Carbon or stainless M1A barrel?

T

ToddW

New member
Hello,
I plan on purchasing a new "loaded" M1A from S/A. Does anybody have a good idea which barrel steel (stainless or carbon [chrome-moly?]) will give the longer
service life? I have numerous stainless revolvers and am fully aware of the rust preventive advantages of stainless. However, this rifle will be kept clean and not
exposed to the elements in the way a hunting arm might. Unfortunately, I've read differing opinions in the past on whether a stainless or carbon barrel would
stand up better to a large number of rounds fired and repeated cleanings (probably due to the varying qualities of stainless over the years). The previous
consensus was that chrome-moly stood up slightly better to throat erosion, etc. I'm not sure if newer stainless barrels are now superior in that regard.
So given a rifle that will probably have a high number of rounds fired and cleaned carefully (using bore-guides, etc.), which steel is a better choice for long barrel
life?
Any input is appreciated.
Thanks,
Todd
 
Re long term use of 30 caliber rifles, except for a mil surplus Garand, my epxperience has been with bolt action rifles, mostly Winchester Standard Target type, that I used for National Match Course and Long Range (1000 yard) competition.

I had a Hart SS barrel chambered for 30-06 on one rifle. It was a good barrel but it did not seem to be as long lived as
the original factory barrels were, nor did it seem to last quite as long as Douglas Premium Air Gage Chrommoly barrels.

By the way, National Match Course competition is about 50% rapid fire, which is fairly tough on barrels. Pay your money, and take your choice. By the way, from what I had heard from some National Guard shooters I used to know, they figured that the barrels on the M-14 rifles they used, chrome-moly barrels were good for 6000 rounds, before they started to "open up".
 
Thanks for your reply. The consensus from other forums is also that CM has a slight edge in durability.
Todd
 
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