
Originally Posted by
Mr. Goodtimes
I think to a degree it depends on how light the profile. Doesn't the SR-15 have a LW profile barrel?
I've not mic'd one, but to my eye, next to my DD LW, the SR-15 is a little thicker, so I'd call it a mid-profile.
In regards to the OP's question: I think people get way too wrapped around the axle about accuracy in a fighting rifle; I know, I used to be one of them. Here's what happens, we start to look at purchasing components or complete rifles, and we want the best. Buy once, cry once, right? Anyway, we dig into the specs and before you know it, we've got the mostest awesomest baddest assest rifle ever. Then, we put a sight on it that limits our potential accuracy purely based opon repeatable sight picture to 2MOA @ the least (usually 4 MOA). Then, unless all your shooting happens off the bench (and if this is the case, build a freakin' bench gun, not a RDS'd AR) you pick the gun up and shoot it, often while moving, seeking cover/concealment, different positions, etc...and we haven't even talked about what ammo you're running.
Now, I'm not saying to throw accuracy out the window, but it certainly should not rank #1 in terms of requirements for a fighting-type carbine. If your requirements are for continuous full-auto fire, buy a freakin' belt fed. Otherwise, a lightweight barreled AR will do everything you need it to and much more comfortably than other barrel profiles. FWIW, once I established my zero at my recent Vickers class I put roughly 400 rnds through my LW DD barrel and every target on every drill was clean. This was 4-10 shot groups per drill @ ranges from 7 to 25yds, off-hand, moving, against a timer, iron sights only. The black zone was 8". Is that super-precision? No. Did other people with magnified optics and heavier-profiled barrels drop more shots than I did? You bet.
To clarify, this is not to brag about my shooting ability, because an 8" group isn't really much to brag about, but rather to make the point that the benefits of the LW barrel far outweigh any drawbacks (and I don't really see any based on my needs/use of a carbine.)
Semper Paratus Certified AR15 Armorer
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