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TRIARC 16” Track 2.0 Barrel: A Quick Look

Molon

Gunny Sergeant
Minuteman
Feb 26, 2020
870
2,264
TRIARC 16” Track 2.0 Barrel: A Quick Look


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Over the last several years we’ve seen barrel manufacturers starting to move away from the traditional barrel profiles found on AR-15 barrels, such as the government profile, and moving toward “enhanced” barrel profiles, with the specific objectives of balancing weight distribution and handling characteristics while while endeavoring to maintain accuracy that is on par with barrels with heavier profiles. The late John Noveske was the impetus for bringing modern AR-15 barrel profiles to the civilian market. His 16" CHF N4 barrel profile has the same weight as a government profile barrel of the same length, but it has a more intelligently designed contour that places more of the weight of the barrel from the chamber to the gas block journal and does away with the M203 cut-outs.

TRIARC is now producing a 16” barrel that has a profile that is quite similar to the Noveske N4 profile. TRIARC calls this their Track 2.0 barrel and they refer to the barrel profile as the “balanced straight contour.”



TRIARC 16” Track 2.0 . . .


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Noveske 16” N4 . . .

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The TRIARC 16” Track 2.0 barrel is made from 4150V Milspec B-1159E Chromium-Molybdenum-Vanadium steel and has a nitride finish. This stripped 16” barrel has a weight of 1 pound, 13.1 ounces. For comparison, a stripped 16” Colt 6920 government profile barrel has a weight of 1 pound, 12 ounces. The barrel extension on the Track 2.0 barrel has M4 feed-ramps and is coated with NP3.



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The gas block journal of the Track 2.0 barrel has a diameter of 0.75”; 0.7497” to be exact. The gas block journal comes with a single dimple contralateral to the gas port. Speaking of the gas port, it has a diameter 0.0695”. Unlike the gas block journal of the Noveske N4 barrel, the gas block journal of the Track 2.0 barrel has a length of 1”; so a traditional A-frame front sight base will not work with this barrel.



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The TRIARC 16” Track 2.0 barrel has a 5.56mm NATO chamber and a 1:7” twist. The barrel utilizes a mid-length gas system. This barrel is button rifled and the bore is honed using Sunnen machinery. This honing system not only produces a “glass-smooth” finish to the interior of the bore, it also helps to create tight tolerances for the inside diameter of the bore throughout the entire length of the barrel.

The type of rifling found on the TRIARC Track 2.0 barrel is rather unique for AR-15 barrels. The rifling is known as single edge polygonal rifling (SEPR). The patent for this type of rifling (as well as a patent for machinery used to manufacture this rifling) is held by F.J. Feddersen. With single edge polygonal rifling, one side of the land has a traditional squared edge, while the other side of the land has a polygonal edge.




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The F.J Feddersen patent for SEPR states that this type of rifling produces less bullet deformation than traditional rifling. F.J. Feddersen also claims that this rifling significantly reduces escaping gases and loss of gas pressures.



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….

Accuracy evaluation coming 2nd quarter-ish 2022.
 
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I have a 13.9 that on initial zeroing showed 3/4-1moa with 77gr Nosler bthp. It seems to be gassed on the lighter side and runs flat and like a sewing machine with a suppressor. It has a few hundred rounds on it now and I need to do some accuracy and chrono testing.
 
Good stuff.

My 12.5 should be here in a week or so, looking forward to seeing what it can do.

Gotta admit im slightly nervous about the 12.5 mid gas. It has been offered by enough people, that seem to know what they are doing, that im willing to gamble. Just seems to go against so much lore that has been hammered deep into my psyche....
 
Just seems to go against so much lore that has been hammered deep into my psyche....
Just remember that the people codifying popular lore are rarely the people sticking their necks to try something new. They take the safe route and try to make it gospel.
 
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Good stuff.

My 12.5 should be here in a week or so, looking forward to seeing what it can do.

Gotta admit im slightly nervous about the 12.5 mid gas. It has been offered by enough people, that seem to know what they are doing, that im willing to gamble. Just seems to go against so much lore that has been hammered deep into my psyche....
I have about 1500 rounds though my Triarc 12.5". Its got a SF flash hider, JPE spring and H2 buffer and a Lantac E carrier (for whatever gas-forward is actually happening--I shoot it lefty). Whatever those items do or don't do, this rifle is very soft shooting.
 
I have about 1500 rounds though my Triarc 12.5". Its got a SF flash hider, JPE spring and H2 buffer and a Lantac E carrier (for whatever gas-forward is actually happening--I shoot it lefty). Whatever those items do or don't do, this rifle is very soft shooting.
Nice

Seem to be a lot of happy owners out there. It generally seems that once you dig into the bad reports, their problems tend to stem from shooting shit ammo. I will also be suppressed 90% of the time, so that should help.

Looking forward to seeing what kind of accuracy Molon is able to squeeze out of it. That way i know exactly how bad my shooting is :confused:
 
As am I. I have a few Triarc barrels, including a 16" so Molon's thorough reviews will be a relevant read for me.

Were you to shoot it suppressed 100%, the suppressor-only gas port might be worth considering.
 
As am I. I have a few Triarc barrels, including a 16" so Molon's thorough reviews will be a relevant read for me.

Were you to shoot it suppressed 100%, the suppressor-only gas port might be worth considering.
I thought about it briefly, but decided i would rather keep the versatility than tune it too far in one direction.

