[RAINS]

I've got a decked out sig 556 factory SBR. Troy rail, sights, DD stock adapter with a CTR on it. I'm just not all that thrilled with it. The darn thing just sits in the safe. It shoots great but is just too heavy for my purposes. I need a light handy 5.56 rifle that works well at realistic SD ranges. Mostly for hiking and car use. Think I'm going to sell or trade the 556 to help pay for the new project.
Any suggestions on what I should replace it with? My current thoughts at the "dreamy high end" are Scar 16s sbr or at the lower end of things maybe a Colt 6933 11.5 with mid range being a ps90. I just don't know. Toss me some suggestions. I don't want to make the same mistake twice!

R

[Mot45acp]

Armalite AR-10 with 12.5" barrel.

I would tell you to go with the BCM 11.5" upper in a VLTOR VIS but its heavy. I too am looking for a lighter weight sbr.

[Ian]

What about a Yugo M85? Short barreled 5.56 AK. You could use the underfolding stock is comes with, or have an AK-100 sidefolder put on instead.

https://www.apexgunparts.com/product_info.php/cPath/51/products_id/2549

I have a shorty AK in 7.62, and I love it.

[rjrivero]

A DI AR of your choice with an 11.25" barrel. Go with Magpul Polymer hand rail to keep the weight down.

[RAINS]

Actually I just got rid of a Russian ak74u parts kit. I've got several Aks and want something more ergonomic and optics friendly. That's why I went with a sig 556 but it's just to heavy. Really leaning towards a Colt 6933. I really do like the look of that new Colt SCW. Then again it really just costs more and weighs more than a 6933. Think I'm going to go with an AR based gun just because I can swap uppers on it. Still I am a huge Stargate SG1 fan. hehe


R

[wally]

How about something like this:

http://www.thehighroad.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=161298&d=1332179095

7.5" 5.56 with 7" 9mm upper below it. I love the way they handle.

The shinny thing below the mag release is an E-clip to facilitate installing/removing the 9mm mag block until my second stamp comes through.

[RAINS]

Oh man I bet the flash and bang from that 7.5 is wicked! I like the hand guard you've got on it. Too many people run rails for no reason these days. I looked at a Noveske Diplomat 7.5 but it's relatively heavy and spendy for what it is. My thinking with the 6933 is that I can always slap another shorty upper on there if I hate the 11.5.


R

[GaryG]

I think you are on the right track with the Colt 6933.

I got a 6921 and put a 11.5 upper on it from a 6933 (wish I did it right the 1st time and went with the 6933 off the bat).

Yeah, I had a chance to do some drills with a Sig 556 not long ago for the 1st time. After a few drills, that front end sure got heavy! It was the 1st thing I noticed about that gun.

[Ludasmith]

BCM 11.5" with the Magpul gear and a Aimpoint Micro

[wally]

Oh man I bet the flash and bang from that 7.5 is wicked!

Not compared to something like a Mosin-Nagant carbine!

Really its not unpleasant to shoot and there are lots of other guns out there that are worse to be shooting next to.

[Tex4426]

Personally i would just build one myself...make it the way u want it and as light as u want it

[RAINS]

I've had a couple mosin nagant carbines. You sure don't want to shoot heavy ball surplus in them! The wost i think I've ever shot was a svt-40 next to a rock wall. That and xm193 5.56 in my sig 10.5sbr. Oddly enough once I put on the AAC blackout FH the blast from xm193 was nothing. Go figure...

[kimberkid]

I know with my first SBR (an MP5 clone) I was left left feeling a bit disappointed, like ... "Is this all there is?"

Then I built my 556P into an SBR and I love it ... so much that I built a 522P SBR to match it. One of the big differences is I have the Swiss stock on both.

But the question of "Is this all there is?" still plagued me and after some serious consideration I pulled money out of the stock market and bought an M16, got an 11.5" upper for it as well as an LMG upper ... And after burning through a couple cases of ammo in a very short time I have a new appreciation for semi-autos!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v40/kimberkid/Toys/NFA.jpg

[RAINS]

How much dose your 556sbr weigh? Mine is just under 8lbs unloaded. I've got a troy rail and DD m4 stock adapter with a magpul CTR stock. I was thinking that if I do keep it I might try to lighten it up.



R

[kimberkid]

The 556, with the ACOG weighs just about 8

The M16 with it's new Magpul furniture is also about 7.5

The MP5 clone is right at 6.5

The M16 is better balanced than the others, but with the weight out front on the 556 and the MP5, they are more controllable whe firing ... Of course thats just my opinion; YMMV.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v40/kimberkid/Toys/P1010619.jpg

[JustinJ]

Get a Steyr AUG. Its essentially a SBR with a 16" barrel. And if you really want to do the paperwork you could chop the barrel down to 14.5".

[kimberkid]

The AUG can be made into a great gun with a Trigger Tamer (if you like a bull-pup) but still about 7.5 pounds ...

