Anyone here shoot both? I see mixed reviews about both and I'm now on the fence. Building up a 6.5 Grendel and need a good barrel.
Rainier Ultramatch or Wilson Combat Barrel?
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Ranier, & it's not even close.
Wilson barrels shoot decently when all is said & done, but I've had too many other issues with them on 5.56's to ever put them in the same league as Ranier. With Ranier, it's no muss, no fuss, easy button, just not cheap.
And if you aren't happy with the barrel performance, they'll replace it, no questions asked.
MM
Wilson barrels shoot decently when all is said & done, but I've had too many other issues with them on 5.56's to ever put them in the same league as Ranier. With Ranier, it's no muss, no fuss, easy button, just not cheap.
And if you aren't happy with the barrel performance, they'll replace it, no questions asked.
MM
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Agreed.
I have both...well had....sold the Wilson.
To be honest the Wilson shot OK, just never was good. Always, no matter the load, would throw fliers, and would throw them so consistently I could guess to within a few thou where the next hit would land.
First 3 rounds would be perfect and touching, 4th would land at 7o'clock and 5th would land at 4o'clock both about 1/2 inch from first three.
Every stinking time, every stinking load.
Ultra match.
Lights out, easily shoots under 1/2 inch with anyone I put behind the trigger.
The Ultra match also has much much better finish in every aspect. The chamber and muzzle are like mirrors as is the bore.
These are/were both 308's on a large frame AR.
I have both...well had....sold the Wilson.
To be honest the Wilson shot OK, just never was good. Always, no matter the load, would throw fliers, and would throw them so consistently I could guess to within a few thou where the next hit would land.
First 3 rounds would be perfect and touching, 4th would land at 7o'clock and 5th would land at 4o'clock both about 1/2 inch from first three.
Every stinking time, every stinking load.
Ultra match.
Lights out, easily shoots under 1/2 inch with anyone I put behind the trigger.
The Ultra match also has much much better finish in every aspect. The chamber and muzzle are like mirrors as is the bore.
These are/were both 308's on a large frame AR.
Really? Wow! So that much of a disparity between these eh?? I kind of figured they were in the same mid-tier league. Ok then, is there such a disparity between these guys because wilson just sucks, or because Rainier's just that good.
i have the rainier in 224 valk. very accurate. and they have excellent customer service. when i was putting the valk together i had questions regarding the mega monolithic rail and fitment of gas blocks. instead of vague or non-answers from everyone else, the rainier guy said he'd go mock one up in the back, and confirmed what i was looking for would work. awesome cs!
My Rainier barrel, on one of their built rifles, is startlingly accurate. I've got no experience with WC, but with the performance I'm getting out of the gun, I wouldn't hesitate for a moment to drop in another barrel.
Ok, then how about Rainier Ultramatch vs Criterions? I ask beause Criterion's barrels keep getting pushed back further and further and I've already been waiting months, whereas Rainier has them in stock. Am I giving up much going to an Ultramatch?
I had a rainier ultramatch 16" and it was fantastic.
My experience with criterion has been OK, AR15 barrel shot mediocre, M1A barrel shot well after about 500 rounds.
My experience with criterion has been OK, AR15 barrel shot mediocre, M1A barrel shot well after about 500 rounds.
Giving up nothing. I am not sure who makes the ultra match blank but it's easily the equal of Criterion and whoever the smith is that cuts them is an artist. I mean that, there are machinists, and then there are artists.
I have my suspicions but can verify nothing.
Ultra Match *used to* be Shilen blanks and I think (don't hold me to it) it was possibly McGowan cutting them.
Pac-Nor and Benchmark are both near Rainier HQ.....so?
BTW, last UM barrel I ordered online was in my hands 2 days later.
I have my suspicions but can verify nothing.
Ultra Match *used to* be Shilen blanks and I think (don't hold me to it) it was possibly McGowan cutting them.
Pac-Nor and Benchmark are both near Rainier HQ.....so?
BTW, last UM barrel I ordered online was in my hands 2 days later.
If you're willing to step out from those 2 brands, JP makes a killer barrel for a bit more money. I've got a 22" med contour 6.5 grendel that is an absolute hammer. For a bit less money, my 18" Odin Works 6.5 grendel barrel is also pretty dang good. Just a couple of other options.
Yea, I was considering JP, as all their shit is stellar, but they don't make 16" 
Odin works has a nice 16" setup too, with agb with it as well. Wonder if that's the click type or set screw variety. Are the odin works barrels nice and consistent?
Odin works has a nice 16" setup too, with agb with it as well. Wonder if that's the click type or set screw variety. Are the odin works barrels nice and consistent?