A majority of my ARs are PWS pistons, so this whole gas in the face thing is a fun new experience
 
As am I. I have a few Triarc barrels, including a 16" so Molon's thorough reviews will be a relevant read for me.

Were you to shoot it suppressed 100%, the suppressor-only gas port might be worth considering.
What kind of accuracy have you been seeing with different loads?

You shooting factory only or reloading as well? They have any consistent favorites?
 
What kind of accuracy have you been seeing with different loads?

You shooting factory only or reloading as well? They have any consistent favorites?
I'm embarrassed to say I've done neither accuracy nor MV testing for barrel/ load combos; Ive been too lazy to mount and zero a high mag scope to test and already have a precision-oriented upper (and so the lazy inertia wins)

Yes to factory loads--mostly just M193 for plinking or classes. But I have an assortment of 77 gr match ammo that I would like to try.

I have a 16" BCM SS upper that I want to compare to the 16" Triac (which I built as a piston system), if for no other reason than they are/ could be similarly used in my set up.
 
Good stuff.

My 12.5 should be here in a week or so, looking forward to seeing what it can do.

Gotta admit im slightly nervous about the 12.5 mid gas. It has been offered by enough people, that seem to know what they are doing, that im willing to gamble. Just seems to go against so much lore that has been hammered deep into my psyche....
I have the 12.5” mid length as well. Fear not, the barrel is spectacular. With decent optics I can print sub MOA 5 shot groups with IMI 77 SMK. Runs smooth suppressed (OSS 762 Helix QD) or unsuppressed and have made consistent hits out to 517 yards. I am holding the barrel back if anything. Would recommend if wanting for anyone wanting a 12.5“ barrel.
 
I have the 12.5” mid length as well. Fear not, the barrel is spectacular. With decent optics I can print sub MOA 5 shot groups with IMI 77 SMK. Runs smooth suppressed (OSS 762 Helix QD) or unsuppressed and have made consistent hits out to 517 yards. I am holding the barrel back if anything. Would recommend if wanting for anyone wanting a 12.5“ barrel.
Nice nice

Barrel came in today, now just need that SBR eform to come back...

@PBWalsh what buffer setup are you running? I have been planning on A5H2 + Green, but people seem to be running a pretty broad range

I seem to have been blessed at birth with the power to attract lemons, ill report back once i get the chance to slap it around a little bit
 
@CrooksNbigBeaver

Standard Vltor A5 system with whatever buffer spring/buffer they come with from Vltor. Fixed gas block, BCM BCG, Radian SD charging handle. All running topped with an OSS Helix 762 QD.

Absolutely love the system. Smooth, no excess gas, fast, and accurate.
 
Molon I'm desperate to see your review of this barrel! Is the fancy rifling marketing or are these really worth it over any other light weight barrel offering.
 
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The ZEV Wedge Lock Handguard


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The US patent for the wedge lock mechanism employed in the ZEV Wedge Lock Handguard states that it was invented by Michael Miller and James Reid. The patent was originally granted to Mega Arms and has more recently been transferred to ZEV Technologies.


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The wedge lock mechanism that secures the ZEV M-LOK handguard to the ZEV barrel nut is a simple, yet elegant approach to fastening a handguard to an upper receiver. Speaking of the barrel nut, the ZEV barrel nut is a hefty 3.6 ounces of finely machined stainless steel. The ZEV handguard comes with a custom barrel nut wrench.


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The ZEV wedge lock assembly sits in a bottom lip of the ZEV handguard. The slim design of the wedge lock assembly allows for a sleek, streamlined handguard profile when compared to some of the more bulbous designs on the market.


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The wedge lock assembly consists of a top wedge and a bottom wedge with a Torx bolt sandwiched in between them.


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The top of the top wedge has a concave shape that perfectly matches the curvature of the barrel nut. The top wedge and the bottom wedge are mated at an angle such that when the Torx bolt is tightened, the top wedge is pulled rearward and upward wedging itself between the barrel nut and the bottom wedge and handguard forming an extremely solid lock-up.


The top wedge prior to being tightened . . .


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. . . and after being tightened . . .

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The ZEV Wedge Lock handguard used for this build is the 14 5/8” version and it’s manufactured from 6061 aluminum. The handguard, barrel nut and mounting hardware have a combined weight of 15.5 ounces. The ZEV handguard has an indexing/anti-rotation pin at the 12 o’clock position. The hole in the ZEV handguard has an interference fit with the anti-rotation pin and mates precisely with the anti-rotation hole in the SOLGW upper receiver. The ZEV handguard also employs two anti-movement set screws at approximately the 04:00 and 07:00 positions.


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The installed ZEV Wedge Lock handguard had zero degrees of rotation referenced to the picatinny rail of the upper receiver.



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…….
 
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Very nice.

The handguard looks very intriguing. ( And "solid" ) Thanks for the thorough post !
 
@Molon have you(or do you plan to) tested out a KAC SR15 CHF barrel?

The ZEV handguard looks interesting. However I really like my Haenel's QD handguard. Its crazy rock solid tight yet super simple.
 
You just turn this little locking QD lever and it slides straight off. And locks up very solid.
 

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To bad Zev changed from 7075 to 6061.
Barrel nut looks the same fingers crossed. The Mega upper I bought didn’t come with the wrench.

@Molon - Do you know if the Zev wrench will work on the Mega barrel nut?