AR Barrel: Black Hole or White Oak?

[InTheSwamp]

Talking about good ARs and stuff, as if we didn't have enough of it.

Building a Seekins IRMT-3 Upper, just a fun gun. I intend to use it with my current lowers, but in time, I will buy the Seekins lower as well. It will be a 223 Wylde 16" MID Length SPR contour barrel and I'm debating between Black Hole Weaponry and White Oak Armament. Price is a wash between them.

For those with experience with any of them - which route should I go? Accuracy is the top priority.

Thanks,

 

[mavracer]

I have the WOA and it's been absolutely outstanding.
This is with cheap American Eagle 50gr grey tip Varmint @ 100 yards
It does even better with Fiocchi Exacta 77gr SMKs.
Here's rifle

 

[sevt_chevelle]

White oak

 

[Varminterror]

If extreme precision is the order: White Oak, Shilen, Krieger, Proof, or Craddock/Bartlein. BHW is a little behind this fleet - but still ahead of most. Noting here: every White Oak barrel I have used was from a Shilen blank, but I know some of their barrels do start with Wilson or other blanks.

I’ve used something between 40-50 Black Hole Weaponry barrels in my own and customer rifles and pistols - I have at least 8 Black Hole barrels currently - and all of them have been sub-MOA, most easily delivering in the 1/2-2/3moa ballpark, naturally pumping out bughole groups frequently enough to feel good about them, and some barrels holding even smaller. But they changed pricing models and the value kind of evaporated. Good barrels, easy cleaning, and FAST. Better than McGowan, Odin, Saturn, Criterion, TacOrd, etc. I do like BHW’s enough that I was content to order them for my small frame PRS match rifle in 6 Grendel, but given price their pricing increases, dollar for dollar, I’d order Proof or Bartlein/Craddock instead. Shilen and Krieger would be a slight improvement over BHW, I built rifles on these two for a lot of years when I was actively operating, I would have had to used over a hundred Shilens, and half as many Kriegers. My large frame PRS rifle is Proof barrels. Given good pricing, I’d gladly use BHW’s as my primary barrel again, at least for my small frame rifles (maybe Black Friday).

But among any of these names, admittedly, the difference I’m talking about is a tenth, not a quarter inch.

 

[InTheSwamp]

If extreme precision is the order: White Oak, Shilen, Krieger, Proof, or Craddock/Bartlein. BHW is a little behind this fleet - but still ahead of most. Noting here: every White Oak barrel I have used was from a Shilen blank, but I know some of their barrels do start with Wilson or other blanks.

I’ve used something between 40-50 Black Hole Weaponry barrels in my own and customer rifles and pistols - I have at least 8 Black Hole barrels currently - and all of them have been sub-MOA, most easily delivering in the 1/2-2/3moa ballpark, naturally pumping out bughole groups frequently enough to feel good about them, and some barrels holding even smaller. But they changed pricing models and the value kind of evaporated. Good barrels, easy cleaning, and FAST. Better than McGowan, Odin, Saturn, Criterion, TacOrd, etc. I do like BHW’s enough that I was content to order them for my small frame PRS match rifle in 6 Grendel, but given price their pricing increases, dollar for dollar, I’d order Proof or Bartlein/Craddock instead. Shilen and Krieger would be a slight improvement over BHW, I built rifles on these two for a lot of years when I was actively operating, I would have had to used over a hundred Shilens, and half as many Kriegers. My large frame PRS rifle is Proof barrels. Given good pricing, I’d gladly use BHW’s as my primary barrel again, at least for my small frame rifles (maybe Black Friday).

But among any of these names, admittedly, the difference I’m talking about is a tenth, not a quarter inch.

Thanks for the detailed response. BHW is a bit cheaper than WOA, but not by much. As mentioned before, it will be a paper puncher and accuracy is important, but doesn't have to be competition accurate.

I will order the BHW and try it. WOA could be a future upgrade.

Thanks all

 

[Varminterror]

It's probably been 3 years since I ordered my last BHW barrel, as I had an order in with them when covid hit, just as a reference for a point in time. These would be a little older, but here's one I put together for a banker out of SE Kansas - he had bought a bunch of H335 because he fancied getting into reloading with this rifle, and he wanted me to work up loads with a few bullets - to help him on his way. These were photos I took after the first round of bullet culling, just using a ~3/4 book charge of H335 as a starting point. 69 SMK’s into just over 1/2”, ~.54”, with 50 Vmax’s only slightly looser at ~.60” (calipers measuring outside to outside, and acknowledging those targets typically tear somewhere around .21” holes around 22 cal bullets.

I don’t have a lot of photos on my phone or online of BHW target results or rifles I’ve built with them, but I did have this one in email correspondence with the customer.


That was a BHW 22” 1:8” twist 5.56 barrel, if memory serves. “National Match” contour, with heavy contour behind the gas block, then .750” journal to muzzle. The owner eventually upgraded the trigger (originally just a reworked mil-spec) and eventually swapped the A2 stock for a CTR to reduce length a bit to get in and out of his UTV easier. But it shoots small. With proper load work up, and a less finicky powder, that one might have even shoot phenomenally.

 

[bfoosh006]

I have the WOA and it's been absolutely outstanding.
This is with cheap American Eagle 50gr grey tip Varmint @ 100 yardsView attachment 1144952
It does even better with Fiocchi Exacta 77gr SMKs.
Here's rifle
View attachment 1144956

No fair, using the Federal 50gr Tipped Varmint ammo...... that was the all time cheap and accurate factory 223 load.

I never saw it cataloged in a Federal webpage , or catalog.

Cheapest I bought it was $5.29 / 20rds... and no kidding it shoots like that all day long. Out of every barrel I and others tried.

I never understood why Federal discontinued it.


For the OP... I would suggest the WOA barrel.

 

[mavracer]

No fair, using the Federal 50gr Tipped Varmint ammo...... that was the all time cheap and accurate factory 223 load.

I never saw it cataloged in a Federal webpage , or catalog.

Cheapest I bought it was $5.29 / 20rds... and no kidding it shoots like that all day long. Out of every barrel I and others tried.

I never understood why Federal discontinued it.


For the OP... I would suggest the WOA barrel.

I know I shed a tear when they dropped it. Luckily I have a good stash.

The Frontier 55gr JHP shoots as good and if you search it's about as cheap as most fmj