M&P 15 OR Barrel Life

Dfresh15

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So I just picked up a brand new M&P 15 OR...I'm wondering how long is the barrel life expectancy?? How many rounds? And how do you know when your barrel is near its end of life?? Thanks
 
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The generally accepted life of a barrel is 10,000 rounds of copper jacketed ammunition. If you're shooting bi-metal jacketed ammo (copper washed steel jacket), barrel life is around 6,000 rounds. I've put a link to an online story about barrel life. I think it will answer all your questions.

http://www.luckygunner.com/labs/brass-vs-steel-cased-ammo/

As to how can you tell when your barrel needs to be replaced, I can not answer that from first hand experience. I have yet to put 10,000 rounds through either of my AR's. What you would look for is a marked degradation of accuracy. The article linked above has pictures of targets illustrating degradation of accuracy.
 
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Life expectancy will vary depending on several variables; chrome lined vs. non-chrome vs. Melonite lined, ammunition, just how fast you shoot, needed accuracy, how often it's cleaned, etc.

I've seen figures from between 10K and 20K. I know that when I shot High Power, we were looking st 2k-4k before rebarreling, or one or two seasons.
 
This question is asked over and over...there is no definitive answer other than the average shooter will never wear out a barrel (not referring to a competitor who shoots thousands in a week).
Also barrels are cheap and easily replaced if accuracy begins to drop off.
 
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