Which 300W-Fireball barrel would you prefer/buy?

[machgnr]

We have noticed a shortage in the availability of quality 300 Whisper/Fireball/300-221 barrels and are gearing up to supply AR type barrels, complete uppers, Remington 700 barrels, brass, and are in the beginning stages of producing loaded ammo.

You have the opportunity to decide which barrel lengths we will be offering. Here's your chance to "get what YOU want".

Any questions can be directed through PM's here on ST or directly through our site at www.bp-tec.com

Rick
www.bp-tec.com

[silencertalk]

Not 7.5 - I am not sure it will clear a rail with some QD silencers.

[Twinsen]

I put 10.5 because of the supposed reliability issues hinted at by somebody in another thread. That's all it took to sway me.

[machgnr]

I added the 7.5 because I've had a couple guys ask about them. I've not had any applications with a barrel that short, but thought I'd throw it in there, maybe to get some feedback.

It would definitely be a SHORT hand guard version !

[machgnr]

The 10.5" with an adjustable gas block will run both super and subs without cycling issues.

[Artful]

The 10.5" with an adjustable gas block will run both super and subs without cycling issues.

well unless your putting it in an Auto that's the one - I have a 16" but with the can on it's starting to get nose heavy and long - so I'll vote 10.5

[silencertalk]

9 inch:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PBqGXS2BtE

[machgnr]

Nice video Robert.

Artful- Yea, the 16" + barrels do tend to feel nose heavy with a can on there, especially if a person has shot something shorter before.

So far 80% of the votes are 10.5" and 13% are 9", 16" gets 6%.

Robert or Arful, have you noticed an accuracy difference between a 9" and a 10.5" at say, 100+ yards?

I realize for that to be an accurate comparison both barrel lengths would have to be from the same maker.

[silencertalk]

I never tried 10.5. I don't see why one would be more accurate than the other except by chance based on the amount of powder needed to reach the desired velocity. 9 inches is still long for a pistol and 221 Fireball was made as pistol ammo.

In a 5.56mm - agreed - I would not like to go below 10 because:

1. It will get less reliable.
2. It will not have as much velocity.
3. It will wear out a can faster

For you people saying 10.5 I have to ask - why? Is it because you think it will be more reliable or because you get more velocity with supersonic ammo? Or is it because you are used to 10 as a minimum for .223/5.56mm or because can makers warn against less than 10 inches for .223?

On the 3 points above, 1 is taken care of by the pistol-length gas. 2 is not an issue because you don't want to go faster than sound anyway. 3 is not an issue because 300 Fireball holds much less powder (less than 1/2 with subsonic ammo) than 5.56mm.

My 9 inch cycles with subsonic at 1020 fps and 800 rpm with a can so why go longer?

9 already has a lot of barrel protrusion from the rail.

[Cira]

For me, it's not anything about ballistics. I guess it's a little consistency for training. I run a 10" rail on all my 5.56 guns from 11.5" to 20" barrels. It's just where my grip goes and how I train. I wouldn't want an oddball gun with a 7' rail. With a shorter barrel than rail, I wouldn't want to get into figuring out which rails my can would be able to fit inside.

However, if you were to list the rails offered with the shorter barrel and the cans that fit inside the rail without problems, I'd be open to any length recommended.

[silencertalk]

I don't like the look of cans inside rails. Also it does not give you access to the mount. Also you cannot use them without a can.

This is a 7 inch rail with a 9 inch barrel:

[Artful]

Nice video Robert.

Artful- Yea, the 16" + barrels do tend to feel nose heavy with a can on there, especially if a person has shot something shorter before.

So far 80% of the votes are 10.5" and 13% are 9", 16" gets 6%.

Robert or Arful, have you noticed an accuracy difference between a 9" and a 10.5" at say, 100+ yards?

I realize for that to be an accurate comparison both barrel lengths would have to be from the same maker.

