Now before I even start, I know - this is completely subjective.

Long story short is after battling to get the barrel off of my 50Beo to install a dust cover (and failing, AA stuck this thing on there and good) I find myself with a permanently removed delta ring and a good excuse to upgrade from drop in handguards.

What do you guys think would look best on it?

Well whatever you decide what is best for you and that you cannot easily remove the barrel that starts to limit your choices to something that uses a factory barrel nut.  That said, you going to have to replace the gas block or mill down the top rail on it and be able to remove the muzzle device.  Sounding like a Samson, MI or a troy and I am sure there are a few others.

This is what I went with http://www.apfarmory.com/ar15-m16-apf-t-mod-rail-12-5-w-acc/

The also make a shorter 9-9.5" rail for pistols if you give them a call. You will need a low pro gas block for any rail to fit.

Their barrel nut is also nice, while it is proprietary you can put it on with a standard armors wrench.

The barrel nut is still coming off, don't worry about that. Options are only limited by length, obviously the gas block/MD were already off if I was trying to remove the barrel and even then I've made bigger things fit in smaller places before.

This isn't a "help me solve this problem" thread, it's a "what appeases vanity the most" thread.

Well I am pretty happy with my Rainer Arms Samson Keymode, light as can be and you don't have to remove your nut.

Keymode


Get yourself a heat gun for your stubborn nut and it will turn.  And I too would make that gas block work as it appears to use taper pins and I personally like that on a big gun.

For a 12.5" barrel I would want a handguard that's 12.2" long so it covers as much barrel as possible while still allowing the muzzle device to stick out so I don't have to worry about my hand sliding in front of it.

 



To be clear, in order to get the specific length of a given handguard you often have to look a little deeper in the item specs or in user reviews. As an example, the Troy Alpha rail lengths are rounded off (7" is actually 7.2, 9" is actually 9.2"). That 0.2" can be critical in covering up as much of the barrel as possible, if you care about that at all.

I've got a 12" SLR Sole Lite on my 12.5.

I went 12.2" or whatever the length of the Rainier is for my 12.5" SBR 6.8

Fortis

A lot choose whatever the Hole of the Month club is offering and thereby lock their style into a time period where that was cool When it expires they don't like it anymore because their friends admiration wanes - everybody's got it, it's not exclusive or leading edge anymore.

Better to just determine that you can attach anything anywhere you want given the time and resources, it's not really a Barbie doll, and you don't need to keep changin the clothes. It's a tool used for shooting, equip it for the job as needed.

If you want to delve into the aesthetics of the AR, tho, a bit more is needed. Gun companies can and do consider what the gun needs to look like, and how to style it. Here's one concept - a firearm with a significant curved line on it that serves no purpose will kill sales. Guns are all about technology and straight lines,

So, match the parts that share the same lines or ones that complement each other. Using a KAK peanut buffer tube, get a free float with alternating peanut holes. The SB15 has lots of vertical slots, pick a free float with similar ones. Make it cover most of the barrel, and if you're worried about your hand slipping forward a hook stop ala the MP5 is appropriate.

Goes the other way, if you are using a maxed out quad rail with accessories, fatten up the tube wth the Thordsen set up to balance.

FWIW, as said, it's about taste, when it comes down to shooting it what kind of holes and how much rail is on it won't be very influential. But it will set the tone in how others look at it - just the way the M4geries of 2004 do now.

I like the ALG Defense rails.  They are very light and they don't need a vice to install or remove the barrel nut.

12" SLR intrepid

Just finished it up. Went with a URX 3 because the cutouts are sexy.