Carbine -vs- rifle

[michael_aos]

Could I just slap a "carbine" (16") upper on my AR-10 rifle?

Or is the recoil / gas system different?

Would the overall balance be all out of whack?

I've got a 22" bbl in .260 Remington that's simply AMAZING for precision shooting, but the gun seems awfully heavy overall. And it's a little expensive to feed.

Sometimes a lighter-weight "blaster" w/cheap ammo might be fun.



Mike

[Marlin]

I swap My {former} 16", 20" and 24" Varmiteer on My AR15 and never really noticed any differance. Not sure if it would be the same on a 10 or not. My semi-educated guess would be No, since they are the same basic operating system. OBTW, Nice Rifle.

As far as I know you can swap the upper but not just the barrel. I asked armalite if they could cut my 20" barrel down to a 16" and said there would be gas problems. So aparently swiching the whole upper is the way to go.

[michael_aos]

I've heard some horror-stories about 16" AR-10 uppers.

If I go that route, I'll just get a 20".

Mike

[michael_aos]

OBTW, Nice Rifle.

Thanks.

Sort of funny. Every time I shoot it, I think "now why do I have that bolt-gun again..."

But then I shoot the 700P in 260 Remington and think -- "so why do I have this AR-10..."

I'm really happy with each of them.

Mike

[Aardvark]

I know this is an old posting, but...swapping upper assemblies is no problem. Cutting down a barrel would cause problems with the gas flow and chrome lining. The carbine does make a lot more noise, and noticable recoil difference, but not enough to cause concern or throw off your shooting. I wouldn't hesitate to swap uppers if desired.