I only have a 16" on an AR - I have a friend with 10" on T/C Contender and it's accurate and the noise with a can is good - no expericnece with 9 inch. But an an AR it's good to have enough barrel out front of the port to keep the pressure up for operations, although I was going by the comment that 9" wasn't working as well with both super and sub-sonic as the 10.5".

[silencertalk]

Typical 5.56mm ARs with 10 inch barrels have carbine-position gas. These are pistol-position gas - the kind designed for a 7.5 inch AR.

A 9 inch 300 Fireball is already 1.5 inch longer than normal for a pistol.

I calculated the dwell time past the gas port. A 9 inch 300 Fireball barrel has the same dwell time (about 180 - 200 ms) as a 14.5 inch M4, a 16 inch with mid-length gas, or a 20 inch rifle with rifle gas.

In other words, 9 inches is the length which matches the dwell time of the 5.56mm systems which work best.

Also, 9 inch should work *better* with both super and subs than a 10.5 inch. In an earlier post I explained why. In order to get 1020 fps from a 220 Sierra MK in a 9 inch one needs more powder than to reach that speed in a 10.5 inch. The additional powder is what makes it cycle closer to a supersonic load. The longer you go, the more chance you will need an adjustable gas block.

[-k-]

Faster powder and larger bore makes pressure drop faster.

[silencertalk]

Heavier bullets help keep pressure up. Gas port size can be selected to provide function.

[CKOD]

Counter to what would make sense at first(but agreeing with what Ive read online), my AR fails to lock back and sometimes even cycle with 200 grain bullets at subsonic speeds (or even somewhat supersonic, ~11-1200 FPS range) using VV N110 but operates fine with IMR4227.

175 SMK's work fine with N110 however.

How big were the gas ports on the recent run of 16" 300FB barrels that noveske made?

[silencertalk]

N110 is not a suitable powder. I could not get that to run either. I tried 'every' powder and more. I will publish the loads to make my 9 inch run at 800rpm once I get them pressure tested.

[silencertalk]

I figured taking this poll out of the NFA section would unbias the 16 inch votes.

[-k-]

How big were the gas ports on the recent run of 16" 300FB barrels that noveske made?

.075"

[scottryan]

For you people saying 10.5 I have to ask - why? Is it because you think it will be more reliable or because you get more velocity with supersonic ammo? Or is it because you are used to 10 as a minimum for .223/5.56mm or because can makers warn against less than 10 inches for .223?

Because it is the only short barrel readily available for purchase that is made commercially (Noveske).

[stevejobs]

So have you decided which lengths you will offer?

For complete rifles, will you offer SBR lowers? (NFA transfer)

Thanks.

[winmdl98]

I bought the Noveske 10.5". I plan to run a tp555 3-position gas block on it. It is under a 12" V-TAC handguard. I bought a Noveske KX3 flashhider to bring the effective muzzle past the end of the handguard, however it only sticks out about 5/8". My direct thread mount suppressor(s) fit into the handguard for a continuous look. YHM's: 7.62 Phantom and 9mm WraithXL with a thread adapter. The OAL is similar to having a rifle with an 18" barrel. The pieces are only assembled hand tight, but when it is together, I can post pictures.

For this application above, I think an 8.5" would have been a very viable choice if it would have been available. It would have made the OAL like a 16" carbine and a rifle length handguard.

Thanks for the inquiry.

[smcharchan]

I will publish the loads to make my 9 inch run at 800rpm once I get them pressure tested.

Please do so! You will save me a lot of work.

Thanks Robert.

[hjustein]

I have had good luck with my 300/221 AR-15 using a 7.5" barrel. I really only use it for subs though, for supers I would want a ~10" barrel.

I did have to shorten my DD Lite 7.0 rail a bit for it to fit, but no big deal.

I am pushing 200 and 220 gr projos to 1040 FPS using between 9 and 10 gr of Lil Gun and getting good cycling with a pistol length gas system and an AAC 762SD on the end.