i do have my eye on an ax556.
Unfortunately there is a 90 day wait. Plus it has proprietary parts. I am just gonna buy a BCM lower if I can ever find one and call it good.
What’s bad about proprietary parts?
Mixed bag answer:
The Magpul lower is not produced anymore in that configuration and rollmark. They’re collectors items now.
AR15.com bought the rights to that lower from Magpul and produce the exact same product, but with their rollmark on it. It might be out of stock or something, but they still produce and sell them on their website… which is the same as their company name. At that price however, I’d rather have an AX556 lower.
Smith and Wesson recently started producing the Magpul lower without the right side bolt release. It’s also forged instead of billet.
Proprietary parts generally means that you are married to that manufacturer and their whims for said parts, which may or may not be in stock and available when you need it.
It would suck to have your rifle down for 6 weeks because of a lost spring or stripped thread, and having to pay a hefty premium for said part.
Although I remain a KAC proponent as well, I see no reason to look any further than the AX556, as it strikes me as the benchmark of the class right now.
AC
Yet people recommend KAC as a top tier ar manufacturer regardless of the proprietary bolt, barrel extension/chamber, barrel nut, suppressor qd mount, and lower receiver?
I mean if we only ever stuck to non proprietary parts, how would we ever advance?
I tend to look a the proprietary parts issue against the backdrop of the manufacturer’s standing in the industry and long-term growth potential. For example, Knight’s Armament isn’t likely to be going anywhere in our lifetimes, so my sense is that SR-15E3 components will always be available to at least some extent. Similarily, AXTS is a relatively new player, but their quality and innovation suggest that they will see similar success in the years to come. The more AX556s are fielded, the greater the likelihood that – even if Josh did fold up the company someday – someone else out there would tool up to meet demand.
Another way of hedging one’s bets in the here and now (aside from just buying spare parts you may never actually need), is to invest in more than one example of a proprietary firearm. Owning two SR-15s or two AX556-based carbines doubles the chances that you could always keep at least one of them up, even if there were no parts to be had. Granted, that may be an extreme approach to some, but there is something to be said for type standardization in general, once you find a combination of features and major components that meet your needs particularly well. If you like your first-line carbine enough to have puchased one of them, it very often makes sense to buy another built to the same specification – proprietary parts or no.
AC
I agree with you on the advancement issue. My problem is paying $500 for a stripped lower I have to wait 90 days for and it comes stripped. There are proprietary parts used in the very minor (IMO) advancements. If they are 90 days behind in getting me the lower, what if I need replacement parts? KAC is on another playing field than AXTS btw in my eyes.
It is pretty far from stripped.
That’s what the website said when I looked at it. I could be wrong.
Well you get the ambi bolt catch… Which as a lefty is damn near priceless , then the ambi mag release, battle arms ambi sftey selector, some tensioning detent, anti rotation pin, ext, ext. by the time you through all that stuff into a stripped billet lower from another manufacturer you have spent 500 bucks maybe more.
So, you just need to get a FCG and take down pins & springs.
Mostly stripped.
Does anyone know if the AXTS556 lower compatible with the Surefire MAG-60 magazine?
According to this thread:
https://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=71915&page=7
It is
Thanks Koshinn. We can also add Rainier Arms to the list of lowers with right side bolt release.
Link? I don’t see any Rainier Arms branded lowers on their website that have ambi controls.
Aero Precision, on the other hand:
http://aeroprecisionusa.com/shop/ar15-stripped-ambidextrous-lower
https://www.rainierarms.com/?page=shop/detail&product_id=3638
https://www.rainierarms.com/?page=shop/detail&product_id=3637
That’s a Mega lower with Rainier branding. Nothing new here.
The AXTS lowers are worth every penny. Got a bunch of them. Between that lower and the Raptor charging handle (another AXTS innovation) I am changing direction back into AR’s from being a AK-only guy. That said, they do have some proprietary parts. Not a bad idea to get a kit of all of them from AXTS. I’ll email Abe about exactly that and report back if anybody else is interested.
Consider me interested