Posted: 9/21/2007 10:09:39 AM EDT
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Hi Guys – I’m looking for some advice on which barrel to go with. I’m looking at a couple of AR kits that have bull barrels (16”) on them (which I really like), but have had a couple of people say the bull barrels are only good if you are going to bench shoot only. Does anyone have an AR with a 16” (or greater) bull barrel and do you find it awkward to handle/shoot in a free standing position or difficult to swing around? The advice I was getting was to stick with a 16” hbar barrel (is this what is called a mid-weight?). As I’ve never fired or handled an AR with either configuration, I have no frame of reference which direction to take. Any help is greatly appreciated! Joe |
Joe, It all depends on what your intended use is. Heavy Barrels are just that: Heavy weight. Bull barrels could be considered "Super Heavy weight". My wife's precision rig has one, and the whole thing with optics weighs in at about twice what a "normal" rifle should (15+ lbs instead of 7.5 or so). It never leaves a bench or it's bipod, as it is a specialty rig for long-range (300-600 yards). Personally, even a "mid weight" barrel like an M-4 profile is uncomfortable to me, unless it's on a balanced rifle. If you aren't going to be shooting a lot of full-auto, I see absolutely no reason to avoid going with a chrome-lined government-profile (lightweight) barrel. I've seen it described this way: Imagine you have a 5 pound sack of flower tied to one end of a broom stick. Now picture trying to shoulder the stick like it was a rifle and swing on target with "sack" end away from you. Now picture it the other way around (with the sack sitting on your shoulder). You can then understand why it might be easier to use a ligher-weight barrel for off-hand shooting. Hope that helps (and welcome to the forum). |
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I have a 16" bull, free floated with a metal handguard. No doubt about it, it is front heavy but manageable. The balance point is still around the mag well. I can shoot off hand with it pretty well but I would recommend against it if you are going to be running around with it.. My brother has a 20" hbar and I find it ridiculous for anything other then bench shooting. The only pic I have is a dinner pic, Sorry.   -JTP |
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-2 for no stapler in either photo. -5 for having fungus near your meat. +5 for having good looking meat. -2 for your sharp instruments not being tactical enough All in all, 16/20 combined. Not bad.  BTW, exactly how thick is that "bull" barrel? It looks rather like a 16" HB with no FH. Bull barrels are generally .9" or better in diameter. ETA a comparison pic:  A Bull barrel should have a diameter even greater than a standard A2 flash hider. </hijack - I promise> |
Do you prefer white?  -JTP |
Dinner pics are food plus guns. Ok now that we have evolved to GD Ithink we can get this thread back on topic. 
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Okay, I digress back to FMD's original reply... Yes, I think we all agree that it depends on your individual needs or desires. Case in point; when I went to build my high end rig I went with a 24" bull. I like it because it represents what I wanted/envisioned/dreamed. Does the 24" make me a better shooter? No but I feel better when I shoot it. Does this make sense? |
Yep, I mis-spoke. It's an hbar. Regardless, my next one isn't going to weigh as much. Look at getting a govt profile. -JTP |
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I use a 16" HBAR at work, as well as a M4 barrel. The M4 barrel is noticeably handier. Not a huge difference, but definitely noticeable. My personal guns are all lightweight ("A1") barrels. Those are even more handy, and are my personal preference. Like others have said, it all depends what you want to do with it. In my opinion, unless you're looking for a bench/sharpshooter gun, the only thing HBARs are good for is saving money for the manufacturer. Since they don't have to profile the barrel, it's a cost-savings measure that they try to hype as a benefit for the consumer. (I've got to hand it to them, that is good marketing, isn't it?) edit: yumm, mushrooms & asparagus.
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Hey Guys - thanks a TON for the replies... Like I said, I REALLY REALLY like the look of the bull barrel, but, I gotta have something the wife can handle easily too. She's about 5' 3" with short arms so there isn't alot of leverage there to heft up a heavy barrel. I guess the I'll make the "next" one the bull barrel hat thanks again for the help!! JOe |
I think it's great. See this thread for my extended opinion.
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Joe, I also replied in the thread that Glenn_R linked to. Besides saving my pennies for a Grail, I am seriously considering an A1 lightweight upper to go one one of my guns that already wears a Sully stock. That particular combination is absolutely effortless to operate, and would be my reccomendation for folks who want a gun that their wife or child could shoulder with ease. |
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An HBAR isn't a bull barrel. Don't go with a bull or varmint barrel. If you can afford to have a dedicated carbine too, 16" A1 pencil barrel is the heat. Accuracy will be similiar with both out to the realistic effective range of typical 55 or 62 grain mil spec ammo. The HBAR/M4 will not be quite as quick handling as the pencil barrel....the 16" pencil barrel is the best handling hands down. But the M4 or HBAR may hold zero a little bit better under heavy extended firing. That's probably even debatable. Some say you HAVE to run full auto rates of fire before the heat gets high enough to effect POI or accuracy. Going to the heavy bullet/match stuff is an ENTIRELY different animal. This type of ammo extends the realistic effective range of the system quite a bit, enough to start looking at bull barrels and such to take advantage of it. Just my opinion, it's worth what you paid for it. |