I'm curious if anyone knows.  Do they vary or do they consistently use one length?  I know Jerry Miculek uses (maybe used) an 18" length barrel with a rifle length gas system.

Thanks!

18 inch and 16 inch There has been a shift towards 16 though for more maneuverability.

Some of the Armalite guys are using 14 inch.  

Most you'll see are 16 and 18. I like 16 personally.

It depends, or should I say shooters make it depend on the typical ranges as which your local matches are conducted.

There has been somewhat of a trend to 18" for the longer range courses of fire.

I stuck with 16 but only because I didn't want to hassle with pinning a comp on a 14.5.

IOW I don't think it makes that much difference, especially for an amateur such as myself.

I'm by no means a pro, but my first introduction to organized matches other than early Naples Swamp Romp were the North Carolina Tactical Matches Kyle Lamb put on the the mid 90s...he shot reasonable scenarios that necessitated securely attached ammo...in and under autos with rifle and shotgun... I shot the first match with a 26" Rem1100 and was looking for a hacksaw on the way home...even the Ft Benning matches starting in 2005 the long range was realistic for a 5.56 at around 418m for a 4x scope and good ammo, and doable with a 16" mid....I had a 12th place finish on the long range stage in 2009 at age 62... the advent of Three Gun Nation changed the look of the shotguns...as others have commented, depends on where you shoot... down here a 16" mid with good ammo works, and I'm ready for another of Kyle's Ford Tiempo props

Watch 3gun Nation, No one is using 18 inch guns any more, 16 inch is the new norm.
10 years ago heavy barreled 18inch guns like JP rifles were hip. Now shorter lighter is in for better maneuverability
Daniel Horner the winningest shooter in 3gun even rocks a 14.5 a lot of the time.

pic Duskin 3gun 2016  

I hope Daniel Defense follows this trend and releases their V7 and V11 PRO versions in 16".

What was never cool is becoming cool. Before it was 18/20 and 16 was looked down upon. Times have changed.

It's kind of interesting that the rifle barrels have been getting shorter and the shotgun barrels are getting longer.

Depends on the match, and who they are sponsored by. Most matches don't reach out that far to need an 18" barrel. Go to the matches were they do, and you'll see a bunch of 18" rifles. Go to matches inside of 300, and you'll see a lot of shorter barrels. I have an 18" barrel because I use my rifle for DMR/SPR matches that go out past 600.

Outlaw is far different from 3 Gun Nation.


And some matches throw in some targets out around 5/600 yards.


Consistency is key.  18" was used solely for rifle length gas for a softer shooting rifle.  16" mid gas is fine too.  I don't like a pinned comp but admit that the 13.5 pinned Armalite would be sweet for bay type matches.


It's the Indian, not the arrow.

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I think your right up to a certain point. Skill is king, but having the rifle and gear we have today is very important to the optimizing of that skill. Just think, instead of a hi-cap AR, your using a Garand.



 

Ibjt in before Jesse tischauserereser or however you spell his name

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