Talk me off the ledge or push me off. Move from AR to something else?

[T-FAST]

Can buy ARAK-21 upper....

 

[BigBoss0311]

So I have drank the kool-aid and am a huge fan of LWRC. That is the only company I trust when it comes to piston driven AR's. If you are wanting to get into the game at the lowest price, yet still have a good experience and have something reliable my suggestion is this. Keep your current AR lower and get an LWRC upper. M6-G or M6-SL are going to be your cheapest new options. Or, look on ar15.com or lwrci on their forums for a used M6A2 upper, but make sure it has the 1-piece carrier (just nicer to have, means it is the newer upgrade). Only things you will need to stock up on are a couple piston cups and a couple piston springs. Maybe a piston rod. There, proprietary parts done. Customer service with LWRC is top notch. They will always take care of you. They don't care if you are not the original owner if you do buy used, they warranty the product, not the person. Any problems they will make it right. I have had a few of their rifles and will buy more. The quality is top-tier, matched with the reliability and their CS, I buy their products.

 

[shortround]

The original design was gas impingement. Fewer parts to break. The bad rap came early-on from dirty powder with too much calcium carbonate content that blocked the gas port and tube over time.

Cleaner powders solved the problem (WC844 as I recall).

Piston powered AR's are a solution in search of a problem, in my humble opinion.

Much like putting a Glock-like trigger on a 1911 -- why?

 

[breakingcontact]

DI fans, your AR's are just fine. I'm not bashing them. I WANT a piston gun, not saying I need one. I know the benefits (and drawbacks) of both DI and piston operation. I am curious about the % of the AR market that was piston driven a few years ago and what it is now and if it's still growing or will indeed be a fad. To me, it looks like it's here to stay and is taking over.

So I can

- put a piston system in my current gun
- buy a complete piston upper, such as the LWRC
- buy a completely different rifle (with it's own +/-)

I am really digging this Sig 556. I know they had problems initially, but the recent ones are supposed to be good to go.

View attachment 23904

AK style action
takes AR or AK mags
piston driven
side folding stock

It does look less accurate than the AR, and the factory sights don't look as good as AR irons but I'm not looking for a tack driver.

 

[TheDan]

Saiga .223 with an AR mag adapter? Would be a fun project, and you could build two of them for the price of a Sig556.

 

[kittyhawk]

I picked a Adams Arms Midlenght Piston Upper from Midwayusa in Aug with my birthday discount. So far I have only put 250 rounds down range. It shoots Great and eats everything I feed it. I did 3 Mag dumps to test the heat issues and was WOW this is Great. Accurary was good, about 1.5-1.75 at 100 with LC 193 with a 3x9 scope.
Linkeeeeee:
Adams Arms AR-15 A3 Base Mid Length Gas Piston Upper Assembly

 

[DIG]

Thinking of ditching the AR for something piston ran. Considered the piston conversion by Osprey but then ill have some good money into this in trying to "improve" it.

Sig 556?
SCAR is too much money.

Convert the AR to piston?
Go with an original piston design gun?

Screw it all and get an AK?

Well, if you can't manage to own at least one of each (like we all wish we could ), having one good rifle that you really like and are comfortable with (well-rehearsed/practiced) is worth the effort to get there. Personally, I have no experience with piston conversion kits, but the AR platform has always stuck with me through all of my phases in pursuit of finding a "better" gun. I'm pretty much sold on piston AR's at this point (specifically LWRC) and have been for several years now. All of my DI AR's have been sold to fund more ammo. My reasons for doing so are the following; I've experienced no loss of accuracy compared to DI, clean-up takes but a fraction of the time that it used to, and I haven't had any mechanical/parts issues. Some may take note of the added weight (which is minimal) but I haven't had issue with it, whether at a day at the range or in competition.
Which ever you decide ...Good luck!

 

[1slow01Z71]

Ill never understand the ease of cleaning reason. I take my upper off, yank the bcg and CH, spray some non chlorinated brake cleaner in there then blow it out with compressed air, spray lube, reassemble, done. Takes me maybe 5 minutes and that's only because Im being careful not to scratch up my stuff. That's running suppressed as well.

With that said, you want what you want, get it. LWRC seems to have a very good reputation.

 

[TheDan]

I take my upper off, yank the bcg and CH, spray some non chlorinated brake cleaner in there then blow it out with compressed air, spray lube, reassemble, done.

yep... brake cleaner makes it super easy

 

[cajunautoxer]

You guys clean y'all's ARs. Mine are lucky if its every 1500 rnds I may clean them. Just lune the bolt every time before I shoot

 

[itchin]

I like the ar15 and I've built a few. I still enjoy shooting them. But they don't really interest me anymore. I don't know the latest stuff available for them anymore. A nice milled ak is what gets my eye now a days. I never look at ar15s when is stores or at gun shows anymore. Don't get me wrong. Its an excellent platform. Stoner was brilliant. I guess I just got bored with them.

 

[breakingcontact]

In order to keep my overall costs down, i think im going to stick with the AR but, convert it to piston operation.

I cant justify the expense of a SCAR. The Sig 556 is apparently on hiatus for some improvements while they build 516s.

Ive spent too much money selling guns to fund others. Going to do what i have with my pistols and modify them instead of constantly searching for the elusive perfect gun.

 

[SOliver]

SCAR 16S. I bought one off of Gunbroker not long ago for $2300 buy it now w/ no CC fees, $25 shipping, and $10 transfer. This time last year (before the crazy shit) they were $3,300-$3,500 in all the local gun stores. Even online, I never saw them under $3,000. While I'm a huge fan of bullpups like the AUG, FS2000, and Tavor, as well as piston ARs like LWRCs, POFs, and Ruger SR556s, the SCAR is really in a league of its own and it has everything you're looking for.

 

[OnyxATX]

If you want a piston AR, I would personally go with a new complete upper if you can't fund a SCAR and don't want the Sig. Heck, at least it gives you an excuse to have more things to configure, then build a lower and make another rifle. This way you can get a decent product and generally find out what may be needed to run it without having to play the "figure out why my AR won't run" game... as much anyway.

I'm not going to get into the DI versus piston debate. I have both, love both for different reasons. If you do a conversion, it's quite costly for what you're getting a lot of times. It also can run into a whole mess of other problems and you may end up playing with a heavier bcg, heavier buffer, lighter buffer spring, etc.. all sorts of crazy things to get it to run properly.

If you ever want to run a piston AR and take a look at the differences in person, just find me on the range sometime and ask!

 

[Tortuga]

AR is a great platform, have you considered mini-14?

 

[BigBoss0311]

There is a great deal on a used LWRC M6A1 on m4c if you are interested.

 

[Charlie]

I'd go with the SIG 556.

 

[grumper]

Just keep the AR?

I went from Sig 556, FS2000, FNC all that piston driven jibber jabber to the regular old DI gas system AR. They didn't really do anything the AR didn't, except cost a lot more.

 

[TSU45]

AK or FAL, perhaps? Both are reliable - battle-proven all over the world.

Both fun to shoot. Both not even in the same ballpark of a modern ar.