I've been wanting to get into service rifle, and I've currently got a 17.9 inch Swiss Arms Carbine with a S&B Short dot. I was thinking of getting a 14.3 inch model instead, as I have arthritis in my shoulders and keeping my guns as non-muzzle heavy as possible seems to help (it's always painful after I shoot). Question: is a 14.3 inch barrel okay for service rifle (I know it's not ideal)?
Swiss Arms 14.3 for service rifle?
- Thread starter UncleWalther
- Start date
I'd say CQB for sure (no brainer) - SR shoots out to 500M, so might not be quite as accurate as the longer barrels - but I'm sure it would still be competitive. In the end 90% of SR is shooter - the hardware is usually not the limiting factor. SR is not DR - the targets are scored on center of mass. One thing that can help is proper optics.
That said, I use a 14.3 swiss for CQB & an 18" AR (or 18.5" M96 depending) for SR.
I suspect the longer rifle makes me "feel" more accurate - but who knows
edit: the 17.9 would probably be a good all around, both CQB & SR - if your shoulders can take it.
That said, I use a 14.3 swiss for CQB & an 18" AR (or 18.5" M96 depending) for SR.
I suspect the longer rifle makes me "feel" more accurate - but who knows
edit: the 17.9 would probably be a good all around, both CQB & SR - if your shoulders can take it.
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Really it depends on how competitive you want to be. Can you shoot SR with a 14? Sure. Are you going to end up at the top of the heap if you are shooting against guys with equal skill and longer barrels? Nope. Unfortunately Gunnerlove and I found out the hard way after shooting in Australia for almost a month with 14.5 rifles. Ammo was a problem but the accuracy was just not there past 2-300m like we were used to with our 20" C7s.
I have done it with a noveske 12.5", but then longshot gonna argue with me. I personally don't think it is an issue. The issue is probably that longshot shoots crappy slow ammo optimized for the F88 gas system out of a bushmaster.......
IF weight is an issue, getting rid of the short dot and going for a lighter weight AR are probably the first step to resolve the issue.
Why won't this fallacy die? Take a 10 foot 2x4, and a 1 foot 2x4, which is stiffer?
Shorter barrels are ALWAYS more accurate assuming everything else is the same.
Lol you can do it with whatever you like. All I'm saying is that you are giving up a few things when you go that short.
The problem is that everything else isn't the same. Velocity is slower and that means the little .223 bullet stays in the wind longer which leads to...you guessed it, less accuracy.
Shelldrake
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Right behind you,,
As Longshot states, the greater the distance, the more initial bullet speed you will need in order to be competitive.
For SR, you need a good bullet with a high ballistic coefficient, running at a good velocity to give you that edge over those that don't. The shorter barrels won't give you that velocity in a safe manner. A 20" is about optimum.
For SR, you need a good bullet with a high ballistic coefficient, running at a good velocity to give you that edge over those that don't. The shorter barrels won't give you that velocity in a safe manner. A 20" is about optimum.
Gunnerlove
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Vancouver Island
In Australia my borrowed M4 was the most accurate AR I have ever shot. A long string of 5 round groups in the low teens(mm) at 100m was very suprising. The huge increase in drop and drift due to reduced velocity cost me and the rest of the team far to many points. Can you win with a short barreled rifle? Sure but you are playing catch up before the first round is fired.
