24" Barrel lightweight AR build?

[Squirrelmarm]

I'm trying to build an AR-15 in 6.5G that is lightweight (~7lbs with scope) that I would like to hunt with. I currently have one with an 18" barrel and it's kind of heavy at 9lbs with the scope. I would like to have a 24" barrel, but every one available that long is some heavy profile (bull barrel, HBAR, etc.). For this build if I can just get to 1moa accuracy I will be happy. There are a few custom barrel makers like McGowan and Columbia River Arms that can make what I want.

I was just curious if anyone else had experience building an AR-15 with a longer lightweight barrel? Did you get good cold bore accuracy or have other issues?

I know some of you will want to tell me I should just get a shorter barrel, which is fine, but I am curious if anyone has experience with rifle-length lightweight barrels in 6.5G. If anyone knows of a suitable 20"+ barrel I'm all ears. Thanks.

[myrifle]

With that long of a barrel. You will never get it to your target weight with scope.

That's just to much steel to make that weight.

Not to mention its going to be extremely whippy on the shot do to its length and how thin it would have to be too even come close too making your stated weight goals.

[VASCAR2]

[grayfox]

You don't give much info about what and why for the hunting, what will you be hunting for, and why the need for so light?
What types of game and what distances...
or do you just have a "thing" for 24" light weight ARs?
"Light" suggests walking about but 24" suggests some "need" for long distance shots... hence accuracy becomes an issue.

There's a reason most longer barrels are heavier profiles.

Personally, I doubt if you will find your dream 24" lightweight, accurate AR style grendel.

9 lbs isn't that heavy for many guys (for me if I was doing a lot of hiking, yes 9lb is not my ideal), I have some that tip at 10 lbs but I don't fancy doing a lot of hiking with them.

If you need barrel length then a CZ is probably your best bet, course it's not an AR. 24-25" from what I read.
Howa has a standard 22" barrel as well.

Then there's that 14 yr old girl who killed her bull elk at 392 yds (U tube vid), with a 22" AR grendel. Took 3 shots (3 hits) though but she did it.

[Old Bob]

Wilson Combat has this barrel at 52oz...

https://shopwilsoncombat.com/BARREL-65-GRENDEL-SUPER-SNIPER-22-FLUTED-STAINLESS-GLASS-BEAD-1-8/productinfo/TR%2D65GSSRG22FT8/

And this one at 39.6oz. This is the barrel I have on my 6.5 Grendel AR.

https://shopwilsoncombat.com/BARREL-65-GRENDEL-RECON-20-FLUTED-STAINLESS-GLASS-BEAD-1-8/productinfo/TR%2D65GRCRG20FT8/

[StoneHendge]

I have a 16" 6 ARC that weighs in ~7 lbs with a 17 oz scope. It has a mix of high-end lightweight parts and the Lilja barrel is pretty much a straight 0.75" contour and weighs in around 27 oz. What you are looking for is unachievable. Any longer barrel would need to be so thin that there would be excessive whip and you'd get nowhere near your accuracy goal.

I don't know how long Proof Research goes in Grendel these days, but one of their carbon fiber barrels would probably get you closest to your goals. But if your going to spend that kind of cash and a high velocity 6.5mm bullet in a lightweight package is your goal, you should at least look at the POF Prescott - a 7lb 6.5 Creedmore in an AR-15 sized package.

[Squirrelmarm]

Yes, the Brownell's 24" barrel is the closest commercially available barrel to what I am thinking of. It weighs just over 2.5lbs. I have the 18" version and it shoots just over 1moa with factory ammo. I haven't found a hand load that it likes yet, though.

I think you are right that I will need to go with a custom build for my picky tastes.

I have a Tikka T3x Superlite that has a lightweight fluted barrel but still shoots under 1moa with factory ammo. So I know some high quality lightweight barrels are capable of great accuracy. That's why I'm asking. Right now I'm just kind of shopping around and getting ideas.

[Squirrelmarm]

What you are looking for is unachievable.

Challenge accepted.

[StoneHendge]

Challenge accepted.

