Posted: 5/23/2010 10:13:11 AM EDT
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I'm starting out in Highpower competition. I currently have a run-of-the-mill AR15A2 with a 1-9 HBAR barrel. For competition I've upgraded it with a Rock River free-float tube, and had a good two-stage trigger installed (the guy that makes the trigger is a member of my club, and gives discounts to club members plus will do the install for free).
I am fairly competent at doing "gunplumbing" on AR15s - i.e: removing and reinstalling barrels, etc. I have all of the necessary tools for doing builds, but nothing that really involves cutting metal except for a receiver lapping tool. A club member offered to sell me an 8-twist match barrel at a decent price, and he also thinks he has a 1/4-minute rear sight that he will be looking to get rid of. My plan was originally to shoot my 1-9 twist barrel this year, my first year of competing, then for next season buy a White Oak Service Rifle match upper. Considering that I can buy this like-new barrel (only 20 rounds of break-in ammo through it) at a good price, I am temped to just go ahead and keep upgrading my existing rifle. So, in the opinion of the folks here, can a reasonably competent amateur, using bolt-on parts, construct a decently performing match rifle? Besides careful assembling of the parts, what "magic" do professional match rifle builders perform on their rifles that I can't do at home n my garage? |
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Yes, you can do any of the required upgrades with the possible exception of rechambering/throating the barrel as a Wylde chamber. "8 inch twist Match Barrel" is a voodoo term and means nothing. What brand is the barrel? What chamber and throat? Stainless or chrome-moly (this is for info only since they are equivalent)? Now the big question: Why would anyone buy and then unload a barrel with only 20 rounds through it????
What brand/make is the 1/4X1/4 minute rear sight? There are some junk ones out there. The Tippee rear sight comes to mind. I bought one of those and it fell apart. When I sent it back, I was out my money AND the sight. The locally produced match two-stage trigger sounds interesting. Try one out to see how you like it. Also, try someone else's Geissle, Jewell, or Rock River Match triggers to see what is available and how it compares. |
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I bet it's a X-Treme trigger.
The only voodoo is in putting a quality chamber and crown on the barrel and that has already been done. Beyond that it's mostly just screwing them together. I'm a little bit suspicious of used barrels unless I know the pedigree and the person selling it. B |
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The barrel was purchased by a member of the same club that I am a member of. He bought it with the intention of shooting heavy bullets. After installing it and breaking it in, he decided that he'd be better served by a 7-twist barrel. He says it stabilizes 80's fine, but he wants to shoot 90's. It's a Wilson barrel.
The sight is a Smith Enterprises. He says it's 1/4-minute windage and 1/3-minute elevation. He's not said if he's selling the sight. |
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Quoted:
After installing it and breaking it in, he decided that he'd be better served by a 7-twist barrel. He says it stabilizes 80's fine, but he wants to shoot 90's. You might want to advise your "expert" friend that most people that want to shoot 90 gr bullets in 5.56mm have to go to 6.5" twist, not 7". Also, a number of people that played with 90 gr bullets have gone back to 80 gr bullets. |
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Yes you can assemble a match winning rifle no problem.
Good barrel, floating good sights good trigger good ammo That will do it. The AR performs. Since it's your first year, i would shoot what you've got for a year. Then put a proven barrel on your rifle. I prefer "single cut rifled" barrels. |
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Quoted:
just for the record i still have a Tippie Sight and it has been a great sight since day one. Hello John. The one I got had the hood and it's matching threaded aperture done in two different thread pitches. The hood was harder, so the aperture threads were torn out when it was forced in. I got it back to Tippee while he was attached to the MTU at Ft Dix for repair/replacement/refund. He skipped out and I got nothing. E.King |
There were guys that were out more than just a sight.
Assemble an upper with the 1/8 just for matches and use the 1/9 for practice. If you do this right, you'll rack up rounds pretty quickly on the practice upper. Most of your practice is likely to be at <300, so the 1/9 twist won't hurt you (you prbably wont notice the difference). At 600 use your 1/8 upper. OR, sell me the 1/9 barrel cheap and I'll build a practice upper, instead of shooting my WOA 1/7 all the time  .
Roy |