ar-15 parts kit

[joshlm]

I am considering getting one of the AR parts kits available. the kits come in various barrel lengths and congigurations. I am more interested in accuracy with the kit and am thinking of a 24" barrel as the gun will be used on a 3-500 yrd range at rest and weight really is not a factor. my question is what kind of accuracy could a standard barreled 24" be capable of compared to the 24" bull barrel. what are the pros and cons of the bull barrel on the market.and last of all, does anyone know who makes the barrels for these kits. thanks for the info.

 

[444]

Who makes the barrels ?
I dont' know, but you would have to be more specific about which kit you are talking about.
The 24 inch barrel isn't going to be any more accurate than any other barrel, but it will give you more velocity; which of course means it will shoot flatter.
The only experience I have with a 24" barrel in on my Bushmaster Varmiteer. I believe it would be considered a heavy barrrel. On AR15s, I have never seen a super big barrel like you might see on a bolt gun. A heavy barrel on an AR is not a whole lot bigger than a standared sporter weight barrel on a bolt gun.
Accuracy should be exceptional. I haven't owned my Varmiteer very long and have only fired it once. But, I have read some articles on it and seen some stuff on-line where 1/2 minute groups are not unusual.

 

[joshlm]

444
the kit i am loooking at is the model 1 e2 or the varmint kit. the varmint kit has a heavy bull barrell in either 16 20 or 24 inch and the e2 kit has a standerd barrel available in 20 or 24 inch. how big a difference would there be in volocity in the 20 and 24. if the bull barrel is not any more accurate then what us the purpose. thanks, i appreciate the replies.

 

[444]

The heavier barrel disipates heat better than a thinner barrel, however, once it heats up, it takes longer to cool down. This would be a factor for a prarie dog shooter or someone that is putting a lot of rounds down range.
I didn't say that a bull barrel wouldn't be more accurate, I said a 24" barrel wouldn't nessessarily be more accurate. I am no rifle guru but from what I understand having a stiff barrel does contribute to practical accuracy.
To be honest, I don't know how much the extra barrel length would give you in terms of velocity. I am guessing that it would be fairly significant. I have chroned my own ARs from 11.5" up to 20" and the jump between 14" and 16" seemed to be the most significant jump if I remember correctly. I don't have the numbers with me, I am at work. There was a difference between 16" and 20" but not a huge jump, not nearly as much as a lot of people make it out to be. So with that in mind, maybe the extra 4" wouldn't be that much of an increase, I don't know. Hopefully someone here will help you out. If not, maybe I can find something on it, or chrono my own 24".
I don't know anything at all about Model 1 or who makes their barrels. I would look into it a lot more before I spent any money. Check out AR15.com and see what they have to say about it.

 

[joshlm]

thanks 444 that makes sinceto me now. i did a similar post on the ar board but thought i would get some differing opinions on a non ar board. they seamed to think that model 1 and j&t were both about equal and that with the 24 standard barrel i could probably get 1moa or less with my handloads. the heat dissipating is a good point and something i had not thought of. thanks for the help