Yobuk, A couple of articles have shown 22"ish to be optimum for .223, yet so many shoot long barrels in comp, ie F/TR. Hence my confusion with my limited experience.
Mikeinco, I understand the gain in velocity, especially if using a slower powder to take advantage of the extra burn time. I was wondering about a gain in stabilization with the extra 4". That being, my research, when getting ready to buy earlier this year, showed the was a quite a number of folks that, like you, were very happy with the longer barrel. I was considering the 12FV, but decided on the Axis for a variety of reasons. Thanks for the replies!