Modern SPR - Noveske & KAC style

[mtdawg169]

I've been working on this build for several months. It all started at the AAC Silencer Shoot this summer, with a Giessele SSA-E that I won as a door prize. At the shoot, I also had a chance to talk to some great industry folks in person that I only knew through the forums prior to the event. During one of those conversations, I was introduced to a special run Noveske barrel that I was intrigued with. It was unique, a SS 17" barrel with a rifle gas system, 1/8 twist and 3 land & groove rifling. Reportedly, the barrel was very accurate, as would be expected with anything from Noveske. It was also supposed to be a very soft shooter. I had been contemplating a precision upper build for quite some time. After a few weeks went by, I decided to get started & ordered the barrel. After all, that SSA-E needed a good home!

I have been a big fan of the SR15 E3 for several years now. The more I thought about this barrel, the clearer my plan became. I wanted a precision oriented brother to my SR15. The extended gas system and shorter dwell time of this barrel seemed like an excellent foundation for my build as it would offer similar recoil characteristics to the KAC E3. I decided on the other parts for the build and acquired them a few at a time over the last several months. After picking up the rail, upper receiver & other small parts, I decided to pick up another KAC E3 lower to house my little "gift" from Giessele & AAC.

Everything was coming together, until I finally had all of the parts for the upper build in hand. As luck would have it, the Armorer at Lawmens's & Shooters had recently left for greener pastures & I now had to find someone new to assemble the upper. Enter Robb Jensen. Robb got me squared away quickly and also coated the SS barrel for me in Norrell's dark grey, a finish very similar in color to parkerization. I knew going in that I wanted the barrel coated just so that I wouldn't ever have to worry about the SS barrel. Robb did a superb job with the assembly and especially the barrel coating. He suggested the color as well & I couldn't be happier with how it turned out. I had the assembled upper in about 2 & 1/2 weeks, including the Thanksgiving holiday. Got the upper in today and put it all together tonight. I'll top it off temporarily with a 4.5-14x40mm Bushnell until I have the funds for better glass. Range Report to follow.

Specs:
17" 5.56mm Stainless Barrel
--1 in 8" twist, three land and groove rifling
--Extended Feed Ramps
--Beadblasted finish on barrel + Norrells Grey
--Rifle length gas system
--Low-profile gas block pinned to barrel
Vltor MUR 1A upper rec.
KAC URX III (note- all QD swivel sockets were rotation limited)
KAC E3 lower
Giessele SSA-E (special thanks to Giessele for supporting the Silencer Shoot)
BCM Gunfighter Mod4 & BCM BCG
KAC 600m BUIS
BC 1.0
Moe+ grip
Atlas Bipod





barrel profile


close up / under the HG




pinned & set screwed gas block




M4 ramps perfectly aligned with MUR upper

[yugotprblms]

That's a great looking rifle, if it shot anything other than awesome I would be surprised. Any plans on getting the upper coated to match the lower?

[ALCOAR]

F**KING BRAVO!

I'm pretty sure you already knew what I would have to say about that build of yours, but just in case....I'd be trying my hardest to melt that sucker all the while grinning ear to ear

Really great job, very custom...one off type stuff for sure. I do hope you reward every other top shelf part on that build by putting some equally as nice glass on top of it. The sky is the limit for a rifle like that, as long as a driver is present

[bp7178]

You have very good tastes in rifles...I have a very similar rifle.

Where did you get your barrel? I bought mine from MSTN, and its a 16" Noveske with an intermediate (11.5") gas system. Almost identical, within a few tenths of an inch to the SR15E3 gas system. Notice in the second pic how close it comes to the end of the DD RIS-II. My barrel is actually marked 5.56 8T3L, to designate 1/8 twist, 3-land and groove.





I'm really liking the URX-III. Very nice rail. What is the weight as pictured?

[mtdawg169]

That's a great looking rifle, if it shot anything other than awesome I would be surprised. Any plans on getting the upper coated to match the lower?

I assume you are referring to the slightly different shade of anodizing between the upper & lower? If so, no. After a wipedown with oil, they will both be a nice shade of jet black. To the naked eye, they both appear black, but the photo makes them look a little off. The barrel was coated to protect the stainless steel surface and to ease maintenance. I'm also not a fan of shiny barrels, so the dark grey Norrells molyresin was the perfect choice, since it resembles a parked steel in color.

