Ultralight Ultralight Rifles

[Taudisio]

I sort of inherited a .223 AR pistol and that thing is LOUD even with a suppressor. This thread gave me the idea to flip the gas block around to see if the lack of "port pop" is enough to make it somewhat close to hearing safe. I'll just manually cycle it for a few shots to test the theory.

If I like how that works I'll probably get some fiberglass parts, make it a manual side charger and turn it into a really light and compact "backpacking" gun. Basically light enough that I'd carry it when I wasn't really hunting but capable enough I'd have a decent chance to kill something if I saw a bear and started hunting. With my barrel length I think I could get 200+ yards. But if the little stinker stays that loud I might switch to a 300 Blk or something a bit longer.

It may also depend on your suppressor. I have a large suppressor and it quiets my 5.56 gasser down a lot, but throws a lot of gas out. Going to a non-gasser makes a huge difference though.

 

[Luke S]

I had the same suppressor on a 6.5 Grendal pistol and it didn't ring my ears that much. This felt louder even with ear pro. Might have been partly the environment (indoors) but still I don't think I'd shoot that rig as is without ear pro unless a bear was about to get me. Kids noticed the gas from the 6.5 Grendal hitting them in the face too. Another reason I want to go to manually operated this winter. I need to geek out over part weights for a bit. My rough plan for right now is two builds
1. A super light and minimal AR pistol for me. This would be the "backpacking" gun and the backup gun when kids are the primary shooters.
2. A slightly heavier AR pistol for kids to use. This will be the "Goldilocks" gun, heavy enough the boys can shoot it well but light and compact enough we can carry it without too much trouble. I'm thinking of shooting for 7-8 pounds total. I could get there with a 4 pound build and still use my 28oz suppressor and my heavy SWFA scope.

 

[Thegman]

I had the same suppressor on a 6.5 Grendal pistol and it didn't ring my ears that much. This felt louder even with ear pro. Might have been partly the environment (indoors) but still I don't think I'd shoot that rig as is without ear pro unless a bear was about to get me. Kids noticed the gas from the 6.5 Grendal hitting them in the face too. Another reason I want to go to manually operated this winter. I need to geek out over part weights for a bit. My rough plan for right now is two builds
1. A super light and minimal AR pistol for me. This would be the "backpacking" gun and the backup gun when kids are the primary shooters.
2. A slightly heavier AR pistol for kids to use. This will be the "Goldilocks" gun, heavy enough the boys can shoot it well but light and compact enough we can carry it without too much trouble. I'm thinking of shooting for 7-8 pounds total. I could get there with a 4 pound build and still use my 28oz suppressor and my heavy SWFA scope.

If you do decide it works well as a side charger, you could loose the buffer/spring and cut the back off your bolt carrier. That would free up all the stock options.