I was thinking about purchasing a POF 415 (NP3).  I know some people have a problem with the looks and the size of the handguard. I personally like the appearance and the large handguard (I have big hands).  I wanted to hear from actual owners.

Thanks

I’ve got a POF .308.  It’s been a good rifle.

I've had both a 556 and 308 rifle from POF. Both were extremely accurate rifles and extremely well built. That being said they were heavy, the hand guards were rather large in circumference (something I understand they addressed on the newest generation rifles), and they both had extraction issues that ultimately sent both back to POF for warranty work.

I like their piston system design and it doesn't get much better than Rock Creek barrels. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend one but I'd also highly consider both PWS and LWRC as well. Best of luck with your decision.

I have both the 415 and the P-308 and both have operated flawlessly and are sub moa shooters. Most of the problematic ones I have read about were the P-308's. I really like my two POF's.

If I were looking at a piston system PWS would be my first choice. I dont like the idea of being locked into a rail system like the POF rifles.

I've owned a P415 9.25" upper I used a RR M16.  Shot well and all, but was silly heavy for that short barrel length.

I also owned a P308-16.  It was really accurate, very heavy, and completely unreliable.  Sent back to poof 3 times, never worked worth a damn.


It is your money to spend.  I would suggest spending on something else.

I have the P308 and have not had any issues with it. Good quality, great shooter.

Thanks for all of the replies..........

Friend of mine had a 16" p308.
It was completely unreliable i don't think it ever made it through a complete mag without at least 2 malfunctions usually more ..... i think he sent it back twice before ditching it.

It was extremely accurate and i would have probably bought one if i was convinced of reliability.  I witnessed several 10 shot groups from 1-1 1/4" problem was usually several malfunctions during those 10shots being put together.

I dug up some photos from our last outing with it ..... i think he fired near 1500 rounds through it trying to get it to run...

These were the two most common things with his.

I currently own 2 POFs - 415 and 308 .. And owned 2 previous 308s.  All performed and still perform flawlessly...  My current P308 is my deer rifle of choice now..  Can't go wrong...

There's a long thread around here about POF and a guys poor experience. Can anyone find it?

For the same price range you get LMT MWS, Colt 901, and others that odds are, will treat you better. I've owned these and never the POF, but from what I've read here, the reliability along with the way POF management has treated  a few...no thanks. Just my $.02 which is worth exactly that

I wish you good luck, but if you don't read that thread before buying, you're doing yourself a disservice.

Blah , Blah , Blah ....  Has been argued over and over..  And the fact of the matter is -- with ANY manufacturer you can find somebody that had a bad experience with customer service or a rifle with issues..  POF is a solid performer ....  And as you state above - you never owned a POF ...  :)

Just trying to point out what others have said. I would wager that POF has more malfunctions per unit than any of the others. Just trying to point the dude in the right direction. And of course people have failures...but they don't always get treated like shit by the company now do they? And sorry, LMT, Colt or Larue is better than any POF and it ain't close. I don't own a Pinto either but I don't want to drive it.

And thankfully, I never will.

As the original post stated - and staying on the post ---   """  I wanted to hear from actual owners.  """   And if you have actual hard data that POF has more malfunctions per unit than any of the others - I would like for you to post a thread on that...  Have a good one..

That's why I wanted him to read that thread. It's ok, man, if I paid that much for a POF I'd rigorously defend it too. That thread had numerous real POF owners chiming in. Trying to help a person before he spends $2000+ bucks to make an informed decision. That's it. I'm glad yours has treated you well. I'm sure plenty of Hesse owners are happy as well.....

Edit: OP, I'm sure a POF will treat you fine. I would just say you should read that 30 page thread on how POF owners treated a guy who was having issues. That's it. Hope you don't have any issues because POF might not be helpful.

I rest my case.  You are fine OP with POF -- just because a very few out of the thousands of owners have an issue - should sway you...  Trust from an actual owner who uses the POF regularly - they are a performer...

Some light reading:

http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/1646606_POF_USA_p308_rifle_never_works.html&page=1

And this

http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_2_206/251812_POF_P308_I_was_told_to_link_this_tread_here.html

"A few out of thousands with problems?"

Already in this thread alone 3 of 7 "actual owners" report reliability issues.

My personal experience with P308-16.

Got the rifle, cleaned it, lubed it, went to the range to zero rifle.
shot super accurate tight groups.  Didn't cycle 100% from the start.  All mags used were new at the time Pmag.  Ammo used was FGMM 168SMK. As the pictures earlier in this section showed, stove pipe after stove pipe.

Being local to poof I took the rifle to them to check it out.  No issues really, called and showed up when poof asked me to.  poof checked out the rifle and "did something" and gave it back to me.

Went out to shoot it, and also began taking it to local matches (3gun, 2GACMe, etc).  The rifle continued to have issues not running anywhere 100%.  Stove pipes, and fail to feed, double feed jams were common place.
Called poof and took it in again.  Again poof "did something" to tune the rifle.

Again the rifle would not cycle anywhere near 100%.  We aren't talking junk ammo. full diet of new PPU 145gr, XM80-762nato, FGMM 168/175smk.  All quality new manufactured ammo.

