Krieger AR-15 Barrels: A Quick Look

Molon · Jan 20, 2023

Krieger AR-15 Barrels: A Quick Look

I typically purchase my stainless steel Krieger AR-15 barrels directly from Krieger Barrels, Inc and have them do the chamber, port and finish etc. Krieger utilizes a four land/groove arrangement and it is known by many that Krieger’s single point cut rifling is superb. Krieger’s 416 stainless steel barrels receive an in-house cryogenic treatment are twice hand-lapped; once after reaming and again after rifling. The .224” Krieger AR-15 barrels have a land to land diameter of 0.218” which reportedly helps maintain accuracy for longer intervals in between cleaning.

I’ve owned 16”, 20” and 24” Krieger AR-15 barrels. I’ve owned Krieger AR-15 barrels with 1:9” twists and 1:7.7” twists. I’ve owned Krieger AR-15 barrels with 223 Remington and 5.56 Match chambers. Every Krieger AR-15 barrel that I’ve owned has produced 10-shot groups with extreme spreads of less than ¾ MOA.

24" barrel . . .

20" barrel . . .

16" barrel . . .

......

Bigjake83 · Jan 20, 2023

Have you done any from CLE or Craddock??

I'm putting an order in on a 22" .223 Bartlein / 4 Groove / CLE Match Chamber / 1-7.7 Twist / .875 Gas Block / 5/8x24 Treads.

I'll be using the Seekins IRMT-3 UPPER and handguard. If you haven't ever done a review on a CLE Bartlein Barrel I can send it out to you if you want to test drive.

I don't shoot anything but 77gr SMK's although Paul and Frank at Compass Lake swear up and down that the 60rgn vmax flat bottom projectile shoot better than the 77 SMK's at 100-300 yards. Have you tried any of them in the CLE Match Chamber with a 1-7.7 twist??

Amanda4461 · Jan 20, 2023

Those groups look like some of the 95gr. SMK groups from my CLE .224 Valkyrie with 1:6.5” twist Varmint weight barrel. The CLE folks are top-notch.
Now if I could just talk them into a Valkyrie barrel chambered and installed in my 700.

bfoosh006 · Jan 21, 2023

Very , very impressive results !
I also have Krieger in .224 bore and it is a wonderful barrel. ( at the moment I can't remember the chamber )

Thank you for sharing.

BurtG · Jan 21, 2023

Any of those groups factory ammo?

whatsupdoc · Jan 21, 2023

I have a custom heavy .936 gasblock 22" Kreiger with a CLE chamber and it shoots fantastic.
The only issue with the combination of a CLE chamber and .218 bore is high pressure signs with
some 5.56 ammo.

I have had factory 5.56 77 MK262 type ammo crono at over 2930 FPS, so just keep that in mind
with that combo.

NH4X · Jan 21, 2023

I always enjoy @Molon 's write ups / reviews........good stuff

.

Fire4EffectCA · Jan 26, 2023

Molon said:
Krieger AR-15 Barrels: A Quick Look

I typically purchase my stainless steel Krieger AR-15 barrels directly from Krieger Barrels, Inc and have them do the chamber, port and finish etc. Krieger utilizes a four land/groove arrangement and it is known by many that Krieger’s single point cut rifling is superb. Krieger’s 416 stainless steel barrels receive an in-house cryogenic treatment are twice hand-lapped; once after reaming and again after rifling. The .224” Krieger AR-15 barrels have a land to land diameter of 0.218” which reportedly helps maintain accuracy for longer intervals in between cleaning.

I’ve owned 16”, 20” and 24” Krieger AR-15 barrels. I’ve owned Krieger AR-15 barrels with 1:9” twists and 1:7.7” twists. I’ve owned Krieger AR-15 barrels with 223 Remington and 5.56 Match chambers. Every Krieger AR-15 barrel that I’ve owned has produced 10-shot groups with extreme spreads of less than ¾ MOA.

24" barrel . . .

Thanks for posting. I enjoyed the discussion.

I would like to build an AR-15 upper with a 24” Kreiger barrel and a 1-7.7 twist. I have the option of .875” or .936” diameter barrels. It appears that your first barrel photo and last rifle photo shows a 24” heavy barrel. Is the diameter .875” or .936” at the gas block? Are there any advantages to going with the .936” barrel?

reelserious · Jan 26, 2023

I have 2 different 4 groove kreiger barrels in my bolt guns and they are spectacular. Both solid 1/4 moa shooters.

longshot2000 · Jan 26, 2023

No doubt Kreiger makes good barrels. For AR15 platform, Kreiger and Bartlein could be a little over engineering for 5.56mm ammo. We use Craddock and Compass Lake for our custom barrels. Good people. I have met with Frank several times over the years. He has retired, but his son and staff still do outstanding work. You will spend a lot of money on a Kreiger or Bartlein barrel. We have seen just as good with Douglas and LaRue for a little less money. LaRue barrels are getting at least 3/4 MOA at 100 yards and are 1/2 the price. Douglas is used on our Mk12 rifles with 18" barrels, and you save a little. We also use Criterion with very good results in 5.56mm Now, when you move to .308, we are noticing much bigger differences with Bartlein 5R and with Kreiger in gas guns. Still pretty good with Criterion. We use Bartlein 5R and Schneider, Lilja and Criterion on bolt guns, all with good results

FYI.

Molon · Jan 31, 2023

bigjake83 said:
If you haven't ever done a review on a CLE Bartlein Barrel I can send it out to you if you want to test drive.

Thanks for your gracious offer, but my test queue is currently a mile long.

...

LilGucci · Feb 1, 2023

Molon said:
Thanks for your gracious offer, but my test queue is currently a mile long.

...

Any plans to review a Douglas barrel?

tomme boy · Feb 1, 2023

Come on @Molon you know only BA can shoot like that!

Molon · Feb 28, 2023

LilGucci said:
Any plans to review a Douglas barrel?

Not at this time.

jumrobe · Mar 14, 2023

Thanks for a fantastic write up @Molon. I’ve got a 20” Kreiger in a tactical profile coming from Compass Lake. I cannot wait to get that upper together and see how it does.

Wormydog1724 · Feb 6, 2025

I have a Krieger in my 18" KAC LPR Mod 2. north of 6,000 rounds and I'm always wondering when it's going to let loose on accuracy. So far it's still in the 1-moa range with 77gr reloads. I do wish I had another Krieger/KAC barrel on standby for replacement.

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Krieger AR-15 Barrels: A Quick Look

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