DANIEL DEFENSE MFR & GEISSELE HANDGUARDS

DD design always seemed like a complicated solution searching for a simple problem to fix.

Edsel said:

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This one’s a Geissele - it clamps on the barrel nut.

Pretty secure.

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This one’s a Daniel Defense MFR.

Always liked the slimmer MFR version for the ergos and look.

Majority of my ARs have them.

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BUT I always had this nagging concern that the way it affixed itself was “weak,” compared to the Geissele design (and on top of that, there was always that annoying gap between the receiver and the handguard itself).

Is this a sentiment others share?

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I have both. I like the MFR's size, shape, features, etc better. If anything, the MK16 with aligned MLOK slots, is more prone to damage when dropped onto hard objects/surfaces. There's tons of drama surrounding the bending MK16. The other Geissele rails don't seem to have the bending issues.

Cascade Hemi said:

I have both. I like the MFR's size, shape, features, etc better. If anything, the MK16 with aligned MLOK slots, is more prone to damage when dropped onto hard objects/surfaces. There's tons of drama surrounding the bending MK16. The other Geissele rails don't seem to have the bending issues.

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They don’t have bending issues since changing to 7075. Now they crack.

DemonicLemming said:

DD design always seemed like a complicated solution searching for a simple problem to fix.

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Granted this off-shoot of the DD RIS (which has 6x larger bolts instead of 4x) is more time consuming to put on, it's not that bad.

I had the DDM4 (quad version of the MFR) rail on a Mk12 build and on a few other guns. The Mk12 especially never gave me any problems with torque/impact shift. Pretty handy rails in the long, long ago before keymod, mlok and all the other 1-off shit.

Edsel said:

Is it a “weak” design, in your opinion?

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not at all, the reason for the two-piece design in the MFR anchor is so that it fully captures the barrel nut. It's quite strong without being complete overkill or having the issues with fitment that the RIS II/III sometimes have

of the rails that are out there, the MFR is probably one of my favorites because of the curved underside being better on the hand than a true octagonal design

Edit: a pic of a recent-ish 450 bushmaster rebuild I did with a riflespeed gas block featuring an MFR XL. Plenty strong enough that I was able to do side window cuts for the gas control adjustment and it still doesn’t flex enough to fuck up a laser zero.

WindstormSCR said:

not at all, the reason for the two-piece design in the MFR anchor is so that it fully captures the barrel nut. It's quite strong without being complete overkill or having the issues with fitment that the RIS II/III sometimes have

of the rails that are out there, the MFR is probably one of my favorites because of the curved underside being better on the hand than a true octagonal design

Edit: a pic of a recent-ish 450 bushmaster rebuild I did with a riflespeed gas block featuring an MFR XL. Plenty strong enough that I was able to do side window cuts for the gas control adjustment and it still doesn’t flex enough to fuck up a laser zero.

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Why do this when you could have gotten an extended controls gas block that you could adjust without cutting your rail? Or go with a longer gas system or shorter rail? It doesn’t seem well thought out. And those edges on the cutout look razor sharp and are going to be a constant source of aggravation when they’re destroying slings, the inner liner of gun cases, and your hands.

mudholestomper said:

Why do this when you could have gotten an extended controls gas block that you could adjust without cutting your rail? Or go with a longer gas system or shorter rail? It doesn’t seem well thought out. And those edges on the cutout look razor sharp and are going to be a constant source of aggravation when they’re destroying slings, the inner liner of gun cases, and your hands.

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1) any extended controls would not be able to be manipulated between the end of the rail and the suppressor/muzzle device
2) longer gas system would cause even more issues with subsonic .450 bushmaster ammunition, as it sits, setting 1 is full close (not enough gas flow to cause the bolt to unlock) and setting 11 barely locks back the carrier with subsonics (out of 12 possible settings, standard carbine buffer, carbine length gas, standard Faxon BCG)
3) having a spot for a bipod while also having long arms necessitates a 15" rail, it's mostly a hunting upper.
4) those edges aren't sharp at all, they're deburred and filed smooth with a nice bevel, I just haven't aluminum blacked or painted it yet to hide the cut marks.

Faxon does a good barrel though, the machining is super clean and it makes nice fat ragged holes

What is the purpose of this thread? Are you asking a question or looking for advice?