Piston uppers

[TigerStripe]

What is your favorite piston upper or which do you think is the best?


TS

[Daniel Defense]

POF makes an awesome piston upper.

After handling Larry Vickers HK 416 last month I really like it as well.

[M4arc]

I think first and foremost I would love an HK416 but I doubt I’d ever be able to get my grubby little mitts on one. I have high hopes for the Colt LE1020 but they aren’t due out until the end of 2007 (the last I heard). The Leitner-Wise stuff is a mystery until they can get production up and fill in all the orders and complete their arfcom group buy.

That leaves me with the POF as the front runner but not by default mind you. There is an excellent thread over on 10-8 and I took it that Frank was on top of things and making changes based upon the feedback he was receiving. By the sounds of it he’s constantly making improvements and is open to suggestions. I was very impressed with POF after reading that thread and the comments from those in the know. Oh and he's listening to the right people as well.

In addition to that dport recently purchased one and he seems to be more than happy with his. If I was to buy one today, without a doubt I would buy a POF because it sounds like Frank is in the mix, putting out an excellent product and constantly looking to improve that product.

[Griz]

I'm not convinced of the need for one yet....

At a recent machinegun shoot, my 10" AR with a RDIAS ran for about 2500 rounds of steel cased Wolf before it malfunctioned. The malfunction was so much red gunk had built up inside the bolt that the firing pin could no longer hit the primer.

I think that red gunk is the sealant around the primer pocket, so I'm not convinced that it came through the gas tube in the first place. I think it came through the firing pin hole so a piston upper would probably have the same problem.

Even if a piston would have run longer, I don't see hosing out my bolt every 2000+ rounds as a serious hardship. Maybe if I was on a 2-way range, but that's not gonna happen, and even if it did, I would try to avoid using the dirtiest ammo known to modern man.

(I might still get a piston upper though just because it's another toy to put in my toy box, er, I mean my safe.)

[Dport]

IIn addition to that dport recently purchased one and he seems to be more than happy with his. If I was to buy one today, without a doubt I would buy a POF because it sounds like Frank is in the mix, putting out an excellent product and constantly looking to improve that product.

Extremely happy is more like it.

And for those who may have heard, yes I did have a problem at a recent class. ONE OF MY OWN DOING.

A little history. I bought a stripped P-416 lower. Finished it out with CMT parts, and I put a SOPMOD stock on it. I did not torque the castle nut, nor did I stake it. Nor, it seems, did I screw the receiver extension in far enough to keep the buffer retainer in place. During a course of fire the buffer retainer worked loose and gummed up the works.

That problem WAS IN NO WAY ASSOCIATED WITH POF. That was a Dport screwup (bad, bad DPORT).

The POF assembled parts have functioned 100%.

I have another stripped lower that I'm considering a POF 18" upper for, sometime in the future. I am also very interested in their .308 gun.

I do still have my 16" Bushy superlight with an A1 upper, because the one thing the POF is not is superlight. I'm not sure you can get a piston gun as light as a DI gun. Although, if POF is willing to try, I'll be more than happy to beta test it.

[SAW_5.56]

Extremely happy is more like it.

And for those who may have heard, yes I did have a problem at a recent class. ONE OF MY OWN DOING.

A little history. I bought a stripped P-416 lower. Finished it out with CMT parts, and I put a SOPMOD stock on it. I did not torque the castle nut, nor did I stake it. Nor, it seems, did I screw the receiver extension in far enough to keep the buffer retainer in place. During a course of fire the buffer retainer worked loose and gummed up the works.

That problem WAS IN NO WAY ASSOCIATED WITH POF. That was a Dport screwup (bad, bad DPORT).

The POF assembled parts have functioned 100%.

I have another stripped lower that I'm considering a POF 18" upper for, sometime in the future. I am also very interested in their .308 gun.

I do still have my 16" Bushy superlight with an A1 upper, because the one thing the POF is not is superlight. I'm not sure you can get a piston gun as light as a DI gun. Although, if POF is willing to try, I'll be more than happy to beta test it.

Minor thread hijack in progress: Dport, how do you like the POF lower? I'm looking at many different lowers in fear of the dems taking over in Nov. Does POF make it in house or is it subcontracted like Noveske/CMT, or RRA/CMT? How closely does the teflon finish match the anodizing of an upper?

[Dport]

I've been through two different carbine classes with this one lower, one with a DI gun, one with a piston gun, if that matters to you. I've never had a problem with it. I do have one mag that won't drop free from it; however, I suspect that is because that mag is old, probably out of spec, and definitely needs replaced.

Call me a poser if you want, but I like the pictograms on it. And, IMO, the deep black finish is a plus. I was going to KG coat the lower, but I couldn't bring myself to do it.

I don't know if POF makes their own or what, I'll let them answer that question; however, I have not had any problems with fit, finish or function with their lower.

The only thing I know is I waited for my lowers, but they were worth it!

[IndianaJeff]

I second the POF, I personally haven't used one but my shooting buddy has one, it's impressive how it works, just haven't talked myself in to one yet.

[MAP]

POF makes an awesome piston upper.

After handling Larry Vickers HK 416 last month I really like it as well.

Jay,

Any chance a DD 7.0 can be made to fit the POF or Leitner Wise piston set ups?

Thanks,

Mike

[VA_Dinger]

I would have to say the HK416 is the "Best" based on the extensive testing it has gone through by both HK and the Tier 1 units issuing it. I highly doubt if any other gas piston design has seen even 1/4 the testing. If the system had any fleas these guys would have found them long ago.

Having handled and shot both Larry’s & Simon’s HK416 several times it’s hard not to be impressed. I’m not a big “Fit & Finish” guy, but the HK is simply perfect. Both ran like a Swiss watch also.

That being said they are not available for us yet. State & local LE sales have started, and I do consider this to be a positive sign for the future.

As for the other designs I have heard good and bad things about all of them. I have personally seen both a POF & LW run fine through an entire class, and that was certainly encouraging to see. I have spoken with Paul from LW about driving up for a shoot and hopefully this will happen this summer. As M4arc stated the POF has been getting some good reviews lately. Dport seems to like his POF and I respect his opinion. I also find the Colt LE1020 very interesting; time will tell on how it performs. I look forward to getting some real experience with all of these designs.