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Is the SCAR worth buying in 2025? (Page 1 of 2)
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Posted: 2/26/2025 5:49:57 PM EDT
I am very intrigued in one.
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They need a little tweaking if you want to run a suppressor, and the suppressor voids the warranty. The former is pretty common, IME, with any kind of 308 platform. The latter kinda sucks but I've got 2 and never needed factory service. They may or may not also break optics. Which may or may not be limited to cheap optics and cheaper mounts, and where you place the mount. They're also very light weight, very light recoil, mine are fairly accurate with good ammo, and mags are proprietary but not priced terrible anymore. |
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Originally Posted By cowboy: They need a little tweaking if you want to run a suppressor, and the suppressor voids the warranty. The former is pretty common, IME, with any kind of 308 platform. The latter kinda sucks but I've got 2 and never needed factory service. They may or may not also break optics. Which may or may not be limited to cheap optics and cheaper mounts, and where you place the mount. They're also very light weight, very light recoil, mine are fairly accurate with good ammo, and mags are proprietary but not priced terrible anymore. In current year, a can voiding the warranty is idiotic beyond comprehension. That, optics breakage being a potential issue, proprietary mags, and the stocks being garbage leaves one to wonder what, exactly, is the draw when there are other .308 options out there with none of those drawbacks. |
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Originally Posted By lazyengineer: You're in the FN forum, so I imagine you'll get quite a few yes! For me... not really. It's very expensive and very heavy - with little benefit to my own interests. But I'm sure others love theirs. Very heavy!? My 17S is 7.8lb unloaded with no accessories on it which is pretty light for a battle rifle. Comparing that to other battle rifles the Sig SPEAR is 9.2lb, Tavor 7 is 9lb, MR762 is 9.8lb, KAC SR-25 is 8.4. The 16S in terms of weight is right in line with other 5.56 piston rifles like the Bren 2 Carbine, AUG, LMT MARS piston, etc. ...as for the OP I love my SCAR 17 - it's my favorite rifle, but I can also see the shortcomings. The advantages are it is light for a battle rifle, extremely reliable, and very accurate. The cons are the stock feels flimsy, proprietary mags that are expensive, and if you like to suppress your guns FN voids your warranty for suppressing a SCAR. Like someone else said - if you want a SCAR because you want a SCAR then nothing will scratch the itch but a SCAR. I think that only applies to the 17S, though. If you wanted a SCAR 16S you'd be better off getting a 14" CZ Bren 2 and having a muzzle device pinned/welded. The Bren 2, IMO, is a better gun out of the box than a SCAR 16. |
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I bought a 17 because it was one of my grail guns. It’s expensive to feed and has some quirks, but it still makes me smile every time I take it out. It is far from heavy and is a blast to shoot both at distance and up close. My advice would be to determine what you want to use it for before dumping a bunch of money into it. There are arguably rifles just as good or better for less money, but they aren’t as cool as a scar. |
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Originally Posted By Ridgeline: 2 ranges near me rent them out. Both ranges say they need 3 rifles to keep one in service at all times. I didn't press for details. I should have. This was about 2018 - 2019 so things may have changed Based on mil tests this seems like nonsense. They had ~1/3 to stoppages of an M4 over 40k rounds. Here, at the 8:10 mark, is the reivew of someone with a fully-functional brain: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PApRcRE-ft8 As for OP, the 17 is a fun gun. Problably my favorte to shoot these days. The 16 is on par with a high-end AR. I bought both because I can and I enjoy them. If you are looking for some magical superpower over a NICE AR, you arent going to find it in the 16. That said, I was and am pretty tired of 4 billion boring AR pattern guns and wanted to try something new. I was looking at a BREN 2 and a 16. Found the right used deal on a 16 and away I went. If you want it, go for it. |
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Originally Posted By Ridgeline: 2 ranges near me rent them out. Both ranges say they need 3 rifles to keep one in service at all times. I didn't press for details. I should have. This was about 2018 - 2019 so things may have changed I call bullshit. Henderson defense rents at a higher volume than whatever range in PA and they keep and posted meticulous records. Their Mk17 was in the 6 figure round count. |
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I bought a 17 a few months back and have enjoyed it so far. It's lighter than my FAL and mounting optics is much easier. Chuggin .308 out can get pricey , but I had a bunch of ammo sitting that I was not shooting much and thought the SCAR was a good fit. I prefer it over my Tavor or any of my x39 AK's. |
