AR-15 16" vs 20" (re-opening).
I'm re-opening this because the response I was in the middle of typing got "locked out" due to the 10 responses!
All else being equal, pretty much the *only* reason for the 16" bbl is the better handling of a shorter overall gun. Its an advantage if you are riding around inside a vehicle with your gun a lot, or going through brush, etc. It "swings" a bit faster. The shorter overall length also might make storage a bit easier.
The 20" bbl gives you more velocity (its main advantage), and depending on the setup *might* give you a longer sight radius for slightly increased practical accuracy with iron sights.
Sure, its a little bit quieter as the longer barrel gives hot gases a teensy bit more room to expand, plus (more important) the blast is let off 4" further away from your face, but practically speaking, there isn't much difference.
Note that it *is* possible to have a 16" bbl set up with a longer sight radius. A few makers do offer guns like this.
Also note that there are barrel-clamping (and other sorts of aftermarket) bayonet mounts on the market. EG:
http://www.{elsewhere}/ARR042-7.html
So its *possible* to hang a bayonet off of just about anything, if you really want/need to. (Whether or not you really need to is a whole other story).
By the way, all else being equal in theory SHORTER barrels tend to have more intrinsic accuracy, as they are stiffer compared to their length (ie less vibration), have less length to warp due to heat expansion/contraction, and the bullet is in the barrel for less time, meaning shooter movement after let off is less of a factor.
In practice, you'll never notice the difference, especially with non-iron sights.
All else being equal, pretty much the *only* reason for the 16" bbl is the better handling of a shorter overall gun. Its an advantage if you are riding around inside a vehicle with your gun a lot, or going through brush, etc. It "swings" a bit faster. The shorter overall length also might make storage a bit easier.
The 20" bbl gives you more velocity (its main advantage), and depending on the setup *might* give you a longer sight radius for slightly increased practical accuracy with iron sights.
Sure, its a little bit quieter as the longer barrel gives hot gases a teensy bit more room to expand, plus (more important) the blast is let off 4" further away from your face, but practically speaking, there isn't much difference.
Note that it *is* possible to have a 16" bbl set up with a longer sight radius. A few makers do offer guns like this.
Also note that there are barrel-clamping (and other sorts of aftermarket) bayonet mounts on the market. EG:
http://www.{elsewhere}/ARR042-7.html
So its *possible* to hang a bayonet off of just about anything, if you really want/need to. (Whether or not you really need to is a whole other story).
By the way, all else being equal in theory SHORTER barrels tend to have more intrinsic accuracy, as they are stiffer compared to their length (ie less vibration), have less length to warp due to heat expansion/contraction, and the bullet is in the barrel for less time, meaning shooter movement after let off is less of a factor.
In practice, you'll never notice the difference, especially with non-iron sights.
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You can have the best of both worlds by getting what is known as a dissapator barrel. These are available from numerous manufacturers. You get the 16 inch. barrel with the sight line of the 20 inch barrel. In short it is like taking the regular 20 inch barrel and cutting off 4 inches. This gives you the longer sight radius with the shorter barrel. It also gives you more room to hang more accessories on your barrel if you so desire so all your giving up is a slight velocity loss. I have 2 of these one in .223 and the other in 6.8 Remington. 0 -
I also like the dissapator, but I think an A2 stock which is the norm with these rifle configurations turns a light and handy rifle into a stone because it still puts the ballance ahead of the reciever. However this is easily fixed by switching to an A1 stock. Also all dissapators I've owned have car length gas systems. i prefure mid length systems on 16"BDL guns
I also agree that a short barrel is as accurate as a long barrel, velocity loss is the main concern with them. I personally think it is unpractical to have a 5.56 carbine with a barrel shorter then 12 inches. If I needed a 10.5" r shorter, i'd up the chambering to 6.8x43.0
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