I do think its ridiculous, just like a big ass spoiler on the back of a honda civic. IMO its extra money spent that would be better spent on practice ammo for most. To each his own. This is why I carry LMT - some people want it, and I'll sell it to them. Its not a bad thing, but I really think its silly when people replace their perfectly good 4140, 1:9 barrel and rifle barrel extension, with a 4150, 1:7, with M4 barrel extension. I also get a good chuckle every time they feel the need to justify the upgrade....
I get a few emails a week from people asking about upgrading, and want my opinion. I would love to sell them a new LMT upper, but I wouldn't recommend it.
Do you really have a false sense of security that you feel you are stacking the odds in your favor? There are a million other things you can do to "stack the odds in your favor".
When ElQueda to comes parachuting in, and I propel a .55gr projectile from a 1:9, 4140 steel barrel, fed through a rifle barrel extension, into a vital organ - they will be just as dead as if they were hit with a 77gr from 1:7 4150.
Too many variables to argue the twist/bullet weight IMO. I have a customer who comes in with a walker. 6’ 4” 250lbs. His daughter was getting beat up by her boyfriend. He threw him off to receive a FMJ 9mm, into his armpit, which bounced off his spine and lodged between a couple ribs. That was the end of him being any threat to the boyfriend, and he spent the next 12 weeks in the hospital.
Would I ever carry FMJ 9mm in my carry pistol? No.
But my point is, add all the variables of shot placement into the mix and when talking barrel steel/twisy it’s a moot point with an AR.
If it weights more, fragments or not the point of impact is what is the deciding factor.
I'm generalizing here - 1:9 VS 1:7 16-20" barrels
If you have a 1:9 10.5", a 77gr. it would be a bad idea, a 1:7 10.5" 77gr. would be the way to go - but 99.9% of AR owners here are'nt running escort duty in Iraq