Rifle Competition Events Suppressor vs brakes in team matches

[Krazy Korean]

Hello,

I have shot in 2 team matches in the past 6 months. The guardian team match at GTI, and the vortex sniper team match at colemans creek. I am wanting to build a rifle for the LRRP division to take to nationals and was wanting input on bullets, barrel length, freebore, suppressed/brakes, etc. Most the shots I took at colemans creek were 200-500. So im thinking the 75 grain bullets at 3k would be the best option. I also noticed there are a lot more suppressors at team matches than at prs style matches. Why is that? Input from people who shoot suppressed would be appreciated.
Thanks,
K

 

[JustSendit]

For team matches it’s easier to communicate suppressed. Also there’s situation where muzzle blast will kick junk up and could be a distraction. There’s also typically less awkward barricades so recoil mitigation isn’t as important as it is in a prs matches.

Suppressors are also lighter and lighter so you can run a 22in 223 or 6cm and slap on a can and it’s not unwieldy, extra weight. or hard to pack.

But it’s 6/6 really - the top teams at mammoth all shot brakes, the top team at lrrp was suppressed but 2-4 were not.

For 223, I’ve seen or personally ran 75eldms, 85.5s, 80.5s, 88eldms, 77smks. I wouldn’t chase too much speed.

I would go with 75, and hunt around for a reamer tailored to that but the Wylde reamer easily allows the freebore to run a 75eld long. In my observation you can run 80s-88s with wylde but you get pressure before the bullets hit high enough speeds to out perform the 75s. So you would need to seek the optimal reamer for the those long bullets in 223 and modify magazines.

I would say the bigger factor for a suppressor is if your partner is suppressed and you’re not then it’s not worth it. For brakes, it’s a 223 - 2 port or 3 port and it’ll be good if you go the braked route.

 

[Krazy Korean]

Thats what I am leaning towards. I can't see the benefit of running a can unless you both do, but other than not blowing debris up, that fraction of a second of communication lost isn't going to amount to stuff, and I can run a brake and have at least 2-3" more of barrel to gain FPS if I want, or lower pressures at a moderate speed. The freebore I can't decide on. I'd like to get a custom reamer ordered and use it as my reamer for my next 5-10 barrels, but not sure exactly what I want it to do. I was thinking around .105FB and neck diameter based on starline brass. I'm currently getting custom inserts 3d printed for the MDT mags to allow a significantly longer OAL to be used, and that will dictate how much freebore I will choose. I'm thinking at least .90, and a max of .140 for 88/90 gainers. I was told Hamilton had well over .200 freebore in his 223 for the 90 atips. He was running a modified accurate 223 mag. Thanks for the input. Gives me some more things to consider.

 

[JustSendit]

If you tune up a barrel to push atips it’s worth it for the wind deflection. But beating the 75s in general is very tough. I ran the math and while the 85.5s will be better in the wind, the flat trajectory of 75 going 2950 is a beast to compete with for a field match.

The problem is getting 223 rem to move those heavy bullets fast enough.

Greg shot those and obviously did well but they won last year and the year before with 75s so it’s hard to say from my point of view that it’s worth the squeeze.

I’m going to try 85.5s and I borrowed a friends custom reamer. I’ll have to dremal the mag a little for the cartilages to fit. I’m not sure of the specs, I can find out and I’ll pm you.

 

[Krazy Korean]

If you tune up a barrel to push atips it’s worth it for the wind deflection. But beating the 75s in general is very tough. I ran the math and while the 85.5s will be better in the wind, the flat trajectory of 75 going 2950 is a beast to compete with for a field match.

The problem is getting 223 rem to move those heavy bullets fast enough.

Greg shot those and obviously did well but they won last year and the year before with 75s so it’s hard to say from my point of view that it’s worth the squeeze.

I’m going to try 85.5s and I borrowed a friends custom reamer. I’ll have to dremal the mag a little for the cartilages to fit. I’m not sure of the specs, I can find out and I’ll pm you.

Thats what I've been doing, and I'd say 80% of my shots were 200-400 yards, and inside 500, seems like speed is more important than BC. Even at 600, it's within .1 when pushed at 2950-3k of what the 90 atip is at 2800, and an 88 eldm is at 2900. The more I play with numbers, the more I lean to the 75 eldm. Thanks for the input! Let me know what spec you run with that reamer and how it works! Thanks

 

[Yoteski]

If you can both be suppressed, run a suppressor. If only one guy is suppressed, there's no point in running a can. I much prefer suppressed in team games because sometimes you're holding the tripod, resting a rifle on your teammate, etc. where the blast absolutely sucks for your partner.

 

[Eustice]

It’s not about the fraction of a second of extra communication. That fraction of a second is when all the data the spotter needs is occurring. When you pull the trigger you expect both the noise and the recoil. Your partner doesn’t. When the gun goes off they reflexively flinch and miss the shot. They miss the trace and probably the impact. That’s the data you want from the non-shooting partner and now they don’t have any info for follow up shots.