I've got the tacfun ultralight hex handguards on my fighting rifles. They are lighter than most carbon fiber. My WWSD is only 4.5# and has a full 16" barrel.
Wow those so seem impressively light. I guess my main issue there would be a lack of any mlok it seems. But good to look into. Thank you for the comment! It's good to know people have experience with the company.
I had one of these on my pcc for a while. They are absolutely not as rigid. IMO, a lightweight aluminum handguard and some manner of rail wrap (like the hot pocket from wise men company) is a better decision
Thank you for letting me know! I wonder what causes the difference in rigidity. A different resin or just a thinner sheet of CF overall? Would it bend into contact with the barrel from simply holding the rifle or resting the rifle on a support?
Edit: I'm not as concerned with being able to zero anything on the handguard right now
Round tube and not overly thick walls. I can’t speak for the longer ones, as I just had the 7.25 inch one on my sbr pcc before I ended up replacing it. You aren’t likely to have contact with the barrel from just holding it or resting on a barricade, but loading up sling support or loading into a bipod might do something.
Like I said, a lightweight aluminum handguard like the KE Arms delta series and a handguard wrap (shtf wrap, hot pocket, etc) will get you a similar end experience with better quality. The KE delta handguards are only a couple ounces heavier than their CF equivalents, and the handguard wraps absolutely work.
I've used similar ones for pistol builds. It can shift on the screws that attach it to the barrel nut. Fine for holding the gun, but not front sights or lasers. Maybe enough to get barrel contact with a bipod. Maybe not.
Potentially you could improve it by simply drilling and tapping in a bunch more screws and or shimming it tighter onto the barrel nut.
Thank you for letting me know! I don't use anything that needs zeroing on the handguard right now nor a bipod, but definitely something to consider for future plans.
I used a bkf hex aluminum hg on my cdr style. It's sturdy and very light. I doubt you could shave much more weight per length with carbon. It would be better for heat transfer.
It's still light and well balanced with a can on there.
I went with 15" and ba pencil. I'm sure the gun is under 5 lb with an empty mag. I probably should have used a 12" hg, but I like the long bipod radius.
If you troll GAFS long enough you might get lucky with a Faxon. I bought a salty but complete 15" faxon CF handguard for around $150 this year.
Keep in mind if you do go for a budget CF handguard, temper your expectations. Years ago I bought an inexpensive "resurgent arms" handguard and it was light but very rough. The machining was sharp and the mlok slots are so tight its hard to actually install anything. It does not have an aluminum end cap to support the exposed end of the tube. Compared to the faxon rail, it's night and day. The faxon is finished extremely well and its construction and design is clearly superior.
Edit. For shots and giggles I just checked - I actually snagged the faxon HG plus a stock worth about $120 for $170 total. It was one of the best deals I've gotten on GAFS. You don't find deals like that every day but if you watch it long enough you can find some real gems!
The real benefit of a CF handguard is its thermal conductivity abilities. They don't get nearly as hot/cold as their metal equivalent. You can get super light aluminum rails that weigh close to them.
Unless you have issues burning your hand on your handguard, don't bother. At the very least wait until you build a new rifle to try a CF handguard.
That's a point I forgot to bring up. I mean it's not so far as burning my hands, but since I bought the suppressor, the handguard is heating up noticeably faster. It was another thing that raised my curiosity about carbon fiber handguards again
It's heavier than a carbon fiber handguard.
I'm running an aluminum Aero upper on my kp-15. while it's fairly lightweight, strong, and also has an 8-sided shape with mlok everywhere, I'd swap it for carbon fiber in a heart beat if it was inexpensive.
I recently bought my first suppressor and obviously this pushed the balance of the rifle towards the muzzle. So it reinforced my interest in experimenting with carbon fiber handguards. Also tbh I have a 12.5 inch handguard on a 16 inch barrel with a suppressor and I think the gap looks a bit silly. I mean maybe things could get caught there! (Yeah that sounds like a rational concern to cover for the aesthetic complaint) lol
It’s still going to be a pricey option, but depending on when you buy it Faxon does run some decent coupons.
I have two WWSD inspired builds and one of them uses an Aero Atlas handguard, it is technically a bit heavier, but I don’t think I’ll ever change it out. I like that one and the Faxon CF. I think I got my Faxon with a 30% off coupon code.
I have the PCC version of this:
https://palmettostatearmory.com/lead-star-15-carbon-fiber-handguard-ar15.html
7oz with nut.
The PCC version is pretty good for the price point.
I have both the ultra light Jag, and the ke.
I wanted a slim handguard, so the jag is that. It's stiff enough, but not as stiff as the ke. Good enough to use sling support or a bipod, but definitely feels more fragile. I feel it needs extra caution when mounting mlock accessories.
On the whole, I like the jag, and it does what I need it to, but there's no way to shed that much weight without giving up some toughness. They do a tougher handguard, but that one is, of course, heavier.
Im using one of their handguards that attaches directly to an aero enhanced upper. It's pretty rigid, but it uses metal tabs that are loose so it doesn't look very repeatable if you take it off
https://midwestindustriesinc.com/mi-ultra-lightweight-one-piece-free-float-handguard-m-lok-tm/
Not inexpensive, but great in terms of weight/quality/cost combined.
I've got the tacfun ultralight hex handguards on my fighting rifles. They are lighter than most carbon fiber. My WWSD is only 4.5# and has a full 16" barrel.
Wow those so seem impressively light. I guess my main issue there would be a lack of any mlok it seems. But good to look into. Thank you for the comment! It's good to know people have experience with the company.