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I have had the Larue, the Criterion, and the Ranier in 6.5G.
The Rainier was the best of them WITH the load it liked and it was serviceable with the loads it didn't like.
Larue came in second.
Let me clarify that. The Rainier shot .3 with the load it liked (123 Hornady) and .6/.7 with the stuff it didn't like. .8/.9 type behavior with the Wolf.
The Larue shot .5/.6 with every single thing I put in there, including the wolf stuff.
The Rainier was the best of them WITH the load it liked and it was serviceable with the loads it didn't like.
Larue came in second.
Let me clarify that. The Rainier shot .3 with the load it liked (123 Hornady) and .6/.7 with the stuff it didn't like. .8/.9 type behavior with the Wolf.
The Larue shot .5/.6 with every single thing I put in there, including the wolf stuff.
Rainier Ultramatch MOD2 Barrel Testing - 6.5cm, 224V, 223 Wylde, 300 BLK
I know a lot of you have seen my various posts showing how accurate my Rainier Ultramatch 223 Wylde and 300 BLK (Shilen) barrels are. I've received requests from a bunch of the members asking me to test Rainier's new Ultramatch MOD2 barrels. Well wait no longer, Rainier went above and beyond...
www.snipershide.com
there
Rumor has it that the new Ranier UM barrels are Criterion blanks, but they will not confirm of deny that.
MM
MM
Are the bores smooth and free of chatter? Don’t know, and my observations on the subject are a sample of one. Does this barrel shoot boringly consistently at 1 moa at 100 yards with Hornady black bthp or eld-m, with or without a suppressor, and has it been pressed into match environments where it was not the weakest link? Absolutely.Yea, I was considering JP, as all their shit is stellar, but they don't make 16"
Odin works has a nice 16" setup as well, with agb with it as well. Wonder if that's the click type or set screw variety. Are the odin works barrels nice and consisten?
Ok, ordered the Rainier ultramatch. I have bore scope so I can look inside to see how much if any machining marks are left. Though I have had some not-kreiger-smooth barrels shoot pretty darn good in the past. We shall see.
Though LaRue shoots half minute with wolf? lol wow!
Though LaRue shoots half minute with wolf? lol wow!
I'll second @MontanaMan, and repeat what has been said on this forum many times before, that the way the bore looks doesn't matter nearly as much to the way it shoots as whoever sold you the borescope might have you believe. I would only use a borescope on a barrel if the gun was not producing repeatable and consistently accurate results, that matched my expectations for the rifle, ammo, optic, shooter combination (emphasis on shooter), and even then, if the bore looks bad under a bore scope, what are you gonna do about it? Do you have the means to fix any chatter or machining artifacts? The only thing to do with a poor shooting barrel is contact the manufacturer/seller anyways, and see what they want to do about it, and I would be very surprised if they cared much at all about what you saw through your borescope.
None of this is meant to be incendiary or derogatory, just as a reminder that when the only tool you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a nail.
None of this is meant to be incendiary or derogatory, just as a reminder that when the only tool you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a nail.
It’s so hard to tell if a barrel is gonna shoot from a borescope.
Cleaning is where I like the scope a lot. And a bad chambering job is easy to spot with one and most of the awful chambers I have seen didn’t shoot for shit.
Cleaning is where I like the scope a lot. And a bad chambering job is easy to spot with one and most of the awful chambers I have seen didn’t shoot for shit.
And those are some of the few uses I would think valid for personal ownership of a borescope. I will likely never own one, but sounds like you've got your use cases sorted!
I have two Rainier Ultramatch 308 large frame barrels, when they used Shilen. They flat out hammer. My one barrel I have over 9000 suppressed rounds through it, fire cracked like a burnt piece of wood, copper trails embedded in the rifling, but still spot on with accuracy with factory match. Just have to clean the bore every 300 to 400 rounds to keep it on track.
Other barrel, just the same, but with half the round count using factory loads. When it comes to a replacement barrel, think Shilen will get my order.
I have Criterion barrels also, I am at 50/50 with them. I like their barrels, but my 2 above just perform when I need them constantly and consistently.
Other barrel, just the same, but with half the round count using factory loads. When it comes to a replacement barrel, think Shilen will get my order.
I have Criterion barrels also, I am at 50/50 with them. I like their barrels, but my 2 above just perform when I need them constantly and consistently.
I was trying to figure out where Rainier gets their blanks for the Ultra Match line of barrels, and read posts on other sites that Criterion supplies the blanks and Craddock does the finish work on them. This is hearsay, but it seems to add up.