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Originally Posted By Zeebz: Very heavy!? My 17S is 7.8lb unloaded with no accessories on it which is pretty light for a battle rifle. Comparing that to other battle rifles the Sig SPEAR is 9.2lb, Tavor 7 is 9lb, MR762 is 9.8lb, KAC SR-25 is 8.4. The 16S in terms of weight is right in line with other 5.56 piston rifles like the Bren 2 Carbine, AUG, LMT MARS piston, etc. ...as for the OP I love my SCAR 17 - it's my favorite rifle, but I can also see the shortcomings. The advantages are it is light for a battle rifle, extremely reliable, and very accurate. The cons are the stock feels flimsy, proprietary mags that are expensive, and if you like to suppress your guns FN voids your warranty for suppressing a SCAR. Like someone else said - if you want a SCAR because you want a SCAR then nothing will scratch the itch but a SCAR. I think that only applies to the 17S, though. If you wanted a SCAR 16S you'd be better off getting a 14" CZ Bren 2 and having a muzzle device pinned/welded. The Bren 2, IMO, is a better gun out of the box than a SCAR 16. I have the exact opposite experience. Bren 2 is minute o pie plate, while the Scar 16 will shoot M193 1.5-2.5 depending on the load. Might just be my rifle. |
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Originally Posted By Mblades: I call bullshit. Henderson defense rents at a higher volume than whatever range in PA and they keep and posted meticulous records. Their Mk17 was in the 6 figure round count. Originally Posted By Mblades: Originally Posted By Ridgeline: 2 ranges near me rent them out. Both ranges say they need 3 rifles to keep one in service at all times. I didn't press for details. I should have. This was about 2018 - 2019 so things may have changed I call bullshit. Henderson defense rents at a higher volume than whatever range in PA and they keep and posted meticulous records. Their Mk17 was in the 6 figure round count. Yup. And somewhere deep in that thread, he mentioned that the 16S would be his SHTF pick, because of the high round reliability he saw. |
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Originally Posted By 135Patriots: Very good rifles, I really like my 16 SBR. But there's a reason they've never displaced ARs in any meaningful capacity. I've found mine to be fairly accurate, highly reliable, and soft shooting. Sounds like virtually every good AR, right? I've had my 16 sbr going on 8 years now, just last fall I decided to dive in and spend most of my time on the platform. Why? The AR's have become boring in the excitement department. If I find it exciting, I'll shoot more, therefore get better, and actually go shoot on the weekends. Up until a month ago, I'd grab my 12.5" sbr if aliens/Chinese/Kentucky invaded - now probably the 16. |
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I have also learned from experience that the greater part of our happiness or misery depends upon our dispositions, and not upon our circumstances.
I have also learned from experience that the greater part of our happiness or misery depends upon our dispositions, and not upon our circumstances.
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Originally Posted By Mblades: I call bullshit. Henderson defense rents at a higher volume than whatever range in PA and they keep and posted meticulous records. Their Mk17 was in the 6 figure round count. Originally Posted By Mblades: I call bullshit. Henderson defense rents at a higher volume than whatever range in PA and they keep and posted meticulous records. Their Mk17 was in the 6 figure round count. Agreed. Ron said the SCAR and Benelli M4 were the two most bomb proof guns on the range if I remember correctly. I think the SCAR was just springs needing replaced and a barrel after it was shot out, and the M4 had no breakages or something like that. Originally Posted By stevelish: I have the exact opposite experience. Bren 2 is minute o pie plate, while the Scar 16 will shoot M193 1.5-2.5 depending on the load. Might just be my rifle. I've shot a 16, but not for groups, but I imagine it's about a 1 MOA or slightly better gun with match ammo like the 17 is. If that's the case definitely an edge on the Bren 2 in accuracy. My Bren 2 was about a 1.5-2 MOA gun. |
| If you absolutely have to get a SCAR, the 17 makes more sense than the 16 and 15. They're both very mid guns, but the 17 does have some benefits over other 7.62 autoloading platforms to include weight and recoil. The 16 doesn't make any sense unless you desperately want a more expensive 5.56 dispenser. |
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The 17 is probably my favorite rifle at the moment. I wanted a lightweight, mild recoiling, and reliable 308 blaster. The 17 checked all those boxes for me. They’re currently a few hundred less than I paid last year. I think they're more than worth it at current pricing, especially under 3k. |