We'll need to see video shot from behind you to verify accuracy - not just holes in a target.

Feel free to use this as a resource on a lightweight build. https://www.65grendel.com/forum/show...te+Lightweight

[Squirrelmarm]

We'll need to see video shot from behind you to verify accuracy - not just holes in a target.

Feel free to use this as a resource on a lightweight build. https://www.65grendel.com/forum/show...te+Lightweight

Thanks for that link. Faxon makes a 20" barrel that they claim is 1.98lbs. I may go with that if I can't find something more suitable, if they will make it again.

[grayfox]

I have a Tikka T3x Superlite that has a lightweight fluted barrel but still shoots under 1moa with factory ammo. So I know some high quality lightweight barrels are capable of great accuracy. That's why I'm asking. Right now I'm just kind of shopping around and getting ideas.

A bolt gun, with accuracy from factory loads.
AR's are of course different animals.
As to accuracy, your trouble in finding an accurate load that your current barrel likes is testimony to rack-grade performance, which is a roll of the dice.
Anything other than lilja, bartlein, krieger etc top-end barrels will simply be another roll of same dice. Just sayin'.

[tdbru]

Squirrelmarm,
i too was after a light weight AR with as long a barrel as i could in 6.5 Gr.

my first AR upper was a heavy barrel BCA 24" 6.5 GR. which was what i thought i wanted. it shoots ok for a rack grade barrel. get good velocity out of it. but the rifle ended up quite heavy.

so i tried to build a light weight 6.5 Gr. upper. i wanted the experience of building my own upper, and i wanted something light and long barreled. I too, could find no light profile 24" barrels available. the longest i could find, excluding calling brux or other barrel makers and gunsmiths and having them make one, was the 20" Faxon Gunner. So that is what i used.

if i recall, i think the rifle & scope weight with the light upper on it came in ~8.25 lbs. much better than the 24" bull barrel BCA upper, as expected, but still not "light weight".

if you really want the weight of my Gr with the light upper on it, i can go get it out and weight it and give you a more accurate answer.

with sierra 85gr. HP and benchmark i came up with a load that would shoot 1 MOA and occasionally a bit better. Other bullets tended to get bigger groups, but nothing came in over 2.5 MOA.

a better shooter than i could probably do much better.

i remember a long time ago, when COLT was the only one making a civi AR and it was the SP1. i picked one up. of course no scope, but i don't think it weighed more than 6.5 lbs. was quite light.

years later i picked up a CMP match AR. they'd put lead in the butt and barrel handguards and had a bull barrel on the thing. if i recall it was around 18lbs. or so.

anyway, i could only get down to 8 1/4 lbs without a custom barrel, and that was on a 20" production tube.

I am not sure about VASCAR2's comment that speed decreases after 20". If i recall Mel's postings, his 28" tube got great velocity. perhaps what VASCAR2 's comment meant was after 20" the rate of velocity increase starts to diminish. My 24" HB does shoot bullets faster than my 20" light upper. to be precise i'd have to look it up, but if i recall it was in the 50 to 75 fps range depending upon bullet. i.e. speed did favor the 24" tube for me, but the gain over the 20" wasn't astonishing.

best of luck on your new upper build.
-tdbru

[Mesa1978]

I have one of the 24" Midway versions of the stainless Brownell/Liberty offering. It is old and has 5R rifling. I got lucky and managed to get one without the short chamber. It is much lighter than an AA Overwatch and is about a 1 MOA shooter mounted to a Vltor upper and Les Baer carrier with handloads. My daughter loves to shoot it.

[Squirrelmarm]

... to be precise i'd have to look it up, but if i recall it was in the 50 to 75 fps range depending upon bullet. i.e. speed did favor the 24" tube for me, but the gain over the 20" wasn't astonishing.

Thanks for your comment, if the velocity gains are so minimal I might go with a 20" barrel after all. Weight savings is more important to me. My current build is 9lbs with an 18" barrel, I think it's too heavy. Like I said I'm more just scoping things out at this point, I will probably start on this build sometime next year.

[VASCAR2]