Experiments with Hammer Forged Barrels on AR-15s James Higley & Vern Briggs This is the fourth article

in a series about hammer forged barrels. In "Hammer Forged Barrels," (Precision Shooting Magazine, November, 2005) and "Notes on Hammer Forged Barrels," (Precision Shooting Magazine, January, 2007) we explained the technology used to forge rifle barrels. In "Experiments with .22 Rimfire Hammer Forged Barrels," (Precision Shooting Magazine, March, 2006) we looked at how these barrels perform in rimfire applications. Given our previous work, it would then follow to test hammer forged barrels in centerfire applications, so this article describes our initial experiments in that area. Disclaimer: This article discusses the use of handloaded ammunition. Handloading must be undertaken with extreme caution. Loads should be checked against several sources, and all loads should first begin with recommended starting loads. The authors make no safety claims for the loads shown. Unsafe handloading can result in injury or death for the shooter or bystanders. Background Sturm, Ruger, & Co. manufactures hammer forged barrels for centerfire rifles from .20 to .45 caliber. For this project, we chose .22 centerfire barrels chambered in .223 Remington for several reasons. The Ruger Mini-14 has been available since the mid-1970's with rifling twists varying from 1-7" to 1-10" at different times. In 2005, Ruger introduced a redesigned Mini-14 (shown in Photo 1) with a 1-9" rate of twist. As part of the accuracy testing on the new Minis, Ruger personnel noted that the 1-9" twist gave the best overall accuracy with the widest range of bullet weights available in commercial ammunition, 40 to 75 grains. The excellent results with the 1-9" twist in the Minis convinced Ruger to test bolt action rifles in .223 with the same 1-9" twist. After tests with M77 Mark II Target rifles (see Photo 2) were successful, Ruger standardized all .223 barrels with a 1-9" twist. Hence, newer Minis, the new M77 Hawkeye rifles, and No. 1s in all configurations manufactured after mid-2006 have the 1-9" twist and will handle heavier bullets nicely. As we'll see shortly, the faster twist doesn't seem to hurt accuracy with lighter bullets, either.

Photo 1 A new model Mini-14 manufactured with a hammer forged barrel. The sights and recontoured receiver are the primary visible differences between the new and old models. Precision Shooting, July, 2007

Photo 2 M77 Mark II Target rifle manufactured with a hammer forged barrel. This rifle has an older but reliable Leupold 24x scope fitted. Given Ruger's testing in .223, it seemed sensible to begin our centerfire testing of hammer forged barrels with that caliber. Ruger provided four hammer forged barrel blanks normally used on Mini-14 rifles. These .22 caliber centerfire blanks are forged of 4140 chrome-moly steel with six lands and grooves and 1-9 twist. The raw blanks have the snakeskin exterior pattern typical of forged barrels and measure approximately 0.980 in diameter and 22 5/8" long. We chambered and fitted the blanks to an AR-15 for testing. A logical question might be: why not fit them to a Mini-14 for testing since they are Ruger blanks? While the new Mini-14 models show much greater accuracy than earlier examples, we chose the AR-15 for two reasons. First, the authors have previous experience assembling AR-15s. Second, the accuracy data available for AR-15s makes it easy to compare our test barrels with others. Photo 3 shows samples of each type of blank, along with a barrel chambered and fitted to an AR-15 barrel extension, while Photo 4 shows the muzzle end of the same barrels.

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Photo 3 Center: chrome-moly blank chambered in .223 and fitted to an AR-15 barrel extension. Lower: chrome-moly blank that would normally be used on a Mini-14. Upper: stainless forged blank that would normally be used on an M77 Mark II Varmint/Target rifle.

Photo 4 Muzzle end of the same barrels shown in Photo 3. Notice the flat, recessed crown on the finished barrel in the center. Prior to fitting, the blanks were examined by slugging and checking for straightness and hardness. All four slugged just over 0.224" groove diameter. Remember that these barrels must conform to the Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers Industry (SAAMI) specifications, which call for the groove diameter between 0.224" and 0.226". Hence, these blanks are at the minimum specification where Ruger normally holds them. For straightness testing, we simply put the blanks between centers in a lathe and measured the runout in the middle of the barrel with a dial indicator. The runout readings measured 0.004", 0.007", 0.007", Precision Shooting, July, 2007

