16" AR question???

H

huntinggamo

New member
im about to purchase a new upper for my ar and am having a hard time deciding between a 16" upper and a 20". i would like the manuverbility of the 16 but im woried about performance compared with the 20. what are your thoughts on performance between the two. i understand it depends on the barrel, im looking at the dpms bull stainless.
 
Midway has DPMS 16" SS A3 complete upper assemblies on sale for $399.00. I've been thinking of adding another upper for that price.
 
This has been discussed before. The 16" tube is a LOT louder than the 20'. Now that I've said that...you'll get replies that it isn't much of a difference. Trust me, it is. I would suggest that you fire a 16" barrel before you buy one and see for yourself. If the noise doesn't bother you, then I'd say go for it. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 
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This has been discussed before. The 16" tube is a LOT louder than the 20'. Now that I've said that...you'll get replies that it isn't much of a difference. Trust me, it is. I would suggest that you fire a 16" barrel before you buy one and see for yourself. If the noise doesn't bother you, then I'd say go for it. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif



I agree, the difference in sound is very noticable.. If this was gonna be my 1st or only AR I would go with a 20" barrel...
 
A search will tell you the opinions of the experienced people on this site. My 16 bull is light and accurate. There is always a tradeoff and to me it is loss of velocity vs wt of gun. A long bull barrel on an AR is cumbersome but a 16" barrel is showing serious bullet drop at 300yd. As far as noise goes I wear protection.
 
I have barrels from 14.5" out to 22". Since I always wear hearing protection, I don't notice a lot of difference, but there is some with the 14.5" as it has a muzzle brake on it as well as being short.

I have a DPMS 16" bull barrel that has been my 'go to' competition rifle for 3-gun and other action competitions for several years and out to 200 yards, it is as accurate as my two custom made ARs... After 200 yards, the customs will take over in the accuracy department, but they were built for longer range shooting.

If you are going to be shooting in the 400-500 yard range on a regular basis, then you will want the longer barrel and as much velocity as you can get.

If most of your shooting ranges will be 200 yards or less, then what little loss in velocity you will experience won't make any real difference in either accuracy, or to what is being shot. If you don't use good hearing protection, then IMHO you're foolish.
 
Quote:
This has been discussed before. The 16" tube is a LOT louder than the 20'. Now that I've said that...you'll get replies that it isn't much of a difference. Trust me, it is. I would suggest that you fire a 16" barrel before you buy one and see for yourself. If the noise doesn't bother you, then I'd say go for it. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif




I went with the 20" barrel for that exact reason. It is much louder than people let on. I have shot 1 16" barrel and then a 22" barrel right after it and there is a huge difference. If it is a range gun that isn't too big of a deal but I do not hunt with hearing protection so it then does make a difference.
 
I have a 20" HBAR with Miculek comp and a 16 HBAR with a levang comp. The 16 w/ levang comp is much pleasanter to shoot than the miculek in hunting situations. I will switch out to the levang on the 20" soon. That being said, shooting handloaded 60 vmax's over ww748 from each rifle I got the following results on about a 50 degree day at around 900 msl elevation.

20" 2934 fps
16" 2708 fps
 
I had D-Tech flute a 20" Oly SUM for me and it's not too muzzle-heavy to make a very good predator rifle. His fluting knocks a lot of weight off, but the accuracy and velocity are outstanding. I was skeptical when Mike "talked me into" going that route, but I couldn't be happier after receiving it. A 20" bull without fluting (I have one) is very noticably muzzle-heavy, though some people like that.
A 16" pencil-barrel would be lighter than the fluted 20", but you would have a velocity loss and not many of them will shoot the groups my SUM barrel will.
 
As I’ve said before I think the noise issue is overrated, if you are shooting any firearm without hearing protection you are damaging your ears, that’s just a fact, regardless of the length of the barrel or the caliber.

Consider what type of shooting you’ll usually encounter, ranges ect and base your decision on those parameters. I have a 16, it’s easy to handle and haul into a location but it does give up some range and velocity to the longer barrels at ranges over 250 yards that can become a factor. I sure wouldn't rule out a 20 if it was set up right and wasn't too heavy.
 
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This has been discussed before. The 16" tube is a LOT louder than the 20'. Now that I've said that...you'll get replies that it isn't much of a difference. Trust me, it is. I would suggest that you fire a 16" barrel before you buy one and see for yourself. If the noise doesn't bother you, then I'd say go for it. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif



And a 24" .243 is a whole lot louder than a 16" .223. So what if the 16" is louder than the 20"? Does volume change the performance of the bullet in any way?
 
I guess I'm backward, I had a 20" fluted (not bull) from Model 1 Sales on my 1st AR. It shot well but seemed front heavy to me, the balance wasn't great. I sold it and now have a DPMS 16" car and I love it. The accuracy is crazy from the short tube (1/2" at 100 yds) and for calling it is a dream compared to the other gun.

It is louder no question, I use ear plugs while on stand most of the time. I'd try them both and pick the one you mesh with.

Tom
 
I have been struggeling with a simalar question, I have a Bushy Varmiter and a DPMS light 16 a4, the Bushy is a great rifle but a little long and heavy for calling so I am thinking of getting the 16" DPMS bull cuz I think it will be alot better to carey and more accurate then the light weight cuz of the added front weight and I am thinking the same accuracy or close enough,ANY thoughts
 
There is little question that a 16" is louder than a 20". However I have shot 10" 14" and 16" Contenders in 223 for years. I can't see why everyone talks about how loud the 16" AR is, but not the Contenders. Just my 2 cents.
 
I think OldTurtles points about what distances you'll PRIMARILY be shooting are very valid (though IMO you don't need a custom to get excellent accuracy in the 400-500 yard ranges). /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

If I were in your shoes, I'd put some thought into the distances you'll be shooting most of the time, and let that be the deciding factor between a 16" or 20".

I also agree that with ear pro, I can't tell any difference between my 16"'s and my 20"'s (referring only to noise level) though the 16" are typically louder, of course depending on the brake(s) used, etc., but with good ear pro, that's a moot point IMO.

Some folks comment that when they go to the range some of the other shooters will give them "the look" when shooting something loud. That wouldn't bother me in the least, because if the other shooters at the range were using good ear pro, they wouldn't notice the difference either, and as OT said anyone not using good ear pro is foolish !!!

I really like the 20" for the little extra added velocity on the 400-600 yd. shots on the PD's. Of course YMMV.

Hangtime.
 
Accuracy wise, one is'nt any more accurate than the other. The only difference is the 20" will have a little more velocity. Personally, I prefer the 16". More suited to the heavy cover I hunt in. Is 16" louder than 20", thats what ear plugs are for. I don't like to shoot any gun without hearing protection.
 
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Quote:
This has been discussed before. The 16" tube is a LOT louder than the 20'. Now that I've said that...you'll get replies that it isn't much of a difference. Trust me, it is. I would suggest that you fire a 16" barrel before you buy one and see for yourself. If the noise doesn't bother you, then I'd say go for it. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif



And a 24" .243 is a whole lot louder than a 16" .223. So what if the 16" is louder than the 20"? Does volume change the performance of the bullet in any way?



I didn't see where he mentioned a .243.....maybe I need to go back and read it again? The way I read it he was asking about differences in .223 barrel lengths. And no, I can't see where volume would change the performance of ANY cartridge, but he asked about our opinions on the barrel lengths. Are we supposed to answer only the immediate concerns, or offer up opinions on things that posters might not have thought about? Personally, I welcome any and all input when I'm asking questions. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused1.gif
 


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