Originally Posted by
JChops
I will preface this by stating I own a PredatAR 5.56 16" (from the first week of sales) and I really like it.
That being said, I really hate to see this bullshit viral marketing used toward whatever your flavor of the month is. You have been subtly misleading people since this rifle came out and one only needs to search your fanboy-infused posts on the subject to observe it. The worst part is that you did the same thing when you were pro-KAC; everything else on the market was secondary. The irony? It took you less than six months to flip the switch and completely move from KAC to LaRue. You are free to do what you want on your own. But it's pretty scary when you post it all as gospel on a technical, professional-heavy forum like this.
Secondly, I'm not sure where you are getting your weight numbers from but they are totally off-base.
The PredatAR 5.56 16", brand new out of the box in stock form, weighs exactly 6 lbs. 11.6 oz. That's just a few ounces from seven pounds. How that is "a skosh over 6lbs in its stock configuration" is beyond me.
Let's not forget this is exactly as LaRue ships it: MOE furniture, A2 hider, with grip panels mounted and WITHOUT iron sights, ambi-safety or front/rear sling mounts.
Let's not deceive anyone here; you can't use the rifle out of the box unless you enjoy using the top rail as your sight. By the time you get the PredatAR usable—some type of sights, an ambi-safety, front and rear sling mounts—the rifle is going to weigh seven pounds. Add an optic and light and you are quickly approaching 7.5 - 8 pounds. This is not including little items like extended charging handles, heavier furniture with QD, aftermarket muzzle devices, lasers, etc.
Look, the PredatAR 5.56 is certainly not heavy at all but it is certainly not the lightest 16" carbine frame on the market by any stretch and no one should deceive them as such. You are purposely making people think this is somehow lighter than your KAC rifles when in fact it is not. (In fact, the KAC SR-15E3 weighs exactly the same out of the box: 6 lbs. 11.6 oz. To its advantage, that number includes BUIS, ambi-safety, front and rear sling mounts and all three full length KAC panels. Why not mention this to people? It's a fact that you've subtly left out.)
Thirdly, your value completely subjective value assessment is a bit odd in its wording.
You—and many others—make it seem like $1,500 gets you this rifle in "take-it-out-and-run-it" working order. Yes, the bare rifle is $1,495. But the rifle ships without sights, and several other features people are going to want in this price range. To get it to a usable state—again, quality irons, front and rear sling mounts and an ambi-safety at the very least—you'll be over $1,800, not including shipping.
To be clear: I'm not saying this rifle is overpriced in any way. I'm just saying it's not an "incredible value" compared to everything else in the same category right now when you break it down. Street prices on new SR-15E3s aren't that much higher if you look around. Anyone could call Grant and have him build them a similar rifle for a similar price. (Arguably better, if you started with a proper Colt base model.)
LaRue PredatAR 5.56 16": $1,495
LaRue/Troy BUIS: $199
LaRue PredatAR Front Sling Mount: $40
Rear Sling Mount (Noveske/Whatever else): $20
Ambi Safety (BAD-ASS or equivalent): $60
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$1,814 w/o shipping
Let's not get into specifics like you saying it comes with an "SSA trigger" when in fact it is an S2S trigger that MSRPs for $50 less. I'm not saying the S2S sucks; on the contrary. It's just this is a technical forum and you should not be throwing out shit like this to mislead people.
Your older comment about the "KAC SR15E3 gas block being worrisome because it is set screwed on" is bullshit and I called you out on that, too. The PredatAR's gas block is also set screwed on and you obviously never pulled the rail to check even though you had it in-hand. Strangely, you never replied.
Again, I really like the PredatAR and recommend it along with a lot of other LaRue products. But your endorsement of this rifle while being misleading with your interpretation of statistics, parts and methods while slamming KAC has made you appear immature and as a shill for whatever company you happen to like at the moment.
Because of your flavor of the month mentality, the aggressive style in which you smash products that a few months ago you endorsed, your tendency to exaggerate statistics and figures to meet your end-goals (read: help sell whatever you own right NOW), you are one of those guys that most industry veterans, professionals and interested hobbyists ought never take seriously, let alone believe or trust in any way.
The ones I really feel bad for are the new guys on the forum who don't know your airsoft history and tendency to do all of the aforementioned; they look up to you and believe what you write because you own high quality products, take tacticool photos and participate in shooting classes.