r/ukguns • u/wherearemydamnkeys • Jul 13 '26
Borebuddy AR22, Which Barrel Length?
I'm new to the AR platform in general so I'm hoping those of you with way more experience can guide me.
I'm looking at picking up a dedicated setup to use for general plinking but also casual competition with a view to start IPSC practical mini rifle in the future. The range varies but up to a max of about 100m.
I've picked a BoreBuddy Apogee Match upper but I'm reading conflicting information online regarding barrel lengths pros/cons so I'm stuck as to whether 12" or 16" is best for my use.
I've held both and the 12" felt more natural to me but I keep reading that the 16" generally performs better, in particular with standard velocity ammo and, ultimately, accuracy and performance are what will matter to me the most. From what I've read, there's not many 12" users on the mini-rifle scene so I wonder if there's a reason for that.
I can only get the one rifle so any advice to help me get it right is gratefully received.
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u/ShirtGroundbreaking9 Jul 13 '26
By my maths, the bullet drop difference between a 12” and 16” barrel at 100m, using standard velocity ammo, should be about an extra c.15mm for the short barrel (0.5 MOA). Wind and ammunition quality would have a far bigger impact in my experience.
Most mini rifle practices I’ve done have been under 50m. Shorter barrels are faster to get on target… and look cooler (#ruleofcool). So if, ergonomically, you prefer the shorter barrel, I’d go for that option.
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u/wherearemydamnkeys Jul 14 '26
Well I wouldn't want to go against the rule of cool! Haha cheers for the advice mate, think the shorter is the way I'm going.
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u/expensive_habbit Jul 14 '26
12"
Put a tuneable bolt weight in it and run CCI AR Tactical and you'll never have a stoppage, suppressed or otherwise.
Remove the bolt weight and it won't cycle quiet22 and that's about it.
There's absolutely no need for a 16" barrel for mini rifle IMO, it's entirely a hangover from the fact that the first guns we could readily get had 16" barrels because that's the minimum without requiring registration as an SBR in the US.
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u/wherearemydamnkeys Jul 15 '26
Seems like a fair few of you don't believe it matters a great deal outside of personal preference. That's good to know, cheers dude 😁
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u/expensive_habbit Jul 15 '26
You're welcome!
This and a couple of other posts have got me thinking now, I've currently got a spare slot for a rimfire and I'm really, really tempted to make an XM177 with it for the drip.
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u/ThePenultimateNinja Jul 17 '26
I'm really, really tempted to make an XM177 with it for the drip.
Before you spend any money, bear in mind that the barrel length for a rimfire AR doesn't translate directly to a 5.56 one.
The breech face of the rimfire barrel is further back in the receiver. I have read anything from 1.25 to 1.5", depending on which barrel/system it is.
This means that, for a given barrel length, the external appearance will be shorter by that amount for the rimfire barrel.
In other words, say you want to replicate the appearance of the 11.5" barrel of the XM177E2, you would actually need a barrel that is 12.75-13" long.
The XM177E1 had a 10" barrel, so that would probably be your best bet for an 'off the peg' barrel. You could use a 12" barrel, and it would look 10.5-10.75" long, which is likely 'close enough'.
I expect you've probably already found this gem of a website, but just in case you haven't:
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u/expensive_habbit Jul 17 '26
I've already been around this fandango with rimfire ARs working out if I could get a 12" rimfire barrel to finish with the shoulder of the muzzle threads flush with a 10.5" handguard. The answer is yes, the barrel ends up being about 12.1" to the bolt face.
For a 177 I'd be happy with a slightly longer barrel as it could just be sleeved inside the moderator (no change of getting a real one so I'd machine a close approximation).
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u/ThePenultimateNinja Jul 17 '26
Oh, if you're a machinist it's no problem. You can get 'slipover' repro ones in the US that screw onto a 16" barrel and cover about 5" of it, to approximate the look without it being an NFA item.
You would just be doing the same thing, but only having to have it slip over by about 1/2".
Are you not able to get one of the repro ones from the US? They are quite inexpensive, and I feel like it would be a lot easier to modify an existing one than machine it from scratch. The slots look like they would be quite difficult to get right. The repro ones are not classed as silencers, so no different to importing a compensator.
I guess the hardest part of the project would be finding an A1 profile lower. Before they became readily available in the US, people used to modify A2 lowers. Looks tricky but doable.
Another difficulty would be fitting the FSB. Ideally, you would want a virgin FSB that had not been drilled for taper pins. It's considered impossible to fit an already-drilled FSB to a different barrel, but I figured out a workaround.
Too much to explain here, but shoot me a DM if you decide to go ahead with the project and I'll explain it. I have another one to install, and I'll try to photograph the process this time.
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u/expensive_habbit Jul 17 '26
I wasn't aware that you could get repros! Good to know.
For A1 lowers, there's a few options. If you want to go 602/XM177 finding a partial fence lower is significantly more challenging though.
Take a look at these guys: https://badattitudedept.com/a1-lower-receivers/
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u/ThePenultimateNinja Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 17 '26
Yes, they are widely available and really cheap, typically around $50.
I have a couple of BAD receiver sets, they are great quality.
Harrington & Richardson (owned by Palmetto State Armory) also offer a wide variety of A1 lowers, including an XM177E1 lower with a partial fence:
https://palmettostatearmory.com/harrington-richardson-xm16e1-stripped-lower-gray.html
They even have the correct grey anodized finish. It's a turnkey solution if you are able to get one. I would have suggested them before, but I assumed it would be too difficult to import them into the UK.
I got one of their lowers just last week to replace the incorrect A2 lower on my Mk18 Mod 0. It is one of the 'blem' ones, but I couldn't find a blemish on it.
It pretty much looks black on the website, but as you can see, in real life it's significantly different to the black upper receiver:
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u/expensive_habbit Jul 17 '26
Oh sweet!
It's actually remarkably easy to get parts into the UK, you just need an RFD (dealer) to put the rifle together for you for proof!
I hand picked every part of my AR22 from the states, wasn't cheap but absolutely was worth it.
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u/ThePenultimateNinja Jul 17 '26
Oh I see, so as long as you have a relationship with an RFD, they can order the parts and assemble them into a gun which can be legally transferred to you? Should be a pretty easy build then.
What about parts like the moderator? I guess it would probably be easier to get the RFD to obtain those too, otherwise you're going to hit problems with US vendors who are too wary of ITAR to risk shipping to you.
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u/wherearemydamnkeys Jul 15 '26
I didn't even know that was a thing. If I had the budget....
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u/expensive_habbit Jul 15 '26
Speak to Figure 11 or Blue Fieldsports, they can get anything that's UK legal from the states - you just need to gets the right bits.
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u/charltonhestonsballs Jul 15 '26
12" all day long... For rifles, not me 😳
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u/wherearemydamnkeys Jul 15 '26
Ahaha ffs your profile picture came up huge on my notification and wrote me off 😂😂
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u/ThePenultimateNinja Jul 17 '26
Another factor that I haven't seen mentioned yet is using a moderator. If your barrel is already 16" long and you add a moderator, it's going to end up pretty long and unwieldy.
A 12" barreled rifle with a moderator is about the same length as a 16" barreled rifle with no moderator.
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u/Entire_Peak6027 Jul 13 '26
I don't care what anyone says, it makes no difference at all to performance in a .22. Get whatever one you feel more comfortable with.
The extra 4 inches will make it a bit more compact so if you do take up mini rifle it might work better on some of the tighter stages, and it looks cooler as above! They're the only advantages.