[niteglock]

Hey just wanting to see what everyone's opinion is on hand guards for a "modern sporting rifle".

Do you guys prefer the original round hand guards or an aluminum quad rail?

[locutus]

Personally, I prefer OEM. The quad makes it too tempting for lotsa folks to hang totally useless "tacti-kewl" junk on the rifle.

[dwmiller]

Originally Posted by niteglock

Hey just wanting to see what everyone's opinion is on hand guards for a "modern sporting rifle".

Do you guys prefer the original round hand guards or an aluminum quad rail?

Magpul here, smaller oval shape feels better to me. And i can add a rail if i really feel the need. Oem is my second choice. If you have ever shot in the winter without gloves you'll understand. Leave the tacticool stuff to the mall ninjas...

[kytowboater]

I put a rail on mine, I don't like the moe look, I have covers on it. Doubt ill ever hang anything on it

[ScottA]

I have the Magpul on mine. It currently has one rail on the bottom for a bipod/grip. I can add more if needed.

[dwmiller]

Originally Posted by ScottA

I have the Magpul on mine. It currently has one rail on the bottom for a bipod/grip. I can add more if needed.

Didn't think about using the bottom rail as a bipod mount. Maybe i will have to add a rail to mine. I' ve been using a us mil plastic bipod the few times i' ve needed one. You learn something new every day...

[KY1911]

I like the look, feel of the round solid on mine. Although I have a 4 sided gas block on the way to mount a bipod with..If need be it'll accommodate a flash light but Idk that I see the need in it yet.

[kbd512]

Are you going to shoot at targets inside of 100 yards? If so, it doesn't much matter what type of handguard you use. I'd stick with the lightest plastic handguard available. MagPul makes a good one with modular Picatinny rail mounting points and there's not much wrong with the stock carbine handguard.

If you want to shoot at targets 200+ yards away, then perhaps a free-floated rail system is in order. The aluminum quad rail design is old technology. Rail systems like the Troy Alpha Rail are much better from a weight and size/bulk standpoint. You can mount rail sections where you need them and don't deal with the dead weight of unused Picatinny rail.

Quality quad rail systems like SureFire also cost a lot of money. I have had two SureFire rails in the past, one carbine and one rifle. I'll never buy another. Troy beats it on both weight and features. For half the price you can have a Troy Alpha Rail and better modularity/configurability.

It's your cash, but if it were me I'd either decide whether or not I want/need free float capability for long range accuracy and then choose to stick with a plastic handguard (for short range carbines) or free float the barrel (for precision rifles). I can't think of any other "in-between" option that makes sense from a cost/weight/feature set standpoint.

[niteglock]

Originally Posted by kbd512

Are you going to shoot at targets inside of 100 yards? If so, it doesn't much matter what type of handguard you use. I'd stick with the lightest plastic handguard available. MagPul makes a good one with modular Picatinny rail mounting points and there's not much wrong with the stock carbine handguard.

If you want to shoot at targets 200+ yards away, then perhaps a free-floated rail system is in order. The aluminum quad rail design is old technology. Rail systems like the Troy Alpha Rail are much better from a weight and size/bulk standpoint. You can mount rail sections where you need them and don't deal with the dead weight of unused Picatinny rail.

Quality quad rail systems like SureFire also cost a lot of money. I have had two SureFire rails in the past, one carbine and one rifle. I'll never buy another. Troy beats it on both weight and features. For half the price you can have a Troy Alpha Rail and better modularity/configurability.

It's your cash, but if it were me I'd either decide whether or not I want/need free float capability for long range accuracy and then choose to stick with a plastic handguard (for short range carbines) or free float the barrel (for precision rifles). I can't think of any other "in-between" option that makes sense from a cost/weight/feature set standpoint.

Damn. U hit the nail on the head for me. Thanks alot man. Appreciate it. I just bought the drop in quad rail from Midwest Industries because down the road I will get a red dot and a scope. But I'm just sticking with irons for now until I get very good with how to use em.

[lilnoug]

Nice. My MI quad rail on RRA entry tactile.