I got an AR , palmetto lower , red x upper. 16" stainless slim profile barrel in 5.56 nato. Shots 1.5 groups at a 100yds with the best ammo I've tried on a good day and up to 3 inch groups or more with other good ammo on not so good days. Trigger isn't the best but I can over come that. Can a guy put together a better shooter without spending a bunch of money. Would the same setup shoot better with say a red x heavier and longer barrel? Would like a little better performance for shooting coyotes. Tried about 6 different loads and none of it being the real cheap stuff and none of it being super expensive stuff either.
Where do u think I'm losing the accuracy at? I'm guessing it's the bolt carrier or the barrel...????
Does seem to be quite over gassed ( I'm guessing that's the right term).
I'm not a gunsmith or AR nut so I looking for a simple fix without spending a bunch of money if it's possible. Would like to put together another one with same lower if I could get 1 1/2 groups with a wider range of ammo if possible.

Are you shooting 5.56 or .223 through it? What is your twist rate and bullet weight?

I would try a better trigger.

Even higher priced ARs need the trigger swapped. First thing I did when I bought Daniel Defense weapons.

And these are good questions too.

Tried both. From 70 grains to 55 grains I believe. The best is with the lighter bullets in 223. 1 in 9 I believe.

I would change barrels if it didn't shoot any better than that. AR stuff is cheap right now. Is this with open sights or are you using a scope, trigger upgrade makes a huge difference as well as optics. Depends on what ranges you will be shooting as to what the 100-yard accuracy needs to be. Replacing the handguard with a free floating one can help too. It's a 1 x 8 twist, what bullet weight are you shooting and is it FMJ ammo?

Norma fmj all the others hollow points. Some mid range priced labeled target rounds. Could I expect better accuracy out of a different red x barrel or are they just not up to that quality. What reasonably priced barrels would u recommend. New mid range Athlon scope. Looking fir a 250 yd coyote gun.

... you’ll shoot your eye out kid

U only live once just as well go full speed

Any suggestions on triggers, handguards, barrels or any other components would be appreciated if not too much trouble. Like I said I'm not an AR guru and theirs so many options it's a little confusing. Thanks.

I like my 3.5# PSA match drop in trigger. I got the flat version. It was on sale for $80 I think. Made a world of difference to me.

mine shoots everything put in it good

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.223_Wylde_chamber

^^^my 223wylde 1:8 does as well

These triggers are very nice and crisp and easy to install. Full metal ammo is never good for an accuracy test in my opinion. I handload for accuracy with nosler ballistic tips for coyote hunting. You could try some, you might have to do more experimenting to get it sorted out. I have seen barrels that wouldn't shoot no matter what and needed to be used as a draw bar pin on the tractor.
The stock Palmetto triggers pretty much suck and always get replaced or polished and JP springs added.
If you have a friend with an AR that shoots well, put his upper on your lower and see what it does.
Have fun figuring it out and you will learn a lot.

Knew a guy that worked at Sierra several years ago and he said the only reason they made 55 gr. fmj is because that was a best seller for them. He also said it was the least accurate round they made but the public wanted them. He said they can make a much more accurate jacket by drawing it up from the base like their match bullets, rather than the nose for the fmj.

I would look at White Oak Armament for barrels your 1-9 twist is too slow for 70 gr. and Rock River Arms for their 2-stage match trigger.

Does your rifle have a free float handguard on it or does it have a conventional front sight post and snap in handguards, does it have a carbine or mid-length gas system, did you buy it as a complete upper or did you buy a stripped upper and barrel etc. and put it together yourself?

Now realistically barrel length has little to do with accuracy at the ranges you are interested in, but barrel stiffness has a huge part in it, a short heavy barrel has better barrel harmonics (generally speaking) than a slimmer profile barrel or a longer barrel that is not as stiff. Palmetto State Armory has several complete uppers with free float handguards and various profile barrels on sale right now. I have had very good success with a 16" stainless 223 Wylde chambered barrel with free float handguard that I bought with them, it consistently shoots right around 1" with about everything you put in it except for cheap ball ammo which is still about 1.5 inches.

I am a big fan of the Larue triggers, I have other but I like the Larues better than any of them on a general use rifle, they have a smooth light trigger pull that is conductive to good accuracy but are heavy enough that you won't fire them to soon when your fingers are cold and stiff in the winter time.

I am not familiar with the RedX barrels so I can't speak about them.

Mine is actually the light contour not M4 contour and is 1 in 9 twist. I bought the upper complete. Don't believe it's a free floated hand guard.
And thanks everyone for the ideas and suggestions. Much appreciated.

Ok, I went on their website and looked to see what you may have but they don't offer anything currently in a light contour, but most of what they offered did have a free floating fore end. If you could post a picture it might help people help you. But if I was going to rebarrel the upper, I don't think I would go with them there is not enough difference in their price for barrels and those of known quality to make it worth the risk. I would look at the Palmetto State Arms uppers with either a nitride coated barrel, a stainless barrel or one of their premium line barrels. Their uppers really aren't anymore expensive than Red X because they usually include the BCG and charging handle in the published price. There are better barrels out there but these should get you easily into 250 yard coyote gun territory. Also as a side thought have you called Red X and talked to them about it, I suspect they will say that it is within spec at 1.5 inches because they refer heavily to their stuff being mil-spec and the military minimum standard is 4 MOA or at least it used to be.

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/102163288?pid=887715 - I have this trigger. It seems great to me for hunting. I'm not shooting paper.

This.