F**KING BRAVO!

I'm pretty sure you already knew what I would have to say about that build of yours, but just in case....I'd be trying my hardest to melt that sucker all the while grinning ear to ear

Really great job, very custom...one off type stuff for sure. I do hope you reward every other top shelf part on that build by putting some equally as nice glass on top of it. The sky is the limit for a rifle like that, as long as a driver is present

Thanks man. Saving my pennies for an NXS compact!

You have very good tastes in rifles...I have a very similar rifle.

Where did you get your barrel? I bought mine from MSTN, and its a 16" Noveske with an intermediate (11.5") gas system. Almost identical, within a few tenths of an inch to the SR15E3 gas system. Notice in the second pic how close it comes to the end of the DD RIS-II. My barrel is actually marked 5.56 8T3L, to designate 1/8 twist, 3-land and groove.

I'm really liking the URX-III. Very nice rail. What is the weight as pictured?

I got the barrel from Wes after talking to him at the Silencer Shoot. It took a few weeks to come in from Noveske. The 17" is a similar concept to your 16" intermediate, just a little longer in OAL and a standard rifle gas length & gas tube. It looks like they have slightly altered the barrel markings, but our barrels are most likely cut from the same blanks.

I am really liking the URX III. Nice & slim where I grip the rifle, with just enough rail to do the job. I was also pleased to see that all of the QD points were rotation limited & internally machined, as some of the early models were only pinned at the rearmost points. The URX II is very lightweight, but also feels very solid when mounted up. I chose it due to the good experiences I have had with the URX II, its light weight and the removeable bottom rail. I haven't had a chance to get it on a scale, but am planning on swinging by my local shop to drop it on their postal scale to determine final weight. I'll weigh it without the bipod & scope, so I can compare it to my SR15E3. The barrel isn't a lightweight by any stretch, but it has a nice profile that balances proper thickness for SS barrel without being a true heavy profile. It is defintely lighter under the HG than the Recon 16 I had a few years ago. It tapers slightly from the chamber to the GB. Wes said it was somewhere between their medium & lightweight contours and was a custom contour cut for MSTN.

[bp7178]

It does look like it has a nice taper contour to it.

Somehow Wes/MSTN is behind every rifle I find intresting.

What buffer are your running? The standard one which came with the SR15 lower?

[mtdawg169]

It does look like it has a nice taper contour to it.

Somehow Wes/MSTN is behind every rifle I find intresting.

What buffer are your running? The standard one which came with the SR15 lower?

I haven't had a chance to shoot it yet. I'm going to start out with an h buffer and milspec ammo to break in the bcg & test function. I will then back it down to a standard carbine buffer if necessary for reliable operation with .223 match ammo. I have a feeling that I will end up running the standard buffer though.

I meant to mention earlier that the bare rifle balances very nicely without the scope & bipod mounted. Center of gravity is right at the mag well.

[bp7178]

I would imagine yours would be pretty close to mine, gas to barrel wise.

For really light .223 ammo, the carbine buffer functions great. Recoil is light and snappy. I was bouncing between the carbine and H buffer.

When I started shooting 5.56mm TAP T2, you can feel more recoil (obviously) with the 5.56mm pressure stuff. I was actually thinking of trying out a H2, and just running 5.56mm. Bulk XM193 is cheap enough.

I keep coming across threads listing BCMs recommendation of using a H2 or H3(!) with their 18" SPR barrel with a rifle gas system. This really makes me want to try a H2. Gas port size matters, and I never did measure mine to compare. One of the things I wish I had done.

I will say the barrel loves .223 Hornady 55gr VMAX. If you want to shoot a ragged hole at 100 yards, try out a box.

[caporider]

Beautiful rifle, mtdawg. It should be a shooter.

Given Noveske's excellent reputation for precise muzzle threading and the nice barrel profile, your SPR is begging for a suppressor...

[Cold]

Beautiful rifle, mtdawg. It should be a shooter.

Given Noveske's excellent reputation for precise muzzle threading and the nice barrel profile, your SPR is begging for a suppressor...

Agreed.