In Savannah, a fair number of the SWAT and patrol officers who're qualified to carry a patrol rifle have picked up Ruger AR 556s.

The more firearms committed guys typically snag up DDs. Unfortunately, DD has such a pitiful discount for LE that many take their money to Colt, SIG, etc.

My Go To rifle is a RRA lower with a Spikes 14.5 upper plus Aimpoint Pro for eyes. Have made all the carbine controls ambi. My second is a Sig 556xi sweet rifle out of the box, it's a shame they don't make or support them anymore. Chris

At this point I'd not recommend a quad rail to anyone. I've lugged a 6940 around so long its an appendage, and the newer rail options are way better (mlok and keymod) in terms of handguards.

quote:

Originally posted by hrcjon:
At this point I'd not recommend a quad rail to anyone. I've lugged a 6940 around so long its an appendage, and the newer rail options are way better (mlok and keymod) in terms of handguards.

Excellent point hrcjon.

This one may save a few bucks...Magpul

https://www.gunsamerica.com/90...-LE6920-MPS-Blac.htm

I’d go with FN. they are making the M4 for the military these days and in the army I got to compare them side by side to the colts and the FN rifles seemed a bit nicer. A buddy of mine also has an FN AR-15 and I like it a lot. Can’t go wrong, with all mil-spec parts and drop in a nice trigger

What did you shoot during the course?

I have a Rock River for work. Done just fine for 13 years now.
Only other I would go with for work is the Colt.

Plain Jane RRA:

https://www.rockriverarms.com/...play&category_ID=219

http://www.rockriverarms.com/i...play&category_id=215

Until I retired two years ago, I was a reserve LEO for a dept that issued RRAs to the full timers. Those had EoTechs and (I think) lights. Once I completed the patrol rifle class I could carry my own, and I went simple with the LE1030 linked above.

One of the sales reps is a local LEO, I can provide contact info if you're interested.

quote:

Originally posted by rpm2010:

quote:

Originally posted by hrcjon:
At this point I'd not recommend a quad rail to anyone. I've lugged a 6940 around so long its an appendage, and the newer rail options are way better (mlok and keymod) in terms of handguards.

Excellent point hrcjon.

This one may save a few bucks...Magpul

https://www.gunsamerica.com/90...-LE6920-MPS-Blac.htm

Not a LEO, but I have the same Colt except it's FDE. It's my working gun that gets the most range time and is my HD rifle. Eats every type of ammo I've tried (including a hodge podge from a guy's weekend shooting event) and operates flawlessly.

I've added an Aimpoint PRO, an ALG ACT trigger, and a Streamlight weapon light.

M6 personal patrol rifle is a 16” Bushmaster that I bought right after the ban ended. It’s been 100% reliable. I originally had an Eotech on it, but changed it out for an Aimpoint Pro. My son has the Eotech on his Windham Weaponry AR. My rifle has a Surfire light in an Elzetta Mount.

I’ve used my Bushmaster for numerous LE firearms instructor courses, tactical courses, etc.

My department has several plain Jane Bushmaster M4A1’s, but most everyone has purchased their own rifles. I think most are S&W MP15’s with one Stag Arms.

My dept gives us Smith and Wesson AR15s.

They work.

Aimpoint sights, but no light. That's the only thing I'd change...nuts to not have a light on a gun that gets pulled out probably 80%+ at night. But who am I...

Basically what has been said already for a good red dot, sling, ammo, and light. Personally I'd go with a middy bcm though over a 6920, but I'm a little jaded towards Colt after dealing with them a few years ago (bad CS experience). But take that for a grain of a salt as many have good experiences for every single bad experience.

Another one worth looking it would be the M&P Magpul series. The forend is mlok so will easily accept all the mlok add-ons. Plus the barrel contour is a bit lighter if I remember right. They also offer LE pricing like Colt does.

.MIL not LE so take what I say with a grain of salt.

The COLT 6920/6720 series is the easy button. The 6920's 16" Gov barrel, carbine gas system, has been a gold standard for a long time. Paul Buffoni of Bravo Company fame has even said as much. The lightweight barrel on the 6720 eliminates some of the extra weight from the barrel. The Magpul variant or the trooper model of the 6920 are probably some of the better values if you shop around.

There are other outfits that produce high quality carbines like Bravo Company, Daniel Defense, Knight's, LMT, LWRC. But, you'll pay a lot for features that may not necessarily be advantages.

For a basic patrol rifle, I'd recommend a 16" barrel, about a dozen quality magazines (USGI, PMAG GEN3, Tango Down, Lancer) for training and duty use, a quality BUIS (MAGPUL, KAC, TROY), Aimpoint Pro RDS with factory mount, a quality two point sling (VTAC,VCAS)and quality WML (Surefire, Streamlight, Arisaka) in a quality mount (Factory, IWC, Larue, VTAC). A simple Surefire G2X tactical($70) in a VTAC mount ($25) will give you plenty of lumens, a light weight at a reasonable cost. You might also want some breakable rubber bands to manage the sling if you are locking it in a mount.

