can anyone help me ? cant decide between bm m4a3 pre ban or cmmg/dpms, 1:9 or 1:7? money really not issue.. i shoot alot with different loads, and want it to be reliable and  to handle abuse well. any input on this dilema i have would be greatly appreciated...
         
                   meat.

       gob bless our brave troops in iraq!!

Go with 1/7!

I'm getting one for my BM carbine when this barrel gets shot out.

1st Gom 1/7"
2nd BM will probably have a huge delay in shipping CMMG will get them out right away, good guys...
I almost bought their DPMS barrels, but, I believe the front sight assembly was cast, so I waited for a BM.  just my .02c.  Lots o' luck.  S2

meateater,

I went through this same problem when I was setting up my new upper.

I would say to definitely go with a 1/7 barrel!  The 1/7 will shoot anything the 1/9 can and it will let you step up to the good heavier stuff like the excellent 77 gr loadings.

IMHO, the accuracy you loose with the 1/7 when using the lighter bullets will be unnoticable but you'll definitely notice the accuracy loss with the heavier loads when using the 1/9.

If Bushmaster made a 16" 1/7 M4 barrel, and had it in stock, I would go with them but since they don't CMMG has an excellent alternative.

Yes, the CMMG/DPMS has a cast front sight but  you can get Steve at ADCO to replace it with a forged one for $65.  I would highly recommend this update to keep the upper mil-spec.

As with everything there seems to be a trade off.  The Bushmaster with forged front sight a 1/9 twist and no M4 feed ramps[:|] or CMMG with the cast front sight a 1/7 twist and M4 feed ramps[:|]...  

I felt the 1/9 twist was more of an issue than the cast front sight.  The M4 feed ramps is also a plus for the CMMG upper and will help with reliability.

Going with the CMMG will cost a bit more due to replacing the sight but you will have a mil-spec barrel and have it sooner than waiting for Bushmaster to make a 16", 1/7 M4 barrel[%|].

If you'd like some info on the CMMG upper check out my experience with the one I purchased.  See links below.

[url=http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=3&f=12&t=162739] CMMG M4 project notes and pics.[/url]

[url=http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=3&f=12&t=164401] CMMG upper reliability testing.[/url]

I wonder why Bushmaster never makes 16" 1/7 barrels...

BM 14.5" 1/7 barrel is not a regularly produced item too!

I asked Jerrod at Bushmaster about 16" 1/7 and he basically told me they had no interest to make one at this time.  I think Bushmaster feels the demand is not there...[BD]

Add the 20" 1/7 to your not regularly produced list too!

I thought the 14.5" 1/7 was a regular stock item?

Get both. (I did)