High-End Barrel vs. Avg. Barrel Question….

[AR_ART]

I used the search function but couldn't find anything that answered my question (or I don't know the correct combo of words to search)...

Anyways, I recently acquired an AR-15 with an 18" barrel, Its a DMR build and was thinking of swapping out the Bushmaster barrel for a Noveske. Believing that I'll get better accuracy with the Noveske barrel...

But I took it out as is and was pretty much shooting 1 MOA with LC surplus ammo, there were definitely some outliers which could have been me (most likely) or the ammo. Not a huge variant but like 3 MOA

I started thinking if it aint' broke don't fix it.. Was wondering if or what I would gain by changing out the Bushmaster for a Noveske?

TIA!

[Great-Kazoo]

outside of a lighter wallet, run what you have. When AR part kits (minus the lower) first came out. J&T among them were selling them with Wilson bbls. At that time there was hesitation in the ar world for the "unknown" . I picked up a few and ran them against factory rifles. Outside of shooter error / inexperience. they difference between them was minimal if that. in some cases the wilson outperformed factory bbls. keep in mind, at that time you had Colt, Armalite, Bushmaster, and one other that escapes me. DO LMT, Noveske, LaRue, Daniels, etc have quality bbls and firearms. of course. However if your skill set isn't 1/4 -1.5 MOA consistently, why not turn that extra cash in to ammo, optics AND practice.

[ChunkyMonkey]

I used the search function but couldn't find anything that answered my question (or I don't know the correct combo of words to search)...

Anyways, I recently acquired an AR-15 with an 18" barrel, Its a DMR build and was thinking of swapping out the Bushmaster barrel for a Noveske. Believing that I'll get better accuracy with the Noveske barrel...

But I took it out as is and was pretty much shooting 1 MOA with LC surplus ammo, there were definitely some outliers which could have been me (most likely) or the ammo. Not a huge variant but like 3 MOA

I started thinking if it aint' broke don't fix it.. Was wondering if or what I would gain by changing out the Bushmaster for a Noveske?

TIA!

The difference is not worth the money imho.

[ray1970]

If you're getting one MOA groups already with the occasional flyer, you probably won't see enough difference to justify the cost. My guess is the fliers are probably the cheap ammo. Some good, match grade ammo or quality reloads will probably tighten things up without breaking the bank for a new barrel.

[J]

Noveske barrels are not magically superior. They are great quality, and you know you won't get anything terrible, but I wouldn't expect the Noveske brand to get me the most accurate barrel ever made either. And I don't know anyone shooting top level LR or DMR that run off the shelf Noveske barrels.

In honesty, your barrel sounds like it is shooting great. The Noveske will probably not shoot much better if you are sub MOA. Sure, you might be 0.9 MOA, but is the Noveske at 0.8MOA really that different? Especially for that price? You just don't see normal ARs going into the 0.5MOA territory often. The ones that do are set up just to do that. If you really want to go tighter, you are looking at going 223 Wylde, heavy barrel, 416 Stainless instead of CL or CHF (less life, better accuracy) and with a heavy barrel and a tighter chamber that will be less happy with steel and sub-par ammo. You will also be looking into load development and custom chamber cutting for that load (to get the throat well under the normal jump that most 556 chambers have). Not to mention a whole host of supporting components to go with the barrel.

So, in summary, keep your barrel until you shoot the rifling out of it. If you are sub MOA, you have a great AR. I have a few that are right there with yours and I have no desire to "upgrade them", and one that does well under that in accuracy. The one that shoots sub 1/2 MOA I have dropped SERIOUS money in to, barrel and everywhere else, waited on some SERIOUS lead times for some parts (years, not months), some pieces custom made, custom fit or custom cut, and it doesn't shoot 5.56 either.

[sportbikeco]

Take out that barrel and sell it to me lol

[kwando]

You can have all the fanciest paint brushes it's not going to make you an artist. Dave the money for ammo or training.

Most of us will never out shoot the life of a std barrel

[AR_ART]

Thanks for the responses guys! Looks like I'll just keep it as it is and start working on a load!

[MarkCO]

Except for the new Noveske competition barrel (which is not available yet) I would bet your DPMS barrel would not be outshot by a Noveske barrel. They are very good barrels, but they are not intended for "best" accuracy. There are a few that might give you a slight improvement, like 20% or so. If you want to get down to where you have a 1/2 MOA capable rifle, you will need a better upper receiver with a correct install of a Kreiger or Bartlein quality barrel. Putting a Kreiger on a DPMS receiver though might not get you sub MOA.

[BPTactical]

I have put fresh crowns on a few Noveske barrels and it has made a difference according to the customer.
I have done that to a wide array of barrels regardless of brand and it can make a difference.
Often factory crowns leave a bit to be desired.