Surprisingly good!!
I wanted to convert one of my 5.56 ARs to a 300 AAC blackout. I looked around for barrels and decided on the Daniel Defense. I'm glad I did!! This barrel is awesome. My groups are sub-MOA at 100 yards with factory ammo. In addition, I didn't have any issues with FTF or FTE. Installation was easy.
Just as good as Noveske and Shillen!
This barrel far exceeded my expectations! The build was smooth and easy, as it should be with quality parts. It wasn't till I was sighting in the EoTech 300 BLK red dot that it got amazing! 5 strings of 3 shots each at 50,100, and 300 yards - all "clover leafs", not one "flyer" in any of the groups! Great barrel for the price!
DD 300 blk out barrel
I originally tried the NEMO barrel and had to return it as it was not made to spec. I couldn't wait for them to exchange the NEMO barrel as it was on back order. So I got the DD barrel and never looked back. Quality finish, accurate, easy to install. I reloaded all of my 300 blk. ammo and not one malfunction. The barrel performed flawlessly. In the end, "You get what You pay for". I highly recommend Daniel Defense barrels you won't regret getting one.
Another Excellent Barrel From DD!!!
I specifically ordered this barrel to review for all of my blog fans and followers and to complete my most recent build. Daniel Defense is a name that I have grown to love and trust. Quality manufacturing processes and attention to detail is very important, especially when you have decided to sink a considerable amount of money into a rifle or components for a build. When I decided to build my first 300 AAC Blackout rifle, I knew from the start that I wanted to get my hands on one of Daniel Defense's Cold Hammer Forged (CHF) barrels. At the time, Daniel Defense only offered to the 300 Blackout barrel in their 16" S2W profile (Strength to Weight) with a 1:8 twist rate. I had originally looked at the possibility of ordering a shorter barrel, but Daniel Defense did not currently offer one less than 16" in length. So I ordered this barrel and waited for it to arrive. Once it arrived, I was excited to get it installed to see what type of performance I would be able to squeeze out of it. The thread pattern for this barrel is a 5/8x24 threads per inch, which is very common in .308 and 6.8mm barrels. It has the standard .750" diameter at the gas port, so most common gas blocks will fit. I went a step farther and actually called Daniel Defense to find out the size of the actual gas port hole itself. Why you may ask? Well, gas has everything to do with performance when it comes to the 300 Blackout cartridge. The more I knew, the better I could create safe, super accurate and malfunction free ammunition. After all, I planned to handload everything for this rifle. When I called and spoke to the representative, he couldn't have been more polite and helpful. Although he did not have this information immediately on hand (as it is an unusual question), he placed me on hold and quickly got the answer. According to Daniel Defense, the size of the gas port hole on this particular barrel is .120". This would help me later while using reloading software to try and make the best sub-sonic ammo I could. But I believe a lot of the other features would ultimately determine how well this barrel would perform. You should know that all of Daniel Defense barrels are magnetic particle (MT or MPI) tested, which is a quality I always look for when buying a barrel. For those of you who are not familiar with what MPI testing is, I think it is important that you know. Without going into a crazy long description I will simply tell you that when a barrel is MPI tested, it is magnetically charged and then a fluorescent dye containing iron oxide particles is applied. If there are any cracks or linear defects on the surface, the iron oxide particles will essentially stick to it and show it to the inspector. This is a great test to have and does not cause any damage to the barrel when conducted. This just goes to show that Daniel Defense does care about quality control. My favorite part about the barrel is the fact that it is cold hammer forged. This process involves using hydraulic pressure from opposing angles with steel carbide hammers. They insert a mandrel into the bore and as hammering commences, the barrel is shaped around the mandrel, thus producing a flawless chamber, grooves and lands. This ensures a perfect chamber and creates a defect free bore. I have owned several Daniel Defense barrels, all of which were cold hammer forged. The more consistent and defect free a barrel is, the longer it will last and the more accurate it will be. The material used in the construction of this barrel is chrome moly vanadium and when it finished being forged, it is given a salt bath nitride exterior coating. The advantage of the coating is that it provides a very smooth and hard surface coating, thus extending barrel life and reduces friction. As you can see, a lot of love goes into producing the Daniel Defense barrels. The entire manufacturing process actually takes place right at their facility in Black Creek, Georgia. So yeah, 'Merican made baby! Another huge plus for this barrel! Not only am I buying a super high quality barrel, but I am buying American made and supporting an American company. Then add the lifetime satisfaction guarantee offered through Brownells and what more could you possibly ask for! A few short days after finally completing my build and installing this high quality barrel, I took to the range and got to see what it could really do. Like my other Daniel Defense barrels, the accuracy of the barrel came as no surprise. It handled every hand load I produced with ease and always produced great accuracy throughout the wide variety of projectiles I loaded (110-220gr). So far I am at about 500+ round count and still shooting strong! Although accuracy was my main goal when ordering this barrel, I feel that I got much more. Many manufacturers on the market today produce excellent barrels, but you will only find a select few that go distance to ensure they are only producing the best out there. All in all, I couldn't say enough good things about this barrel, or about Daniel Defense products. If you like their barrels, also consider in ordering their complete BCG's if you're planning a build. Make sure to buy your parts from Brownells and you will be getting double security knowing you bought a quality product from a quality company that guarantees it. I would highly recommend this barrel if you are planning on building or converting your AR-15 to the 300 AAC Blackout cartridge. I do plan to build another rifle in the near future and you can bet your check I will be looking to Daniel Defense and Brownells for what I will need! I hope this review helped in your decision and look forward to seeing you at the range! -Michael Sapp Owner of Lock-N-Load Blog
