Carbine buffer weight experiment

[wideglidejoe]

I have intentionally used rifle buffers with both my AR Grendels, and thought this would be better overall. Why go lighter?

It's a 12.5" 6.5 Gr pistol. I feel the barrel port is too small, it has all indications of being undergassed. I'm thinking of trying lighter spring &/or buffer instead of drilling the gas port bigger. I won't spent a lot of $$'s on my buffer experiment, just time, and if that don't work, I'll either drill the gas port larger myself or send the complete upper back to the vendor to test it and enlarge the gas port if they deem it necessary. If I decide to drill it myself, which I'm capable of doing, I just "bought" the problem if it's something else. If I send it to the vendor, I'm out the time of a round trip. I'm not bashing the vendor, they have great customer service, and they've already offered to take it for troubleshooting, if I choose to send it back. Bottom line, I guess, I'm trying to prove to myself it's undergassed. If lighter spring &/or buffer works, I may send it back anyway. I have multiple lowers that were originally built as pistols, now configured as rifles/carbines, but this particular lower is set up the way I want it, and will stay a pistol, sharing a 10.5" 5.56 upper and this 12.5" 6.5 Gr upper. By the way, the 5.56 upper has run fine with several hundred rounds put thru it on this lower, with a standard carbine buffer & spring, so it's not the lower.

I do have a Grendel 18" rifle, it uses rifle buffer and spring with a M16A1 fixed stock.

Thanks,
Joe