.17 Remington

[Prevpred]

What would be the best barrel length for a carry-in-the-field prairie dog AR in .17 Remington? I am considering that caliber just for varmint and plinking but don't know that much about them. Any opinions/advice would be appreciated, including recommendations on barrel manufacturers. -- Thanks

[TRnCO]

I'd suggest going with at least a 22" barrel for the simple fact that the .17 Rem. shines because of it's ability to fling tiny bullets at high speed, and the shorter you go on the barrel, the less speed you'll be able to produce with the tiny bullets.
One thing to consider is the fact that finding brass for the .17 Rem. is tough right now. And the brass, when you do find it, isn't cheap. If you're OK with shooting 20 gr. v-max bullets, then you'll be alright in the compartment, but if you want some bullets that would be better suited for shooting predators, then they are hard to come by these days too.
As far as barrel manufacturer, I've got 3 uppers built by D-Tech and he/Mike Milli, has a couple of choices for barrels. He builds a great rifle, so he might be a guy to talk to and figure out what direction to go on your project.

[sportbikeco]

How about a .204 ruger? I have seen barrel bolt sets at midway.

[TRnCO]

yeah, the .204 ruger makes for a pretty good varmint/predator/plinking upper too. I've shot a few hundred coyotes with my .204 AR in the past few years. Although this year it's only collected dust since I'm using a bolt rifle in the .17/204.