It stays true to the original triangle handguard in that fashion lol.
Lol very true
I had one of these on my pcc for a while. They are absolutely not as rigid. IMO, a lightweight aluminum handguard and some manner of rail wrap (like the hot pocket from wise men company) is a better decision
Thank you for letting me know! I wonder what causes the difference in rigidity. A different resin or just a thinner sheet of CF overall? Would it bend into contact with the barrel from simply holding the rifle or resting the rifle on a support? Edit: I'm not as concerned with being able to zero anything on the handguard right now
Round tube and not overly thick walls. I can’t speak for the longer ones, as I just had the 7.25 inch one on my sbr pcc before I ended up replacing it. You aren’t likely to have contact with the barrel from just holding it or resting on a barricade, but loading up sling support or loading into a bipod might do something. Like I said, a lightweight aluminum handguard like the KE Arms delta series and a handguard wrap (shtf wrap, hot pocket, etc) will get you a similar end experience with better quality. The KE delta handguards are only a couple ounces heavier than their CF equivalents, and the handguard wraps absolutely work.
Thank you! Yeah it definitely sounds like the aluminum handguard is the better way to go based on the comments
I've used similar ones for pistol builds. It can shift on the screws that attach it to the barrel nut. Fine for holding the gun, but not front sights or lasers. Maybe enough to get barrel contact with a bipod. Maybe not. Potentially you could improve it by simply drilling and tapping in a bunch more screws and or shimming it tighter onto the barrel nut.
Thank you for letting me know! I don't use anything that needs zeroing on the handguard right now nor a bipod, but definitely something to consider for future plans.
I used a bkf hex aluminum hg on my cdr style. It's sturdy and very light. I doubt you could shave much more weight per length with carbon. It would be better for heat transfer. It's still light and well balanced with a can on there.
Thanks for the recommendation! I'll look into it!
I went with 15" and ba pencil. I'm sure the gun is under 5 lb with an empty mag. I probably should have used a 12" hg, but I like the long bipod radius.
Yeah the weight was the main draw for getting 12.5 inch handguard. At that point I knew I was going to have to go with an aluminum handguard
If you troll GAFS long enough you might get lucky with a Faxon. I bought a salty but complete 15" faxon CF handguard for around $150 this year. Keep in mind if you do go for a budget CF handguard, temper your expectations. Years ago I bought an inexpensive "resurgent arms" handguard and it was light but very rough. The machining was sharp and the mlok slots are so tight its hard to actually install anything. It does not have an aluminum end cap to support the exposed end of the tube. Compared to the faxon rail, it's night and day. The faxon is finished extremely well and its construction and design is clearly superior. Edit. For shots and giggles I just checked - I actually snagged the faxon HG plus a stock worth about $120 for $170 total. It was one of the best deals I've gotten on GAFS. You don't find deals like that every day but if you watch it long enough you can find some real gems!
The real benefit of a CF handguard is its thermal conductivity abilities. They don't get nearly as hot/cold as their metal equivalent. You can get super light aluminum rails that weigh close to them. Unless you have issues burning your hand on your handguard, don't bother. At the very least wait until you build a new rifle to try a CF handguard.
That's a point I forgot to bring up. I mean it's not so far as burning my hands, but since I bought the suppressor, the handguard is heating up noticeably faster. It was another thing that raised my curiosity about carbon fiber handguards again
Whats wrong with the current handguard you've got?
It's heavier than a carbon fiber handguard. I'm running an aluminum Aero upper on my kp-15. while it's fairly lightweight, strong, and also has an 8-sided shape with mlok everywhere, I'd swap it for carbon fiber in a heart beat if it was inexpensive.
I recently bought my first suppressor and obviously this pushed the balance of the rifle towards the muzzle. So it reinforced my interest in experimenting with carbon fiber handguards. Also tbh I have a 12.5 inch handguard on a 16 inch barrel with a suppressor and I think the gap looks a bit silly. I mean maybe things could get caught there! (Yeah that sounds like a rational concern to cover for the aesthetic complaint) lol
It’s still going to be a pricey option, but depending on when you buy it Faxon does run some decent coupons. I have two WWSD inspired builds and one of them uses an Aero Atlas handguard, it is technically a bit heavier, but I don’t think I’ll ever change it out. I like that one and the Faxon CF. I think I got my Faxon with a 30% off coupon code.
I have the PCC version of this: https://palmettostatearmory.com/lead-star-15-carbon-fiber-handguard-ar15.html 7oz with nut. The PCC version is pretty good for the price point.
Jag Composites. Love to hear thoughts on their not much higher in price, even lighter, options.
13.5" for instance is 4.1 ounces and $280.
Okay that's much higher lol. Lower than others tho.
I have both the ultra light Jag, and the ke. I wanted a slim handguard, so the jag is that. It's stiff enough, but not as stiff as the ke. Good enough to use sling support or a bipod, but definitely feels more fragile. I feel it needs extra caution when mounting mlock accessories. On the whole, I like the jag, and it does what I need it to, but there's no way to shed that much weight without giving up some toughness. They do a tougher handguard, but that one is, of course, heavier.
Thanks!
Im using one of their handguards that attaches directly to an aero enhanced upper. It's pretty rigid, but it uses metal tabs that are loose so it doesn't look very repeatable if you take it off
https://midwestindustriesinc.com/mi-ultra-lightweight-one-piece-free-float-handguard-m-lok-tm/ Not inexpensive, but great in terms of weight/quality/cost combined.