AR 15 barrels

[Pyscodog]

Here's the rifle. ZRO Delta, MagPul stock and CMC trigger that breaks at 2lbs.

 

[tobnpr]

Service Rifle shooters use 4.5X scopes and haven't seen a difference in group size in MOA.

Not a fair comparison.
OP is not a competitive shooter...

 

[jelenko]

Not a fair comparison.
OP is not a competitive shooter...

Right. But, many service rifle shooters are new to the sport.
From my own experience, the difference between 1 1/2 and 1/2 MOA groups is not the difference in magnification regardless of level of expertise.
Actually, for beginners, the high mag may actually produce larger groups due to trying to hold harder.

 

[atfdlocal4020]

No.
If he shoots 1/2" groups at 50 yards, it would have been a 1" group at one hundred.

After it leaves the barrel the bullet is unaffected by any thing the shooter did.

Exactly. You just proved my point. The group will be smaller if he shoots 1/2" at 50.

 

[atfdlocal4020]

Right. But, many service rifle shooters are new to the sport.
From my own experience, the difference between 1 1/2 and 1/2 MOA groups is not the difference in magnification regardless of level of expertise.
Actually, for beginners, the high mag may actually produce larger groups due to trying to hold harder.

I respectfully disagree.

 

[round]

Maybe I missed it, what twist is the barrel and are you using reloads or factory ?

 

[LVLAaron]

AR's are hard for a bunch of reasons. Far more complicated than a bolt gun.

My two cents:
* If you want to shoot groups; single load. Skip the mag.
* Bipod discipline. If you load the bipod, it can bend things and has a huge impact on POI.
* Upper/Lower fit gets more attention than deserved.
* Ignition is key, just like on a bolt gun. I really like trigger tech cartridge triggers. The springs are TIGHT and the triggers are smooth (strong, consistent, ignition)
* There are more than you can count barrel makers out there, and everyone says they're all great. It's a cultural thing in the AR world. No one wants to say they can't shoot groups / a lot of these guys shoot paper plates at 25 yards and say their gun is awesome. A lot of these guys are pistol hobbyists who are happy to hit paper, thet buy an AR and are blown away that their new toy can shoot 2 moa groups.
* The best bang for your buck barrel, is a WOA Varmint barrel.
* The best barrel you can get is a White Oak Precision (These are Krieger or Bartlein barrels)

The absolute best best barrel is one that your qualified gunsmith makes.


Long story short... get a WOA Varmint barrel and bed it. Or have a custom barrel made. Not sure many AR people want to spend 900 bucks on a barrel/smith work, but I assure you, for how many rounds a good 223 barrel lasts, it is worth it.

 

[LVLAaron]

^ Great barrels are practically free (compared to wasting ammo, testing, frustration, replacement, etc)

 

[Pyscodog]

I don't shoot off a bi-pod. I either use a Wichita front rest or a bull bag and a protector rear bag. For the AR, I actually prefer the bull bag.

 

[Walt Krafft]

I don't shoot off a bi-pod. I either use a Wichita front rest or a bull bag and a protector rear bag. For the AR, I actually prefer the bull bag.

If you are used to shooting with a light grip on the gun, try a very firm grip holding the gun down in your bags. All the moving parts of an AR need to be constrained.

 

[Jeff Porter]

I am a weirdo but I can actually shoot tighter groups from the sling than off of a bench with an AR. They just don’t like the rests and bags in my experience.

FWIW - Groups in an AR with 4.5x are not significantly larger than those shot with 15-20x for me. Larger but not by much.