6mm ARC barrel recommendation

[Ollies930]

I was hoping that the members on this forum could steer me in the right direction regarding a barrel for an AR15 platform. The goal is to have a rifle that is capable of reaching out past 1200 yards with as much accuracy as possible, for events like the Utah milk jug challenge. Since I do not reload, I am limited to factory loadings, which I understand are not terrible. A barrel length of 22" (rifle lenght +1 or +2 gas system) with a 1-7 or 1-7.5 twist seems right. As for the barrel rifling, a 5r or 3r would seem great. It is my understanding that this type of rifling helps with velocity, reduces bullet deformation, keeps the bullet jacket more intact and reduces fouling of the barrel substantially. The barrel material should probably be 416 stainless, that has been nitrided. It is my understanding that 416 stainless barrels machine better and can therfore be manufactured to more uniform specs and the nitriding will aid barrel life greatly.
Having said all that, is my thinking flawed on any of these points or should I look for something different? And is the barrel I am looking for available in the $400 range? Originally I was looking at Douglas or Criterion from CLE, but neither are 5r or 3r rifling from what I can find anyhow. I would love to be able to purchase a Lilja or Schneider, but those are out of my price range.
Any and all advice or criticism is welcome.

 

[alf]

I would get too hung up on the rifling, a good barrel is a good barrel.

I bought one of these last year and it was an honest 1/2 MOA shooter with 87 Berger VLD's.

I was not interested in any of the heavier offerings available, but I have no doubts that it would shoot them just as well.

They won't tell you, but rumor has it that they are Shilen barrels, which will beat the hell out of the majority of the mass produced tubes out there.

Rainier Arms UltraMatch MOD2 6mm ARC Rifle Barrel - 22\

Rainier Arms UltraMatch MOD2 6mm ARC Rifle Barrel - 22\

www.rainierarms.com

 

[Retired shooter]

Maybe someone will enlighten us as to a supply of 6.5 grendel brass, and if we are extremely lucky find 6 ARC ammunition and or brass. If I get lucky finding ammo or brass I will be buying lottery tickets also.!

Any one care to share information.

Happy shooting
Retired shooter

 

[LVLAaron]

Don't sweat the rifling, number of grooves, groove type, etc. Yes the "r" type barrels clean up a little easier, but... it's not a big deal.

I'd get whatever compass lake can provide in your budget. They're A list barrel makers.

Lap your upper and bed the barrel. It'll make a big difference at that range. Feel free to PM me. Happy to help.

 

[Kurz]

Maybe someone will enlighten us as to a supply of 6.5 grendel brass, and if we are extremely lucky find 6 ARC ammunition and or brass. If I get lucky finding ammo or brass I will be buying lottery tickets also.!

Any one care to share information.

Happy shooting
Retired shooter

Some ammo but very little brass is available online. Brownells and Lucky Gunner have good prices with LG being slightly less expensive. You're still going to pay $1.40 to $1.50 each cartridge even in a volume (200) purchase.

I actually took the time to visit this competition website to read the rules. Well, there aren't any rules, just a list of competitors and their rifle/cartridge selections. A young lady made a first round hit with her .243 Win. rifle. The rest of the list had cartridges significantly more powerful than your 6mmARC choice. This is not to say that given perfect conditions, you might get a hit 1,200 yards. But, in my opinion, you need some more power if you want to enjoy your challenge. Your self-imposed limits of this cartridge, barrel length and platform make some tough road blocks to get around. Who knows? You might get lucky and hit the jug!

Enjoy!

 

[Ollies930]

ALF, thanks for the input on Rainier, I have tried to call them for more info, but have had no luck yet.

Retired shooter, if you go to ammoseek.com, you will find lots of 6mm ARC ammo, listed by price, but no brass.

LVLAaron, I was considering the Criterion or Douglas from CLE already, just want more info about those barrels, rifling, finish, etc. As for lapping the upper receiver, I always do that, but I like to use BCM upper receivers and they are a very tight fit (they need to be heated to insert barrel), so I do not put any Loctite in there. But you are absolutely correct of course, it is a must do unless you do not care about anything past 50 yards.

Kurz, I know that it is not going to be easy with a 6mm ARC, but if you look at the people listed on the 1500 yard side, there are a couple of 308s listed (maybe they forgot to put magnum in there) and a 6.5 Grendel AR. It just seems like it would be a fun challenge to build an AR that could reach out that far accurately. And the 6mm ARC is almost cheating compared to the 6.5 Grendel. Aside from that, they allow 10 shots to walk it in.

 

[Kurz]

It just seems like it would be a fun challenge to build an AR that could reach out that far accurately.

