[NineHotel]

Wylde is a chamber dimension. Hard to go wrong with a 7 twist. 8 works well too. In case you decide to long load and single feed the 80s, go for something faster than a 9 twist. Hornady advertises their 75 mag length match bullet as 1:9 compatible, vs Sierra recommends an 8 twist or faster for their 77.

 

[Trevor300wsm]

Let me first say that to me, 1MOA on a precision based AR with your own loads is unacceptable. That barrel would be sent back of it was mine. I have two AR's set up with 18" White Oak barrels shooting 77gr Berger OTM's and they are always 1/2 MOA or better at 100yds. In years past we have placed in the top 2-3 places at some well known team matches shooting these rifles out to 800yds and in. I have barrels from Noveske, Ballastic Advantage, Odin and Faxon......none shoot as well at the White Oak barrels for precision. If I was going to build a large frame AR like a 6 or 6.5, Id for sure get a Bartlien blank and cut it.

 

[AMP!]

Let me first say that to me, 1MOA on a precision based AR with your own loads is unacceptable. That barrel would be sent back of it was mine. I have two AR's set up with 18" White Oak barrels shooting 77gr Berger OTM's and they are always 1/2 MOA or better at 100yds. In years past we have placed in the top 2-3 places at some well known team matches shooting these rifles out to 800yds and in. I have barrels from Noveske, Ballastic Advantage, Odin and Faxon......none shoot as well at the White Oak barrels for precision. If I was going to build a large frame AR like a 6 or 6.5, Id for sure get a Bartlien blank and cut it.

I have two AR's set up with 18" White Oak barrels shooting 77gr Berger OTM's and they are always 1/2 MOA or better at 100yds. In years past we have placed in the top 2-3 places at some well known team matches shooting these rifles out to 800yds and in.

Wanna send me some of those for my 18” WOA build? Hah.

 

[mahiman]

How about the heavy barrel fluted 20” 223 wylde from Faxon?

 

[CaptNemo]

Compass Lake Engineering has been my go-to for an accurate AR-15 barrel - except they don't chamber 6.5 Grendel.
We'll see what Paul Craddock sends me for a 20" Grendel barrel on a Bartlein blank, I may have a new favorite depending how this new tube shoots.
Call CLE and see what blank fits your budget - The machine work costs are the same for the job.

 

[J.Boney]

I have a WOA 18” SPR Upper on the way, as well as a 16” BA Hanson Profile. Both are 1-7” twist.. I have always been a bolt gun guy and shoot nothing but Krieger. Wanted to dive in on tuning up these ARs of mine

 

[Eagle1899]

White Oak or Compass Lake for sure!!! I like 7 twist.

 

[mahiman]

Thanks for all the information!!!!

 

[Snuby642]

So for 240$ what do you guys think of this to replace my shot out carbine barrel.
Need to stay carbine gas system. Had 1/8 wondering about 1/7 can I still shoot 55gr?

Specifications and Features:
RISE Armament M4N-160 Tactical Barrel M4N160223WSLVR
16" Fluted AR-15 Barrel with 1:7 Twist
Chambered .223 Wylde accepts .223 Rem and 5.56 NATO
Threaded Muzzle 1/2x28 TPI
Carbine Length Gas System
.750 Gas Block Journal
M4 Barrel Extension
416 Stainless Steel
Stainless Finish
Weight 2 lbs 1 oz

 

[TonyTheTiger]

Need to stay carbine gas system. Had 1/8 wondering about 1/7 can I still shoot 55gr?

Thats a very unusual requirement. May I ask why?
55's are fine in a 1 in 7".

 

[Snuby642]

So I dont have to change my spector length hand guard, gas tube, buffers.

 

[TonyTheTiger]

You don't have to change the buffers.

 

[Zack_va248]

Currently have a wylde barrel. Looking at getting a new barrel for my AR15. I know it will be in 223 rem. 20 to 24” length for more precision for hunting.

My question is twist for 20 to 24” for a 65 to 75 223 rem grain match Hornady hollow point bullets?

Manufacturers for good stainless barrels price and quality?

Thanks for the help!!!!

Kreiger makes great stuff, jp as well comes at a price though

 

[Snuby642]

Just had the carbine running smoothly with an h2.
So basicly just changing twist rate and going to a wylde barrel instead of nato.

The old barrel was good till it went smooth bore on me, kind of all of a sudden.
Never seen that before.

I may get another upper rifle length eventually but did not have funds to start from scratch
At this time "Christmas " etc.

 

[MontanaMan]

So for 240$ what do you guys think of this to replace my shot out carbine barrel.
Need to stay carbine gas system. Had 1/8 wondering about 1/7 can I still shoot 55gr?

Specifications and Features:
RISE Armament M4N-160 Tactical Barrel M4N160223WSLVR
16" Fluted AR-15 Barrel with 1:7 Twist
Chambered .223 Wylde accepts .223 Rem and 5.56 NATO
Threaded Muzzle 1/2x28 TPI
Carbine Length Gas System
.750 Gas Block Journal
M4 Barrel Extension
416 Stainless Steel
Stainless Finish
Weight 2 lbs 1 oz

I've used 2 of Rise's 16" CB-160 barrels which are a lighter version of what you posted but also with Mid-length gas & they've been good shooters, right at MOA. I'm satisfied enough that I just bought a CB-188 version for a lightweight 18" gun I'm putting together.

You can buy the CB-160 barrel right now for $150 from AIM

https://www.aimsurplus.com/product.aspx?item=XRISECB160SS&name=Rise+Armament+16"+Barrel,+C-series,+.223+Wylde,+fluted,+SS&search=Rise+Armament

The guys at Rise are pretty good guys & have given me some stuff to try including their RA-535 trigger which is a great trigger too.

I would suggest that you give the CB-160 barrel a try...........it's not a Kreiger or a JP, but it's pretty good & it doesn't cost $500 either. Their mid-length gas system seems over gassed so you might want to consider an adjustable gas block if you buy one.

This was shot with about 20 rounds down a new barrel with a non-tailored load.

MM