To build or not to build piston gun.

[Brennend08]

Im looking to acquire a piston driven 556. Whats your opinions on fully built piston 556. and what direction would you go on building a 556. Really digging the sig 516 but building is so much more rewarding. GO

 

[foxmustang]

I opted for a factory built piston gun, the Ruger SR556. Im not going to sit here and tell you that the reason i wanted a piston gun because its so much more reliable and clean. I just plain and simple wanted one. Mines been 100% reliable to this date. The Rugers weigh a little more and use some propietary parts but i went into the purchase knowing that. Just my .02

 

[seedubs1]

The sig piston driven guns are nice. Don't think you can go wrong there. Those would be on my very short list if I was looking for a piston ar.

 

[M67]

I bought a piston too, went with a Gen 4 P415 POF.

You can build them but for a piston, I wanted to just get a factory gun.

For the price of the 516 (or cheaper) POF makes the Puritan. Melonite barrel, accepts mid length handguards, E2 chamber, tensioning screws on the lower, and they keep their $200 drop in trigger which is pretty good IMO, I have 2 of them and they're crisp and have a really short reset. Plus they're fairly light for a piston. Fit and finish on the receivers is pretty nice too (they come with Magpul trigger guards now)

http://www.pof-usa.com/_specsheets/Puritan P-15 Spec Sheet.pdf

Kind of want to pick up a PWS one of these years just to have one basically

 

[USMC-Johnson]

Go sig hands down. The puritan is a POF i would NEVER buy.

Sig is a more proven design and is a very very well thought out gun.

 

[M67]

Go sig hands down. The puritan is a POF i would NEVER buy.

Sig is a more proven design and is a very very well thought out gun.

Curious as to why?

 

[Bluejeeper]

Go sig hands down. The puritan is a POF i would NEVER buy.

Sig is a more proven design and is a very very well thought out gun.

Curious as to why?

Curious about this as well. One of my friends has a POF that runs 100% and I love it.

 

[AceDerringer]

I love my HK!!!!!

 

[USMC-Johnson]

On the POF puritan pof admits there is an issue with the rod that moves the bolt carrier not coming out of the weapon when the gas block is disassembled forcing you to remove the hand guards and pull it out that way. While they admit that this is a common issue they dont have a fix for it and they gave me the feeling they are not working on a fix or care to. For a 1300 dollar gun that is absolutely unacceptable.

The sig uses a simpler more adjustable gas block as well as having a single piece to removed to get all the components of the piston system out of the gun. Beyond that they use much better quality bolts and carriers. Sig Sauers flagship for 5.56mm piston guns is the 516 which is what they have dumped their money into perfecting where as POF just released their "lower end" line to appease the masses and doesnt seem to have any where near the quality of the higher end more traditional POF rifles.

 

[Excalibur]

It really all depends on how much you are willing to spend. Either a factory built one or convert a gas system to a piston via something like the osprey

 

[Brennend08]

i actually have the ruger sr556 but im not to fond of the piston system and have been heavily considering getting the sig 516. I have also heard good things about the POF. I just dont know if building a piston gun is worth the money or just getting a factory. I do like how easy the sig piston is to adjust, clean, and just operate. The ruger does shoot very well. ill have to take a look at the POF.

 

[USMC-Johnson]

I would say the ruger SR556 piston design is definitely a worse design than the 516. I have been pretty unimpressed by the ruger.

 

[Brennend08]

yeah im feeling the same way, as far as field break down or taking apart its ridiculously hard! the 516 and th 716 are so easy to just pull out clean and stick back in. I think sig is looking like the gun.

 

[M67]

On the POF puritan pof admits there is an issue with the rod that moves the bolt carrier not coming out of the weapon when the gas block is disassembled forcing you to remove the hand guards and pull it out that way. While they admit that this is a common issue they dont have a fix for it and they gave me the feeling they are not working on a fix or care to. For a 1300 dollar gun that is absolutely unacceptable.

......where as POF just released their "lower end" line to appease the masses and doesnt seem to have any where near the quality of the higher end more traditional POF rifles.

I noticed that too, but if that's the only complaint, it wouldn't affect me any. It's a piston AR, what's the point in cleaning it constantly? (not like I baby my DI ARs either).

Besides, if you lock the bolt back, take the plug out, push the piston all the way into the receiver, then release the bolt, the rod pops right out.

As long as the piston being stiff inside the receiver to the point it effects reliability, it doesn't bother me any.

I personally think POF made a good decision in making the Puritan: same great quality receiver extension, same trigger, E2 chamber, melonite barrel, great finish on the upper and lower, tensioning screws, same BCG and piston, etc. To me, for the price of it, and the weight, it's the best buy in a piston AR for the money.

True, it's not the billet highly machined gen 3 or 4, but that's what drops the price a lot.

 

[Brennend08]

hmm I'm going to have to go see this POF what gun shops in northeast indy have them?

 

[seedubs1]

Same experience when I had the Sig and Ruger side by side. Ruger makes some nice firearms, but I'd go Sig over Ruger in this case.

I would say the ruger SR556 piston design is definitely a worse design than the 516. I have been pretty unimpressed by the ruger.

 

[worddoer]

The biggest concern I have with the piston system is the lack of standardization. Everything is different for each manufacturer. So parts and repair support is spotty at best.

But if I was going the piston route, I will go with the Rock River Arms PDS....

[video=youtube_share;2S7hQ9ggtw4]http://youtu.be/2S7hQ9ggtw4[/video]

 

[10mmfan]

I am using a adams arms upper which seems to work pretty well and is offered as an upper, whole rifle, and conversion kit for existing uppers. I am very satisfied with mine.