New build

[Crabtreep]

Been lurking here for a while. Also hope this is the correct place to post this.
Wanting to build a new do it all rifle and just looking for your thoughts. I think the AR 15 platform, probably in 223 wyld. 1-8 optic. 18” barrel.
By this setup it is small enough to stash in large backpack. Can be used for CQB. Also would be accurate for out to 500yds. Plus ammo is plentiful. Nothing is wrong n concrete yet. What do you think?

 

[TonyTheTiger]

That should work fine. But so would a 16". Or a 14.5". Or a 13.7". 12.5" can but it's noticeably outperformed by the 13.7". I've got all of the above and then some, and for the purposes you outlined the 18" gun rarely makes it outside. The performance to size ratio just isn't as good as something shorter.

 

[Crabtreep]

I have quite a few 16” and one 7.5” (for fun). I do like the 16”. Thank you for your reply.

 

[TonyTheTiger]

If you've already got a 16" you won't see an appreciable ballistics performance increase with two more inches. If the 16" has a dot and the 18" has an LPVO, which are very common setups respectively, you'll see a huge performance difference, but don't fall into the trap of believing it has anything to do with barrel length.

 

[ViperTwoSix]

For a general purpose rifle I would suggest a 16in lightweight/pencil profile barrel. 16 is as short as you can go with out either a pin/weld, SBR stamp, or going the pistol route. Unless your doing mag dumps, you’ll appreciate the lighter barrel profile if you ever have to hike it any significant distance. And if you did need to do an occasional mag dump, a good quality 4150CMV barrel should be able to handle it even in the lightweight profile. I like the .223 Wylde 1-8 twist. For GP/ do all rifle I think Wylde chamber gives you more accuracy with .223 Rem, while still being able to handle 5.56 pressures. The 1-8 barrel twist gives you a wide range of bullet weights that it will stabilize.

 

[Malcolm31]

Love my 16” JP rifles for accuracy, recoil impulse and balance…