Rosco Manufacturing was one of my first stops at SHOT 2019, and I’m glad I came to their booth. They had something that I was enthused to see: care, and attention to detail. When I asked what their new products for 2019 were, they were upfront, and told me that 2018 had been a year of barrel development.
Rosco Manufacturing 2019 Barrels
I was shown three AR barrels, and Rosco wanted to get them working right before they hit the market.
From left to right: 18in .224 Valk, 13.7in .223 Wylde Purebred, 12.5in 5.56 Bloodline.
The 12.5in 5.56 Bloodline barrel was made with the LE market in mind. 12.5 has been shown to work great suppressed, and maintains a high level of accuracy. The market trend has been moving away from 10.3 and 10.5in barrels, and more towards the 11.5 and 12.5s, so it is great to see Rosco making these. The 12.5 has a 1-in-7 twist rate.
The 13.7in .223 Wylde chambered Purebred barrel is also a new length for Rosco. Much like the 12.5, the 13.7 works great suppressed, and with the 416 stainless steel, is highly accurate. The 13.7 has a 1-in-8 twist rate.
The 18in .224 Valkyrie barrel was one of the hardest things that Rosco has had to work on. Speaking to Gabriel at their booth, he stated that it was very difficult to get the barrel to shoot to their high standards. This was not an uncommon issue among .224 Valk barrel makers, as Federal’s ammo that hit the market had accuracy problems. This made Rosco tighten their lines in, as they thought that their barrels were the problem, not the ammo. In doing this, they made a .224 Valk barrel that has been shooting consistent half-MOA groups with the right loads. The .224 Valk barrel is made of 416 stainless steel, and has a 1-in-6.5 twist rate.
Rosco also intends to release uppers and rails as time progresses, but more will follow as they get closer to that stage.
Rosco & Quality Improvement
My time spent at the Rosco booth was great. They are a company that really cares about putting out the best product that they can make. Their new barrels look great, and they are enthusiastic about always improving upon their own designs, something that is refreshing to see. In 2018, they had to focus on making their already great processes even better, and with their new lineup, it really shows.
I wish there was a review on the .224 Valk barrel.