Charles Daly M4 general consensus?

[ZDL]

Except the market doesn't work that way. The number of people who are perfectly satisfied with a less expensive, less feature rich product is greater than the number who will pay top dollar for checking all the boxes in "The Chart."

A CDM4LE in middy configuration was one of the things I hoped to see at SHOT. Right now, they're selling every single rifle they can build ... they cannot keep up with demand for stuff at the top or bottom of their product line.

DING!

I'm was molesting the shotguns they had on display as well. Look forward to getting some trigger time on them to see what they are bringing to the table.

[rob_s]

People seem to forget that gun companies are in business to make money. If they can make $100,000 on cheap guns and $10,000 on expensive ones, which do you think they're going to make?

[thopkins22]

DING!

I'm was molesting the shotguns they had on display as well. Look forward to getting some trigger time on them to see what they are bringing to the table.

My sample of one Charles Daly semi-auto shotgun has performed well and proven itself durable. I ran it sans O ring for several hundred rounds(before Charles Daly confirmed the reports of excellent CS and sent me a couple for free,) and even then I only had a couple of hiccups with light loads.

My one gripe is the distance between the grip and the trigger, and to a lesser degree the LOP. I don't have lady hands, but it's too much distance to the trigger. The LOP is not as much of an issue because I use the gun for clays and birdhunting...if it were a HD gun I'd cut the stock down.

For a shotgun that you don't mind tossing in the back of your truck or accidentally dropping in the rocks during a hunt, I think they're hard to beat.

[Littlelebowski]

Link to the Chart posted for trunkmonkey who doesn't appreciate suggestions to use the Search function hence the whiney PM I got in my Inbox this morning

[ZDL]

Link to the Chart posted for trunkmonkey who doesn't appreciate suggestions to use the Search function hence the whiney PM I got in my Inbox this morning.

lol..

[jaydoc1]

As nice as "The Chart" is, it's a fairly sterile evaluation of certain models of different manufacturers' rifles. Those that have actually used the rifles can give a much better idea of how they actually function in certain types of usage. In a way the chart is like comparing a Nighthawk Talon vs a Nighthawk GRP. The GRP is actually a better fighting gun based on simplicity and durablility, but there are plenty of people who want a Talon because they like the fit and finish. "The Chart" imparts none of this type of information, only presenting which rifle is the most "mil-spec" (and BTW, if a company isn't actually selling to the US government, then they can claim to be mil-spec all they want, but they aren't).

[ZDL]

As nice as "The Chart" is, it's a fairly sterile evaluation of certain models of different manufacturers' rifles. Those that have actually used the rifles can give a much better idea of how they actually function in certain types of usage. In a way the chart is like comparing a Nighthawk Talon vs a Nighthawk GRP. The GRP is actually a better fighting gun based on simplicity and durablility, but there are plenty of people who want a Talon because they like the fit and finish. "The Chart" imparts none of this type of information, only presenting which rifle is the most "mil-spec" (and BTW, if a company isn't actually selling to the US government, then they can claim to be mil-spec all they want, but they aren't).

Editing myself:

You need to research some more. That was nicer than my first pass.

[jaydoc1]

Fair enough.

[Charles Daly]

They sure did. I went back and read alot of their old posts and stuff.

The only mistake they made IMO was they diluted their product line with lower end models. They should have just come out with the CDM4LE and not bothered with the other ones. So if you want the 'good' one, you have to pay careful attention to the model you are getting, and not just look for "Charles Daly Defense" on the side.

First, thanks to all who posted with the positive replies. Second, I want to address the comments in the above quote...

Our D-M4LE is certainly considered the "flagship" model in our line, particularly to M4C members and others who want a 6920 clone at a reasonable price.

However, I think that to call our other models "lower end" is a misnomer. All of our guns are built with the same quality and attention to detail. Only the specificaitons change from model to model.

For example, the only differences between our D-M4 and the D-M4LE are as follows:

D-M4



D-M4.....Mil-Spec barrel (MIL-B-11595E, CrMoV Grade), chrome lined with 1:7 twist
D-M4.....Commercial receiver extension with standard carbine buffer

D-M4LE



D-M4LE.....4140 barrel, chrome lined with 1:9 twist
D-M4LE.....Mi-Spec receiver extension with "H" buffer

Some AR shooters will be quite content with the D-M4 for the type of range shooting or hunting they may do. Others may want the D-M4LE for the better barrel steel and slower twist, or for the greater ease in changing some after-market buttstocks.

My point is that both are made with the same quality of construction and attention to detail. Both have M4 feedramps, T-Marked uppers, proper castle nut and gas key staking, chrome lined bolt carrier, black extractor insert with Crane O-ring, forged upper and lower with hard coat anodizing and teflon finish. Both use the same buttstock and double heat shield forend. Both use the same forged charging handle and forged A3 detachable carry handle. They are exactly the same gun with only barrel steel, twist, diameter of receiver extension and buffer used. To say that one is "low end" and the other is not would not be correct. They are all good.

Our D-M4S is a D-M4 with a picatinny railed gas block and no carry handle but adds two 3-slot picatinny railed mini-riser blocks for proper scope height mounting on the flattop upper. (The "Optics Ready" appraoch.) Perfert for a plinker or a hunter that wants to properly fit a scope with a large objective to the flattop upper, or add front and rear BUIS with the front mounted on the gas block and the rear on the flattop.

D-M4S



Our new D-M4LED goes one step better than the standard D-M4LE by adding a Daniel Defense Lite Rail 7.0 with 3-ladder type rail covers in FDE, Magpul Miad Grip Kit (complete) in FDE, Magpul CTR/M in FDE and a Troy BUIS, (though pictured in black it is) also in FDE. This model will be sold exclusively through Davidson's GalleryofGuns.com.

D-M4LED





Our DV-24 is a dedicated Varmint/Match gun, with a 24" stainless steel bull barrel with a 1:8 twist, a two-stage trigger, a ported aluminum handguard and an Ace buttstock. Purpose build for varmint hunting or match shooting.

DV-24



Again, not everyone wants a 6920 clone for one reason or another, yet they want a high quality build more purpose built for their actual type of shooting. And with the modualrity of the AR, they can always buy a new upper at a later date that might have an application that wasn't there when the gun was first purchased.

There is a home for all of these guns in our line and I think we would have been doing ourselves, and our customers a disservice if we had only offered one model.

Edit: There are so many bottlenecks in production right now that we are forced to introduce a new model if we want to be able to increase production. This will be the D-M4P. This gun will be the exact same gun as the D-M4 but without a chrome lined barrel and without M4 Feedramps. I hate to come to market with a gun that has less features than we have gotten a reputation for, but if we continue to insist on waiting for chrome lined barrels and waiting for uppers with M4 Feedramps, we will not be able to build all the guns that we could be selling in this current market condition. We need to get our production ramped up to 500-1,000 per week (while maintaining excellent QC) and this is the only way for our company to accomplish that. If we insist on chrome lining and M4 Feedramps we will be stuck at 100 pieces per week. Which would you produce?

[ZDL]

Pleasure meeting you last Sunday Michael. Look forward to the tactical shotguns.