Help me pick a new AR barrel

[seedubs1]

I am going to be building an SBR in the near future. I've decided to go with a 10.5" barrel. I'm set on that.

I do not have the money for a Noveske. Budget is limited to about $250 for the barrel only. I do not want a PSA/FN or Black Hole barrel.

I'll be shooting pretty much every type of ammo through it (223 and 5.56) out to a max of 300 yards (I've got other guns for the longer range stuff).

Here's the info I've gathered so far:
Odin – $190 with a gas block…….223 wylde chamber, 1:8, carbine gas, 416r stainless, 1moa guarantee
Mega - $190…….5.56 chamber, 1:8, carbine gas, 416 stainless nitride
Rainier match - $210…….223 wylde chamber, 1:8, carbine gas
Rainier select - $210…….5.56 chamber, 1:8, 5r rifling, carbine gas, 416r stainless
Seekins - $245…….223 wylde chamber, 1:8, carbine gas

From the info I've found, the Odin barrel seems like the way to go. Lots of good feedback on the AR forums, they use McGowen blanks, and have a 1moa guarantee. I don't think I really get anything out of the extra money spent on any of the other options.

What say you, INGO?

 

[M67]

I had a 10.5" Rainier Select barrel on my pistol before the 300blk conversion.

Shot well and never had any cycling issues with a regular gas block and standard carbine buffer and spring.

At the time I was torn on manuf. too but went with Rainer (it's a Black Hole barrel, easy to tell when you get 2 side by side)

I maybe would have went Mega if they were available at the time but I was happy with the Rainier.

 

[jd4320t]

You mentioned Noveske. Is that what you want? They aren't that much more when you think about what you're getting.

My first AR barrel wasn't what I really wanted and to this day it still isn't. I won't make that mistake again.

 

[seedubs1]

Good to hear your Rainier is working well for you. I've heard really good things about their products.

I've also heard that BHW is contracted by Rainier. But they use slightly different rifling between the BHW and Rainier (rainier actually offers models with standard land/groove rifling as well as 5r).

The pricing and company reputation/customer service is mainly why I ruled out BWH. They seem to make a good product, but the BHW contracted Rainier barrels seem to actually have a better reputation and are cheaper. Plus, Rainier's customer service is reportedly excellent, while BHW's is reportedly a bit spotty.

I had a 10.5" Rainier Select barrel on my pistol before the 300blk conversion.

Shot well and never had any cycling issues with a regular gas block and standard carbine buffer and spring.

At the time I was torn on manuf. too but went with Rainer (it's a Black Hole barrel, easy to tell when you get 2 side by side)

I maybe would have went Mega if they were available at the time but I was happy with the Rainier.

No, I won't be spending $400+ on a Noveske barrel. They're good barrels, but not the direction I want to go. I just know that's the direction this question seems to inevitably go. Just wanted to get that out of the way in the first post.

One of the upper tier $200-250 barrels will be more barrel than I'll ever need. Just need to figure out which one, or if there's something else out there I should be looking at.

You mentioned Noveske. Is that what you want? They aren't that much more when you think about what you're getting.

My first AR barrel wasn't what I really wanted and to this day it still isn't. I won't make that mistake again.

 

[buddy17]

I'm curious why Daniel Defense didn't make your list? I've always seen then well recommended and near your budget. I'm new to AR specific details so maybe I'm missing something.

 

[seedubs1]

My reason is contentious and will **** off a lot of people. Please don't start a flame war. These are just my reasons.

I didn't include DD or BCM due to most of them being chrome lined steel barrels. They're old school, mil-spec, and they work fine. They're just not for me. I don't like chrome lined barrels because it's a coating. I'm an engineer and I hate coatings. I believe they're a bandaid fix for an issue that could likely be solved better in another way. That coating adds thickness inside of the barrel and chamber. It can be done right, and certainly BCM and DD do it right. But it still results in a less accurate barrel than a stainless, nitrided, or uncoated barrel. And these days, for the price DD or BCM charge, I'd be inclined to go with a company that is selling something that is stainless or nitrided.