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Originally Posted By Flevvy: If you absolutely have to get a SCAR, the 17 makes more sense than the 16 and 15. They're both very mid guns, but the 17 does have some benefits over other 7.62 autoloading platforms to include weight and recoil. The 16 doesn't make any sense unless you desperately want a more expensive 5.56 dispenser. 20 makes the most sense… It’s better at being a SCAR 17 than the 17  and it does SSR stuff too.   The 15 is also badass now that it can swap between 300blk and 5.56 with 6 clicks of a torque wrench. |
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Originally Posted By Zeebz: Agreed. Ron said the SCAR and Benelli M4 were the two most bomb proof guns on the range if I remember correctly. I think the SCAR was just springs needing replaced and a barrel after it was shot out, and the M4 had no breakages or something like that. I've shot a 16, but not for groups, but I imagine it's about a 1 MOA or slightly better gun with match ammo like the 17 is. If that's the case definitely an edge on the Bren 2 in accuracy. My Bren 2 was about a 1.5-2 MOA gun. IIRC, Henderson Defense said that the broken spring in the 16 didn't even make the gun stop. They didn't know it was broken, inadvertently found it, and replaced it. The Bren actually shot some match ammo very well, but it's so bad with most 193 that I can't love it. Probably going to sell it. |
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Originally Posted By stevelish: IIRC, Henderson Defense said that the broken spring in the 16 didn't even make the gun stop. They didn't know it was broken, inadvertently found it, and replaced it. The Bren actually shot some match ammo very well, but it's so bad with most 193 that I can't love it. Probably going to sell it. I love the Bren, functionally and aesthetically and it's fun to shoot. But lack of parts killed it for me and I won't buy any hard-use guns anymore if I can't get parts, so I sold mine. SCAR parts are expensive as hell, but at least FN releases actual parts in batches so I can have a spare bolt and stuff. CZ had like one major parts drop then never released anything else for the Bren 2. |
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Originally Posted By NoEffects6: It was on my list yet look at my state. I got hosed. My question is if you only get one SCAR do you go .308 or 5.56? Scar 17 forum zeitgeist aside, I really like the 16. Then again, I hate money, so....plan on a $300 trigger, and maybe a $700 handguard, and $160 KNS discarder for suppression, and an optic..... Both are great guns. Get the one you will use more. |
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Originally Posted By NoEffects6: It was on my list yet look at my state. I got hosed. My question is if you only get one SCAR do you go .308 or 5.56? Originally Posted By NoEffects6: It was on my list yet look at my state. I got hosed. My question is if you only get one SCAR do you go .308 or 5.56? 17 because you can also get 6.5 barrels for it. Or just get the 6.5 and a 308 barrel later. Originally Posted By stevelish: Originally Posted By NoEffects6: It was on my list yet look at my state. I got hosed. My question is if you only get one SCAR do you go .308 or 5.56? Scar 17 forum zeitgeist aside, I really like the 16. Then again, I hate money, so....plan on a $300 trigger, and maybe a $700 handguard, and $160 KNS discarder for suppression, and an optic..... Both are great guns. Get the one you will use more. Skip the discarder and get the appropriate factory gas control screw for $6. Also, $700 for a handguard is crazy, just get the 20s if its that important, comes with the super scar trigger too. |
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Originally Posted By Finslayer83: I've had my 16 sbr going on 8 years now, just last fall I decided to dive in and spend most of my time on the platform. Why? The AR's have become boring in the excitement department. If I find it exciting, I'll shoot more, therefore get better, and actually go shoot on the weekends. Up until a month ago, I'd grab my 12.5" sbr if aliens/Chinese/Kentucky invaded - now probably the 16. I agree it's an exciting, cool gun. And functionally it's very good. There are plenty of merits to the SCAR - just not enough to ditch a quality AR on performance alone. I'll catch you at strategic edge one of these days. May swing by this evening if I can make time. |
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Originally Posted By 135Patriots: I agree it's an exciting, cool gun. And functionally it's very good. There are plenty of merits to the SCAR - just not enough to ditch a quality AR on performance alone. I'll catch you at strategic edge one of these days. May swing by this evening if I can make time. @amped @synthwave @pewaddictanonmyous Add one more to the club! |
Panem et Circenses
I have also learned from experience that the greater part of our happiness or misery depends upon our dispositions, and not upon our circumstances.
I have also learned from experience that the greater part of our happiness or misery depends upon our dispositions, and not upon our circumstances.
