gun gurus; tell me about accuracy in a 16" AR in 5.56
 

greetings all, I am contemplating adding an AR (5.56/223) to my arsenal and would like to hear from shooters what kind of accuracy you are seeing in those with a 16" barrel. Seems the 20" versions are running about 50% higher than the 16s. Can good 200 to 300 yard accuracy be achieved with precision bench loading out of a 16" barrel?

it ALL DEPENDS on if its a stationary POODLE or a MOVING POODLE!

hehehe

are you shooting at something close, 2-100yds or 500yds?
that is the difference

A quality barrel and trigger will help with accuracy. There are ARs with 16" barrels that shoot sub minute(groups under 1" at 100 yards) so at 200-300 yards, you could achieve 2-3 inch groups if you are a competent shooter.

Mine does very well as long as I use 55gr 5.56, the standard 62gr stuff is all over the paper at 300 meters

"Can good 200 to 300 yard accuracy be achieved with precision bench loading out of a 16" barrel?"

Compared to what? Or perhaps better, what do you expect, MOA? And have you already beat factory ammo with your reloads?
Jim

I wouldn't use an AR for shooting at over 200 yds. Why not get a bolt gun for that kind of stuff?

Crusin,

What are you shooting at? Is this for 3 gun competition? Read up on barrel twist rates and the ammo you are shooting. Makes a difference downrange. Also, what is your definition of accurate?

The one I owned (early 90s Olympic w/ short heavy barrel and fixed stock) was shooting 1-1.5 MOA with nasty cat pee smelling Norinco ammo.

The only thing barrel length really does for accuracy is give you a longer sight radius when using iron sights. Go for the Dissapator look (full length handguard, short barrel - a mannlicher!) and your sights are the same as on the A2 configuration.

A dissipator would require the firearm either be an SBR or a Pistol.

2-300m will be fine for a 16" Even a cheaper barrel with heavier ammo will still be capable of LGM hits at 300m. A better barrel with good ammo and a scope will be capable of fairly tight groups at 300m.

A general rule of thumb is shorter barrels equal lower accuracy, longer barrels are better. We have a sign at our shooting range over the urinal that says:

Men with short barrels and/or lower velocity please stand closer to the target!

What's your twist? I am betting 1:9. If you want to shoot 62, you should look for a 1:7.

AR accuracy
 

My AR is a civianized Colt A2 (new lower receiver, trigger group and milled bolt carrier). It seems to like the 62 grain ammo better than the 55 grain. With a scope, it will approach (and sometimes make) 1 moa at 100 yds. A lot depends not only on the hardware, but also the eyes and steadiness of the shooter. A custom handload should also improve results.

This is my Colt 6920 at 100yds with PMC and a just installed 3x32 Nikon P223 scope.

I'm clearly not a rifle shooter and have no doubt a 3-9 scope would yield much better results but for a 3x I think the results are pretty darned decent.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1389790756.jpg



For ****s and giggles here is a 100yd target from my Glenfield 22lr rifle with the cheap 4x Glenfield scope on it.http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1389790802.jpg

16-20 inch barrel in 1:9 with 72-77 grain bullets will give you very good accuracy if the components are of good quality and you do your part as the shooter. Order a barrel chambered in .223 Wylde for slighlty better accuracy. A good trigger is also important.

Remember that a standard issue m4 has a 14.5 inch barrel and part of the qualification course is 300 meter targets. These are 1:7 with 62 grain bullets. Most are either topped with a red dot sight or a 4X ACOG. Of course you are talking about hitting a man size target at this range not a coyote or rabbit.

huh, from prone was able to hit 500 meter targets without scope with A2, so what's problem with 200 meter targets?

The iron sights on my 6920 (magpul version) are great. I can hit clay targets at 200yds with the irons. 300yds I can't even see a clay target much less hit it with irons.

A shorter barrel is also a stiffer barrel. Different harmonics as well.

Man, there is some weird stuff in this thread!