Just finished my AR. after having an SKS for the longest time, i really wanted an AR for precision shots, as im only so good with my SKS out to 100yds. so i wanted a modern combat arm for SHTF. after moving to Virginia from California my world opened up in terms of what i could own as far as firearms go. but from my time in the Navy, i made up my mind to avoid the M16 family. my original thought for a 5.56 rifle was going to be a Tavor. but i wanted something which wouldn't have a learning curve for me to shoot with. so being so familiar with the M16/m4 Family i forced myself to get an AR, but i remembered how much our service rifles jammed, and how little my old WASR10/63 jammed, so i decided "I need a Gas Piston AR" there weren't many options in the Tavor price range which is what i had budgeted for. but i came upon the SIG516 family of rifles. i saw the torture test videos and saw some reviews and said "hey this looks good!" so i went to my local gun shop and picked one up. since i didn't get the tavor i had much more liberty in Optics/mags/ammo/accessories/PC. when i was finished it was time to take it to the range. i had heard about how inaccurate some people claimed that Gas Pistons were, i was pleasantly surprised when my groups were all Very tight. i cant believe i almost caved and got a DGI. now just have to buy a spare upper. anyone else have experience with Sig rifles? how do they compare against other Gas pistons? did i make a good choice?



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i have the Sig516 and big brother 716, i love both rifles. my 516 is a gen1 rifle and has been super reliable, accurate and just plain fun to shoot, i did add a couple of things, Giessele SSA, PWS 556fsc brake. my only dislike on both rifles is the short handguards, other than that i feel Sig has produced some excellent rifles

I have two of them ( gen 1 and 2 ) love them so far. I do agree wish there was better hand guard options. Very clean running firearms.

I was having second thoughts after purchasing mine being new to the piston operated rifles, but a trip to the range cured me of that, as far as a spare upper, I gave a lot of thought to that and finally decided instead to just order an extra factory BCG from Sig (was less expensive then I thought at just over 200 complete) and then purchase the less expensive DI complete upper for emergency back-up, in which case I'd likely just buy another complete rifle for the price difference and in the end have one of each. I'd expect under normal use it will likely be a long time before you need any major replacement parts. Congrats on your new rifle and happy shooting.

Excellent choice!

I bought a PWS MK116 and a Sig 516 at about the same time.  I love everything about the MK116 but I cannot seem to get the accuracy out of it that I can with the 516.  The only thing I wish was different on the 516 is the weight of the front end. In the end, the 516 ended up sitting next to the nightstand.

I've have the sig 516 in 16",14.5", and my favorite 7.5". They all work perfect semi or auto.
sooner or later i'll get the 10.5

good to hear everyone is as satisfied with their rifles as i am with mine. thanks for the input, i agree the spare BCG would be MUCH more cost effective. the 716 looks boss, but i can barely swing the $$$ for .308 for my Bolt action i cant imagine getting multiple mags worth of it. but its probably 5x more fun to shoot.

would you consider a geiselle trigger a necessity? again my only prior experience with M4/M16 is the service Colt. and compared to that these civilian triggers feel light as feathers!

A Geissle trigger upgrade in any AR is worth every penny it cost. I have replaced the stock trigger in booth my 516 and 716 both Scar 16S and 17S as well as several other 556 and 308 AR's. Really improved my 100 yard 5 shot groups. Especially on the SCAR's.

I have a cmmg piston and it gets me 1.5 groups w m193 ammo.  So piston guns are accurate.  I also have a wig 516 that I haven't shot.  Hope it's as good as the cmmg    I Have a sg2 trigger I'm going to put in it and like my other rifles I'm going to put a heavy buffer in it

I have to say that the Sig trigger in my 716p sucked ,so I installed a Hipperfire 24c in it and I find it far better then the Geissele SSA-e three gun trigger I have in my DI Colt. I plan on installing one on my Adams Arms  14.5 piston carbine . You may want to try a Hipperfire 24C.

This sounds interesting although I thought it might be a German trigger (Hipper as in Admiral Hipper alas it is Hiper as in hyper)
My big question is the extra springs, would they reduce long term field reliability?
I realize these are 3Gun triggers so comp shooters tend to check and maintain their rigs far more than average so it's use as a SD trigger is questionable as in sits in the safe for 5 months at a time.

Having installed a bunch of Geissele which have been flawless I have never used a single stage that IMO is as good. This is based on the fact (my fact as IMO) CQC does not require a delicate touch but the second stage allows for a sniper like trigger when on rare occasion one needs to make a very deliberate shot.

Still, glad to hear about the Hiperfire trigger

I have had a couple of 516s and a 716 and they are excellent weapons particularly for the money.
The lower is outstanding with built in QD, ambi mag release and that sprung thing that maintains a tight fit to the upper.

Very satisfied with the 516 A++

After a trip to the gun store and some self searching im keeping my stock trigger. its light as hell for me... and  im not sure i want to spend 200$ on a new trigger for very little pull reduced. trigger is 7.6lbs doesnt feel like it to me. i'd rather spend that on Ammo. but i appreciate the adivce. cant think of much else i need, besides maybe some Troy tritium flip sights.

I don't think you need a new trigger nor the tritium sights.  Mags, ammo, training.

I think that is one of the most beautiful weapons. I want one just like it. Somewhere out there is a spring loaded stock extension for this that speeds up the semi to simulate a full auto by somehow transferring the spring action from your shoulder to the trigger. I'll try to find the YouTube video and post it here. In the mean time, please tell us about your optics and barrel...and what you plan to do with your extra upper. Do you plan on ever needing to run it out beyond 100 yards? What did this gear cost you...am I allowed to ask that?  Am I correct in thinking you actually built this yourself?

I'm out.

Here you go - The stock is from a company called Slide Fire Solutions and doesn't require a Class 3 license: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brQQw1P3-c8

What kind of accuracy are you getting out of your 516s? I'm wanting to build a precision rifle, but if I can tweak my 516 a bit to 'accurize' it, I can save a pile of cash ( to put towards an SBR and can)

A BiG +1 on the Geissele triggers. I have 11 of them in my AR's, 9 SSA-E, 1 SDE, 1 High Speed NM DMR and 2 Super Scar triggers, 1 in my 16S and 1 in my 17S. 1 of the SSA-E's is in my SIG 516. It improved my 5 shot 100 yard groups from 1.25" to 0.8" sometimes better

Sweet looking rig.  Love the setup.  What's the saying...when it counts!

Picked up the 516 Carbon today...straight to the range and before I knew it I had gone through 300+ rounds straight out of the box without a hiccup of any kind. Was very accurate and easy to keep on target too. It may be my new favorite rifle.

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I own several ARs and every one- except my Wilson Combat has Bill's triggers- all are SSA-E. I've read some detractors of Geiselle- but they've been very crisp and very repeatable. Their customer service has been beyond reproach.