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Originally Posted By Mblades: 17 because you can also get 6.5 barrels for it. Or just get the 6.5 and a 308 barrel later. Skip the discarder and get the appropriate factory gas control screw for $6. Also, $700 for a handguard is crazy, just get the 20s if its that important, comes with the super scar trigger too. Oops. Yeah, $700 for the pair, $350 for one Rego hand guard. KNS is stupid easy for suppression adjustments, just as quick for re adjusting for non suppressed. |
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Originally Posted By stevelish: Oops. Yeah, $700 for the pair, $350 for one Rego hand guard. KNS is stupid easy for suppression adjustments, just as quick for re adjusting for non suppressed. Originally Posted By stevelish: Originally Posted By Mblades: 17 because you can also get 6.5 barrels for it. Or just get the 6.5 and a 308 barrel later. Skip the discarder and get the appropriate factory gas control screw for $6. Also, $700 for a handguard is crazy, just get the 20s if its that important, comes with the super scar trigger too. Oops. Yeah, $700 for the pair, $350 for one Rego hand guard. KNS is stupid easy for suppression adjustments, just as quick for re adjusting for non suppressed. Im sure the KNS works great but when you have 5 barrels between 2 guns it gets expensive fast vs $6 each. |
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Walked into my local store about the time they were putting a 17 on the wall, came home with it and love it. SBR'ed it, love it. Walked into a different store and saw a 16...might as well have one of each. Waiting on a 10in barrel for that one as well because...I evidently hate money. the 15 doesn't really do anything for me, and I don't currently have any place convenient to make the 20 worth it My Ars are fine, the SCARs are just different |
| Never meet your heroes. For me it was a rifle that checked all the boxes. Light, compact, etc. but accuracy was garbage on mine, even after it came back from FN. Once you ditch the tinnitus device (PWS brake) it becomes noticeably harder to maintain sight picture during rapid fire, they don’t suppress well, and they do in fact kill optics. Moved on to LMT MWS/MARS-H rifles and have been nothing but happy. |
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Originally Posted By lazyengineer: You're in the FN forum, so I imagine you'll get quite a few yes! For me... not really. It's very expensive and very heavy - with little benefit to my own interests. But I'm sure others love theirs. You think a SCAR is "very heavy"? It's one of the lightest 7.62 NATO battle rifles out there... Please explain yourself... |
“The difference between treason and patriotism is only a matter of dates.”
"And how can man die better
Than facing fearful odds,
For the ashes of his fathers,
And the temples of his Gods."
"And how can man die better
Than facing fearful odds,
For the ashes of his fathers,
And the temples of his Gods."
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Originally Posted By jtb33: @lazyengineer You think a SCAR is "very heavy"? It's one of the lightest 7.62 NATO battle rifles out there... Please explain yourself... Originally Posted By jtb33: Originally Posted By lazyengineer: You're in the FN forum, so I imagine you'll get quite a few yes! For me... not really. It's very expensive and very heavy - with little benefit to my own interests. But I'm sure others love theirs. You think a SCAR is "very heavy"? It's one of the lightest 7.62 NATO battle rifles out there... Please explain yourself... Donno. The time I shot one Ithought it was heavy Maybe thats just me. I hated the report as well, Only gun I've ever had my ears ringing through bothuffs and ear plugs - maybe just my experience. I run an SFAR now and love it - which actually is by far the lighter than I recall that .308 SCAR and recoil is mild too, somehow - I suspect due to its lighter BCG reciprocation. Just me. I never thought the SCAR was worth it. Apparently neither does anyone else - it's never became the standard US issue that it was sold to be. I suppose SOCCOM but then, they are credited with endorsing and using a lot of stuff. like.. a lot. |
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Originally Posted By lazyengineer: Donno. The time I shot one Ithought it was heavy Maybe thats just me. I hated the report as well, Only gun I've ever had my ears ringing through bothuffs and ear plugs - maybe just my experience. I run an SFAR now and love it - which actually is by far the lighter than I recall that .308 SCAR and recoil is mild too, somehow - I suspect due to its lighter BCG reciprocation. Just me. I never thought the SCAR was worth it. Apparently neither does anyone else - it's never became the standard US issue that it was sold to be. I suppose SOCCOM but then, they are credited with endorsing and using a lot of stuff. like.. a lot. Originally Posted By lazyengineer: Originally Posted By jtb33: Originally Posted By lazyengineer: You're in the FN forum, so I imagine you'll get quite a few yes! For me... not really. It's very expensive and very heavy - with little benefit to my own interests. But I'm sure others love theirs. You think a SCAR is "very heavy"? It's one of the lightest 7.62 NATO battle rifles out there... Please explain yourself... Donno. The time I shot one Ithought it was heavy Maybe thats just me. I hated the report as well, Only gun I've ever had my ears ringing through bothuffs and ear plugs - maybe just my experience. I run an SFAR now and love it - which actually is by far the lighter than I recall that .308 SCAR and recoil is mild too, somehow - I suspect due to its lighter BCG reciprocation. Just me. I never thought the SCAR was worth it. Apparently neither does anyone else - it's never became the standard US issue that it was sold to be. I suppose SOCCOM but then, they are credited with endorsing and using a lot of stuff. like.. a lot. SCAR-L I agree, being marginally better than an m4 doesn’t warrant replacement. SCAR-H is a different story. What other 7.62x51 semi auto has been as widely adopted or successful? |
