Robert King Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 I'm going to build an AR10 and trying to figure out the choice of barrel. I know I want 20" or possibly longer. I have heard great things about the Proof fiber barrels but they are out of my price range. Does anyone have experience with the Proof stainless steel barrels? They are half the price and more in line with my budget. I can also get a Mega 20" for $310 but wanted to check out the Proof stainless option first. Advice is appreciated. This will be for a multi-purpose rifle. Some hunting, some plinking and I definitely want to build it so it can reach of with precision at longer ranges. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShooterSteve Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 Proof makes barrels that are well respected. Save yourself some heartache. If you want to reach out with precision at longer ranges, don't cheap out on the barrel. It is the most important link in the whole system. There are makers that do good work, Lila, Bartlein, and JP all make good stuff. Do they cost more, of course they do. I tried to do a long range gun on a budget one time. Before I was through, I had spent another three grand on an entire different rifle because I was so pissed off because the first one did not shoot good enough. Only you can decide what you want to do, but if you try to shoot long range with a rifle that gets shortcutTed, you will just end up pissed off and mad. If I had to do it all over, I would have just called JP for my barrel, and been done with it. The upside to building a suck ass rifle is that you will end up with another rifle in addition to the suck ass, but it will end up costing more in the long run. Save money by spending a little more the first time, and do something that shoots good to start with. Sorry if this seems harsh. Didn't mean to, I'm just sort of a straight ahead speaker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom S. Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 My AR10 has a 20" heavy barrel and even with fluting, it weighs well over 9 pounds with the scope and no magazine. That's a lot of weight to be carrying around hunting unless you're a young Arnold Schwarzenegger. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert King Posted December 29, 2015 Author Share Posted December 29, 2015 I'm not worried about weight at all. My hunting grounds start right when I step off the front porch. I don't plan on using it as a pack gun. I've got a bolt gun for when I want to do long range precision and want to add an AR platform 308 on my budget. $400ish is all I want to spend on the barrel. I'll probably just roll the dice and try out the proof. I've heard really great stuff about the carbon fiber barrels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blairmckenzie1 Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 For the money Black hole weaponry makes a very nice barrel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wild Gene Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 I wonder who makes the barrels for the Seekins SP10 or the PWS rifles? They both put out an awesome rifle and if the barrels are made in house, you could keep your money somewhat local, in the state anyway (Boise or Lewiston). wg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stlhead Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 Last I heard Glen used Rock Creek for all of his blanks, but things may have changed. Call them and ask. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBets Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 Proofs carbon fiber barrels are just the stainless barrels they make that are cut down and carbon wrapped to save weight and add some stiffness....They will have much the same accuracy potential...ie awesome Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mic2377 Posted January 4, 2016 Share Posted January 4, 2016 I am sure they would shoot fine for the accuracy potential of an AR-10, IE in the 0.75-1 MOA range. The question is are there other barrels that are a better value? Probably. The Mega 20" is a nice choice, and a Criterion would be great as well. To be honest though I am curious to your results myself now that you have made up your mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mic2377 Posted January 4, 2016 Share Posted January 4, 2016 Also, I forgot to mention that I have a Mega 18" that has turned out to be a nice barrel. Nice profile for hunting and generally shoots 5-shot groups in the 1-1.5 MOA range, on average, with some down to 0.75 MOA. Was WAY overgassed however and needed an adjustable GB to run reliably. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tan40 Posted July 7, 2018 Share Posted July 7, 2018 Nice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sanwizard Posted September 17, 2019 Share Posted September 17, 2019 OP, Please provide an update on your rifle if possible. I am going down a similar path right now, and would be very interested in your results. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MemphisMechanic Posted September 17, 2019 Share Posted September 17, 2019 22 minutes ago, Sanwizard said: OP, Please provide an update on your rifle if possible. I am going down a similar path right now, and would be very interested in your results. He last visited the website in October of 2017. Don’t hold your breath. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sanwizard Posted September 17, 2019 Share Posted September 17, 2019 Thanks. Hopefully someone else can contribute. Worst case, i will add my observations after I recieve and test my 18" PR10 Proof SS barrel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darqusoull13 Posted September 18, 2019 Share Posted September 18, 2019 22 hours ago, Sanwizard said: Thanks. Hopefully someone else can contribute. Worst case, i will add my observations after I recieve and test my 18" PR10 Proof SS barrel. Proof makes phenomenal barrels in both stainless and carbon fiber. I wouldn't hesitate to use a Proof barrel in any rifle. If you're building an AR-10 I would strongly suggest sticking to a minimum number of manufacturers to avoid some headache in the build. There's not too many standardized parts and you run into far more compatibility issues. I tend to recommend JP parts for building because of the success I've had with their 6.5 Creedmoor LRP-07's. They work working amazingly well and as a system they really do become more than the sum of the parts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sanwizard Posted September 27, 2019 Share Posted September 27, 2019 Thanks for the advice. I will check out JP. I know Proof uses the JP bolts to do headspace, so probably a good fit! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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