Okay, I'm hooked and saving my Ben Franklins and studying/reading/learning.  A long time ago I had a pre-ban CAR, and I know that this time I want a post-ban flat-top scoped tack driver.  I know that most of my shooting will be done at 100-200 yards, but I'd like to be able to shoot at up to 600 with some modicum of accuracy.  I'm thinking a fluted barrel for the weight reduction.

If I am willing to sink some major bucks into the barrel (Krieger or Wilson or ??:
1. What is the best group to expect at 100/200/600 from a 16 inch barrel?
2. What is the best group to expect at 100/200/600 from a 20 inch barrel?
3. What are the best barrels (within reasonable cost)?

Assume a free-float tube and a good trigger.

Thanks, in advance, for all the help!  This is a great forum!

Barrel length acts less on accuracy than you may think. The 223 was designed by Stoner around a 20" barrel. I've found 16" too short: a lot of noise and a big ball of fire as compared to 20". Not friendly at the range! This comes mainly for un-burned powder exiting the barrel. Accuracy on 16" with a scope is quite good though. A longer barrel gives better (more) speed. I'd recommend you stick to 20". For a commercial 20" barrel, Olympic Arms SUM Barrels are nice in my opinion. I'd also recommend a Harris bi-pod. Fluting will reduce weight a little  and cost bucks. No real other gain (except increased cooling surface, but I doesn't sound like you'll be blasting away) - spend more money on the barrel rather than on fluting. If you want e real nice barrel, try out www.Metalcraft-AR15.com. They have very nice Keiger barrels and can provide 2 stage Jewell triggers.

Lots to read; [url]ammo-oracle.com[/url]

Compass Lake has Kreiger barrels as well...you may want to compare prices at several places.  At some point, I'm gonna put a Kreiger on my formerly Armalite upper.  (I don't know what to call that upper now...it's still got the Armalite barrel on a RRA receiver...it's a MUTT lol.)

A lot of the local highpower shooters use Kreiger barrels, or complete CLE uppers with Kreiger barrels.  Those guys are quite serious about their equipment, so Kreiger must be pretty good.  

Fulton Armory guarantees 1/2" out of their Kreiger barreled uppers, if I'm not mistaken, so by all means, benched, scoped, and well broken in, I would expect you'd be able to get 1/2" groups pretty consistently with a match trigger, and a good float tube.  

I don't know that Wilson barrels are in the same league as Kreiger...you may want to do some more exploring on that.  CLE uses Douglas barrels along with Kreiger, so I would think Douglas is another barrel for you to consider.  

Thanks, Fenian!  I looked at the Compass Lake website, and their stuff looks pretty impressive.  Gotta save a bunch more Ben Franklins, but the stack is growing.  Meanwhile I'll just sulk in my corner (of the range) and play with my 10/22 for a few more months.  

Still can't decide between 16 and 20 inch.  Maybe I'll have to build up more than one AR... one for home defense, one for super accuracy... OK.  The first one has to be for accuracy!

Thanks for the positive input on the Krieger barrels.

Keith

If your first build will be for accuracy/competition, then I would go with at least a 20" barrel.  This is not for accuracy though, but is instead for the added velocity. This will help to flatten the trajectory of any given round and will make it easier to hit those 600yd targets with the least amount of holdover/adjustment for range.

BTW here is a link to a free ballistics program (if you don't already use one) where you can put in the different velocities for approx barrel lengths and see the difference extra velocity will make.

[url]http://www.huntingnut.com/pointblank.html[/url]

hope this helps!

Tex78

shorter barrels do have some accuracy advantages over longer ones. When the firearms is fired, the round cause the barrel to "whip" around at the end. This is called barrel harmonics. Shorter barrels naturally do not whip as much as longer ones, because they don't bend as much at the muzzle. At close ranges, shorter barrels can be just as (or more) accurate than longer barrels.

However, a good long barrel can be very accurate also, if its harmonics are consistent (thus it will group consistently). This is why people free float barrels, because free floating doesn't mess with the natural harmonics of the barrel. Moreover, A longer barrel is better for long range accuracy, because it gives the bullet more velocity and stabilized it better. This obviously makes it shoot flatter and more stable.

In my not-so-expert opinion, go with the longer barrel. You can always use a little velocity.