I’m still on this OAL issue with my upcoming .22LR AR-15. I am in Finland and we have an OAL requirement of 33.1" (840mm) for rifles.
I’m considering several solutions, pinning the stock so it can’t collapse fully, or having Spikes make me a 17.5" barrel so it will look outwarly like a normal 16" AR, this would be my preferred soluton but I haven’t heard back yet from Spikes.
Now in the meanwhile I’ve also started wondering if I can extend the flash hider?
I have a vortex hider at home that I will have a gunsmith put on (doesn’t need to be perm. attached in finland), it’ll give me some needed length, but another inch would be needed to be absolutely sure. Now the idea I was pondering is, would it be possible to have the smith make a 1" extension for the flash hider to thread onto, and then thread that assemblage onto the barrel?
I am not sure if this is too finicky a solution, maybe it’ll be too weak or maybe it’ll cause accuracy issues? It’s just an idea I had that I’d like some feedback on, if I can’t have the barrel extended I’d still probably consider pinning the stock before this anyway.
In that case it would have to be permanently attached. Suppressors are commonly considered on/off devices or not really a part of the gun here, so the cops wouldn’t be satisfied with that.
There aren’t any actual laws or rules on the books regarding this, it’s mainly just down to what the police officer feels is prudent, you see 30 days after I get my gun I have to take it to the police station to get it inspected. An officer won’t pay any undue attention to a flash hider but he would to a suppressor and measure it without one. A stock that I have welded an extension onto so it cannot collapse beyond the 2nd position would suffice as well.
Also, unfortunately, I could not get a longer barrel, those won’t be arriving for several months and I do want my rifle within a few weeks at most.
I fail to see what the issue is. Most 16" AR15s measure ~32" when fully collapsed (6-position stock). Simply pin the stock in the 3rd position and you’re all set. Easy as that!
the spikes 22LR upper is a 16" barrel mounted 1.5" back into the receiver (relative to a 223 AR). this results in the same overall length as a 14.5" 223 AR.
i’d say a long flash hider is your best bet. there’s a bunch available designed to extend short barrels. here in the US anything under 16" requires NFA approval/tax stamp.
Yeah I’ve gotten my hands on a Smith Vortex flash hider. I am not sure if it will extend enough though. I asked a guy who has an identical config to mine, except with an A2 flash hider to measure his gun and he came to 31.625"
EDIT: I’ve talked to some friends and it seems the idea of making a thread adapter for the flash hider might be a sound solution anyway. The idea would to make a ~1" thread adapter and permanently affix it to the flash hider. Then screw that into the barrel, it’d make it over 33.1" then for sure. And as an added bonus I could then thread the barrel in 1/2x20 UNF instead of 1/2x28 TPI - meaning I could take it off later and put on any old suppressor if I want to, thats the standard thread pitch overe here you see.
Sorry the configuration is already set as is, and I would not be allowed to export the rifle if it was suppressed, even if the barrel had threading US export laws would forbid it.
I’m thinking either the “extended, extended flash hider” idea or just doing it the easy way and pinning the stocks first position.
there’s a bunch available designed to extend short barrels. here in the US anything under 16" requires NFA approval/tax stamp.