I was looking to build my first upper and so far I have chosen the Aeroprecision M4 Enhanced receiver because of the simplicity of not having to time the gas tube or barrel.

I was hoping to avoid spending a fortune on a barrel but was looking at Noveske which seems to be the only mfg that I can trust. Kreiger I think is also great but I think the only barrel they make is stainless steel. I am not a big fan of stainless. Looking at FN, I heard they make barrels that last and last but they are not that accurate. I was looking at Ballistic Advantage, which I am intrigued wtih because it is melonite finished and I really prefer that over parkerized.

What I don't want is a barrel mfg that cuts corners or has a ify reputation. Hence, I think the only barrel I could trust would be a Noveske.

I do like Windham's barrels but they do not make a mid length gas system and they do not sell barrels with low profile gas blocks. i have learned my lesson of switching out gas blocks, you can end up with one that does not cover the bare metal underneath that can lead to rust. Barrel mfg's parkerize their barrels after the FSP is installed.

I don't know about now, but there was a time when serious competitors used Kreigers. I had three on AR's. 7.75 twist would stabilize 55(bordered on over) thru 80 grainers. Some paid a little more for Harts but they had a slightly shorter life.

Any particular reason you dislike stainless steel?

Chrome Moly steel barrels are a little harder than stainless steel and will usually provide another 1000 rounds of usable match grade accuracy in a match barrel compared to stainless.

If it's chrome lined it will last longer, but if it's chrome lined you've already compromised the accuracy so it a negative already, unless you:
a) live in a swamp; or
b) have a Class III lower and shoot full auto a lot; and
c) accuracy is not a priority.

Chrome lined is tacticool because it's "mil-spec" but mil-spec is only useful if you need your AR to do the same thing that the military does - i.e. handle extremely wet environments with minimum maintenance and/or tolerate full auto fire on a regular basis.

If it's going on an AR-15 and accuracy matters, skip the chrome lined barrel and go with a decent stainless steel match barrel.

If you plan on shooting past 300 yards you really do want a match barrel.

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I've gotten my higher quality barrels from Compass Lake Engineering - primarily for match and varmint rifles. A precision barrel is over kill on a 16" M4gery, in my opinion, but if it appeals to you, knock yourself out.

CLE sells what they call their recon barrels that are 16.1" with a mid length gas port.

You can get a stainless steel recon barrel from CLE in polished, bead blasted or Duracoat black made by Bartlett, Krieger, Douglas or Criterion (CLE's own brand).

If you're looking for maximum bang for the buck Criterion barrels are the way to go. They are very well made, hand lapped and are both accurate and stable.

I used Krieger barrels way back in the day on my M1A Match, and plain old back in the day on my A2 service match rifle, but I've used Criterion barrels the last couple times I've re-barreled my A2 service match rifle and I've been quite happy with the results.

I have a 20 inch Stainless Shilen barrel on my precision AR and have had days when I've been able to shoot 3/10 inch 3 shot groups at 1200 yards with it. More typically I'll only shoot at about 1/2 inch at that range but that is on me, my eyes just aren't as young as I wish they were.

A co-worker has used Green Mountain barrels on 45 Raptor and 450 Bushmaster uppers and will swear on a bible they are extremely accurate and the price is right. Following is a link for their std Mil Spec chrome lined and phosphated 16 inch 1:8 barrel in 5.56 NATO. Going by the pic posted it appears that the area for the gas port is phosphate finished, so less chance of rusting but I have to tell you that a phosphate finish should be treated with oil to make it really rust resistant.

GM-M8 16" Mid Length gas system 5.56 NATO - Green Mountain Rifle Barrel Co.

Despite the OP's feelings on stainless steel, I love them. Have three so far. And being an old airplane guy, I know what stainless steel does and doesn't do. I have no problems in using a well made stainless steel barrel for ARs.

edit: P.S. two are Odin (223 Wylde), and one from Wilson Combat (300 Blackout)

thanks for all the input! I think many here brought up valid points. Chrome lined I now realize you lose some accuracy right off the bat and for most owners, we would never even be able to shoot out a Stainless Steel barrel. I am going to look at all the recommendations like Green Barrel, Wilson Combat etc... I think if I stick with Noveske or Wilson I can't go wrong. I may just opt for a stainless steel barrel.

I haven't really looked but it's my impression that Wilson barrels are all stainless. I used one of their stainless barrels for my 300 Blackout build and am very pleased with the result, accuracy with a distinctly cheap Gun Show 3-9 scope is a bit under 0.8 MOA from a rather shaky rest (indoor range-50 yards). It would probably do better but I built as a Carbine so it's only set up with a scope when testing a new load.

One tip I can give you is to build your rifle with an adjustable gas block right from the start. The benefit is that you can tune the gas supply to your specific loads and the end result is a reduced gas volume going into the receiver. That reduces felt recoil and muzzle flip a bit and also results in a cleaner BCG after a days shooting. As for the specific adjustable gas block to use, my choice has been the Syrac Ordinance Low Profile detented gas block and it has worked so well I see no reason at all to ever vary from that choice.

As for barrel wear rates, IMO the longest lasting barrels are the 4140 Melonited (or Nitrided) barrels, followed by 416 Stainless, then chrome plated, and then the rest. While I could be wrong about that my experience with stainless steels has shown that 416 is a very wear resistant steel and for barrel with the longest life I just don't think you can beat a Nitrided 4140 barrel. I'll also note the most effective method for increasing barrel life is to reduce the Velocity of the loads you are using. In my case I hand load my 68 grain 223 loads to 2700 fps instead of going to the maximum potential velocity. I also run my 125 grain Blackout loads in the 1800 fps range instead of trying to get the loads up to the maximum possible. Doing this is a bit easier on my shoulder and I've always seem to find the peak in accuracy somewhere in the 1/2 to 2/3 towards maximum range.