I have the opportunity to buy a brand new Scar 16 for $2200 (a great deal in my neck of the woods) and just wanted the opinions of members here first. I already have 3 quality ARs, a 16" LMT carbine, 16" BCM middy and 20" PSA rifle. I just want something different and with a little bit of wow factor to it.
I am on the fence between this, or buying a KAC SR15 mod 1. I really like the KAC, but I don’t know that it will be anything better than my current go to rifle, the BCM middy. I think it comes down to me wanting a modern rifle design, or maybe its just the kid video gamer stuck inside that wants a Scar.
I had given serious thought toward the Scar 17 or a LMT MWS in .308 as well, but I don’t really have as much of a use for one of those right now as I have a HK91 back in VA. (Banned by name in CA)
Concensus on the SCAR seems to be that it is a good rifle. If it offers a feature that you want or need, go for it. While it is arguably no better than the SR-15, neither is it worse. Both offer things that the other doesn’t, but it would boil down to the archer, not the arrow.
I have owned and used both. Not in combat nor as much as many of our fellow posters here have. While I would prefer the ability to take Pmags without modification and the longer handguard of the KAC, I think the SCAR would be my choice between the two, as I am fond of the side-mounted charging handle located directly above the bolt catch and the side-folding stock (for storage).
I do not think you can go wrong with either one, though.
$2200 is a good price, and where you already have some quality rifles why not? Personally i didnt care much for my 16s, it was a good rifle but it just didnt do it for me, and it honestly didnt do anything better than my M-4orgerys.
The SR-15 is the cats meow of the M16 FOW, that would be my choice.
I have an SR15 mod 0 and while a great rifle, I don’t know it’ll have that ‘cool’ factor a SCAR will or offer anything that significant above and beyond your BCM middy.
That said, when thinking about my next rifle purchase, I do keep thinking about a nice, used 16S. But then I already have a 17S. Personally, if you’re going to get a SCAR, I’d go with the .308 as it has both the cool/new factor you’re looking for AND offers some capabilities beyond the 5.56 weapons you already have.
It is my opinion that FN designed a masterpiece with the SCAR platform. It is elegantly simple, yet robust and battle ready.
That being said, it is really no better than a standard AR15. If the cost was closer to the $1500 range then it would be far more likely that i would buy one, but as it stands an AR15 will do the job just fine for $900.
The SCAR is an awesome rifle, but its capabilities match those of the AR15. The question is are you ok with spending the extra money just to have something different (and totally awesome for the matter)? If yes, then get it and dont look back, you wont regret it.
I own the SCAR 16 and a Colt 6920. The SCAR has been SBR’d and it is a great rifle. I trust my family’s life with it. Is it better than my 6920? Not really. It’s just different and that is what I wanted. Something different.
For you, since you have so many 5.56 rifles, why not consider the SCAR 17 in 308? It still has the WOW factor that you want, but you will have it in a different caliber.
I have a hard time finding fault in any of this rationale.
I’ve got some range time in with a co-worker’s SCAR and while it didn’t strike me as unwieldy per se, it wasn’t as quick handling or intuitive as my AR variants. I appreciate the modularity, dislike the charging handle, and tend to prefer a quality M4 over a SCAR, particularly given the cost of the things.
Having said all that, if you’ve got the funds and pine for something different, well, I can relate. I’m in the market for my first AK for that very reason (but I’ll be spending a lot less than you will be).
Maybe I need to shoot a 17 before passing judgement. My current thinking on it is that it probably won’t do anything better for my uses than my 91, it uses proprietary mags and they are not cheap to feed. If I do decide on another semiautomatic .308 rifle, I think I would rather have something in a DMR role like the MWS or SR25.
The reason I like the 16 is because I already have a ton of mags and ammo that will work for it so that cuts down on the costs as well. I would be configuring if with an Aimpoint and a Surefire mini scout just like my middy.
