Enidine AR-Restor

[S&W627shooter]

I did a search for information on this topic, but I didn't find much. Do these Enidine AR-Restors really work well in a 16" barrel/fixed buttstock AR with a Miculek Comp for 3-gun? Do they reduce muzzle flip enough? Do they make it difficult to lock the bolt back? I am hoping someone out there has some real 3-gun match experience with one.

Thanks

[aessu]

They work well, but not like you would think you would use them.

Not my pic, but I'm going to get a similar setup, in terms of buffers.

Edited April 12, 2010 by aessu

[Graham Smith]

I believe that they were originally designed for a full auto rifle. They slow down the movement of the bolt and prevent the "slamming" action seen in full auto. As a side effect, they slightly slow the cyclic rate as well.

One big problem people have reported is that it will often keep the bolt from locking back after the last round is fired. Also, it can be difficult to manually lock the bolt back as well.

The most common review summary I've seen goes something like this {paraphrasing}, "Recoil in a .223 is not that bad to begin with and the problems with lock back pretty much cancel out the recoil benefits, with the end result that you have spent $100 on nothing."

YMMV

[aessu]

My opinion is the same, except when used in the reverse hydraulic dampening, like the one in the pic was.

[Doug S]

I installed one in my 16 in, fixed stock with a carbine length gas port and it has worked flawlessly for 3 years! My bolt locks back everytime when empty and I am not fast enough to notice the difference in the cyclic rate of my gun. I think it slows it down to 600 rounds a minute!

My brother put one in his AR first and then we shot them side by side to see if it made a difference and the sharpness of the recoil was noticeably less in his rifle. That convinced me to buy one for mine and I wouldn't take it out now that I have it.

Don't know if it is worth the money to you, but it was to me.

Doug

[blkbrd]

They do soften recoil as advertized...

HOWEVER--I have personally seen 2 fail. One of them cost a really good 3-gunner a bunch of places at Ft. Benning.

[Religious Shooter]

You may have to tune your rifle to get it to work.

I got one off of a prize table. I plunked it into one of my guns and the rifle began to malfunction. I didn't have anytime to fool with it so I just left it off.

[mpeltier]

They do soften recoil as advertized...

HOWEVER--I have personally seen 2 fail. One of them cost a really good 3-gunner a bunch of places at Ft. Benning.

I wonder who that could be???

If Matt was refering to me I must clearify a bit. I have tested the Enidine and for me it was a marginal improvement in recoil. I also tested and used for two years the Olympic pneumatic buffer that replaces not only the buffer but the spring as well. That is the one that went south on me at ft benning.(I was using it at the recomendation of a highly respected rifle builder, who no longer recomends them ) I learned my lesson and now only trust a conventional buffer (lightened) and conventional spring. I do not know if the Enidine could cause a failure to the operating system as the Olympic did. If it were to fail it would seem to just turn into a standard buffer.

[RufDog]

I have 2. 1 in a rifle lenth system & 1 in a short system. The rifle lenth system has no noticeable negative impacts, locks open on last rd too. The carbine is noticeably tougher to lock back but does lock on an empty mag. In the carbine it did noticeably dampen recoil as I did a "feel test". I didnt do it with the other system but I have ran close to 10,000 rds through it & no issues. The carbine has seen only 1000rds or so.

[blkbrd]

Yep: I thought one was you.

My mistake, pneumatic / hydraulic just one more thing to fail.

[Bear1142]

Sorry for the impending thread drift....but,

Mark, What happened with the Oly buffer? I've been using one in my back-up 3 gun rifle for about a year now and I've been very happy with it. I do keep a spare buffer and spring in case if fails, but yours is the first one I've heard that failed.

Erik

[mpeltier]

Sorry for the impending thread drift....but,

Mark, What happened with the Oly buffer? I've been using one in my back-up 3 gun rifle for about a year now and I've been very happy with it. I do keep a spare buffer and spring in case if fails, but yours is the first one I've heard that failed.

Erik

Eric

I was happy with it also for the two years i used it..until.. It seems though that the seals dont like the cold. It was pretty cold at ft benning in 2008, especially in the AM when it failed on me. It lost its internal pressure and my rifle wasn't even a single shot. Bolt would go back.....and there it would stay, with no way to get it forward again. The worst part about it was that it lost its pressure gradually and at first it seemed like an ammo problem, by occasionaly not fully chambering a round. By the second stage of the day though it was spent completely, and then i realized the issue at hand. Put in a standard buffer and spring and never looked back. Others have failed, i found out after the fact. If you want more info give me call, or PM me.

Mark

[Dustin Lohof]

I liked my Oly buffer and felt that it really made a difference. After two years is crapped out on me a few years back at the Superstition Mountain 3-gun. It wasn't pretty. Lightened buffer and conventional spring for me from now on.

Dusty

[cas]

They work well, but not like you would think you would use them.

Not my pic, but I'm going to get a similar setup, in terms of buffers.

Okay maybe I'm missing something, or reading too much into this but....

Use two buffers? Endine "backwards" at the rear, carbine buffer in the normal fashion?

[Les Snyder]

Afer Mark had the problem at Ft. Benning I was hesitant in trying one, but my "shooting partner" uses one, and he has a very good background with the M4 system. I shoot a 16inch intermediate gas system Rock River, with an older 4x32 TA01 ACOG, Miculek brake, Viet Nam era A1 stock. I purchased the rifle length Enidine. It worked well on the long range stage at Benning this year, as I could stay on the flash targets after the shot...Took 9 shots for the 8 targets and finished 12th on the stage.. did not seem to have any negative qualities in the cold (28 degrees Sunday). Upon returning home (Florida)I noticed that at local "hoser" matches there was a different recoil impulse "cadence" to the rifle. Still working with the Enidine, and see how it shoots this season. I'm not convinced yet.

regards Les

[jobob]

I used them in my carbines for several years. Tried one in a rifle length fixed stock and couldn't tell if there was any improvement. Some improvement in carbines, but I had the noted difficulty manually locking the bolt open. I saw a few reports over on arfcom about failures, with a couple of pictures of the buffer in pieces. Between this, and the fact that you are adding additional complication and moving parts that can fail, I recently changed out the Enidine buffers in my carbines.

Although in rifle length I like the lighter buffer, in the carbines I went the other way. I went with heavier (Spikes Tactical ST-T2 buffers), along with heavy springs. With the heavy buffer and spring in my Cavarms lower, bushy superlight upper carbine it became very soft shooting. I think the improvement with the heavy buffer/spring combo was much greater than I got with the Enidine alone.