Once you get your rifle do a good field strip, clean (remove packing grease) and most importantly to a good inspection and functions check. While COLT makes a good rifle, even they have bad days. Check for staking on the gas key and receiver extension nut, make sure the barrel is tight, that the sights and optics are properly tightened (might want to use index marks and/or tie downs), that the trigger/fire control group is properly installed.

What's up, long time, no see.
The carbine course is pretty good, since they changed some of the stuff around.

On OUR list of approved weapons:

Stag, meh...

Rock River, Bushmaster S&W aren't bad.

Colts, Daniel Defense, DS Arms, LMT, all solid weapons.

Now let's talk price. DD, look at spending $1200 easily. LMT, $2000 average.

A good colt can be had for $800-$900.
As far as the Magpul furniture, you may want to double check and see if the foregrip fits in our rifle racks in the cars. Nothing against Magpul, they make some phenomenal stuff, I just don't know if the forend fits in our stuff.

DS Arms. There's a ton of our guys that have them. I haven't heard one complaint yet about the gun. These guys use and abuse their stuff too. You can custom make your gun from the factory and get what you want right out the door, this saves a little money in the long run. The warrantee is great, excellent customer service, (I think we get a discount for being PD if you go to the store) not that far away from us. The price isn't half bad, and you're getting a solid gun.


Whichever way you decide to go, if you're looking at a railed front end, look at key-mod or the M-loc system. MUCH lighter than the picatinny rail system! Take a look at a coated bolt & bolt carrier. Reduces wear and tear on the bolt, and makes cleaning quicker and easier!

Keislers usually has good prices on AR's and they'll deliver to your FFL, or to the academy.

When you pick it up, get ahold of me, I'll toss you a handful of mags for your new toy.

All of our vehicles have a rifle, about half and half Sig M-400 and Bushmaster XM15-E2S. All have Aimpoints co-witnessed to Daniel Defense irons.

Lots of great info guys, I really appreciate it.

CPD SIG, it's been a busy summer and just haven't been around as much as I'd like. I'll shoot you an email when things settle. It'd be good to sit down and have a beer or two

quote:

Originally posted by sigfreund:

quote:

Originally posted by Klusk2:
It does have to be department zeroed by a qualified range instructor though.

Interesting policy. Any competent instructor should know that sights—especially irons—should be zeroed or at least confirmed by the shooter. That can be a frustrating process, but it really is not a good idea to avoid going to the trouble.

Yeah. Make sure you confirm proper zero on your own.

I would STRONGLY urge you to check out the Colt 6720 over the 6920. Its identical to the 6920 except it has a pencil barrel. Which is superior to the M4 barrel, especially for a patrol officer that might have to actually hold that thing in their hands for hours on end on a perimeter. Its just as accurate, still capable of 2 inch groups at 100 yards, and lighter to boot. I see no reason why you would get the heavier barrel.

https://www.budsgunshop.com/ca...223REM/5.56NATO+16.1

My patrol rifle WAS a 6920..... I replaced the upper with a BCM pencil lightweight mid-length and kept the lower. Had I owned a 6720 at the time, I would have just used that.

Colt
DD
BCM
LMT

Check out g and r tactical. They have LE pricing. Good dude.

Whatever you buy, do not get a one point sling.....

imagine trying to climb a fence and your rifle is released to dangle while you climb....

6 pounds of rifle smack into your giblets and you fall forward over the fence, while snaggin your uniform and tearing the pants leg, and smack your face into the ground....all while your "friends" are laughing at you while you lie there bleeding from your torn eyebrow, bruised ego and trying to breath in another breath while the worst pain you have ever experienced resonates through your groin..


now that we got that out of the way....

No need to re-think the wheel, jsut go ask your swat buddies what they use and why.

My old dept bought the high end fancy rifles based on what the Captain liked...not on the reputation of the gun. THey also bought pistols the same way.....

When the dept said we could carry our personally owned rifles I figured I'd use what I already had. I carried a Bushmaster-only changed the front sight post to a glow in the dark (tritium) and the grip to a Hogue. (I like the way the feel over the standard grip). And I added a simple cheap pistol light to a small rail that affixed around the front sight block. ( I never used the light-but policy said I had to have one)

On pg1, G4TX made a recommendation. That rifle will do what you want. So will several others, but if I were you, I'd get the Colt 6920.


PS: 20 rounders dont get in the way while you are prone on the pavement behind a car for cover...

and get a soft case to carry it in, they are nice when on aforementioned pavement-your elbows will thank you

quote:

Originally posted by MikeinNC:
and get a soft case to carry it in, they are nice when on aforementioned pavement-your elbows will thank you

Good point. I don’t know how often I’d tote my case along with the rifle, but it could happen.

Twenty-round magazines are also much more comfortable to carry on a duty belt than 30-rounders (assuming there’s room, of course). And as for, “Why would I want a spare magazine? When would I ever go through 30 or even 20 rounds?” the magazine is the part of the gun that’s most likely to cause problems and it can be good to have a spare for that reason alone. Also, there’s a video floating around of an officer responding to an active killer who discovers that he lost his mag someplace during the run to the scene.