Feral Jundi

Saturday, August 20, 2011

Weapons: Adcor Defense BEAR Elite– A Free Floating Barreled, One Piece Anti-tilt Bolt Carrier Piston AR

Filed under: Weapons — Tags: , , , , , — Matt @ 1:06 PM

This is a very interesting rifle. To be able to shoot sub-MOA after 6,000 rounds worth of testing at HP White is impressive for a piston AR. Not to mention the excellent durability and lack of malfunctions during the HP White testing. This rifle will be competing in the Army’s Improved Carbine competition, and it looks like a contender.

The thing about this rifle that grabbed my attention is the free floating barrel. To not have anything touching that barrel, is a radical departure from the norm. That equates to some excellent accuracy capability, and I would really like to see this rifle chambered in 7.62 or other interesting calibers. With nothing touching the barrel, then folks could experiment with different barrels and really explore the field of AR accuracy. But for a standard battle rifle, this is awesome. (it would be cool to see different offerings of barrels, with different twists like 1/8)

The one piece anti-tilt bolt carrier assembly is smart as well. With a recessed lug going into the carrier, that will only increase the strength and durability of the connection between the piston rod and bolt carrier. There is a lot of force in this particular area of the rifle, and anything to make that system more robust is good. Attaching the piston rod to the carrier just makes sense and you won’t see carrier tilt like you would with other systems that do not attach the piston rod to the bolt carrier.

The other really cool thing with this rifle is the regulator. Having the ability to regulate the piston operation is crucial to keeping it running good, or to operating the weapon with a suppressor. Although honestly I was not able to determine the full scope of this regulator, and it would be cool to hear Adcor expand further on this part of the weapon.

The non-reciprocating charging handle can be placed on either side of the weapon, which is cool too. It is just a more natural position for a charging handle than where it currently is located. You can still charge the weapon with the original charging handle though. It gives the shooter options, and I like that.

The dust wiper shield is another feature I am interested in, but really cannot make a judgement. If it is made out of polymer, then it will wear down I would think? Or polymer pieces might break off and fall into the operating system. So to me, I just don’t know about that part of the weapon.

Overall, I think it is pretty cool that Adcor went from designing and building intricate parts for missiles and aircraft, to designing a better piston gun. It is almost like a black swan event where a designer from a totally different discipline comes in, and changes the field of weapons design by making a different and highly accurate version of a piston gun. The free floating barrel and one piece piston rod/bolt carrier set up will please many shooters out there that have been looking for a good piston AR. So we will see what the Army thinks and what the shooting community thinks about the Adcor Defense BEAR Elite. –Matt

B.E.A.R.™ Elite: A world class automatic rifle from Adcor Defense
• Magpul MOE™ rifle stock
• Magpul MOE™ ergonomic rifle grip with aggressive texturing
• FN Manufacturing 1:7 twist, hammer-forged, chrome-lined barrel with M249 rifling profile for long life and exceptional accuracy
• Available with sights or optics ready
• Forward placed, reversible/ambidextrous charging handle
• Gas piston system with multi-position regulator
• Free-floating barrel
• Chambered for 5.56
• Ejection port dust wiper
• Two-piece keyed quad rail system
• Tool-less field strip design
• Aircraft-grade 7075-T6 aluminum alloy receivers and rail systems

A New Perspective on the Automatic Rifle: The B.E.A.R.™ combines design innovation and precision manufacturing built upon the tried and true M4/M16 rifle platform.
The Adcor Defense B.E.A.R.™ springs from the M4/M16 rifle platform but offers a completely new twist. Available in many configurations, it offers the operator many significant improvements:

A Revolutionary Gas Piston System (Patent # 065111.00128)
• Free-floating barrel and increased accuracy: A gas-driven piston incorporated into the upper half of the forward rail system never touches the barrel.
• No carrier tilt: The operating rod is connected to the bolt carrier by hex head bolts reinforced with industrial grade Loctite® 262™ high strength threadlocker. They are then drilled and pinned to prevent loosening under adverse conditions.  The operating rod then rides through a machined boss in the receiver rail system interface keeping the bolt carrier in a linear plane as it operates.
• No fouling of chamber and action: Hot gases and carbon particulates are prevented from entering the receiver. Because heat reaching the upper receiver is diminished, lubricant lasts longer and maintenance is simplified.
• Easily detached lower rail system: No special tools needed for quick cleaning and easy maintenance.
• Wear on critical parts is minimized: The operator can easily adjust the piston’s cyclical rate for a controlled rate of fire.
• No need for piston rings: Extremely close machine tolerances of the piston eliminate the need.

Exclusive Port Dust Wiper with Cover
• Prevents entry of dust, sand or debris: The spring-loaded dust shield mounted on the bolt carrier allows the bolt carrier’s return to ready position; the port dust wiper moves into the ejection port opening flush with the inside geometry of the upper receiver.
• Withstands temperature extremes because of the highly durable, self-lubricating polymer shield.

Ambidextrous Forward Placed Charging Handle: Simplicity is Beautiful.
• Simple design allows the operator to keep his or her strong hand on the firearm and use the other hand to clear the rifle.
• Ambidextrous handle detaches easily without special tools and returns to locked position once used. It folds forward, recessed, and easily swings back out in a single motion.
• Non-reciprocating handle only engages when the operator charges or clears.

Rail System ( 7075-T6 )
• Innovative, key locked, highly rigid rail system mounts seamlessly to the upper receiver: Design ensures proper alignment of the rail with a redesigned boss, spline and groove system.
• Upper and lower rail guards separate with the push of a button: No special tools necessary.
• Fully compatible with optical, image intensification or thermal sights; laser targeting systems; bipods; tactical lights and Multiple Integrated Laser Engagement System (MILES).
Link to website here.

 

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