It's official. Every time I see a potential replacement, things go to shit.
SL8/G36. Expensive and not very durable.
ACR. I've accepted the fact I'll likely never be capable of owning one.
SCAR. They dropped a bomb on me in the form of the price tag.
AUG. They dumped the A3, but kept it's price tag.
556. It's not a 551.
I've also long been planning a side charging piston driven AR, but have always put it off because of the rifles above. I've realized having hope in even the biggest coolest gun company is futile. It's time to start doing instead of hoping. The AR makers have always been pretty stable, so I'm saying screw it.