When the BAD lever first came out I was fairly skeptical. It looked out of place and sort of jerry rigged to the lower. Following a few negative reviews I completely dismissed it. Subsequently I had planned on going with a lower that had been specifically designed with an ambi bolt release. The new Spikes Biohazard was going to be my next purchase until a recent range trip where I got to try out a friends M4 fitted with a tactical link battery assist (just like the BAD). I have to admit it was fairly awesome. I really didnt want to like it, and kept searching for faults, but after a few super smooth/fast mag changes i was wondering if this $35 piece of gear may be a better option than the $315 lower i was all set to buy. The other feature I really liked about the lever was the quick bolt hold open abilities when clearing the rifle (something the spikes doesn’t have). I got so use to this feature that it was a little annoying to go back to my own rifle. Seems like from the reviews I have read that the levers either work for your rifle and you love em or they dont and you hate em. So what are your thoughts? Lower that was designed for an ambi release, or a cheaper, more feature rich lever that could possibly be a bit of a coin toss?
KAC SR15 ambidextrous lower.
I haven’t met an ambi lower yet that puts the release in as intuitive a location as the BAD. I’d prefer a release like the ACR/XCR/FAL but in lieu of that I’ll keep using the BAD, and I actually prefer the version from Tactical Link to the Magpul production versions.
ETA:
I also don’t know of any production ambi lowers that allow for the locking back of the bolt on the ejection-port side, which is an infinitely more useful feature than releasing it. Advantage BAD there as well.
I would break down the relative usefulness of the BAD as 25% release and 75% hold-open, meaning that an ambi release-only lower is giving your only 25% of the use at 300% of the price.
I agree with Ram, the IWS complete lower is easily the finest large scale production lower Ive found to date(the best ambi lower or lower period is the MPLA, specifically the very, very, few china dolls) Has the best controls, fit, finish, and for me roll mark…the hydraulic like LMT tube and sopmod doesnt hurt either:)
Personally I tend to refrain from hanging rather large and awkward levers from my receivers but then again my index finger serves as my b.a.d.
With the ambi lower it still takes to hands to lock back the bolt right?
It always takes two hands to lock the bolt back. One to retract the bolt and one to hit the bolt catch, be it on the side or in the magwell.
ah, semantics to dodge the question.
Perhaps the better question would be, Does the KAC lower require you to break your strong-hand grip from the pistol grip of the firearm in order to lock the bolt to the rear?
I have a KAC ambi lower on my SR15E3 and a Lancer lower on my 3gun rifle. I really like both. I use a Magpul BAD Lever on my KAC lower and was using a Phase 5 Tactical lever on my Lancer because a BAD didn’t fit correctly. I ended up removing the Phase 5 because it would sometimes prevent the bolt from locking back.
For someone wanting a true ambi lower I’d say wait for the A-DAC lower from AXTS. It’s very worth the wait.
And by true ambi lower I mean one that has a safety lever on each side of the gun. One that can be used to lock and release the bolt from either side of the gun as well as can be used to drop the mag from either side of the gun.
The BAD lever is the most useful $30 addition I have made to my rifle.
I agree with Robb’s definition of a true ambi lower.
I also like the battery assist type levers and I have been using them for several years. They address my lefty considerations very well.
Good stuff guys. That A-DAC looks awesome! I was totally unaware of it, wish i would have found them at shotshow. Wonder what the price tag will be… For the time being I think I’ll be ordering a battery assist and seeing how it works out for me. I’ll def be waiting for that lower to be realeased though.
Rainier Arms has the v1 of the AXTS ADAC lower on pre sale for $139. AXTS has v2 of their lower in the pipeline that adds right side bolt release just like the KAC e3. Theyll also a matching 7.62. Very cool. Now if I could get them to add an ADAC pin to my e3 I’d be really happy. I have a BAD lever on mine, but I’m not a fan of the bolt on idea.
-T
Tagging for interest.
I have to agree with this.
I agree 110% also,I have both a Magpul and a Tac Link BAD,they both work great on my rifles !!! I actually prefer the Tac Link one myself !!!
I have the tac link on my scoped guy. I tried it on my carbine’s and hated it but I find that on the scoped gun I tend to set up for a shot and then figure out… $hit… I forgot to send it home. So it works great on that rifle.
I’ve had guys giving me grief for well over a year now about adding a BAD to my issue rifle - but even our range coaches were in disbelief when I was able to clear a legit double feed in the middle of a box drill during our Table III shoot. I had to replicate this during the night fire as well - simply not possible without that BAD on there.
Even the SR15 lower I have wears a BAD. Shooting right handed, no change. Shooting lefty, I can lock the bolt to the rear with the left hand, and send the bolt home with my right hand (mashing the BAD in or hitting the bolt release on that side)
That’s interesting that you would put the BAD on an already (supposedly) ambi lower. I guess that just shows how useful the bolt hold open abilities and versatility of the BAD really are. I actually toyed with throwing one on the Spikes biohazard I was planning to buy just because the lower has so many other cool features. In sight of recent info I think I’ll be waiting for the AXTS v2 to come out. On that note, can anyone see any downside to the bolt hold being combined with the mag release? Seems like it could be annoying in certain situations to have to drop the mag every time you wanted to hold the bolt back. On the other hand, you are removing added steps from clearing double feeds and therefore saving valuable time in a tactical situation.
The reason KAC designed a (true) ambi lower is for lefties one would think…and speaking as I lefty, I have no need for a cumbersome and rather large lever hanging on the side of my receiver. It is a completely useless control just waiting to go tits up for myself. The SR15 lower leaves me wanting nothing more in terms of controls once I install a badass 45 throw as lefty.(Triggers aside)
Maybe I should clarify the “supposedly” in my previous statement describing the sr15. I was saying it was supposedly ambidextrous based off of Robbs earlier statement, which I whole-heartedly agree with.
The SR15, though a superb platform, fails to fulfill one of the afore mentioned criteria’s