Quoted: Lumpy thanks, I edited my post while you were replying. I am weighing the advantages vs disadvantages of the extra metal out toward the muzzle-- extra protection vs weight/handling. Love to see a pic of an 18in barrel with a 9 inch forend; I am planning to remove the 13.2 on my 18in Noveske and replace it with a 9in, saving about 4 ounces out near the muzzle. My current setup works great from a static setup, but feels muzzle heavy when handling. Talk me out of it!
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Replace the 13.2 with a DD 12.0 instead... You'll still shave of 4.6 ounces and protect yourself from the heat at the same time.
I don't mean insult on anyones very nice looking build, but I don't like the look of a 9" forend and 9" of barrel sticking out. It looks "wrong" in the same way that a 16" barrel with carbine gas system looks "wrong".
I also don't think the "weight savings" arguement holds water in these situations. If you go with medium-heavy barrels, longer barrels, etc. then all of a sudden think "light weight" for one item, you're not really doing yourself justice with the build, and probably didn't quite work out the best configuration for your needs.
Also, if your issue is balance rather than overall weight (as you mentioned it was) then you could replace your current stock with a MagPul PRS. More weight in the rear would compensate for the weight in the front. You didn't say what stock you currently run, so I just chose the heaviest one.
Probably the most common thing I have seen ARFCOM members do to lighten up their 18" stainless build was to switch it out with a 16" stainless match barrel