Daniel Defense 14.5″ Cold Hammer Forged Barrel, 5.56 NATO, 1:7 Twist, M4 Profile, Carbine-Length, with Fixed Front Sight Base

Product Description

The Daniel Defense 14.5″ Cold Hammer Forged Barrel is a 5.56mm NATO, 1:7 twist, M4-profile barrel built on a carbine-length gas system and supplied in the fixed front sight base configuration, for AR-15 pattern upper receivers using an A4 barrel extension.

Fourteen and a half inches is the length the M4 carbine was standardised on, and it remains the most-copied barrel length in the AR world for a reason: it keeps the gas port pressure and dwell time the carbine-length system was designed around, so the rifle cycles the way a mil-spec carbine is supposed to.

The fixed front sight base configuration means the gas block and front sight tower are one unit, pinned in place. That buys you a permanent, zero-holding iron front sight that cannot shift, and it is the configuration that works with mil-spec drop-in handguards and classic quad rails.

Key Facts

• Brand: Daniel Defense
• Model: 14.5″ 5.56mm, Carbine, 1:7, M4
• Manufacturer Part Number: 07-075-02153
• Caliber: 5.56mm NATO
• Barrel Length: 14.5″
• Twist Rate: 1:7
• Barrel Profile: M4
• Gas System: Carbine Length
• Manufacturing Process: Cold Hammer Forged
• Material: 4150 Chrome Moly Vanadium (CMV) steel
• Bore Finish: Chrome lined
• Exterior Finish: Mil-Spec Heavy Phosphate
• Muzzle Thread: 1/2×28 TPI
• Diameter at Gas Port: .750″
• Barrel Extension: A4
• Barrel Weight (bare barrel): 1.60 lbs

Is 14.5″ the right length for your build?

Pick this barrel if you are building a duty-pattern carbine and want the original M4 balance point. Against the shorter Government-profile options, 14.5 inches gives you noticeably more velocity than a 10.3″ or 11.5″ barrel and a longer sight radius, without the nose-heavy feel of an 18″ heavy barrel.

Barrel length and the law

A barrel on its own is a component, not a firearm, so no FFL transfer is required to ship this barrel to you. What matters is what you install it on. Fitting a 14.5″ barrel to a rifle-configured receiver creates a short-barrelled rifle under the National Firearms Act unless the muzzle device is permanently attached to bring overall barrel length to 16 inches or more, or unless the firearm is registered as an SBR or was built as a pistol. Daniel Defense states it plainly on its barrels: once the part is assembled into a complete firearm it becomes a regulated item under the NFA, and it is the buyer’s responsibility to comply with all NFA rules and applicable law. Not sure which side of that line your build falls on? Call 817-393-4000 before you order; the pin-and-weld conversation is one we have every week.

Cross-shopping? Compare the rest of our Daniel Defense barrels, pair this barrel with matching gas blocks and gas tubes, and pick a permanent muzzle device from our muzzle devices before your gunsmith appointment.

Ordering from Western Sport in Roanoke, TX

Western Sport has been a licensed FFL and SOT dealer in Roanoke, Texas since 2007, and we are a Daniel Defense master dealer with a gunsmith on site who pins and welds muzzle devices as routine work. Call 817-393-4000 and we will walk the whole build with you, barrel through handguard.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What muzzle thread does this 14.5″ Daniel Defense barrel use?

A: It is threaded 1/2×28 TPI at the muzzle, the standard 5.56 AR-15 thread. Any flash hider, compensator, brake or suppressor mount cut for 1/2×28 will thread on. If you plan to pin and weld a device to reach a 16-inch overall barrel length, confirm the device is long enough to get you there before you commit.

Q: Do I have to pin and weld a muzzle device on a 14.5″ barrel?

A: Only if you are building a rifle and want to stay outside the NFA. A 14.5″ barrel with a permanently attached muzzle device measuring 16 inches or more overall is a standard rifle. Without that, installing it on a rifle-configured receiver creates a short-barrelled rifle requiring registration.

Q: What size gas block fits this barrel?

A: This SKU is the fixed front sight base configuration, so the gas block and front sight tower come as one pinned unit rather than a separate part you choose. The barrel’s gas port journal measures .750 inches, which is the standard AR-15 dimension.

Q: Will a free-float handguard work over the fixed front sight base?

A: Only handguards designed to clear an F-marked front sight tower will work, and they will stop short of the sight base. Mil-spec drop-in handguards and quad rails that index off the delta ring and front sight are the natural fit.

Q: Does Western Sport need my FFL information to ship a barrel?

A: No. A bare barrel is not a firearm under federal law, so it ships to you directly with no FFL transfer and no background check. Only the receiver is serialized. State and local rules on components vary, so if you are ordering into a jurisdiction with component restrictions, call 817-393-4000 and confirm first.

Q: How does the M4 profile differ from the Government profile at this length?

A: Both share the same .750-inch gas journal and A4 extension. The M4 profile carries the M203 cut and the classic stepped contour associated with service carbines, while Daniel Defense’s Government profile barrels are offered here in mid-length gas configurations at 14.5 inches.

Additional information