I couldn't agree more basically. 'Not going to be easy' is the operative phrase.

but I like to use BCM upper receivers and they are a very tight fit (they need to be heated to insert barrel)

Quite a few years ago, I was using POF uppers with their extensions when building 6.5 Creedmoor or .308 Win. ARs. The uppers/extensions combination was tight which required a little heat or some mild persuasion to get them to seat correctly. These were always more accurate when compared to the slightly loose fit of some other parts. Unfortunately, POF went through some financial problems and I could no longer get those uppers.

 

[86cookiemonster]

both my dad and I have ER Shaw barrels on ours.

22" medium weight barrels, shooting 1/2" groups with the Hornady black ammo. I would recommend them to anyone.

 

[Rocketvapor]

A 6ARC to shoot reaching out past 1200 yards, with an AR?
Your criteria of 22" barrel, and Factory loads, is going to mean the best B.C. bullets.
Light bullets, 1/2 inch groups, just don't speak long range potential.

You will need to be lucky to get 2750 to 2800 with factory 100 plus grain bullets in a gas gun.
More barrel might help. Think 26" minimum.
Reloading could get you there, if you don't overpressure your reloads.

In the bargain barrel category, wait for the next sale @ X-Caliber (20% off)
6ARC, 1:7.7, 3R (or 5R) 24"/ 26", heavy profile, with a 12 week lead time.

 

[86cookiemonster]

A 6ARC to shoot reaching out past 1200 yards, with an AR?
Your criteria of 22" barrel, and Factory loads, is going to mean the best B.C. bullets.
Light bullets, 1/2 inch groups, just don't speak long range potential.

You will need to be lucky to get 2750 to 2800 with factory 100 plus grain bullets in a gas gun.
More barrel might help. Think 26" minimum.
Reloading could get you there, if you don't overpressure your reloads.

In the bargain barrel category, wait for the next sale @ X-Caliber (20% off)
6ARC, 1:7.7, 3R (or 5R) 24"/ 26", heavy profile, with a 12 week lead time.

Fair, they do perform at the longer ranges as well.
I was shooting at 1,000 yards with it, walked the plates down from a 16X16, 12x12, 10x10, then a 6x8. no misses.

I don't really have any place to shoot further than that close by.

 

[Retired shooter]

Thank you to all, for the information!

We shall see what happens.

Happy shooting to all

 

[Phil C.]

I was hoping that the members on this forum could steer me in the right direction regarding a barrel for an AR15 platform. The goal is to have a rifle that is capable of reaching out past 1200 yards with as much accuracy as possible, for events like the Utah milk jug challenge. Since I do not reload, I am limited to factory loadings, which I understand are not terrible. A barrel length of 22" (rifle lenght +1 or +2 gas system) with a 1-7 or 1-7.5 twist seems right. As for the barrel rifling, a 5r or 3r would seem great. It is my understanding that this type of rifling helps with velocity, reduces bullet deformation, keeps the bullet jacket more intact and reduces fouling of the barrel substantially. The barrel material should probably be 416 stainless, that has been nitrided. It is my understanding that 416 stainless barrels machine better and can therfore be manufactured to more uniform specs and the nitriding will aid barrel life greatly.
Having said all that, is my thinking flawed on any of these points or should I look for something different? And is the barrel I am looking for available in the $400 range? Originally I was looking at Douglas or Criterion from CLE, but neither are 5r or 3r rifling from what I can find anyhow. I would love to be able to purchase a Lilja or Schneider, but those are out of my price range.
Any and all advice or criticism is welcome.

I bought the Proof Research SS 18" barrel. This was one of the first barrels on the market after 6 ARC announcement. Shooting 90gn. ELDx fantastic @ 2715fps SD 28 with 27.9gn RL-15. I married this barrel to a JP LMOS bolt carrier and the enhanced bolt. A VLTOR upper Diamond Tech adjustable trigger and adjustable gas block = butter!

 

[Phil C.]

ALF, thanks for the input on Rainier, I have tried to call them for more info, but have had no luck yet.

Retired shooter, if you go to ammoseek.com, you will find lots of 6mm ARC ammo, listed by price, but no brass.

LVLAaron, I was considering the Criterion or Douglas from CLE already, just want more info about those barrels, rifling, finish, etc. As for lapping the upper receiver, I always do that, but I like to use BCM upper receivers and they are a very tight fit (they need to be heated to insert barrel), so I do not put any Loctite in there. But you are absolutely correct of course, it is a must do unless you do not care about anything past 50 yards.

