Hello All,
Posted in Precision Rifles but thinking this might get more bites.

I'll start off with the facts: I am a college student so the budget is tight, but It is winter in Michigan and school is in full swing so I have a while before I will probably shoot outdoors again anyway.
My goal is to build a Sub MOA rifle shooting mag length handloads for paper between 1-300 yards. I will probably shoot for 77gr SMKs and a 1:7 twist. I am limited in range selection and skill beyond that. Weight isn't an issue as this will be a bench rifle for the majority of the time. Maybe a prone varmint rifle.

I built a Rifle some time ago, and I am stealing the upper for this build and slapping the lower on my Franklin Arms .450 Upper for a general purpose deer rifle. The upper I want to stick with is a Aero Precision M4E1 Enhanced upper and 15" MLOK Hanguard. I am building a fresh lower from a spikes forged lower I got as a gift.

My main questions are these:

PRS Cost Vs. A2?

What barrel in the 250 dollar range? I have heard CLE chambers are very nice, however most of their offerings are above my $$ range. My current upper is a 223 Wylde. Would a 5.56 Chamber be better in the long run? I have read pages and pages of reviews comparing WOA, CLE, Criterion, BA, and Faxon. My first choice right now is a 20" Larue Stealth with the Larue adjustable gas block. I also found a 4150 18" BA SPR Ops 12 barrel with a 1:7 twist ( https://www.joeboboutfitters.com/Ballistic-Advantage-18-SPR-5-56-1-7-Barrel-Rifle-p/ba-bl556020m.htm ) For $120 Shipped locally.

Lower Ideas:
Spikes Forged Lower
BCM LPK Minus FCG
LaRue MBT-2- I am open to ideas however.

Here is the Rub- I have wanted a Magpul PRS for a while, however at this point for < 300 yards would my money be better spent elsewhere and Just go with an A2?

Upper Build Ideas:
M4E1 Enhanced
PSA BCG
Vortex Viper 4-12x40, Leupold Mark 2 One Piece Mount (Already Have)

I'd go with a complete Aero Precision upper.  They come with a ballistic advantage barrel thats guaranteed sub-moa.  They're low cost and its already the upper receiver you wanted.
larue mbt is a great choice, too.

If you got the coin, the whole larue predatAR ultimate upper kit would be nice.  But the Aero upper will get the job done for about half the cost.

Sorry, idk if it was clear or not. I already have the M4E1 enhanced upper I am going to use. It was my upper for my first 223 Build but it just has a cheap PSA barrel on it

Ahh.  In that case, I'd say just grab the BA barrel if you can get the good price.   You'd have to be Annie Oakley to shoot well enough to say that a sub-moa barrel still isn't good enough.
I've got a handful of rifles using them and I have zero complaints.  They shoot better than I do.

I have one of these and I like it.

For the lower, go with a complete PSA with an upgraded Magpul stock. A lower is a lower - dont waste money in this area. Replace the trigger with the LaRue or a Rock River varmint

BCG - PSA or Toolkraft (same thing). AIM nitride is another good choice

For the barrel, consider White Oak Armament Predator or Varmint barrels. You'll be hard pressed to find any negative reviews about their barrels.

Purchase LaRue ultimate upper kit (everything part you need except for lower for $800,) then purchase a lower.

If you lack tools, check in the Michigan HTF to find someone local to help.

I have all the tools, as I have already done one build. Okay, another question though:

I've been looking at the Larue Stealth 20", WOA Pred/Varm 20", and BA offerings in a similar style. What are your thoughts on this? I was also looking at CLE Douglass barrels but it is a bit more than the other options. I really would like to push 1/2 MOA capability,  but it might be a bit much on my budget.

Or the RRA barrels?

RRA barrels are made by Wilson Arms. I have a Wilson Arms bull barrel. Its a heavy beast but an excellent choice at $220. My best 5 shot group is .65" at 100 using Hornady American Gunner (.50 a round).

I went with  the 20" Larue stealth for my SPR build. I am quite happy with it. Way more accurate than I am. (that's not saying much)

WOA Wilson or Shilen (non ratchet rifling) 20" HBAR/DCM. IIRC, $220 and $295 respectively to brand. Chamber doesn't matter much, but I favor Wylde.

If the ID of the receiver tenon is more than 0.002" over the barrel extension OD, consider bedding. More barrel nut torque is better than less; lap or shim to get in the upper end of spec.

Case neck ID 0.218"-0.221", 25gr H4895, Varget, Benchmark under 50gr VMAX for up to 200yds, and 23.5gr H4895/77gr SMK or 24gr Varget/75gr BTHP for up to 600yds. OAL 2.250".

0.5 MOA is hard to get consistently with ARs, but the above should get close.

I vote A1 or A2 stock. Depending on how bladed and longnecked you are.

Budget Precision .223

Roll of the dice.

Green Mountain or "The Company that can not be named".

Call keystone Accuracy and tell them what you want and your budget. They will send you a very accurate barrel

Do you happen to have a length to the non-ratchet shilen?

1/2MOA is a tall order.

You're going to need to up your barrel budget a little bit if you want to be certain you get a barrel that will perform that well.

Not seeing them right now.

I have a Wilson Combat barrel. Not in a 223, but on my 6mm Creedmoor.  It's been a great barrel, very accurate.  Seems to be a fast barrel as velocities are pretty high. The profile is good too. Good deal right now at $230-$280 on sale.

That would be a bit much for semi auto rifle of most any kind, and a real stretch (i.e.fantasy) for a DI AR platform. While an AR can be a relatively precision rifle, a 1/2moa standard is just not a reality.

Thats fair. I suppose ultimately I would need to be on top of my part every time as well. Would 3/4 MOA-1 MOA be obtainable?
Probably not beyond 600 yards and most often under 300.

Yes. At further distance, expect it to creep slightly vertically (standard deviation of velocity) and more so horizontally (windage).

SFC Brandon Green stayed inside the 2 MOA 10-ring on the 600yd MR-1 target during the President's 100 shootoff this past summer.