My SCAR 16 will eat ammo like it is nothing that I have personally witnessed 15+ AR’s choke on. These are not lower Tier AR’s but Colts, Noveske & Daniel Defense. It is not the fault of the AR, the ammo was a downloaded 45 and 50 gr frang that was both loaded by Blackhills & Corbon for a special application. Most AR’s choke on it, except for the select few it was loaded for. My 16 chews right through.
That’s reassuring that it will run on very weak ammo.
I just last night cleaned my 16. This was my yearly cleaning. I have been shooting it suppressed, on average 300 hundred rounds/month since Jan. The last time I lubricated it was in December. I use an impacted rated grease on the carrier. It has stayed through all that suuppressed fire & through a couple rainy days of shooting. Cleanup was a breeze compared to the 1500 rd cleanings I use to do with my Colt 6933s when ran suppressed.
No doubt the SR is a great rifle. I have a few rounds through one, but IMHO the SCAR is the better rifle, especially if you ever plan to run a can. That said, for the $, if only buying one, I’d get the 17 over the 16 in a heartbeat. It doesn’t look it, but it gives pretty much AR carbine type handling with main battle rifle punch.
Thanks for the advice guys. I plan on buying this thing in 2 weeks when I get paid. Only downside is I will either have to pin the stock or leave it in VA until I move back in November. I guess the rifle is too short for CA law with the stock folded, and I’m not gonna pin a muzzle device on it to meet overall length requirements of 26".
Who makes a good extended rail section for this thing? I’ve seen it in pics but don’t know who makes a good one.
I still plan on buying the KAC eventually, but this seems like a good deal on a quality rifle I’ve drooled over for a while and I don’t want to pass it up.
I love my SCAR 16 and have never regretted buying it. Since your covered with reliable AR’s already, there’s no shame in buying a 16 if that’s what you want
Very true and I’ll admit this applies to me. I’m so used to the M16 FOW that anything else is hard for me to really get into and accept. The Scar is better in some ways but the AR is better in others, and for most it comes down to personal preference.
That is interesting about the SCAR 16 firing rounds that the ARs didn’t. Do you think it is because of the heavier bolt carrier? You also went around 8 months without lubing the rifle!?!?!?
I’d love a SCAR 16, but agree with the others that for just a few hundred more the SCAR 17 would be the rifle to get from all of my research.
Only if you can keep it fed. I believe someone here once said that the best argument for the 16 was the 17: It gives you a nearly identical weapon that take the much less expensive 5.56mm cartridge. Frankly, if I didn’t have to buy my own ammo, the 17 would render all legacy 7.62mm platforms, including the AK, obsolescent. (An AK in 7.62mm, with an EGerman side-folder and Ak-100-series brake, with the stock folded and a loaded thirty-round Finnish polymer magazine has an almost identical footprint and weight as a Mk17 with a CompM3, SureFire light in a GearSector mount, TD stubby VFG, and the steel mag stuffed full of 155-grain TAP. This is with a FH on the 16" barrel, not the PWS brake. I believe that somebody else called it the AK for rich people.)
While the SBR length is my favorite, this is not entirely true. You still have a longer unlock time with the SCAR. As great as the SR is, and trust me I really like that rifle as well, I do not for a minute believe a DI AR will run the ammo count in field conditions (rain, snow, dust) with minimal to no lubrication that a gun like a SCAR or HK 416 will. I have personally been amazed at how well my 16 runs. It is the Toyota Hilux of 556 Semiautos IMHO. The only thing that hasgiven me issue is my one Surefire 60 rd mag.
In one of my Colt 6933s, with a lesser round count than my 16, I had a bolt crack. Granted, that’s an example of one, but taken as a whole, the average bolt life of the M4 being 4-6000 rounds, & my 6933 having a little north of 5,000 through it, that is inline with what to expect. The newer generation of guns like the SCAR have a more robust bolt for a reason. I know the SR has an improved bolt, but even then I don’t see that given as a whole, over thousands of rifles there will be the bolt life of the SCAR.
I’m not trying to be a “fan boy” as I believe the basic M4 is good enough for the applications it is pressed into, but these new generation of rifles do what the M4/M16 does and do a few other things a little bit better. How much that is worth to you is something only an individual can decide.
