Need help with barrel selection, 18 inch 5.56

[WornOutGrunt]

Any updates on this thread ? Hey OP ... what did you get ? or are you still on the quest ?

[HKGuns]

He probably figured out he won't find a sub 30 ounce 18" barrel and punted. I certainly couldn't easily find one.

[WornOutGrunt]

Not sure why he didn't jump on the Criterion that is in EE... that's a solid deal...still unsure of the 16 vs 18 for a GP rifle but... to each their own....

[mark2734]

Thanks everyone for your replies. Got some good ideas. Yes under 30 oz may not be doable but I can get close and still have a stiffer then pencil barrel.

[Curlew]

Thanks everyone for your replies. Got some good ideas. Yes under 30 oz may not be doable but I can get close and still have a stiffer then pencil barrel.

FWIW, an 18” government profile (with rifle-length gas) comes out just under 30 oz. Faxon sells one, but they call it a SOCOM profile.

[Bellycrawl]

Thanks everyone for your replies. Got some good ideas. Yes under 30 oz may not be doable but I can get close and still have a stiffer then pencil barrel.

The fluted BA 18" barrel would be close. BA claims 32 oz while some retailers have it at 31 and the one below has it at 27 oz.

https://ar15discounts.com/products/b...remium-series/

FWIW a carbon Proof 18" barrel ($979) shows 31 oz on their website.

[TWR]

I must have bought the last one but I bought this 18" barrel that shoots pretty well.
https://criterionbarrels.com/product...v=7516fd43adaa
It weighs 1.90 lbs, has a .625 gas block, shoots very smooth and under an inch 5 shot groups so far. I've had pistol matches the last two weekends and one more this weekend then I'll get to ring it out but I'm very happy with it.

not it's best group but 77 grain SMK's at 2720 fps.

[Biggy]

IMHO, for the money ($280. *free shipping and no sales tax*), the Criterion Core series 18" inch, chrome lined, rifle gas, 1-8 twist, *30.4* ounces, Wylde chamber, matte black barrel is hard to beat. For an accurate and *hard* use rifle, the pre lapped chrome lined barrel will have a longer barrel life than comparable stainless steel barrels.
The inherent accuracy of the Core series barrels with good match ammo is usually 3/4”-1 MOA .

https://www.m4carbine.net/showthread...-barrel-*Pics*

For the money I think the Criterion Core series 18 inch barrel is hard to beat.

[BrigandTwoFour]

I support the Criterion core option, but I'm curious as to the Faxon being "heat sensitive." What have you heard that gives you pause?

I ask because I've had a Faxon 18" Gunner for a few years, and it's one of my favorite rifles. Seen here:



What defines too heat sensitive to you? A pencil or light taper profile like this isn't really meant for high volumes of fire. It's meant to be carried a lot. With the Faxon specifically, the widest I've read about groups opening up once "hot" is up to about 2.5 MOA, which is well within acceptable combat rifle (or even action rifle) standards. On the other end, I've seen reports that "hot" groups opened up from 1 MOA to 1.5 MOA.

Anyway, the bottom line is that I think either the Faxon Gunner or Criterion Core would work really well.

[titsonritz]

A couple LW 18" options...
https://www.ballisticadvantage.com/1...ce-series.html
https://www.midwestindustriesinc.com...v=7516fd43adaa