Again, just MY reasoning. There's obviously lots of happy BCM and DD barrel owners out there, and I don't fault them for their decision. There's certainly good reason to go with a BCM or DD barrel (reputation, customer service, warranty, proven performance, a company that's been around forever and is very well respected, etc...). It's just not the direction I want to go.

I'm curious why Daniel Defense didn't make your list? I've always seen then well recommended and near your budget. I'm new to AR specific details so maybe I'm missing something.

 

[dhamby]

I have an Odin works barrel and have absolutely no complaints. Mines a stainless 16.1", 1:8twist, .223 Wylde.

 

[Sniper 79]

Check out Core15

Great warranty and customer service

 

[jinks]

You might consider Aero Precision.

10.5" 5.56 CMV Barrel, Carbine Length | Aero Precision

I have a 16" Aero barrel and without a lot of shooting it appears to be very good. I also have several Rainier select barrels (16"-18") that are very accurate.

 

[wsenefeld]

Ballistic Advantage makes amazing barrels. Not that long ago they signed a deal with Aero. Their barrels aren't all that well known, but their reputation is phenomenal. My future 5.56 and .308 barrels will be Ballistic Advantage or Mega exclusively.

I have a 10.5" Ballistic Advantage modern series and it's incredible. I honestly can't say enough about the quality. I'm still able to get consistent hits out to 550 yards with it on a 16" gong and there's nothing precision about the rifle.

Barrels: Best Prices & Free Shipping | Ballistic Advantage

 

[billmyn]

Match Grade Barrel | 5.56 NATO | SBR | 11.3 | Stainless-Wilson Combat
Check out Wilson combat . You will not be disappointed. I would rather have the 1n7 twist barrel to stabilize a wider array of bullet weights.

 

[Bfish]

I would also check out Ballistic Advantage barrels. Great value for your money!

 

[buddy17]

My reason is contentious and will **** off a lot of people. Please don't start a flame war. These are just my reasons.

I didn't include DD or BCM due to most of them being chrome lined steel barrels. They're old school, mil-spec, and they work fine. They're just not for me. I don't like chrome lined barrels because it's a coating. I'm an engineer and I hate coatings. I believe they're a bandaid fix for an issue that could likely be solved better in another way. That coating adds thickness inside of the barrel and chamber. It can be done right, and certainly BCM and DD do it right. But it still results in a less accurate barrel than a stainless, nitrided, or uncoated barrel. And these days, for the price DD or BCM charge, I'd be inclined to go with a company that is selling something that is stainless or nitrided.

Again, just MY reasoning. There's obviously lots of happy BCM and DD barrel owners out there, and I don't fault them for their decision. There's certainly good reason to go with a BCM or DD barrel (reputation, customer service, warranty, proven performance, a company that's been around forever and is very well respected, etc...). It's just not the direction I want to go.

No flame war intended! I figured I was missing something, thanks for explaining.

 

[devious169]

Just my two cents......you can't go wrong with MEGA! And on the other hand I have Wilson combat recon on a mega mkm and it's lights out.

 

[mammynun]

I tried a Rainier UltraMatch barrel and stopped buying Noveske. Then I tried the Rainier Match and stopped buying UltraMatch. Then I tried a Select, and now I buy the Rainier barrel that's in stock in the length, contour and color I want.

I have 10.5" Rainier Select and Match barrels and both are very good; with garden variety 193 or 855 type ammo I can't discern any difference in accuracy. I've not had a malf that could be linked to the barrel with either. Subjectively I think I get better accuracy with 77gr FGMM from the Select, and the Match seems to work better with Black Hills 68gr. It might be chalked up to individual barrels or, more likely, my imagination since I've never spent much time shooting groups with an SBR past zeroing. But both barrels will expose deviations in bulk ammo, so if you reload you might benefit from the UltraMatch.

 

[padawan]

+1 more to give Ballistic Advantage a close look. I have a friend who has a 16" in 5.45 from BA and it shoots moa with WPA 60g at +- 2900fps chrono.