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How about a middy, true pencil profile, CHF FN barrel (or just a standard FN CL) with a 15 slim M-lok hand guard ?
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So pretty much like what I got as my first AR earlier this year?
PSA 16" Mid-length Lightweight CHF 5.56 NATO 1/7 15" M-Lok Upper with Magup MBUS Set- No BCG or CH - 516445249
https://i.imgur.com/LlcT4Hi.jpg
Come from AKs where pretty much all combloc factory barrels are CHF and chrome lined (except yugos and US builds), so that's what I wanted in my first AR. Found out PSA had the most affordable offerings with those sort of barrels, decided that's what I wanted, then had to play a looong waiting game. Believe it was 2 months where they were literally 100% out of FN barreled uppers? Then they started slowly trickling in.. I remember passing up on a 14.7" that would've required a pin-and-weld. Then ALMOST settled on a 16" carbine length, heavy profile with a 12" mlok rail.. But they went out of stock right as I was about to cave.
Finally the one that I ended up buying got posted - literally just the title and no pictures or description. Bought it based solely on that. Went on as the weekend deal the next day with pictures and description, but $50 more than what I paid plus free shipping ($17). So I got $34 off for being impulsive lol. Sold out within a day.
So yeah - about a 3 to 4 month wait between when I decided on what I wanted and when I was actually able to purchase it. Take it from experience: PSA seems to receive FN barrels in runs and will have occasional dry spells like right now. And when they do get them, they're not always the most popular styles. Have to either be patient or look elsewhere. Best of luck!
Quoted:
...CHF FN barrel (or just a standard FN CL)...
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Wait, chrome-lined and non-CHF? Don't think FN makes any rifle barrels like that.. The thing with Cold Hammer Forging is that the initial machinery to do it is rather costly but once you have it, it's easy to mass produce things which makes it inexpensive and economical after you've made enough to offset the startup cost. If they already have the machinery, there's no reason they
wouldn't do CHF. It's why almost all US built AKs are just drilled then nitrided (a startup isn't going to invest into CHF machinery) while imported combloc AKs are all CHF (they already had the machinery/factories in place from Soviet times).