There seems to be some movement towards long handguards on ARs now. Is the only real reason being to cover up the gas block? Besides many civilian shooters, I’ve seen Mk 18s with the 9.5" RIS II, and now this M4 varient being used by MARSOC with 12.5" RIS II:
Anyone here using extended length handguards? Or are you sticking to shorter ones?
My job rifle has a fixed, A-frame front sight, so the short rail goes on it, but my other rifles all have the longer, gas-block covering Troy TRX extreme rail on them. A lot of guys like them because you can hold your non-dominant arm out farther for better control of the rifle, and place accessories like lights closer to the muzzle so they cast less shadow. Popular accessories like the Magpul Angled Grip practically require a long rail to use successfully.
I like them long… really 11" minimum. I have a 10" on one of my guns, and it is simply too short for my setup.
Gamers I tell you! J/k. It’s good too see the progression.
Not sure if I follow your cryptic post. Are you alluding to 3-Gun match guys?
I am probably going to do a troy 13.5" on my current build. I would like to keep my options open. I know I am going to want to try everything under the sun. I am a little concerned about weight, but I think the DD or troy should be fine. Plus, they do look good with a 14.5" barrel.
I prefer longer handguards but neither of my guns has rails. One is a 16" Middy and one is a 16" Dissy. I like being able to extend my hand out further than carbine length handguards give. Just a personal preference.
Yes 3gunners, mostly due to them using midlength and rifle gas length rifle barrels. The majority of them have been shooting rifle length tubes/FF rails for 10+yrs now.
Some prefer the longer sight radius for better accuracy.
I would take what writer Cameron Hopkins writes with caution.
He has been exposed on more than one occasion for embellishing and fabricating the truth.
Seen a number of investigations on frauds he has vetted in our in the industry as well.
You dirty 3-gunners do all sorts of perverted things with your carbines, or at least thats the rumor I heard. 
On a serious note, its good to see functional equipment pass back and forth though the different disciplines.
Rainier Arms has a fourteen inch (14") rail built for them by Daniel Defense for those looking for a lengthy real estate on their rifles. 
Hahaha. 
Yes I like it too. I like to help out as much as I can teaching how to shoot better at speed and in turn like learn as much as I can from the men who shoot smelly bearded men in the face about tactics/mindset. In the end I think the experience of all of it is good for all of us.
I’ve done it.
Swapped the 7" MI rails on my carbine for a low-pro gas block and 11" Larue rails.
I like the longer length with my AFG and the longer sight picture of the irons.
Win / Win…
My 18" SPR wears a 13.2" set of Larue rails.
So yea, I’ve started moving to longer rails for a number of reasons.
i did long rails for a while… long is heavy, and heavy is lame, is the conclusion i finally came to. its nice to stick a light in front of the FSB, but its just not enough of a bonus for me, especially when i finally figured out that i dont need a light on my gun most of the time anyway… it stays on the gun for HD and low-light training… but for the majority of my training and for truck-duty, the light is nothing more than added weight and can come off. then i’m left with a million miles of totally unused rail… im not even using a VFG these days. back to a 7" RAS for me, on my main carbine.
Have these men ever mentioned the rails? Like I said, I’m seeing more and more of it.
Swapped a carbine length rail for 12in fsp rail. I can’t see going back to anything shorter but I may go with something like the Vtac.
I’ve noticed this over the course of the last few years. I think it’s a thing where individuals think “Hmm, if my barrel has to be this long, why not put a rail around it just as far as it will go?” I think the thinking behind it is less about protecting the gas block (though it’s a nice side benefit) and more better to have and not need the real estate on the rail.
I think the TRX Extreme rail marks a shift in a slightly different direction. I think the thinking will shift away from maximizing rail real estate to minimizing weight while keeping the utility of the extended handguard. More rail length means more weight, and if all we need to hang on a gun is a light, grip, and laser designator, why do we need a foot of rail to do that? Why not 3 sections of rail that go where we want them to along this foot long space?
But as has been pointed out in another thread I’m not good at guessing fads, apparently.
BTW, how old is the upper on that scanned in pic? Check out the forward assist!
The long rail just seems to make it a lot more “natural” for me to hold my arm way out there.
With the standard M4 stock fully extended on a 16" barreled rifle like my LMT, while holding it up in the firing position, I can easily straighten my arm out and touch the flash hider. My fingers extend about an inch beyond the flashhider if I lay my palm flat against the muzzle.
Im digging them. I am currently using a DDM4:
Put my hands on the Troy and Vtac Tubes at SHOT; those will be my next purchase.
I like being able to grip the rifle in multiple ways. If I am standing up, a can use a more forward grip, kneeling or prone I can adjust my hand position to get comfortable and steady. Lastly, having many options as far as mounting accessories.
My 0.02 gentlemen.
I put a 12" Larue on my first “after ban” gun which had a 14.5" LMT upper on it. My thought process at the time was to cover the hot barrel (I had been burned by my FAL in the past), push the front sight out further, give me something to rest the gun on from supported barricade positions, and more space to mount things. As it turned out the added weight wasn’t worth it for me personally.
I then went to a .625" diameter barrel and a Daniel Defense 9.0 rail thinking the barrel was lighter, the handguard was lighter AND shorter, and therefore I would like it better. I liked it so much I put a 10.0 on in place of the 9.0 eventually. I put the 9.0 on a 6933 where the 9.0 covered as much barrel as I could and still mount my can.
Then I spent a year with an AK. No rail and very short handguards. I got to liking it so much that I set up my other 6933 with MOE furniture, in a way to mimic what the AK was giving me. I also put together a BCM complete gun that has the standard plastic mid-length handguards. So I’ve been going shorter over the last several years, and away from FF tubes altogether.
The trend you’re seeing toward the longer handguards in the “tactical” world is almost entirely due to the move many are making to the support hand being out further forward, which in turn is the result of people either training with, watching videos of, or simply emulating a few high-profile instructors. As has been rightfully pointed out, the majority of those instructors got this technique (even if they don’t know that’s where they got it) from the gamers. Say this in some circles and they’ll lynch you, but I believe it to be the case, especially with the tiny little bit I know about these trainers backgrounds, prior employment, and who influenced the training in those locations. Not to mention that some of these trainers are known prior gamers themselves. There may be other historical references for the technique, but there isn’t as clear a lineage from those sources to now as their is tracing things back to the gamers.
I always encourage people to try new techniques. If that requires a change in equipment then see if you can get a loaner to try the technique first, but give it an honest shake not just “ok I shot a mag that way and it sucks”. When we cover stance at our practice nights we do the more common squared, hand further back, feet more squared up stance and we try the “new” hand further out, feet & shoulders more bladed, etc. We talk about pros and cons of both, and we talk about gear setup for both. From there it’s the shooter’s option, but at least he’s tried both in a dynamic environment for as many rounds as we can get out of him and he can make up his own mind.
As mentioned, there is nothing new in the world. Just because the current proponents trace the roots back to gaming doesn’t mean gamers invented it or were the first to do it. You watch the training world long enough, or research far enough back, and you’ll find that anything not directly related to technology advancements (and even then some) goes in cycles.