I think we have different versions of gun bunnies… GT knows his way around a weapon and is pretty credible. Then again, I don’t watch gun videos or check IG gun stuff unless a buddy sends it to me. That, and gunbunnies being female. 
Garand thumb does have a video out on their rifle and gave it good feedback. He actually tests the rifles with decent round counts and I think his opinion is non biased for the most part
They seem to use quality components but at the price they charge there are better vetted options imo.
The complete rifles are LMT/Knight’s pricing depending on model and I would go with them or BCM, Sionics, centurion for less money
I have a Triarc 14.5 middy upper (pinned Warcomp) that I’ve been very pleased with.
How reliable has it been with different kinds of 223/556 ammo?
It runs fine on the full pressure 5.56 that I’ve shot through it, no issues or hiccups at all. I haven’t tried any really cheap stuff (like wolf/tula/etc.) and I can’t say how reliable it is with lower pressure (223) ammo as I haven’t tried any of that either. It seems to be correctly gassed for 5.56, so it might have some issues with the more anemic stuff (not unheard of for properly gasses 14.5 mid-lengths). Or maybe not. As cheap as good 5.56 is these days, why shoot anything else?
That is very conservatively gassed. Clint would know better but that might be on the edge with unsupressed .223.
Why do you say that? I’ve driven over polymer handguards with a 4Runner - five or six times - with no issues.
I would argue that a lot of metal handguards would not have faired as well as the MOEs did. Considering MOEs are $28, even if a particular metal one was functionally stronger at all, which I doubt, it wouldn’t be 10x stronger.
Magpul MOEs are not strong enough for the average user, they are strong in their own right. With the average user shooting to 200y max, not using lasers for NV, and never shooting from barriers an MOE would be perfect for nearly everyone except those who drool over the cool photos you take.
The only non-standard handguard I’d put to the 4runner test is an LMT MRP.
Otherwise naw.
Regular handguards like a MOE aren’t totally married to the nut and can allow for flexing.
The asset of a FF rail can be its undoing too
It seems a little light, but differences in chamber and bore can affect required sizes somewhat.
It’s probably fine with 556 and a light CAR buffer.
PMC and an A5 with green spring and a loose hold may be a different story.
They use SEP rifling and supposedly that doesn’t let as much gas escape past the bullet therefor providing more gas. How true is that? No idea. @tx aggie what buffer weight/spring combo are you using? I see on their website they recommend an h buffer and springco blue spring which seems like it would cause issues with such a small gas port.
Interesting, looked them up. They also offer some primarily suppressed gassed barrels. Maybe that was it or maybe the dimensions of the Single Edge Polygonal rifling (square on one edge polygonal on the other) effects the bore volume enough to drop port sizes. Mark M mentioned once that he put the same size gas-block insert into two different barreled uppers with the same overall length and the same length gas-system, one still ran too hard the other was right on. Those internal barrel bore and chamber variables might matter more than we typically have considered when comparing barrels from different companies.
I’ve been using a standard power carbine spring and an H buffer.
Two data points:
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Will Petty Of Centerfuge Training is running a Tri Arc AR and has had positive feedback so far.
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Tri Arc has gotten “hot”recently but they have been around for several years. I first heard of them 4 or 5 years ago when an LE Agency local to me re-barreled their Colt AR’s with Tri Arc barrels as part of a move to free float handguards. They have had positive results so far.
I don’t personally know anyone with one if their rifles but I was considering them at one point while I continue to look for a new present to myself. One thing on my wishlist is an ambi lower and they do check that box. I tend to watch Garand’s reviews and listen to what he has to say. Sounds like they put out nice product with a price tag to match.
I ended up taking them off the list of options after the NRA show last year for personal reasons. Good luck whatever way you decide to go.
Agree that the large majority of Americans will be well served with an MOE. I don’t have numbers but would be willing to bet most AR owners in America shoot well under 1000 rounds per year at paper in an indoor range.
With that said, there are other and/or better options for those who train regularly, rely on for duty or home defense.
What about the NRA show put a bad taste in your mouth about them?
Nothing product related. I am by my own admission a vindictive consumer so even as it petty as it sounds I was at their booth for a while looking at one of their rifles and testing the ambi controls but no one ever came over to even engage so I wandered off. They have very nice products but if I am going to drop close to $2k on a rifle I have pretty high standards. I am probably just a jerk but i can at least admit it.
Right now I am leaning heavily to ADM for a complete rifle. They have been very responsive via email so that is worth quite a bit in my book.
ADM mod 2 is an amazing rifle for ambi.
Any more thoughts on these? I’m debating between Triarc and KAC. I know Knights would be the obvious recommendation because of the track record, but Triarc has a solid deal for LE/MIL through DSG Arms on a complete gun that would cost just barley more than a KAC upper. It’d be awesome to see some load testing with velocity and precision between similar Triarc and KAC barrels.
You’re an officer in the United States Army.
Act like it.