Need help on barrel for a rifle project

[Jaeger Heisen]

https://www.rainierarms.com/rainier-arms...barrel-18/

https://sixsigmaarms.com/products.php?d=61#order

I’m ditching my pistol project for now until the ATF loses their case on braces vs SBR’s. So I need a hunting upper and these 2 barrels seem to get some of the highest reviews. The advantage the raniner has is the rifle length has system, if it really and advantage as those extra 2 inches arnt going really make a difference in shooting a deer under 200 yards.

So. That being said. What is y’all’s opinion or do you have a better barrel idea?

[grayfox]

Rainier is a good barrel as far as I know.
Lilja is a top quality one...
that being said, if six sigma only has the 16" max (they are a reseller for Lilja), you might call him to see if he has the 19" AR19 or the 20" AR740, the lilja web site has the 20" for sale now, buying direct. That's where I got mine from.

Six sigma has a vendor thread on here but he (Rebby) hasn't updated it for a while. he is a nice guy though, bottom line for lilja you have a couple options as to where to buy.

My $0.02 but I think the grendel works a bit better with the rifle length gas. Mid-length bangs up stuff a lot more due to the higher gas pressures at unlock. But there are better experts on here than I am... I pretty much stick with RL gas stuff.

[VASCAR2]

On an 18” 6.5 Grendel the rifle length gas system makes a significant difference if your going to use a suppressor. I have an 18” Group Buy Faxon Monster logo barrel and it is perfectly gassed using a supplied carbine buffer and spring with my collapsable stock. Here is some chronograph data I collected using a Magnettospeed chronograph comparing the velocities between 16” & 18” 6.5 Grendel. This data is a few years old but the trends in velocity still hold true with current ammo. The 16” barrel was a J&T Distributing (sister Co. to Double Star) and a Brownell’s 18” rebranded Satern button rifled barrel. For a hunting barrel I don’t think you could go wrong with either Lilja or Rainier.

Here is the difference between the 18” barrel compared to the shorter 16” barrel which was slower with every load.

120 grain PPU HP BT

63 FPS difference

110 grain PPU FMJ

60 FPS difference

123 grain A-Max

45 FPS difference

123 grain SST

63 FPS difference

Hand load 123 grain Nosler CC

27 FPS difference

Wolf 100 grain FMJ Steel cased

64 FPS difference

Here are the velocities for factory 123 grain SST we got in our velocity test with the various barrel lengths.


123 Grain SST Hornady

12” 2277

16" 2430

18" 2493

20" 2511

24" 2583

[LRRPF52]

For east Texas, I would lean on 16”.

There isn’t a significant performance and effective range difference between 14.5” 16”, and 18”.

We did a table on barrel length and performance based on the 123gr SST expansion threshold in the Grendel Handbooks that breaks it all down, with a velocity range for each barrel length.

10.5” 260yds
14.5” 350-400yds
16” 400-420yds
18” 410-440yds
20” 450-490yds
24” 500-520yds

Will you be shooting suppressed? If so, I would look at 13.9”-14.7” with a pinned and welded brake attack muzzle device for the suppressor to bring it to 16”, that way you can have a short, compact fire stick without dealing with unconstitutional NFA horse crap.