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T Bill

SPR 18" Barrels - Which gas length is best?

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SPR 18" barrels are being marketed with mid, intermediate and rifle length gas systems.  Which would you choose and why?  After a lot of research and reading a lot of posted information the debate continues including the biggest names in the industry.

 

I went with an intermediate system as I tend to shoot reloads that are quite mild either for practice/plinking or given the short distances involved on a course of fire.  Stretching the life of the brass.  Or shooting retails that tend to be a little "weaker" such as PMC, etc.  Some blog comments have been quite harsh on the med-length system with regard to excessive wear on brass, extractors, and bolt faces.  Rifle length reliability has also been discussed.

 

What is the best solution?  What do you think!

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I'll be shooting a midlength and an intermediate today, back to back. My gut feeling is there won't be an appreciable difference in cycling. Both are Wylde chambers so I'll put .223 as well as full power 5.56 through them to see. Personally, I don't think there's a big difference between the gas systems on an 18" barrel the way there is with midlength vs. carbine on the 14.5 and 16" barrels. But that's just my subjective opinion without objective data. Reliability, IMO, is a function of gas port sizing relative to placement. A good example is 14.5" midlength barrels.

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From everything I have read it seems to say that for a soft shooting 3 gun rifle with an 18 in barrel rifle length is the softest shooting. I have just recently found out about intermediate and will wait to hear what Ty says about it.

 

I have a 16 with a mid and a 14.5 with a carbine length and there is a bit of a difference in the carbines pushing back into my shoulder and seeing the scope move. I would really like to have an 18" with rifle length but I need to know more and shoot someones who has the system I want.

 

I am thinking about getting rid of my 14.5 in. upper and or whole rifle to setup my 3 gun rifle the way I want it as it's really the only one I shoot anyway. I just hate to sell any guns!!

 

So i don't have an answer for you just some thoughts. I think it really depends on what your P is gonna be in your SPR.

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The biggest issue I have with rifle length SPR-type barrels is unless they are profiled correctly, they become more like DMR barrels than SPR due to weight. To me, an SPR should be a dual purpose rifle equally capable inside of 50 yards as it is at 500 yards and to do that, the balance of the rifle needs to be right. Too much material on the barrel makes it nose heavy and less handy at shorter ranges. I've got a friend who's building an SPR with a four pound barrel. I told him he's building a DMR and not an SPR.

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I think it boils down to expectations. I personally don't like the heavier SPR/DMR/bull profiles and all the ones in between. Yes, in theory it would produce a more accurate barrel if it is stiffer specially as it warms up, etc, etc. I much rather have a standard A2 profile under the handguards and take the weight reduction. Realistic targets up to 500 yards don't require heavy match barrels, they require good sighting equipment, decent ammo and a decent trigger. Sure, you don't want a crappy barrel, but most barrels are not crappy and don't need the extra weight to make them better. 

 

Thats just my opinion. I want A2 or at most "medium/hybrid" profile barrels in the 18" length with rifle length gas systems.  The only one readily available is the Criterion one as far as I know, and that is also mostly out of stock 

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Having shot the midlength and intermediate back to back today, I can say that there is a difference in perceived recoil with the intermediate being softer. Not a huge difference but certainly noticeable especially since I went into the shooting session with a focus on recoil.

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Most of the barrels out there are rifle or midlength. The rifle will be softer shooting, how much it matters is up to you. From a non subjective standpoint, if your gas port is sized right, midlength, intermediate, and rifle length should deliver reliable function. The only thing that is pretty much not subjective and not situational is the pressure at the gas port as the bullet passes, and the dwell time between passing the gas port and reaching the muzzle. Rifle will be less than intermediate will be less than midlength for both. That implies two things IMO. 1) gas port erosion will be slower for rifle than intermediate than mid length. 2) That intermediate should be the least sensitive to ammo choice and ambient conditions because the dwell time matches the original design closest. 

 

From my perspective as a consumer, I'd vote rifle because I can get spare parts easily, and worst case is it becomes under gassed. AS a remedy to that I can lighten my buffer, which has lots of DIY options if you don't use a powdered metal filled one and open it up with a punch. SO it maximizes my ability to get spares and keep it running while giving me a soft shooter. 

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