In general I'd stay away from the MSAR clones since they are defunct and used one-off parts to avoid pattent issues ... Rat Works may have a few still in stock and from what I understand they stand behind those. Customer Service was either great or not-great ... early ones had multipal problems and the later production had QC that was less than desirable, do your due dilligance before buying one if you go that route. I've read there are some good ones out there but one thing I've noticed is about the MSAR ... you either swear by them or at them.

[JustinJ]

The AUG can be made into a great gun with a Trigger Tamer (if you like a bull-pup) but still about 7.5 pounds ...

I've found that the AUG feels much lighter than most guns of equal weight because the weight is distributed much more rearward.

I just got one of the last A3's from the remaining Sabre parts for $2K and there were a few left. Supposedly production in the US will be resuming very soon though.

I have an MSAR as well. After having the bolt replaced under warranty I've been lucky in that mine has been extremely reliable even with a can.

[kimberkid]

I've found that the AUG feels much lighter than most guns of equal weight because the weight is distributed much more rearward.

I just got one of the last A3's from the remaining Sabre parts for $2K and there were a few left. Supposedly production in the US will be resuming very soon though.

I have an MSAR as well. After having the bolt replaced under warranty I've been lucky in that mine has been extremely reliable even with a can.Its true the AUG balance is incredible.

Have they improved the trigger on the A3?

[boricua9mm]

An AUG definitely feels lighter than it is when it is shouldered, but when it comes to hiking (as the OP mentioned), there is no way to cheat the weight.

I think if I needed a lightweight 5.56 SBR I would do a modernized lightweight build. Use a 0.625 barrel. Stay with a lightweight carbine stock; I like the old VLTOR Modstocks, but the old school CAR stocks are the lightest. A MOE or one of the new lightweight tube forends coupled with a Surefire X300 would keep things light up front. Red dot or irons as desired, but for a lightweight build the Centurion diopters intrigue me (I get along really well with HK sights).

The modularity and endless choices of the AR are what have made it such a force to be reckoned with for all these years. Don't fight it! ;)

[JustinJ]

Have they improved the trigger on the A3?

I never had the pleasure to run an A1 or A2 but have heard the A3 is slightly improved. The neutrigger gives significant improvement although i've personally never found the factory trigger to be nearly as problematic as some describe. Its not a precision rifle after all.

An AUG definitely feels lighter than it is when it is shouldered, but when it comes to hiking (as the OP mentioned), there is no way to cheat the weight.

Definitely a valid point. I suppose one could reduce the weight some by cutting the barrel to fluting it like an MSAR barrel but it will never get as light as an SBR AR can be. Honestly though i've never been real confident in the reliability of DI ARs under 14.5". I think a piston is preferred for such.

The PS90 i think is also a great option however i'm not sure what is to be defended against while hiking. The only US wildlife i think is a valid concern is cougar or bear and i would want a better round than 5.56 for the latter(i'm in the bear spray is better school of thought to begin with though).

If you really want a light shoulder fired weapon the HK UMP(usc to ump conversion) comes in unloaded at only 5.5 lbs. I love mine but they ain't cheap and i haven't been able to find mags for a while.

[kimberkid]

I never had the pleasure to run an A1 or A2 but have heard the A3 is slightly improved. The neutrigger gives significant improvement although i've personally never found the factory trigger to be nearly as problematic as some describe. Its not a precision rifle after all.
I've had all the previous variations at one time or another ... the USR is what convinced me to sell it and my Special Receiver and get an A2, and then, just about all the accessories. The trigger pull was equally bad on all of them (long, mushy and about 9 pounds) but I still loved the gun.
I got a Trigger Tamer when they first came out and have been satisfied with it - it reduced the pull to about 5 pounds and you could tell when the sear was at the break point. I've heard of the Nuetrigger but have never tried one ... the way the owner of the Nutrigger turned me off by the way he tried to discredit and run down the Trigger Tamer even though neither I or anyone else on the AUG boards had ever had any trouble with them ... he claimed it would only be a matter of time. Its been 5-6 years later now and the AUG board is long gone ... I've shot several thousand rounds since then and I'm still quite happy with it. While its still not a precision rifle, the Trigger Tamer has enhanced the accuracy considerably because now you know when the is about to break.

Ummmm ... didn't mean to hi-jack the thread.

[RAINS]

Not big on bull-pups. Save for the little ps90s. At least I did not like the fs2000 or mossburg 12g bull-pups I've shot/handled. I don't know about AUGs. I do wonder what a Colt 6933 actually weights? From what I've read it's 5.38lbs. That seems a little too light to me.

[justice06rr]

Build your own SBR with lightweight parts. I even recommend a 300Blackout with a skelton stock and Iron sights. Maybe an Aimpoint Micro for an optic if you have the dough, which in this case seems like you do.

[Sheepdog1968]

I am very fond of the mini-14 platform. Light and meets you KISS criteria and newer ones have acceptable accuracy for self defense.

[nneely]

Build your own lightweight AR SBR rifle. Have the lower registered as an SBR and while your waiting for the ATF paperwork to come back you can decide what parts you want to put on it and differ the cost of those over the 6+ months.