AR Pistol

I'm considering an AR pistol with an arm brace but wanted to hear some thoughts from dudes who know more than me.

  • General consensus on AR pistols?
  • Optimum barrel length & caliber? Is a 7" 300 blackout better than a 11.875" 223?
  • If the AR pistol is viable, who are some good companies to buy from? Or is it better to build one?
Is there some other question I should be asking but don't know enough to ask?
 

Oak City Tactics

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Pistol ARs are not to be dismissed. As for .300 vs 5.56 you must ask yourself. Can I afford to shoot it at $1 a round? I like the .300 for its niche of 100-150 yards suppressed with the ability to do 200 unsuppressed and supersonic. The issue I have is I can’t afford to train with it or get to know it the way I know my 5.56 guns. If this is your only carbine it’s an even more important question. I bought a 9” barreled pistol with Law Folder so that I could have a super small footprint for Shooting suppressed or traveling. It just takes up the least room.

If you can afford it then consider it within its parameters. If it works for you it works. If not and it’s 5.56 there are guns out there that run well at 10.5”. They are however a more self destructive system than even an 11.5” barrel that is just 1” longer. The longer barrel you can stand, the better off you are in the long run durability wise. Longer barrel life less cracked bolts etc. The short sweet spot for me is the 11.5 to 12.5 range. The only gun I have under 11.5” is a Mk18 but it was just a fun gun not a work gun.

With 10.5 and 11.5 guns you need to note that the loss in velocity can affect your ammo performance. So for self defense or hunting you will need to select an appropriate bullet. 55 grain ball isn’t gonna cut it especially out beyond about 75 yards. Consult the ballistics to see what your barrel does at you prescribed max range then find the bullet that performs at that velocity/range. 70 grain Barnes TSX, 5.56 pressure Trophy Bonded bear claw such as the Federal Tactical Bonded FBI T3 load, Etc.

As far as brands go BCM makes good ones in both calibers, Daniel Defense has a nice Pistol AR, SOLGW, FN, etc. There are lots of good ones to choose from. Do you research, if they make a great 16” AR odds are they make a good pistol too.

Pistols have the legal upside of being pistols which often allows for additional allowances in the CCW realm. You may be able to conceal one on your person or in your vehicle depending on your local laws where you might not be able to do so with a rifle. Give serious consideration to the Law Folder. It goes with AR pistols like PB&J. It’s available from Daniel Defense frombthe factory.

There are no free rides with either caliber or barrel lengths. Everything is a sacrifice for length. If you define your explicit needs or your bare minimums it will make the choice easier.
 
Thank you, this is great information.

Can I afford 300 BO @ $1/round? I can but I'd rather not; so I've decided to go with 5.56/223.

"If you define your explicit needs or your bare minimums it will make the choice easier."

My thought was to have something compact (short barrel and a law folding adapter) that is at max a 150 yard gun. While I would not carry it on my person all the time (like a CCW handgun), I would take it with me as I traveled. Eventually I may register the pistol as an SBR.
 

Sunshine_Shooter

Established
Eventually I may register the pistol as an SBR.

Don't do that. Pistols can be taken across state lines at-will (as long as it's legal in both states). SBR's must get approval from the ATF to travel across state lines. Not just notification, but they have to approve the travel and send you back a confirmation. A braced pistol (especially the SBA3 and SBA4 soon) give you the same functionality as an SBR but $200 cheaper and no federal headaches. Also, there are state-specific laws that forbid a person from carrying a rifle with a chambered round, or a magazine, or both, while in a vehicle. Since most pistol-specific laws are aimed at CCW, you can keep a loaded and chambered AR pistol at the ready. Double check your local laws, as they probably differ from mine in some way.

There are no upsides to having an SBR, and there are numerous drawbacks. You get nothing but headache, and it costs you $200 for the privilege.
 