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Originally Posted By Mblades: SCAR-L I agree, being marginally better than an m4 doesn’t warrant replacement. SCAR-H is a different story. What other 7.62x51 semi auto has been as widely adopted or successful? The M110. Variations of the LMT large frame AR’s. I mean I get it…AR’s are boring. But the only thing the SCAR does my current “battle rifles” don’t is fold. |
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Originally Posted By cms81586: The M110. Variations of the LMT large frame AR’s. I mean I get it…AR’s are boring. But the only thing the SCAR does my current “battle rifles” don’t is fold. Originally Posted By cms81586: Originally Posted By Mblades: SCAR-L I agree, being marginally better than an m4 doesn’t warrant replacement. SCAR-H is a different story. What other 7.62x51 semi auto has been as widely adopted or successful? The M110. Variations of the LMT large frame AR’s. I mean I get it…AR’s are boring. But the only thing the SCAR does my current “battle rifles” don’t is fold. M110 sass, maybe, not as widely adopted, not in service as long. LMT not even close. |
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Originally Posted By Mblades: M110 sass, maybe, not as widely adopted, not in service as long. LMT not even close. Several countries have adopted large frame LMT’s in limited quantities. Notably the Brits and their 3000+ L129A1’s. The SCAR-H really only saw limited SOCOM use. Neither were widely adopted. |
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Originally Posted By cms81586: Several countries have adopted large frame LMT’s in limited quantities. Notably the Brits and their 3000+ L129A1’s. The SCAR-H really only saw limited SOCOM use. Neither were widely adopted. Originally Posted By cms81586: Originally Posted By Mblades: M110 sass, maybe, not as widely adopted, not in service as long. LMT not even close. Several countries have adopted large frame LMT’s in limited quantities. Notably the Brits and their 3000+ L129A1’s. The SCAR-H really only saw limited SOCOM use. Neither were widely adopted. Now list the countries that use the SCAR, it dwarfs LMT. Has the LMT ever been used in combat? SCARs are stacking bodies in Ukrainian as we speak. |
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The SCAR-H has a battle-proven pedigree, as does the M110. The FAL and M14 are older designs - but also "battle proven". The SCAR-H is the lightest of these rifles by a good margin. The SFAR is interesting, but certainly hasn't been put through its paces like the above-mentioned battle rifles. Its main claim-to-fame seems to be the weight and size that's akin to the AR-15. Biggest detractor for the SCAR-H/SCAR 17 is probably the cost. I got one fairly early on and was very surprised how light it was and how little recoil it had for a 7.62 NATO round. A lot of that is the OEM muzzle break, which seems to do quite a bit in mitigating recoil. I was mostly surprised that the first reply claimed the SCAR to be a "very heavy" rifle, which 95% of those who own one, would classify its surprisingly light weight as a benefit. |
“The difference between treason and patriotism is only a matter of dates.”
"And how can man die better
Than facing fearful odds,
For the ashes of his fathers,
And the temples of his Gods."
"And how can man die better
Than facing fearful odds,
For the ashes of his fathers,
And the temples of his Gods."
|
Originally Posted By Mblades: Now list the countries that use the SCAR, it dwarfs LMT. Has the LMT ever been used in combat? SCARs are stacking bodies in Ukrainian as we speak. Only for most of GWOT. The Brit’s have used them for quite a while. Not many SCAR-H users either. Not sure what you’re going on about at this point. They’re both fairly low production and proliferated firearms. There’s also a reason pretty much every U.S. military unit issued them doesn’t really use them anymore. Too many shortcomings. Even FN had to resort to drilling holes in the blast baffles of the SCAR-SD cans post-manufacture in a jury rigged “blow throw” manner in order to get them to stop breaking carriers. Mine was hot garbage…but it was a sample size of 1.  Firefight...British ambush the Taliban Out with the old… Attached File In with the new. Attached File Nearly the same weight too. |
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Originally Posted By CKxx: Based on mil tests this seems like nonsense. They had ~1/3 to stoppages of an M4 over 40k rounds. Yeah thats not hard to do when you tailor the test against the m4 that got back from being drug around Afghanistan, and count burst FCG memory as malfunctions. |
Is the SCAR worth buying in 2025? (Page 1 of 2)
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