Piston dilemma; LWRCi Vs. LMT Vs. Barrett? HELP

[Hungarian_Legionnaire]

I'm having an EXTREMELY DIFFICULT time deciding between 3 or 4 piston AR's the contenders are:

LWRCi M6A2/ M6A2 SPR

LMT CQB MRP

Barrett REC7 (in 5.56)

Sig Sauer 516 (I've herd their Op-rods bend, I don't know if this is still an issue, or if it ever was?)

And possibly...

Colt LE6940P (I don't like how the BCG is not a solid one piece design)

I've narrowed it down to these piston AR's, I know that these are all the top tier AR manufactures with the quality, fit & finish in the AR market but, I want to make sure I purchase the right Piston Operated AR.

Things that are important to me are:

* Track Record.

* Carrier Tilt.

* Accuracy.

* Who's adopted i.e. Military Units, Gov. & LE Agencies?

* Torture tested, durability/ Proven in combat with Operators in the Middle East.

* Which one has experienced the most problems, been sent back to the manufacture the most.

And YOU'RE personal experiences (if YOU have one of the AR mentioned), What made YOU chose the piston AR you have and
why? What failures (if any) have YOU experienced, what are the Pros & Cons of YOU'RE AR (if any)?

I appreciate Any information to help me make up my mind and settle on either the LWRCi, LMT, Barrett, Colt or Sig. I have been a member of CG for a long time now & trust other members opinions, I just don't want to make a decision that I'll regret. + I am also getting the Tavor TAR-21 (which is piston operated as well as a bullpup)

Thanks.

[cfusionpm]

I've owned none of those, but I have Ruger SR556E piston AR that I've put about 2200 rounds down and has performed wonderfully. Gets maybe 2MOA accuracy with good ammo and cycles anything I feed it (though I dial the gas adjustment knob back one notch for hotter loads). I like mine a lot, but it does have some down sides like the non-removable proprietary handguard. You can customize it out with rail pieces and plastic heat rests, but thanks to that big gas block setup, thats it. However, it's quick and easy to pop the front piston out and clean, and the one-piece BCG stays relatively gunk-free. I've had mine for about a year and haven't been disappointed.

How it started life and how it looks now though are two very different looks... and a good deal of cash...

[brando]

The LMT MRP has been the one I prefer because A.) reliable, smooth recoiling piston system B.) quick change barrel options. It's nice to be able to go from 5.56mm to .300BLK with a Seekonk torque wrench.

I always thought the Barrett option was kind of half-assed. They've been really connected with the military acquisitions and back in 2003-05, when there was lots of talk about 6.8SPC and piston systems, they decided "hey, we can do that!" hoping it would translate into a military contract. I applaud their enthusiasm, but the rifle itself is rather...meh.

[orangeglo]

Any reason why you didn't move the front sight all the way forward to give yourself a longer sight radius?

[kurac]

I have a couple friends that bought the LWRC SPR, I was their consultant for the purchases and orientation and was impressed by the fit and finish of both rifles (I am not easily impressed). The machining is excelent and the gas systems appears robust. I also like the relief cuts on the bolt carrier so crud won't stop it. If I had one, I would spring for a better trigger, the stock one isn't bad but I think a lighter two stage is better for precision work.

I forgot to mention, we ran about 250 rounds through the 14.5" barreled version a few weeks ago and when I cleaned it, only the chamber and bore had powder fouling, the rest of it was pretty darn clean. So basically 250 rounds through the piston system created as much dirt in the back end as you would see in maybe 5 shots through a DI gun.

[1000stars]

National Police Supply. Vista, CA is an authorized dealer for LWRC.

They custom order yours to your specs. furniture, color, barrel length, flash hider, Magpul stock w/ cheekriser and length of pull etc You are not limited to what is on website or catalog.

All straight from LWRC. CA compliant. Approx 3 weeks.

http://www.nationalpolicesupply.com/contact.php

[KMosley]

LWRC makes some really good rifles. I have an m6 spr and actually just sold my m6a2. Have never had any problems with either, there designed superbly well and the quality is second to none. If I was to pick up another AR it would be an LWRC. Also another good thing about them is there customer service, they are absolutely a pleasure to deal with. Now as far as the others you named I don't have any trigger time with them. But I would imagine the Barrett and LMT are great as well. Have heard good things about about both of them.

[cfusionpm]

Any reason why you didn't move the front sight all the way forward to give yourself a longer sight radius?

That front section is part of the gas block. I could put a sight there, but these are plastic Magpuls, and I don't want to melt them. Metal ones would be fine up there.

[HKDoc]

For the criteria you listed, the hk mr556 is your best bet.

It's not on your list but I would give it some thought. Thought to have been rifle used to take out obl by the seals. Well it was actually the 416, but the mr556 is pretty close at half the price for an upper. Can't really get the 416 lower here anyways.

Sold my scar to get one. Funny, no one wants to check out my rifle at the range anymore.... Looks pretty close to all the others now.

[Guapoh]

LWRC and done. The newM6A5 is badarse

[SOCAL-PRINCE]

LWRC period! Accurate and reliable as hell. It is little heavy though but not a deal breaker by any means...

[thegrayham]

I do not have enough experience with any of those fine choices to point in one direction but would think the hk should be in the list ( even though I am not a huge HK fan ).

[HKDoc]

Let's see....

Hk416 seals
Hk m27 us marines

Mr556 has similar heavy barrel profile to m27. Swap up to a 11" rail and you are good to go. Also, ta11 acog.

Only downsides, In my hands scar and di ar rifles are much more accurate. Not a big fan of the drum sites. Scar sites were very accurate.

Was right behind g36/xm8 in military test in sandy environment. None of the ops original rifles tested at the time.

[weespeed]

HK MR556 should be on your list, as others have stated. It fits all your criteria.

I own one and love it. Reliable and plenty accurate. I run an ACOG TA-33 with a piggy back mounted mini red dot.

My only complaint is it is front heavy, compared to my Colt. But that is my only complaint about the MR.

[Hungarian_Legionnaire]

I've owned none of those, but I have Ruger SR556E piston AR that I've put about 2200 rounds down and has performed wonderfully. Gets maybe 2MOA accuracy with good ammo and cycles anything I feed it (though I dial the gas adjustment knob back one notch for hotter loads). I like mine a lot, but it does have some down sides like the non-removable proprietary handguard. You can customize it out with rail pieces and plastic heat rests, but thanks to that big gas block setup, thats it. However, it's quick and easy to pop the front piston out and clean, and the one-piece BCG stays relatively gunk-free. I've had mine for about a year and haven't been disappointed.

How it started life and how it looks now though are two very different looks... and a good deal of cash...

The LWRCi, LMT, Colt & SIG all have proprietary or monolithic quad-rails, so that really is not an issue for me, I like the rails they have, although I do like how the Barrett REC7 has had a number of different quad rails as Barrett upgrades parts & feature on the REC7, I think it started out with an A.R.M.S rail, & now they come with a Daniel Defense rail, which is slimmer, but at SHOT Show 2012 Ronnie said the REC7 was getting a NEW even thinner rail system.

I am aware of the Ruger SR556, but I don't feel comfortable spending over $1K on Rugers 1st AR15/ first AR piston system all in one package. I know 2 friends who bought the Ruger SR556 & the piston is not accessible at all for cleaning/ maintenance (the owners manual says it never needs to be cleaned) also both have extrema cases of carrier tilt, one so much that it has worn threw the threads & snapped the plunger that holds the buffer & spring in place (or it did)...