Why the AR piston rifle was inevitable
I will agree that the piston gun was a answer to a problem that did not exist. With that said, I believe the advent of the piston gun is a evolutionary reality.
We in the US are different from most other countries in the fact that when we get involved with a sport/hobby, we are constantly looking to improve our equipment. For example, think of the technology advances in bicycles, climbing equipment and white water kayaks over the last 20 years. The technological leaps have been unbelieveable.
We in the firearms community are no different. I modify every firearm I own to some degree to make it feel or function better.
With that said, I own over 15 AR rifles and up to the point I started working for Adcor, I did not own a piston AR. (I do own a SCAR).
The reason why I did not own a piston rifle was I felt that their was no point. The issues found in most piston designs (carrier tilt, lack of accuracy, heavier weight, more recoil) outweighed any advantage in my mind.
Then I saw the Adcor Defense B.E.A.R gas piston rifle and I felt so strongly about its advantages that I asked to be a part of the sales team.
If you think back, almost all great military weapons were piston driven. M1, M1 Carbine, M14, AK47, FN FAL all use a long or short stroke piston system. Currently, the M2, M 249, M240, MK 17 military machine guns are all piston driven. The only good weapon out there that does not use a piston is the M4/M16/AR15. I say good and not great because I believe that the platform had not reached its pinnicle of evolutionary design.
The SCAR is a great system. I had the privledge of seeing it developed from start to finish and have personally put thousends of rounds throught it, both semi and full auto and it is a fantastic platform (other than the reciprocating charging handle). It is accurate, dependable and ergonomic. As a military weapon it is hard to beat.
As a commercial/LE weapon it suffers from lack of customization and support parts such as sub 16" barrels.
I believe the Adcor Rifle has major advantages over the SCAR and traditional gas piston AR designs.
1. The barrel is not effected by the piston stroke and therefore does not experience accuracy degradation. This is accomplished by attaching the piston gas block to the upper fore rail.
2. I can remove the gas block/piston from the rifle for cleaning/replacement in seconds.
3. Comparing it to the SCAR, I can use any trigger, butt stock, rail accessory, lower parts kit, mag release, bolt release, optic, light etc currently on the market for the AR platform.
4. The forward charging handle on the Adcor gun does not reciprocate and still allows the use of the standard charging handle.
5. The op rod is attached to the carrier like the SCAR, M249, M240 etc and therefore, it has no carrier tilt/cam pocket issues. It also has a much lighter recoil impulse, much like a DI rifle.
6. It weighs 6.8 pounds for the 16" carbine.
7. I can replace the barrel in about 3 minutes without having to remove a gas tube.
So, In conclusion, I believe that the AR platform has reached its pinnicle of evolutionary design with the Adcor B.E.A.R design. If you like DI rifles and don't want a piston rifle, don't buy one. If you are interested in owning the most technologically advanced AR platform, I suggest you ck out the Adcor design. I have met many people who have seen the rifle and I have yet to have one person give me a single negitive comment on the design. Some don't want a forward charging handle and thats ok. Just don't use it or buy a forend that does not have the slot for the charging handle.
All I ask is that you have an open mind when thinking about weapon design evolution.