.243 barrel length.
I know there are tons of variables here but looking for thoughts and ideas here. I will add as much info as I can, sorry for the long read.
I going to build a DPMS style AR in .243 using a Lilja barrel. I had Lilja build my custom barrel in my .300 Whisper and am really happy with it so I want them to build this one. One reason I am doing it in .243 vs some of the other similar rounds is that I am set up with tons of stuff to reload this caliber. I know there are tons of .30 cal rifles built on this platform but I have enough .30 cal guns so that is not what I want. I want to be able to hunt with it but is also just for general fun shooting.
I am pretty sure that I will be using the Nosler Ballistic tip bullets in 95gr. If not it will be a bullet in the ~100gr range.
I plan on doing a heavy barrel on this set up. I keep going back and forth on what I want out of this gun. I have a nice light Savage 110 in .243 that I hunt with most of the time now. I would like this gun to be light enough to actually carry around while hunting but even with a 16" barrel (in a heavy weight), PRS stock, Optics, ect this gun is going to weigh a bit. So on the other hand if this gun is not going to be light I have been thinking about going to a 22, 24, or even a 28" barrel. With it that long it will surly just be a truck gun. I mostly plan on shooting inside 500 yards.
I know I can not hunt with a silencer in my state, nor will it be a super quite round I plan on having the barrel threaded for my silencer. That adds more weight and length.
So what would be a good barrel length and twist for this set up? I will be hand loading for this if that helps. I am kinda leaning toward a 18" or 20" but I dont want to short myself (no pun intended) either.
I going to build a DPMS style AR in .243 using a Lilja barrel. I had Lilja build my custom barrel in my .300 Whisper and am really happy with it so I want them to build this one. One reason I am doing it in .243 vs some of the other similar rounds is that I am set up with tons of stuff to reload this caliber. I know there are tons of .30 cal rifles built on this platform but I have enough .30 cal guns so that is not what I want. I want to be able to hunt with it but is also just for general fun shooting.
I am pretty sure that I will be using the Nosler Ballistic tip bullets in 95gr. If not it will be a bullet in the ~100gr range.
I plan on doing a heavy barrel on this set up. I keep going back and forth on what I want out of this gun. I have a nice light Savage 110 in .243 that I hunt with most of the time now. I would like this gun to be light enough to actually carry around while hunting but even with a 16" barrel (in a heavy weight), PRS stock, Optics, ect this gun is going to weigh a bit. So on the other hand if this gun is not going to be light I have been thinking about going to a 22, 24, or even a 28" barrel. With it that long it will surly just be a truck gun. I mostly plan on shooting inside 500 yards.
I know I can not hunt with a silencer in my state, nor will it be a super quite round I plan on having the barrel threaded for my silencer. That adds more weight and length.
So what would be a good barrel length and twist for this set up? I will be hand loading for this if that helps. I am kinda leaning toward a 18" or 20" but I dont want to short myself (no pun intended) either.
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A 22" barrel will do quite well with the 243 but a 24" will do slightly better. A few years ago, I used a 243 on a pronghorn hunt with Nosler 95 grain BT's at about 3050 fps from a 22". This is a hot load but it worked in my 700 w/o problems. That combo accounted for some long range coyotes and a couple of pronghorns. I've been using some Nosler 90 BT's this year at about the same fps and they seem to open quicker than the 95's as might be expected. They could be some real longrange coyote getters. 0 -
Nwcid,
If length and weight no longer become an issue to you (within reason of course) I would go with the longest barrel possible for speed. That would be probably a 28". I would think that in an AR, where some gas is vented off to operate the action, you might begin to lose velocity at some point. I do not know where that point is. But I will tell you I very much like hunting with my 25" Shilen barreled .243 vs. the 20" Remington 700 I had for years (and shot a bunch of deer with). Much easier to get the velocities I expect with it. In fact I tune the loads down often because they exceed what I plan for drops/drifts. That's not a luxury I used to get or get in many cartridges.
Bottom line for me: go with a 26" barrel. If you find someone that gets better velocity from a 25" or 24" then cut it down.
Edit:
Nwcid,
I gotta say I really like the adjustable gas block idea. That way you can tune the rifle around the load instead of having to tune the load down for the rifle. More potential that way.0 -
One note I would like to pass along, from personal experience with 243 in a gas operated rifle. An adjustable gas block is important, as is using the right size port. The 243 uses such a wide range of powders(I have used everything from 3031 to H1000) that gas pressure and volume changes greatly. This will cause cycling issues in an AR.
