I too thought about this when picking parts for my SBR. On my 14.5 and 16" guns I have 13" handguards. I chose to go that route not only for hand placement but for barrel coverage. I didn't see any need to leave excess barrel hangin out there, and I utilize that extra handguard on barracades and when shooting on the bench. I toyed with hand placement, and while the outstretched hand/arm on the 13" rail works fine, I often found that I would instinctively return to a closer hand position. I ended up with a vert grip on the 13" rail as a handstop, but not as far out as alot of the cool kids do these days. I use the DD fixed front sight because it doesn't bother me and seems to dissapear with a scope, so if I don't need the flip up front sight I'll utilize the simpler, cheaper and tougher fixed.
With the 11.5" barrel on the SBR I choose to go with the old school cap and ring setup and run a GI handguard or MOE. As i have found that support hand position isn't as critical for me as it is for some, I am just fine with the shorter guards along with a MOE vert grip. They may not be in style any more, but who gives a rip they work for me. I went with the fixed front sight because I wanted a gun that I could toss around and not have to worry about something getting knocked loose.
"Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote." -Benjamin Franklin
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