THIS THREAD IS NOW A MINI REVIEW If only the advertised length was the actual length, oh well. So I'm ready to upgrade the float on build 5. I've been using the Utg pro keymod for this guy so I could focus funds on other parts, but ready to upgrade now.

Number 5 started as a 16 inch with the 15 hand guard, looked like this.



I chose a socom barrel and quickly changed my mind. This motivated me to go 14.5 pinned and I did. Love it. I sold the old items and bought a Utg pro 13, which is actually a 12.5. Looks like this



My pin and weld. The weld has since been touched a little more. Note the ammount of barrel sticking out from the hand guard .



I know that "chasing a look" is not best way to go about selecting your parts. However I always intended to upgrade once other components were setlled. Ideally the hand guard will just cover the weld, or sit just behind the brake. 14 or 14 ish . I curious as to what the actual length of some of the "15" tubes actually are and if this is what I should look at. Psa makes a modular similar to the kac urx that appears to be the right length. I'm interested in the Midwest industries because I like thier rail. Slim is for me and not very fond of quadrails . Keymod is preferable for future plans but not a must. Price is always a factor but not a deal breaker. Any suggestions?

You need a rail that has an actual length of about 13.75" to cover an entire Colt 14.5" barrel. Rounding off to the nearest Picatinny slot it would be 34 slots on the top rail or about 13.5".

The sqr from psa is on my short list.

I went ahead and ordered the sqr. we'll see if it arrives from Psa in a timely manner. Not holding my breath on that one. Time to remove my permanently attached flash hider.

Please post up a pic like the one above after you get it mounted.

A CMMG RKM14 handguard will be just long enough to hide the wrench flats on a muzzle device on a 14.5

Definitely post a pic of the sqr on 14.5. I'm seriously considering that for one of my builds and would love to see how it looks.

Will do, of course it's from Psa so my order has been processing for four days. Hopefully soon.

So the sqr 13.5" rail for $149 . It's a clone of a kac rail for under half the price, and there's reasons for that. I was previously using the Utg pro keymod pictured above and sold it for $160 so this was a zero cash upgrade, and I like those. There's not a lot of info on the sqr so I'll try my best

an intro picture of it on build 5



I'll start with a few maybe not so great things. Disclaimer, I knew what I was getting so these are more just observations rather than complaints. Overall I'm happy with the purchase.

The barrel nut needs to be clocked, certainly not a deal breaker but many mounting systems use an inner and outer that allows for a large range of adjustment. This one is just a large piece of steel with holes all over it. Had to use the supplied shims to clock it. Uses wrench flats though instead of a proprietary tool so sure why not.



It is heavy, but this was expected and not a suprise , the urx rail that it copies is Also heavy , and again, over twice the price.

I would have liked to have seen more beveling, the front looks very ati and cheap. But then again, what do I care about what the business end looks like? The only people to ever scrutinize this view can take their opinions to the grave with them.



No anti rotation tabs? I was surprised by this. I've not owned a free float without them and this actually is a complaint of mine. Not that it hinders it. Just suprising is all.



The color.. pics don't show it very well and certainly not a big deal. But.....on this rifle 6 other manufacturers managed to get thier shades of black extremely close. The psa looks very dark, almost purple with a semi gloss finish. Not loosing sleep over this.

My biggest complaint would be psa's website in general. They have a gen 2 version of this rail but I was unable to find it. Maybe it's not individually sold but the listing is very vague as to which one you're getting.

Now the positive stuff.

It looks great and takes up the barrel on my 14.5 like I wanted. It is still very slim in the center which I've grown to really like.



The qd sockets are generous and lock tight and of course do not protrude into the hand guard. Picatinny  sections are ample and the angled surfaces are perfect for anchoring my thumb.




As I was looking for, the length takes up all but 1/4" of barrel.



Overall I like it but my final thought is that lower priced free floats are flooding the market. And some good stuff too, not super cheese , so psa may need to up the game a little or lower the price some more if this is to be a popular stand alone item . I'm pleased with it but not blown away. For $149 I call it a win. This is a budget build and met that goal just fine.

Wife hands holding the rifle, not mine.



Cheers.

It's hard to describe the finish , the light in the pic is terrible but it looks a lot like the Teflon coat on a d&h magazine. I'll try to take a better pic in the sunlight.

a few things I missed.

Weight of the sqr is 1 pound without barrel  nut compared to the Utg pro at 7.5 oz .

And after looking at the kac urx again I wouldn't really call the psa rail a clone. Similar, but not a clone.

And supposedly the sqr's quick detach cups are anti rotation.

The branding is modest and small which I like. . Little Psa logo on the six o clock flat . I don't like huge billboard branding.

And finally the attachment screw holes are slotted , however, having to use a supplied shims to clock the barrel nut those slots are all the way to the forward end on the screws. Meaning it's as tight to the upper as it's going to get, and there's a visible gap. Very small, but visible to me say .008 , thinner than a piece of paper. Again none of these are complaints, just observations.

Thanks for the pics. It looks really good. After getting one of the new PA rails, I found that I really like the anti-rotation tabs so I'll have to decide if I'm willing to do without those when both rails are close in price.

Yeah, like I said I'm just a little suprised it doesn't have them.

And as stated the sub $200 rails are plentiful these days . I like that trend personally and hope the quality stays up and cost low.

Link to sqr

A few pics of the logo, small and modest, on the underside forward.

I have the keymod version of the SQR. It's a pretty slick setup.

It also seems to have a few upgrades/differences over the version you have. Mine has anti-rotation tabs. The finish is matte black and matches my lower exactly. It has 4 QD mounts built into the first and last keymod holes on each side of the rail. No PSA logos anywhere. Only markings are "QD" deeply engraved in a cool looking font next to each QD mount. Front is beveled on the top rail and bottom keymod panel. It has a squeeze clamp type mount with 3 big machine screws and two smaller set screws holding it all together. Doesn't look like this thing is going to move any time this century.

Did your keymod version come on a Psa upper? Or did you buy it individually? If so what'd you get it for

Mine came on a PSA upper, so I guess you can say I got it because it was cheap & I was going for an SPRish build. I wasn't expecting much since I only paid $399 shipped for a 1:8 twist FN CHF 410 stainless, 18", Wylde chambered barreled upper with this rail. The thing is stout. It sounds like a hammer hitting an anvil when the bolt slams on it.

I was trying to make sure I didn't derp the website. It looked like the gen 2 only came on the uppers. And that's why the one I got was on sale. Still feels nice though. Not sure I'd buy it twice, but I'm happy.