I took the rifle in a 3rd time.  With poof saying it is good and all, I then sold the rifle and never looked back at owning anything 308 from poof.


Like I said, really accurate, heavy, not reliable.  Customer service side: they "did something" to the rifle each visit.  For me, 3 strikes and you are out.
Spend your money somewhere else.

That would be me.  I'm not a member here anymore, so my search capacity is limited.  Search under my name just under 3 years ago and you will find it.  POF-USA is a company that spends the majority of their budget on advertising rather than into their products.  Yes the Rock Creek barrels are excellent, and yes, they are accurate as all get out (when you can get them to fire), but is it worth all the aggravation to get there, Hell No!  The rail sits so damn high that you literally have to use a cheek riser.  If you call "customer service" (or lack thereof) and inquire, you get the shop armorer, Cody,  who is a special kind of stupid, and tells ya to just tape some foam onto the stock.  Ummmm, ya, tape some foam onto the stock of a $2400.00 + rifle.  His father, Frank, who is the owner, will dodge your calls , and in my case, sit on your rifle and not fix it for something like 8 weeks because he can.  I even tried his personal cell phone as I was given that by one of his shop guys.    Then you have to ask a colleague at the BATF to call him and inquire for you why you can't get him to answer you one way or the other on the status of your $2499.00 + rifle.  He's a narcissistic prick who will go off on ya and cuss ya out because you had to resort to whatever means to get him to get off his ass and answer the phone.  Again, no thanks.  Instead of trying to make it right, Frank made it worse.  And then, when I asked for a refund due to the shitty way he was treating me, he got even worse and started yelling at me.  

There are way too many other companies out there that are far superior.  I'd look at a PWS.  Steven Reichert had a facebook post talking about his .308 PWS that was shooting something like 1/3 MOA at 600 yards if I recall correctly.  I'd love a PWS!  Theres the LWRC IC,  LMT, ADCOR Bear, even the Barret looks cool.  If you want to go cheaper but effective, look at the Adams Arms.  They make a great product, their customer service can be hit & miss, but not horrible in a POF-USA kind of way.  Just don't buy the "blemished" model from Buds as some of them have some serious quality issues.  Best of luck in your quest OP.  There are many manufacturers out there, many choices.  In my opinion, you would be better served to get a different brand with a better track record and top notch customer service.

For the limited amount that I use to sell when working at the LGS and the % we had issues with, I'd be a little cautious.

As I said in my previous post I have a P415 and a P-308. Both have been flawless in  their operation. Just lucky I guess. I got mine before all the bad press started. I had a friend that had a P-308 that went back to POF 3X before it was repaired. Being located in Flagstaff, AZ he brought it to POF himself the last time that's what got it fixed. Afterwards he promptly slod it. I've read to many complaints from owners with the same sort of service complaints so i'd be cautious about buying a new POF. I'd buy a lightly used one if I could test fire it first. There are just to many companies theta have quality 308 semi's at the same price point or less ( Think S&W MP10 ) to take a chance on a new POF.

Had a 415 for 6 years, worked good. Can't remember any crazy malfunctions or any major cons per say. However, it's heavy and I much prefer DI. For the price you can get a quality AR15, that chances are you'll be more happy with.

My pof 5.56 was a pos. Was never reliable. Dumped it
Stay away.

Here's my experience. Bought a Gen 4 SBR (10.5) as well as a 16" upper. Went to shoot them for the first time recently. Unfortunately I could not get them to go into battery reliably. Rounds would jam in the barrel. Called POF spoke with Darrell and Cody.  They were both great to work with. They paid for me to ship the uppers back to them along with some of the ammo I was using. The day after they arrived, they called and said the ammo I was using was the culprit. It's remanufactured (commercially) and not "true" enough to the SAAMI spec.  I guess I'm going to have to replace my supply with new-only once I can get the coin.  

So the take-away from all of this could be -- I had issues but POF stood by me even though it looks like it was self-inflicted. You have to be careful what you feed it; stick to good quality new only ammo. If you can shoot FMJ, good for you, ammo is available at decent prices. Here in TX it is soft / hollow point only at the ranges so my ammo choices are very limited and now even more expensive if I can't use remanufactured.

Would I do it again with what I know now?  Interesting question and not one I can really answer. POF does make excellent quality weapons. The tolerances are tight and exacting so you can't fool around with close-enough-is-good-enough parts or ammo.Yes, they weigh a ton compared to others but if I can get ammo that works, they should be real go-ers. Mine are in NP3 so they clean up like a dream which is great since I only shoot them suppressed. It's not bad to clean out the extra blowback.  All that said, I never heard about PWS until a couple of months into the NFA wait on the SBR. From what is written here, you'd think they make the gold standard of *piston* ARs (no disrespect to insert-your-favorite-here). I guess I would have liked to try and shoot a PWS before making my final decision.

Bottom line, you wont go wrong getting a POF. Is it the best fit for you, I can't really say.

Thanks for all of the replies......

I found a new Gen 3 at $800 below retail. I've always wanted one and couldn't pass it up. I am amazed at the quality and NP3 coating.  Most of the problems I've heard of are from 308 owners. Hopefully my 5.56 will be fine.