3 gun barrel build

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  • red2k2timmy

    Member
    Apr 7, 2020
    5
    Hi guys I’m in the middle of building my first 3 gun ar, I’ve been shooting and building for years but never got too deep in to the 500 yard accuracy shooting ( so I’ve been told I might shoot in 3 gun). I need help picking out a barrel for the job and with md stupid hbar laws I’ve had some trouble picking something out. I’m looking for an 18” intermediate gas tube 1/8 twist but I’m never sure if what I’m looking at is a good barrel or a junk barrel.
     

    gmharle

    Active Member
    MDS Supporter
    Dec 29, 2015
    824
    Millers, MD
    Hi guys I’m in the middle of building my first 3 gun ar, I’ve been shooting and building for years but never got too deep in to the 500 yard accuracy shooting ( so I’ve been told I might shoot in 3 gun). I need help picking out a barrel for the job and with md stupid hbar laws I’ve had some trouble picking something out. I’m looking for an 18” intermediate gas tube 1/8 twist but I’m never sure if what I’m looking at is a good barrel or a junk barrel.

    This is the one that I went with for my 3-Gun rifle. I am very happy with it.

    https://criterionbarrels.com/products/ar-15/ar-15-hbar-barrel-rifle-gas-chrome-lined/
     

    danb

    dont be a dumbass
    Feb 24, 2013
    22,704
    google is your friend, I am not.
    Budget?

    I assume that you mean 223/556/223 Wylde caliber - that is the only caliber where you need to worry about hbar.

    Faxon, McGowan, Wilson Combat, Criterion are some names to look at. If you find something in your budget from any of those, its hard to go wrong. The off the shelf Faxon Heavy Fluted barrel is a tack driver and not as heavy (being fluted) as other heavy barrels. For Hbars I suggest some sort of fluting, if its in your price range.
     

    erwos

    The Hebrew Hammer
    MDS Supporter
    Mar 25, 2009
    13,866
    Rockville, MD
    Another option, which is going to be more expensive, is to just buy a very high quality HBAR barrel from Criterion, McGowan, etc. and then send it to Adco for fluting. Just be advised that most places won't do that sort of work on nitrided barrels, so you need to think ahead a bit. Shooting multi-gun right is not going to be cheap, so you may just need to accept the whole "buy once cry once" deal on your rifle. 2.65lbs is a REALLY chunky barrel, and it is going to make life difficult on hoser stages.

    Faxon does not have the world's best reputation for accuracy. They're definitely better than BCA/PSA, don't get me wrong, and I am happy with the one I've got in my AR-308, but I've seen enough guys be unimpressed with them on SH and other places that I would not choose them for a gun I was competing seriously with.

    Thankfully, I have a pre-ban lower, so I was able to get this bad boy:
    https://www.midwestindustriesinc.com/product-p/mi-c18lw223w.htm

    ETA: final thought: you want rifle gas on an 18" barrel, not mid-length.
     

    danb

    dont be a dumbass
    Feb 24, 2013
    22,704
    google is your friend, I am not.
    Another option, which is going to be more expensive, is to just buy a very high quality HBAR barrel from Criterion, McGowan, etc. and then send it to Adco for fluting. Just be advised that most places won't do that sort of work on nitrided barrels, so you need to think ahead a bit. Shooting multi-gun right is not going to be cheap, so you may just need to accept the whole "buy once cry once" deal on your rifle. 2.65lbs is a REALLY chunky barrel, and it is going to make life difficult on hoser stages.

    Faxon does not have the world's best reputation for accuracy. They're definitely better than BCA/PSA, don't get me wrong, and I am happy with the one I've got in my AR-308, but I've seen enough guys be unimpressed with them on SH and other places that I would not choose them for a gun I was competing seriously with.

    Thankfully, I have a pre-ban lower, so I was able to get this bad boy:
    https://www.midwestindustriesinc.com/product-p/mi-c18lw223w.htm

    All my Faxon barrels are tack drivers.

    The bold is wrong... there is no need to send a McGowen barrel for fluting, they will do it for you. McGowen will even let you chose 6 or 8 flutes. The turnaround time is about 10 weeks right now. I forget what the upcharge is for fluting offhand, there is an order form on their website. I may or may not have one looking to swipe right on an upper.

    BCA barrels are great, as clubs. For shooting, not so much.
     

    rbird7282

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Dec 6, 2012
    18,535
    Columbia
    I have a couple of White Oak Armory barrels that are tack drivers.
    You also won’t go wrong with a Criterion


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
     

    alucard0822

    For great Justice
    Oct 29, 2007
    17,643
    PA
    Where are you planning to compete? You have to balance fast/close vs long range stages, and while you may have one or two big steel gongs on one stage at peacemaker, or some other out-of-state matches. Most matches have the vast majority of targets within 50 yards, and usually a lot of paper within 25 yards with movement, so lighter/shorter rifles that can pick up time in transitions and close target arrays end up with a better score than building a precision rifle good for a couple long range targets, but sluggish in close. My first dedicated 3 gun rifle was a 9# Mega arms 18" midweight/rifle gas, it was within .5MOA with match ammo, 2MOA with 55gr FMJ hornady handloads, served me well, picked up time on long range stages, and I didn't feel like it slowed me down much at close range. That was till I built a 6# 16" lightweight 16" for the faster/closer York and Thurmont matches. That rifle, equipped with a light 16" Faxon gunner barrel was still good for 1 MOA with good handloads. Recoil was a hair sharper being mid-length with a carbine buffer, but the comp I chose keeps the crosshairs on target about as well as my 18". I sighted it in with 69gr SMK handloads, and my scores on the 300yd rifle stage were about the same, maybe a couple seconds slower and a couple extra rounds used. Switching to my cheap bulk 55gr FMJ handloads for close stages saves money, and they still are within an honest 2-3MOA on any day. My times on every other stage were seconds faster, and I could feel less fatigue and faster movement between targets, and running between shooting boxes. So all in all, IMO you want the lightest build you can get, that is capable of hitting the furthest target, but keep in mind 99% of the shots are going to benefit from a lighter build.

    TLDR build light, use a decent 16" with mid gas in the lightest "Hbar legal" profile, probably fluted. Faxon 16" match series fluted heavy can be OK(at 27oz it's pretty light for an Hbar about the same as a 16" govt profile M4). Faxon can be a bit inconsistent, as can Ballistic advantage, but I've built on many of their barrels, and haven't had an issue with specs or headspace, and all rifle cal barrels seem to do 1MOA or better once you find a load they like, even cheap FMJ ammo usually does well enough. Better barrels of course can group better, but hard to say how much better, and if there are any other build techniques or parts that may help or hurt their performance.
     

    Gtrnn

    Member
    Apr 9, 2020
    21
    I recently built 3 gun AR and went through all options and read the definition of heavy barrel which is pretty loose. As long as it is designated by the company then it is good. The typical pencil shape barrel is prohibited. I ordered carbon fiber fluted barrel from BSF which has the profile of hbar .875 OD but it weighs only 26.6 oz. Same for Proof research carbon barrel or carbon six.
     

    Jackson923

    Hell Yeah!
    Jan 25, 2008
    1,942
    Harford Co
    I just switched out to a Criterion Barrel 18” with 1:8 twist and rifle length gas. It’s tapered from the throat to the muzzle to help dissipate heat. Check out Criterion Barrels.
     

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