AR...ah...barrel question?

[ChevyGuy91]

I guess I am looking for opinions, and maybe experience on shortening an AR barrel. I have a Saber Defense 16" mid-length upper with a brake I really don't like pinned on the end. It is a V style and is super obnoxious, and I want to replace it with a PWS FSC556. I know pinned brakes can be removed, and it is not something I want to attempt myself. My thought is, if I took it to a smith, I am thinking about cutting the barrel to 14.5 and pinning the FSC556. The brake is 2.1 inches so that would bring the barrel to a legal 16.1 inches, right?

Does something like this generally cost a lot of money to do?

Is there a reason this should not be done with a mid length gas system?

Should I just leave it the way it is and buy a new upper? (I'd rather not)

I have a lower sitting waiting for a 18" mk12 clone upper, so I am not really concerned with the loss of an inch and a half of barrel, if there is any real loss of performance anyways.

Thanks for your thoughts,
Ed

 

[Moderator]

I am thinking about cutting the barrel to 14.5 and pinning the FSC556. The brake is 2.1 inches so that would bring the barrel to a legal 16.1 inches, right?

16.6 according to my calculations.

ETA, I'd see if somebody has what your looking for and try trading.

 

[ChevyGuy91]

16.6 according to my calculations.

ETA, I'd see if somebody has what your looking for and try trading.

I was under the impression that the threads of the barrel took up a 1/2" of the length of the brake.

I have thought about trying to trade, but I spent so much money on that upper I would really hate to see it go.

Thanks for the post though.
Ed

 

[KMM696]

As a cost example....

Adco Firearms charges $40 to remove a permanent brake, $30 to permanently attach another one, $65 to cut and rethread, plus whatever return shipping is. I haven't used them yet, but they have a reputation for good work.

They also will charge for disassembly and assembly if you can't take the barrel off the upper yourself - $35 for regular handguard upper, $50 for free floating handguards.

Removing & reinstalling a barrel can be done at home, but will require some specialized tools. It's your call where to spend your money - if it were me, I'd get the tooling to do it myself, but I work on rifles a lot and would use them more than once. After shipping, I'd guess doing the barrel would be in the neigborhood of $200 if Adco did the whole job.

You could buy another barrel assembly (BCM shows (out of stock) Sabre 14.5" for $379), but it would still need the brake pinned and installation in your upper, hopefully before it gets to you. Having an unpinned 14.5 and your AR could put you in very hot water with the BATF, if they wanted to go the 'constructive possession of a short barreled rifle' route. However, you also can sell your current barrel to offset some of that cost. Could replace the whole upper in a similar manner, which would require no gunsmith work.

Lots of smiths out there who can do this work, too. Someone local might have a better price for you - it would be worth calling around.

I'm not sure on that barrel/gas system combination, I've never tried it. It's not one of the common configurations, but they are out there. Worst case, it might take some tweaking (buffer weights, gas port diameter, etc.) to be reliable with all ammo. I'd bet it would work right out of the box, but like I said, haven't tried it myself.

I've looked at that FSC556, too. It'll be the next one I try - my favorite brake is out of production.

Good luck, and let us know which way you end up going.

 

[ChevyGuy91]

Thanks for the input, I think I may call around locally. If it only costs 200 bucks, I would just assume do that then replace the whole thing.

 

[Stratocaster1422]

Dave Santurri can do exactly what you want I believe.

http://www.santurriltd.com

 

[MassMark]

I'd give Remsport a ring...

 

[ChevyGuy91]

Thanks guys, I sent Dave Santurri and email, I will send one to Remsport as well.

Ed