Kurz, I know that it is not going to be easy with a 6mm ARC, but if you look at the people listed on the 1500 yard side, there are a couple of 308s listed (maybe they forgot to put magnum in there) and a 6.5 Grendel AR. It just seems like it would be a fun challenge to build an AR that could reach out that far accurately. And the 6mm ARC is almost cheating compared to the 6.5 Grendel. Aside from that, they allow 10 shots to walk it in.

I have been using Ammoseek since covid. Mainly for primmers. What works is get up @ 5am check, I have found that Companies like midsouth and Brownells add inv to their sites really early 1k per order limit but I have gotten away using 2 different email accounts, haha!

 

[David Milisock]

I was hoping that the members on this forum could steer me in the right direction regarding a barrel for an AR15 platform. The goal is to have a rifle that is capable of reaching out past 1200 yards with as much accuracy as possible, for events like the Utah milk jug challenge. Since I do not reload, I am limited to factory loadings, which I understand are not terrible. A barrel length of 22" (rifle lenght +1 or +2 gas system) with a 1-7 or 1-7.5 twist seems right. As for the barrel rifling, a 5r or 3r would seem great. It is my understanding that this type of rifling helps with velocity, reduces bullet deformation, keeps the bullet jacket more intact and reduces fouling of the barrel substantially. The barrel material should probably be 416 stainless, that has been nitrided. It is my understanding that 416 stainless barrels machine better and can therfore be manufactured to more uniform specs and the nitriding will aid barrel life greatly.
Having said all that, is my thinking flawed on any of these points or should I look for something different? And is the barrel I am looking for available in the $400 range? Originally I was looking at Douglas or Criterion from CLE, but neither are 5r or 3r rifling from what I can find anyhow. I would love to be able to purchase a Lilja or Schneider, but those are out of my price range.
Any and all advice or criticism is welcome.

My research on the 6MM ARC and experience with one actual shooter suggests that getting a fully assembled upper with a matched bolt and barrel. It appears that the process provides a more consistent rifle. The gas system choice is properly made. There are many videos of steel shooters at 1,000 yards+ available.

My rifle was purchased with those concepts but was a general purpose rifle, it shoots 1/2" with factory Hornady 105 at 100 yards fron a 16" Ballistic Advantage heavy stainless steel barrel. It doesn't make hitting man sized target at 600 with iron sights wind proof but it is hight wind resistant.

After I got mine a fellow at my club got his, I believe he got a 22" or a 24" and I believe it'sa BallisticAdvantage also. I shot with him a few times and the last time we talked he just got back from shooting steel out to 1,200 yards and was happy.

Both our rifles are Aero Precision M4 E's. I do reload and in my opinion an AR in 6MM ARC needs to be built right and loaded for correctly or you may as well go another direction.

 

[Raptor]

Had a surprising event happen to me yesterday out load testing some 90gr Bergers. I was using 28grs of varget and I sheard off a bolt lug!! Could not believe this happened!! I can't remember the brand of the bolt, but I know it was not a top name one. I didn't figure I would have a problem since I never go over the recommended load data. I even shied away from Hornady data because it ran on the hot side esp with Varget. I ordered a JP bolt last night from Brownells so I hope that will cure the problem....

 

[David Milisock]

Had a surprising event happen to me yesterday out load testing some 90gr Bergers. I was using 28grs of varget and I sheard off a bolt lug!! Could not believe this happened!! I can't remember the brand of the bolt, but I know it was not a top name one. I didn't figure I would have a problem since I never go over the recommended load data. I even shied away from Hornady data because it ran on the hot side esp with Varget. I ordered a JP bolt last night from Brownells so I hope that will cure the problem....

Interesting, your load is very near maximum according to Hornady data for the 90 grain GMX, the 95 SST and 100 interlock.

Which 90 grain Berger bullet did you use?

Would you share details of your rifle build please?

 

[Rocketvapor]

About how many rounds?

 

[Raptor]

Areo Precision upper, Proof 18" barrel, probably close to 1000rds on it. Crono was 2713 on the LVR and 2664 with the Varget load!! Bullets are Berger 90gr Target...

Interesting, your load is very near maximum according to Hornady data for the 90 grain GMX, the 95 SST and 100 interlock.

Which 90 grain Berger bullet did you use?

Would you share details of your rifle build please?

 

[David Milisock]

Areo Precision upper, Proof 18" barrel, probably close to 1000rds on it. Crono was 2713 on the LVR and 2664 with the Varget load!! Bullets are Berger 90gr Target...

Close to the line with LeverEvolution and over the line with Varget.

 

[David Milisock]

Areo Precision upper, Proof 18" barrel, probably close to 1000rds on it. Crono was 2713 on the LVR and 2664 with the Varget load!! Bullets are Berger 90gr Target...

Was this the Ballistic Advantage barrel?