New guy looking for some barrel advice

[Bird60]

I'm looking to order a barrel for my build. Anyone have any helpful advice for what length to go with. I decided on the Grendel because I've heard great things about their range and accuracy. The one I'm building is for precision and distance not hunting.

Thanks

[bwaites]

If you want to stretch everything available out of it, then 28" inches!!

I love my long Grendel, and enjoy it so much I have a hard time bringing myself to shoot my 19.5 inch rifle!

[LRRPF52]

For a dedicated target rifle on the AR15 frame, I would make sure I had a beefy billet upper, and a good 22"-24" barrel, based on those use criteria you specified. Settle on no less than a select match button-rifled barrel, or cut-rifled barrel.

I have had great experiences with Krieger, Bartlein, Obermeyer, Satern, Shilen, Douglas, Lilja, and LW.

Use a Grendel chamber and get the twist that matches the bullet bearig surface length you plant to shoot the most of. You will be shooting longer bullets if your goal is to push the Grendel to distance, so maybe a 1/8.5 or faster twist is best for you. Others will chime in on that.

You will most likely end up playing with 123gr AMAX's, 123gr Scenars, and maybe even some 130 VLD's. You might consider getting the Alexander Arms hard use bolt, or one with larger mass around the lugs and lug roots, if you want to push the velocities. The Grendel case will take high pressures, but the AR15 bolt modified from a 5.56 bolt size is limited to pressures around 50,000 psi, and will still deliver outstanding performance for the size of the cartridge.

Welcome.
P.S.: I have shot bwaites' 28" Satern-barreled Grendel, and it is almost recoil-less...very easy to spot your own rounds with, and a joy to shoot. For a 28" barrel, it is unbelievably handy and lighter than I expected, as well as being nicely balanced. If I were building a 28", I would want an extended length gas system though, so I would not have excessive dwell time, and use an extended 15" length handguard.

[Bird60]

Thanks guys. Any preference between AA and Saturn for the manufacture? And will a 24" barrel work ok with a rifle length system?

[LRRPF52]

24" barrels will have a rifle-length gas system. I would use an adjustable gas block with a 24" to tame down the gas as you increase powder charges.

[BluntForceTrauma]

B60, just wanna say welcome!

John