Ar bolt differences

[Kipp Castaing]

Ok so I've got caught in this light AR b.s. and the bolt differences. n any of y'all experienced guys tell me if any design is better or if it really matters. Gold bolt is a GQ armory lightweight bolt. Second is a Q two peice bolt and the all black is a good quality bolt. The GQ armory one is super light as you can see and is guaranteed for life. The Q 2pc bolt is supposed to stop bolt bounce. The black one works just as good as all of them. I was cleaning them and comparing just thinking is it all marketing and b.s. ? ‍

 

[machinedrummer]

The bolt or the BCG? They look cool. But BCM, SOLGW, Sionics, Geissele…can’t go wrong. IMHO

 

[pandabear]

Have you identified what end result you're looking for. Or, what is it you trying to achieve!

 

[Magdump]

Difference in the carriers is more metal or less metal. The M16 carrier has more material and is heavier and inherently more reliable than the updated AR15 carrier with metal cut out of the underside toward the rear. Most BCG’s for AR15’s in 5.56 or .300 BLK have the M16 carrier.

 

[twinin]

Thinking OP is discussing the whole Bolt Carrier Group and not just the bolts.

Are you going with lightweight BCG's to save weight or to help with cycling/gasing/reliablity?

As for as Bolt Carrier group finishes, Nitride, NiB, and TiN have good advantages, and they are not bad. Just have to watch that is applied correctly by manufacturer.

I love new advancements and cool technologies, but it is hard to beat good ole Phosphate. It's super durable, just harder to clean and needs oil more often.

For new builds now, I mostly go with hard chrome BCG's

 

[Kipp Castaing]

The bolt or the BCG? They look cool. But BCM, SOLGW, Sionics, Geissele…can’t go wrong. IMHO

You are correct. The bolt charging group.

 

[Kipp Castaing]

Have you identified what end result you're looking for. Or, what is it you trying to achieve!

I'm looking at the weight difference. I have a paladin carbon in 300blk. It's so light and works flawless. Supressed or unsupressed. When I grab my other ar type guns they work really good but they have heavier parts. I think the Paladin has ruined me lol. That's why I was comparing parts side by side.

 

[Kipp Castaing]

Thinking OP is discussing the whole Bolt Carrier Group and not just the bolts.

Are you going with lightweight BCG's to save weight or to help with cycling/gasing/reliablity?

As for as Bolt Carrier group finishes, Nitride, NiB, and TiN have good advantages, and they are not bad. Just have to watch that is applied correctly by manufacturer.

I love new advancements and cool technologies, but it is hard to beat good ole Phosphate. It's super durable, just harder to clean and needs oil more often.

For new builds now, I mostly go with hard chrome BCG's

You are right, the whole BCG. Looking at saving weight. They all work well but I'm just a casual shooter and I'm really loving the lighter one. Seems like no performance difference just way lighter.

 

[Magdump]

Coatings can definitely make a difference. The Nickel Boron being the most popular. Easier to clean and generally slicker. Anyone remember that special coating Anderson Arms Uses on their top tier BCG’s? They say if you buy that BCG and the coated upper, you don’t need oil.
Otherwise, using a lighter or heavier BCG can affect cycling when shooting suppressed, full auto or may even be considered for bench rest/long range guns or piston uppers. I’ve seen skeletonized carriers as well that may require the use of an adjustable gas block to level things out.
Did you guys know there’s also adjustable gas key carriers now?

 

[satoups]

Me personally I used BCG that is auto rate and MPI with a good coating. .

 

[pandabear]

I'm looking at the weight difference. I have a paladin carbon in 300blk. It's so light and works flawless. Supressed or unsupressed. When I grab my other ar type guns they work really good but they have heavier parts. I think the Paladin has ruined me lol. That's why I was comparing parts side by side.

So what you need to realized is having "low mass" BCG doesnt necessary help to save weight, eventhough you taking almost 3oz of the BCG. Sometime to counteract that is using the JP silent capturer buffer system to make for smoother cycling. Which puts all the weight right back to the back end. However the benefit of going this route you eliminated about 70% of the recoils. The end result your AR will feel like your're shooting a .22. It all depends how sensitive you are with recoils.

 

[pandabear]

I'm looking at the weight difference. I have a paladin carbon in 300blk. It's so light and works flawless. Supressed or unsupressed. When I grab my other ar type guns they work really good but they have heavier parts. I think the Paladin has ruined me lol. That's why I was comparing parts side by side.

If you're really committed on saving weigts, aside from switching to the low mass BCG, replace your barrel with the Christensen Arms carbon fiber barrel. This will make a world of difference in weight savings.

 

[Kipp Castaing]

This is the gun that ruined it for me. Under 5lbs with the suppressor. No magazine of course. It runs awesome! Accurate! So It got me thinking about lightening my others so I was comparing parts. Probably won't do it , but comparing lol

 

[pandabear]

This is the gun that ruined it for me. Under 5lbs with the suppressor. No magazine of course. It runs awesome! Accurate! So It got me thinking about lightening my others so I was comparing parts. Probably won't do it , but comparing lol

What you have there is a complete difference buffer system. Eventhough it's light, it's not proven. So I won't comment. But I will say again, by using the low mass bcg, the main purpose is to lessen the recoil, saving weight it's just a benefit. What I did with my ar to lessen the weight, I replaced every conceivable part with titanium, down to the screws, to barrel nut. My weight 5.9lb full size. It Also had a carbon fiber barrel of course. Lol.
Good luck.