What Makes This AR Unique? It Folds in Half
LISTEN: (3 minutes, 24 seconds)
THE FIRST THING I ASK when I’m shown a new AR15 model is “what’s unique about it?” With so many different models being so similar—a manufacturer needs to stand out and give the customer a reason to consider theirs over the thousands of other offerings available. FoldAR does that and it’s revealed why in their name. Yes, the FoldAR folds in half. And I don’t mean a lazy fold such as a lame stock adapter. But rather, it folds at the front of the upper receiver, right where the barrel attaches, which then allows a usual overall length of 33” rifle fold into a much more compact 17” package.
(Photo: Dustin Ellermann)
Nay sayers are the first to point out that one could simply remove an upper from a lower and compact it. Yes, this is true, but not to the level of concealment that a FoldAR gives you. Removing a 16” barreled upper from a lower still measures over 24” which would be a bit more difficult to tuck away into a small bag and even slower to deploy.
FoldAR achieves this with their patented toolless interchangeable barrel system that not only allows you to deploy the FoldAR into firing mode by locking into place with one movement of a lever, but it actually allows you to change barrels/gas systems and calibers by removing one takedown pin just like the ones on your upper and lower receivers
At first, I was skeptical, so I shot several hundred rounds through my sample in order to “break it in.” In the YouTube video you can hear the barrel and receiver croaking like a frog as the conical modified receiver that accepts the barrel was reacting to the heat. Nevertheless, the rifle still shot sub 1MOA after my miniature torture test. Every time I’ve pulled it out of my bag and test fired it over the past several months the rifle has still been zeroed. In fact, when I used the same upper and installed a 9” 300BLK on my registered SBR lower (so I could keep it suppressed in the same small package as pictured) I was shocked to see that my 100 yard zero was the same as with my first 5.56 NATO 16” barrel with the same mounted optic. Surely some of this was just chance, but I was still surprised.
The 300BLK SBR package has become my go to rifle since it’s easy to pack with me all the time. After a little training I can deploy it from my backpack to shots fired in 6 seconds. But quickdraw is not the point of the FoldAR. The point is to discreetly have a rifle with you. Think of more non-permissible environments where you want to be extra safe but can’t carry a rifle case. For me, it’s a matter of safety the majority of the time, and yet a convenience when visiting the hunting grounds. Law enforcement, school resource officers and private security personnel obviously are ordering these for duty too.
The FoldAR is available in 5.56 NATO, 300BLK, and 6.5 Grendel in several barrel lengths and configurations. You can find this Texas based company at FoldAR.com and save 10% with my special code “TopShot10.”
Email Dustin Ellermann at ContactUs@fishgame.com
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