AR Sponsor
Posted: 1/12/2014 10:50:20 AM EDT
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I'm slowly putting together my first AR, and have been doing some research into twist raise and barrel length. I plan to use this rifle for coyote and hog hunting mainly. I was looking at 1:9 and 16" but being new to the AR platform I'd like to get some more input before I finish this rifle. As of right now I have a New Frontier complete lower, and a Nikon P223 3-9x40 the P223 rings. Also I have a limited budget and was looking around the JSE website.
Also this is my first post but I've been snooping around this site for about a year. |
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I'm slowly putting together my first AR, and have been doing some research into twist raise and barrel length. I plan to use this rifle for coyote and hog hunting mainly. I was looking at 1:9 and 16" but being new to the AR platform I'd like to get some more input before I finish this rifle. As of right now I have a New Frontier complete lower, and a Nikon P223 3-9x40 the P223 rings. Also I have a limited budget and was looking around the JSE website. Also this is my first post but I've been snooping around this site for about a year. Budget builds will always be a compromise. Twist rate, invest early in a 1:7 or ideally Wylde 1:8 twist will give you the ability to stabilize heavier loads over longer distances with more precision. Everything else you should be fine with, although I could never in good conscious recommend a Polymer lower. |
Welcome bother!  Look into Spikes and BCM as both are top tier with the Spikes being better priced but equally quality.
http://www.aimsurplus.com/catalog.aspx?groupid=586&name=Upper+Receivers http://www.bravocompanyusa.com/AR15-Upper-Receiver-Groups-s/1.htm Palmetto State Armory are very know to as they also use FN barrels but they are slower than Congress to ship http://palmettostatearmory.com/index.php/ar-15-05/complete-uppers.html Good luck and let us know what you decide on.........Oh and a 14.5" or 16" 1/7 twist will do what you need it to do and offer a hell of a lot more options..... |
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+1. Another vote for Spikes Tactical. Look for a Melonite (hot salt bath nitride) barrel model, if available in the profile you want. They tend to have greater accuracy potential, but mil-spec chrome lined is good too and more available.
Spikes Tactical M4LE Uppers at Primary Arms |
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Why should we steer clear of the PTAC stuff? Just wondering cuz the price is great on those. Quoted:
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Oh and steer clear of the PTAC stuff..........  Why should we steer clear of the PTAC stuff? Just wondering cuz the price is great on those. There is a reason the price is great. PSA chose PTAC because it sounded better than JUNK. |
Hard to beat the PSA stuff. I would go with a 1/7 twist. Allows you to use a lot larger range of bullets weights up to 77gr. You may want to check out PSA's deal on anderson forged lowers. And dump the platic lower if you can.  Good luck post pictures when you can.
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I understand the 1:7 is better for heavier loads, but what if I plan to shoot 55g at the range. Will that still be possible or will the accuracy be compromised? Ask yourself this question: Will I be shooting ammo that has bullet bearing surface longer than that of a 70 grain copper clad lead core bullet? If the answer is yes, then you need 1:8. No one really needs 1:7 unless you are shooting the very long tracer rounds. If the answer is no and you intend to shoot bullets primarily between 55 and 64 grains with occasional 70 grain ones, then get 1:9 for better accuracy. If you plan to shoot light frangible varmint ammo, like the 40 grain Hornady, then you must go 1:9 to stabilize then. 1:7 will shoot them very poorly. |
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1:9 isnt going to give you better accuracy than a 1:7 or 1:8 with the lighter bullets. It will however limit you to the lighter bullets.
And to be fair Ive stabilized the 77 smk out of a 1:9, so it can be done, but a 1:8 is recommended as the minimum. Also the 1:8 will easily stabilize the 80 smk and 82 berger, though you will need to load them well past mag length and single feed them. A 1:9 will not stabilize them. With all of that said, a 1:7 to 1:8 twist is where I would stay. As far as accuracy goes, if you want moa or better accuracy, stick with match grade barrels. Rock river uses stainless wilson air-gauged barrel blanks which are awesome for the money. The rra predator pursuit is one of those. Anything with shilen, krieger, satern, wilson, lothar walther, bartlein, criterion, etc are all top notch. Hope that helps. |
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Do you really think you can accurately shoot (MOA) 40 grain Hornady varmint bullets from 1:7? Remember that they are moving at about 3700 fps from a carbine barrel and faster from a rifle barrel.
Do very many 1:7 barrels shoot sub MOA, with 55 grain bullets, which my carbine 16" 1:9 does? Twist does matter with lighter bullets, too. Match the barrel to the job. There are different twist rates for a reason. You do not need match grade barrels for fine accuracy. Good quality "standard grade" hot salt bath nitride treated barrels or stainless barrels shoot MOA regularly. If OP does not go above 70 grains, AND wants to shoot the sub 55 grain bullets accurately, 1:9 is a better choice than 1:7. The attached target was with M855, not known for its accuracy. Shot to the right was poor trigger technique by me. This is typical from my Melonite 1:9 CMMG NATO 16" carbine barrel. Setup is listed on the target. 
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Here's another same rifle, same setup, same M855 green tip at 100 yards. Same problem with me pulling one shot wide right by poor trigger technique. My bad. Only difference was a different scope, as this was shot before I got the tactical scope used on the target above. I think this demonstrates that an upper with a 1:9 melonite barrel from a good manufacturer can have excellent accuracy, even in a 16" carbine profile. And green tip is far from precision target ammo.
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