and 0.012". Contrary to what we would expect, the snakeskin pattern from forging has very little effect on runout. Barrels rarely run perfectly true, and these values are typical for most barrels. We decided to fit the two barrels with the least and the most runout to the same rifle to try and get some idea if the straightness makes any difference in their accuracy. As part of the initial checks, we also tested hardness. All barrels checked about 30 Rc, somewhat on the high end of a typical centerfire barrel. At this level of hardness, we would expect long barrel life. We chambered both barrels with a JGS match .223 reamer and crowned at 20", standard for an AR-15. This reamer has a fairly short throat, which means heavy bullets must be loaded to about 2.440" overall, rather than 2.550" as many other chambers allow. Handloaders must be especially careful with this type of chamber, and we encourage the reader to review the handloading disclaimer at the beginning of this article. The Test Rifle AR-15s come in a bewildering variety from more manufacturers than any other firearm, except possibly 1911 pistols and AK-47 assault rifles. Hence, we decided to build a basic rifle using commonly available, inexpensive parts. Our inventory already includes an Armalite lower receiver assembly with one of their non-adjustable two stage triggers. For the upper receiver assembly, we spent considerable time studying the Brownells Catalog and decided on the following main parts: DPMS Barrel Extension DPMS Lo-Pro Upper Receiver DPMS Standard Free-Float Tube DPMS Standard Bolt and Carrier Assembly Photos 5 and 6 show the assembled upper receiver comprised of the parts listed above. The LoPro receiver deserves some further comment. First, DPMS starts with an extrusion rather than a forging when manufacturing this upper. The extrusion process won't allow for any protrusions, so the receiver walls are much heavier instead. That, combined with the small loading port visible in Photo 5, makes for a sturdy, rigid upper receiver.

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Photo 5 Right side of the assembled upper.

Photo 6 Left side of the assembled upper. The round handguards and tall profile make AR-15s difficult to shoot off a bench. To counteract this, we built a flat forearm attachment from three pieces of " thick ultra-high molecular weight (UHMW) plastic and four stainless steel screws. Photo 7 shows the disassembled pieces and Photo 8 shows the completed assembly.

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Photo 7 Flat forearm attachment components.

Photo 8 Flat forearm attachment assembled to the upper. We decided to shoot the rifle as a manually operated repeater rather than as a semi-automatic rifle. This simplifies assembly somewhat and prevents brass loss during testing. An older Bausch and Lomb 36x scope mounted in a BSquare base completes the shooting package shown in Photo 9 on Ransom front and rabbit ear rear rests.

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Photo 9 Completed test rifle. Heavy barrel AR-15s tend to be somewhat muzzle heavy, so several weight systems are commercially available to help shooters balance a rifle. With a 20" barrel, our test rifle only needed a little extra weight in the butt. Rather than discard most of a lead weight, we used a Brownell's deluxe AR-15 cleaning kit (Photo10). At nearly pound, this kit contains a segmented cleaning rod, brushes, patches, and liquid cleaner neatly packed in a nylon case. When installed in a stock, the tightly fitted case does not rattle (Photo 11). A serious shooter would never clean a match barrel with one of these segmented rods, but it could prove useful in an emergency, as could the other items in the kit.

Photo 10 Brownell's AR-15 cleaning kit with instructions.

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Photo 11 Inserting the cleaning kit into the buttstock. The Test Loads In an effort to gain insight into the accuracy of these barrels with a wide range of bullet weights, a standard set of handloads were used rather than develop individual loads for each barrel. The Ruger factory did its .223 testing with commercial ammunition, so we decided to try three handloads that showed good performance in previous rifles and a fourth using the newer Hodgen Benchmark powder. These loads are shown in Table 1, with the cartridges and bullets displayed in Photo 12. Note that all bullets are moly coated. The velocity data came from Barrel 2 and an Oheler chronograph, but both barrels are so close in size we would expect similar data from Barrel 1. Oddly enough, all four loads showed 15 fps standard deviation. Table 1 Test Loads Bullet 40 grain Hornady VMAX 52 grain Berger 69 grain Sierra Matchking 75 grain Hornady AMAX Charge/Powder 25.2 grains Accurate Arms XMR2015 25.0 grains Hodgen Benchmark 22.0 grains Accurate Arms XMR2015 22.0 grains Accurate Arms XMR2015 Primer Remington 7 Case Lapua Overall Length 2.295" Muzzle Velocity 3373

Federal 205 Winchester WSR CCI BR4 and Winchester WSR

Lapua

2.275"

3024

IMI

2.260"

2705

Lapua

2.440"

