QD indirect airflow heat shield

[Correus]

Hello -

Can anyone tell me what the purpose of a QD indirect airflow heat shield is? I've tried to research it on-line and nothing comes up.

Thanks.

[militarymoron]

it looks like they serve the same purpose as the heatshields in standard AR/M4 plastic handguards.

[Correus]

Which is?

[mkmckinley]

To shield heat from the barrel.

[5pins]

So you don’t burn your hands. That’s why they are called handguards.

[Correus]

That's what I thought.

Now for the other question.

Why do some of the free float rail systems not come with these? For example, the UTG PRO Model doesn't have them.

Are they necessary in some models but not others?

[Dave L.]

That's what I thought.

Now for the other question.

Why do some of the free float rail systems not come with these? For example, the UTG PRO Model doesn't have them.



Probably because UTG is air-soft junk.

A good quad-rail system is very ventilated. You still need some type of snap-on hand guards to protect your hand from the cheese grader (rails) and aluminum does get hot but cools fast. Usually a heat shield protects plastic hand guards from the barrel heat and is not needed on an aluminum rail system.

[Correus]

Thanks!

[militarymoron]

depends on what you deem most important - insulate your hand from heat or cool the barrel. heat shields will protect your hand from the heat but won't allow the barrel to cool down as fast.
a well ventilated aluminum rail system with rail covers/panels placed where you need the protection should meet most folks' needs.

[Correus]

Thanks everyone for the help. I'm not a complete and total gun-moron but I'm relatively new to ARs. I just wanted to make sure I fully understood the reason for the heat shields.

Here's why I wanted to know.

After getting my AR I told my brother I was wanting to get a free float type rail system for it. Last Thanks giving I was showing him various ones I liked with the main one being A.R.M.S. #50M-CV. I also told him they were pricey and I wasn't sure if I wanted to spend that kind of money.

Last week he contacted me and said he found one at a gun show in South Dakota (where he lives) and it was on it's way to me.

BTW - this is also the reason I asked about the lower half being plastic.

Well, it arrived today. It looks perfect, almost as if it has never been used. Everything is there that should be there with one exception - no QD indirect airflow heat shield.

I have no idea how much he paid for this other than he said he got a great and I don't have the heart to tell him the heat shield is missing.

Any thoughts?

I have contacted A.R.M.S. to ask if they sell repair parts but have not heard back.

[mkmckinley]

I run a Troy TRX Extreme. It's about the smallest diameter, most ventilated rail on the market and I don't have a problem with heat. I don't do full auto mag dumps with it but I shoot reasonable fast. With an aluminum rail you just don't need the heat shields.