Anything over 20" in an AR-10 with a heavy profile will be unwieldy, unless used in a stationary position with a rest.0 -
Hi Nwcid,
Hope every thing is going well for you.
As Sandwarrior suggested, I would go with a longer than 16 inch barrel, but I don't think I would go all the way to 28. I would stop at 22 or 24. I would go with a 1 in 10 twist, and that will stabalize everything that you can put thru that.
I am not sure who DPMS has make their barrels, but I have an LR 308 that is spectacular with the 24" stainless bull barrel, that will easily do 1/2 MOA.
I also would stick with the medium fast ball powders like the W-748, or W-760, to make the gas system work better.
As an aside, you might consider a 260 Remington if you want to shoot to 500 plus. It uses the same everything that a 243 uses except dies, cases, and bullets. Them 6.5's really talk.
Best0 -
If it were me, I would go with a 20" barrel. I will take handy over velocity anytime. Can tell I don't live out West or in open area can't ya? [:D]
One note, I have owned .243's with 22" barrels and currently own one with a 18.5" barrel. Not sure if its the .243 cartridge, the powders I have used, or just the rifles I have shot, but the differences I have noticed in velocity only add up to about 25 FPS per inch. Just isn't worth the bare of trudging it around to me.
Guess there are the long range velocity freaks and the short range brush hunters when it comes to sides for this arguement.
Jon0 -
+1 on the adjustable gas block. It would be difficult to "tune" the gas hole diameter for proper cycling when barrel length and loadings vary from known combinations. That would also allow you to "play" with barrel lengths. I built a 28" 223 singleshot (to win a bet that I could unlock the bolt by hand), then added a gas hole/tube, then started shortening the barrel in stages to test velocities. I had to reduce my 20" barrel loads in the longer barrels due to increased pressure. 0 -
Thanks for all the suggestions so far guys. I really had planned on 20-24" barrel.
I had not thought about the adjustable gas block but that makes sense for sure. It will be easy enough since I am going to be the one building it.
It is basically going to be a clone of this gun, 24" Bushmaster Varminiter. The only other change I plan on making is putting a Badger Ordnance handguard on it.
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There is no "right" answer here. Its just a question of personal preference.
I'd say just decide exactly how much you're going to carry this thing around, and what range you'd like to hunt with it, then made the decision based on those two factors.
Longer barrel only makes sense to me if you want to hunt from really long range, or want to maintain the gun as a strictly benchrest type gun.
In my opinion, for most normal hunting and recreational shooting the the convenience of a shorter barrel outweighs the *potential* ballistic advantage of a longer one.
I'll defer to individuals with more experience than me chronographing .243 loads, but I say "potential" because its not entirely clear to me that you're going to see *ANY* more velocity from a 28" bbl than you would from a 26" with ordinary loads, and in fact velocities might even top out in a shorter barrel than that. A longer barrel could help you max out velocities with heavy bullets or high-powered loads, but it sounds like that's not what you are after.
Personally, I'd go with a 20" or maybe a 22". I think 18" or less is wasting the potential of the .243, and more than 24" is really starting to get unwieldy with a heavy barrelled gun.
Remember also, that if the barrel turns out to be too long, you can always have it cut down. If its too short. . .well, then you need a new barrel!0 -
I think a 24 is about the best for the 243. If you have to have the heavy barrel, and it weighs too much, have it fluted. They can remove a lot of weight, and the benefit is that the barrel will cool much faster.
If you want velocity, have you considered an upper in a WSSM caliber?? Look at this link. http://www.dtechsuperstore.com/mili Guns.htm I am considering one, and the price isn't that bad considering the machine work involved.0 -
no more than 24" as weight on the barrel threads gets excessive.
1:8 twist is what you want,..and if you go heavy on the bullets, a 1:7.5 would be better. BUT, you still have to feed from the magazine,...something that doesn't matter with a bolt gun, single shot set-up, but will cause feeding issues from a 308 magazine.0 -
Thanks for all the input guys. If my summer job (fires) is better this year then last I will build one this fall. I have had the lower sitting in my safe for almost 2 years now.
It is a little out of my current budget at the moment as I am going to be in the $2500 range by the time I am done including glass.0
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