Competition build-need advice

[cschwanz]

Getting ready to order my ar and im thinking of building a 3gun upper to put on for competitions in the future. Is there a preferred length(gas system and/or barrel) for competition. What are the benefits of one over another for a compeition based rifle?

[IrishDevil]

You'll find most people are using 16"-18" stainless barrels with mid or rifle length gas. Really depends on personal preference and your average distances shot in matches.

IMO, the only real advantage to an 18" is the slight velocity edge if your area has a lot of distant targets(400-500 yards). Also, 18" is reliable with a rifle length gas system/buffer, which produces a slightly smoother recoil.

I personally use a BCM 16" barrel currently, which is just fine for my area as the furthest distance we shoot is 325 yards. I have taken my 16" to 450 with no problems, using 69 gr ammo. My current 3-gun upper is a complete BCM 16" stainless, I shaved the FSB and installed a 11" Troy TRX Extreme rail. I'm using a BCM BCG and a PWS FSC556 brake. Optic is a Meopta K-Dot in a Larue mount.

I plan on building an "Irons" upper in the coming months, and will probably go 18" to get the trajectory a little "flatter" for distant targets. Also, the most popular barrel brands I've seen in 3-gun are Sabre, JP, Noveske, and White Oak.