18" Group Buy Faxon barrel - initial observations

[grayfox]

So, I'm still in process of the breakin for this Group Buy - 18" Faxon - but my initial impressions of it are very favorable. Fit and finish are excellent. I've paired it with the monster bolt and things are cycling superbly right out of the box.
At present I have my adjustable GB full open and following breakin I will try to tweak down on the gas but this brings up a couple of questions:
1. When you throttle downward on the gas block do you expect MV to increase? It would seem to be so but I've not been down this road before. My interest here is mainly that it could bump me off of a node (in which case I'll adjust the powder charge)... I guess it could also enable me to reach the next one.
2. This rig will hopefully shoot 90 TNT's, 123sst's and perhaps some 129/130's depending on if I can find a good node for the 129/130s. Is it possible to adjust the gas flow so one is optimum but the others still cycle ok (maybe a little hard but certainly less than if the AGB is full open)? If so which load do you try to set, think it would be preferable to be the 123 but again, never done this.

The first rounds were all factory, 123sst and Hdy Black. The sst's seemed to shoot better but it is still very early on, so no conclusions yet on that.

I like the balance of this upper much more than my current "18", plus it weighs 3-4 oz less, not much but I'll take it.
Wt as configured with scope and no mag: 8 lb 14 oz.

I do believe my current 18 will wind up in the safe. My little family plan is my 16-er (Faxon gunner barrel), howa 20" HB and this one.

[StoneHendge]

You should start with the gas completely off and slowly open it. Once you get to where it reliably cycles, go one click further. If your running multiple loads, pretty much go to where the “weakest load” reliably cycles.

I did load development with 140s in my 6.5 S’more with the gas off so I could isolate timing issues that could be mistaken as pressure signs. I think I lost 15-20 fps when I turned the gas on to where it needs to be, but it had little effect on SDs and being the Proof CF barrel, the load still shoots far better than me.

[grayfox]

Thanks that helps. Gas dialing should begin late this wk or early next. I’ll start low and open up.

[bj139]

I like the balance of this upper much more than my current "18", plus it weighs 3-4 oz less, not much but I'll take it.

I thought the balance of my 20" group buy barrel was superb.
I think BFT really got the profiles of these barrels just right for handling.

[Wafavre2]

I set my AGB to cycle Wolf steel and it will cycle factory and hand loads without any further adjustment tossing to about 4 o’clock.

[grayfox]

I'm going to start out adjusting for some factory 123's plus some of my loads... at 30.8 this morning (123sst) the handloads were 2466 avg, sd=2. Let's see where that all takes me. O, the 90 TNT's (31.2 h335) came in at 2738 with sd=3; that one is my "house" varmint load b/c it shoots well in all 3 Grrrrs.
Not shooting any Wolfs to-date.