Was doing my homework by searching the site for information on alignment rods outside of the very expensive brands offered at $70 or so.  The thread I found talked about popular rods from amazon but they seem to be no longer offered.  The thread went on to talk about McMaster Carr and suggested they were very good and inexpensive.  Before I order one for my 223 and another for the blackout, wanted to ck w you to see if this item is still recommended for alignment purposes.

Originally posed by stevetx77 or effinpig
McMaster-Carr Price Remarks Fit
0.2120 22LR 8893K191 $4.75 Not confirmed yet N/A
0.2188 5.56mm 8893K193 $4.30 Confirmed in AAC 5.56mm Upper Easy
0.2969 308REM / 300BLK 8893K219 $5.60 Confirmed in SPS Tactical .308 & AAC 300 BLK Upper Tight in SPS Tactical / Good in 300 BLK
0.3020 7.62x39??? 8893K221 $5.96 Not confirmed yet N/A

Good info

I would also be interested in 38Special/.357, 9mm, 45ACP if anyone has the info.

8893K191- works for .22 -very small amount of play but works just fine

8893K193 - works for .223 / 5.56 - nice and tight, pretty much exact fit- fit in everything I tried except a brand new unfired BCM barrel

8893K219- works .300 blk/ .308 - tiny, tiny bit of play- works perfect

8893K231- works 9mm- small amount of play but still works just fine

Sweet, good to know. Thanks!

For rods with a little play in a particular barrel, a single wrap or two of Scotch tape (being careful to not overlap the ends) can noticeably tighten the fit, in addition to protecting the bore.
Don't wrap the entire rod; just one wrap at the end, and another close to the muzzle.

So it sounds like these rods remain the preferred choice as an alternative to the high dollar rods?  I ordered both, inexpensive at $11 plus whatever shipping is.

I have a collection of all the common bore sizes. I found the McMaster Carr drill rods to be pretty hit or miss in terms of being straight.  I cut all mine in half, and picked the straighter of the two halves, based on rolling on a sheet of glass.

Ok. Hope I get lucky.  They are in route.  2 day ship and about $21 delivered