BooneGA

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There are no upsides to having an SBR, and there are numerous drawbacks. You get nothing but headache, and it costs you $200 for the privilege.

No upsides is quite a stretch. With an AR pistol you are left with a sub par stock. The rubber "braces" don't provide support to load a bipod or a good way to use a rear bag. The differences aren't as big when using it on a pure carbine, but they absolutely do give up performance to actual stocks.

If legalities are a consideration, one look at the proposed AWB would let you know that anti-gunners are well aware of the "brace" work around and I would not be surprised to see that get the bumpstock treatment at the next opportunity.

Is that enough of a trade off for the $200 and (short) wait for the paperwork? Thats up to each individual. Form 1s were taking less than two weeks prior to the shut down and I spend about 10 minutes total each year filling out the 5320s required to take SBRs anywhere Id possibly travel with them.

Rick
 

Sunshine_Shooter

Established
@BooneGA I guess I was a little rash in my comment. Stocks do have benefits over braces, especially in non-carbine roles as you mentioned.

I don't concern myself with potential future AW bans. They do seem to be next in line for the ban hammer, unfortunately.

That part still doesn't sit well with me. Not the initial time to get your stamp approved, but the ATF approval requirement before traveling across state lines. Like you said, to each his own.
 
Start with a braced pistol. They are easy to get into and check out the <16” world. That said when you can, get a lower and SBR it. Then you have options. Travel with the pistol out of state. Have a proper stock in your home state.
I own one pistol brace. It got me into shorties and off my rear end to get into NFA items. Now it lives in the bin of old parts. It served it’s purpose and is ready if needed again.
As for .300 AAC it is great but not in the only rifle you own role. If you ever want to get into reloading, .300 AAC makes more sense but it is not for everyone.
One day the Nfa tax will increase. That is not going to be good but the worst part of it will be the rush to get in under the old rules causing a slowdown in the system again like 41f did a few years ago. Buy your tax stamps while they are on sale or scramble last minute with the masses.
 

Yondering

Regular Member
No upsides is quite a stretch. With an AR pistol you are left with a sub par stock. The rubber "braces" don't provide support to load a bipod or a good way to use a rear bag. The differences aren't as big when using it on a pure carbine, but they absolutely do give up performance to actual stocks.

If legalities are a consideration, one look at the proposed AWB would let you know that anti-gunners are well aware of the "brace" work around and I would not be surprised to see that get the bumpstock treatment at the next opportunity.

Is that enough of a trade off for the $200 and (short) wait for the paperwork? Thats up to each individual. Form 1s were taking less than two weeks prior to the shut down and I spend about 10 minutes total each year filling out the 5320s required to take SBRs anywhere Id possibly travel with them.

Rick

Well said.
Along with that, there's not much reason that you can't have multiple pistol and SBR lowers that are interchangeable for different needs, other than cost which is pretty low. Several times I've swapped out an SBR lower for a pistol lower to travel across state lines; no big deal and I still use it as an SBR the rest of the year.

Most of the concerns above are minimalized when you stop thinking in terms of having only one gun/lower. I suspect most of us here are able to own more than one.
 

Oak City Tactics

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Agreed with the above. IMHO the SBR was well worth it. I’d do it over and over again. Now as to the legalities if you are budget minded build a solid SBR and get your stamp. At the same time get a pistol lower and interchange as appropriate for the circumstances. Both lowers can be set up identical sans the brace VS stock. They would share the same upper so training crosses over from one to the other. I would advise you to get a solid quality 11.5” upper. There are very few maneuverability issues where you will be able to tell the difference, however reliability and durability are stacked more in your favor with an 11.5” over a 10.5”. As for ammo you can shoot all the 55 grain you want but you need to pick a defensive load optimized for the short barrels such as the ones I mentioned earlier. There is generally no 150 yd option the dividing line is generally around 70 yards. Beyond 70 you should be using an SBR specific load. Doc GKR has some good info out there on this.
 
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