2594

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Photo 12 Test loaded cartridges and bullets, L-R: 40 grain VMAX, 52 grain Berger, 69 grain Sierra Matchking, 75 grain Hornady AMAX. The first load was originally developed for our M77 Mark II Target rifle, and it shoots about 3/4" groups at 100 yards in that rifle (Photo 2). The second load was taken from the short list on the outside of the Hodgen Benchmark container with no development other than to set the overall length to touch the lands. The 69 grain Sierra load is left over from our service rifle. Since we had several hundred rounds loaded, all sighting in was done with this load. The last load with the AMAX bullet came from a long barreled AR-15. This proved the most finicky load, and it appears to be slightly over maximum pressure in these chambers. The Results With one exception, we followed the National Rifle Association standard of firing five consecutive five shot groups, except we used 200 yards as the test distance. We were fortunate to have two very calm 80 degree Fahrenheit days for testing. Barrel 1 shows only 0.004" runout when checked between centers. About 20 rounds were fired and the rifle thoroughly cleaned with J-B bore cleaner prior to testing. We started with the 69 grain Sierra load with the results shown in Target 1 followed by the 75 grain AMAX load shown in Target 2. These AMAX loads used CCI BR4 primers. At this point, the rifle was thoroughly cleaned again with J-B bore cleaner. As we started to shoot the 40 grain VMAX load, we realized that we only brought 20 rounds, so Target 3 shows the four groups we were able to shoot. Finally, we shot Target 4 with the 52 grain Berger load.

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Target 1 Fired in Barrel 1.

Target 2 - Fired in Barrel 1

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Target 3 - Fired in Barrel 1

Target 4 - Fired in Barrel 1 We then disassembled the rifle and installed Barrel 2 with 0.012" runout. The same loads were fired in the same order, except we chose not to clean this barrel until after all 100 test rounds, plus a few sighters were fired. Targets 5-8 show the results.

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Target 5 - Fired in Barrel 2

Target 6 - Fired in Barrel 2 Precision Shooting, July, 2007

Target 7 - Fired in Barrel 2

Target 8 - Fired in Barrel 2

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Discussion Frankly, we are surprised at the results. The overall average for all groups is less than 1.19" at 200 yards, or somewhat less than 5/8 MOA. Both barrels perform best with the 52 grain Berger load, but all loads shot quite well. We were a little discouraged at the 75 grain AMAX load in Barrel 2, so we investigated further. It turns out we used CCI BR4 primers in Barrel 1 and then ran out of them, so we substituted Winchester small rifle primers when shooting that load out of Barrel 2. The change in primers appears to have increased pressure based on case measurements, and it might have pushed the load past its accuracy point. Later testing from another rifle seemed to show the same thing, but not enough rounds were fired for a definitive test. We also noted that the best groups from Barrel 2 came after firing more than 75 rounds without cleaning. While powder and copper fouling were noticeable in the barrel, the last five groups with the Berger bullets were the best fired between both barrels. The dirty barrel test has significance to highpower shooters who generally must shoot at least 60 to more than 80 rounds without cleaning. Benchrest shooters typically clean after a few groups, so this test does not mean as much to them. Also note that, except for the 75 grain AMAX load discussed above, Barrel 2 with 0.012" runout seemed to shoot better than Barrel 1 with 0.004" runout. Actually, the group sizes are probably not statistically different given that only four or five groups were shot per load. At least 30 groups would be required for definitive results. From the data shown, we can safely say the two barrels are equivalent in performance, and the extra runout from Barrel 2 has no effect. Conclusions Most shooters consider factory barrels to be low end. Indeed, considering that the retail price for a chrome-moly Mini-14 barrel from the Ruger factory is just over $60 (not including bluing, fitting, or return shipping, just the machined barrel) one might expect a low end product. However, the groups fired from these test barrels would be considered quite nice coming from any rifle chambered for .223 Remington, but they are even more impressive coming from such inexpensive barrels. When American factories started hammer forging barrels four decades ago, most gunwriters were quick to condemn the process in print without first trying to understand the process. Of course, some manufacturers let poor barrels out to the public, which didn't help matters any. At that point, most manufacturers simply stopped advertising that they forged barrels, a state that has existed for about 30 years. Only recently have manufacturers started advertising cold forged barrels as a selling point. From what we have seen previously with the rimfire barrels we tested, and now with the .223 barrels shown in this article, it seems the bullet doesn't care how the rifling gets in the barrel. As long as the barrel has reasonable dimensions and is carefully fitted, it will shoot well. Properly forged barrels shoot as well as properly buttoned, properly broached, or properly cut barrels. Improperly done, none of the processes will produce an accurate barrel. Another reason for the mystery surrounding forged barrels has been their unavailability. Outside of the large gun factories, forged barrels simply are not available to other Precision Shooting, July, 2007

manufacturers or custom gunsmiths. That seems to be changing. At the 2007 SHOT Show in Florida, Sturm, Ruger & Company announced that they will be seeking outside contracts for forged barrels. They most certainly will first look for large customers, so the availability to small gunsmiths probably won't change anytime soon. Sooner or later, though, a custom barrel maker will purchase a forging machine and make barrels available to custom gunsmiths. James B. Higley Professor of Mechanical Engineering Technology Purdue University Calumet higley@calumet.purdue.edu Vern Briggs Forging Process Engineer Sturm, Ruger & Company vbriggs@ruger.com

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