V-Tac Handguards

[blkexp98]

I have a V-Tac handguard that i want to install but i have some issues i want some feedback on.

- First off my barrel nut wrench doesnt fit the V-Tac nut well and slips so what wrenches have you found that worked good?

- I want to mount an optic on it and (here is the catch) I want to have the front ring on the handguard and the rear ring on the upper reciever. Whats the best way to get this as flat as possible? I have a set of gage blocks but i think 3" is my largest one and i only have one. I have the small rail thats normally used to mount a front sight that i will mount the front ring to. I do have a Larue riser and i could clamp one end on the upper and the other on the rail on the handguard but i dont know how much side to side play that would allow to throw off the alignment

- I dont want to use red locktite on it so i thought blue may be a good alternative but have yall found its really needed? I assume it would help me with setting the rotation if it was cured before i tightened the barrel nut. I tried installing my last one using a gage pin in the gas tube home but it wasnt close enough since the hole in the handguard retainer was larger. By eye just didnt get it close enough.

Thanks for any info.

Major

[Graham Smith]

Have you considered using a cantilevered mount instead? I eliminates all the issues you are facing.

[ken hebert]

I want to have the front ring on the handguard and the rear ring on the upper reciever.

not a great idea. its called bridging. there will be a certain amount of play on the hand guard and will vary your zero.

[MarkCO]

Standard wrench (I have the DPMS) works on mine. A strap wrench also works.

The whole point of the FF handguard is to increase accuracy. By putting the scope mount on the handguard, you will have poor accuarcy and potentially damage your scope... Don't do it!

You either need a cantilever mount or switch to the Firebird nut which adds just under 2 inches of rail, clocked to the receiver rail.

[EkuJustice]

I agree get a mount that hangs the scope over the handguard. Larue makes a nice one and you can save some money if you order it without the the quick disconnect to the tune of saving 50 bucks on the monunt

[AustinT]

I've heard of folks using the correct sized drill bit to line up the gas tube holes while tightening the barrel nut. Haven't tried it.

I put mine on with blue loktite 5 years ago and it hasn't come off yet. I did have trouble with rounding off some of the teeth on the nut with my DPMS wrench.

Bridging the upper and the handguard rail is really not that good of an idea. There's a lot of flex in the handguard, not to mention the angular offset (even if slight) you'll end up with between the upper and the tube.

[TruePunisher]

Any standard AR15 barrel wrench like the DPMS multi-tool will work. Make sure you are using the barrel wrench part and not a free float tube wrench.

Friends don't let friends bridge the gap. If you need a lot of eye relief get the extended LaRue mount.

Why don't you want to use red Loctite? The handguard was intended to be installed with RED Loctite as the red Loctite will hold the outer nut when you are torquing on the inner nut. Blue Loctite was not designed to hold up to the amount of torque you might need to use to install the inner nut so the outer nut will probably move. If you are worried that red Loctite is permanent, it is not. I have removed the nut many times by heating it up with a handheld propane torch and a strap wrench and installed the nut again on a different receiver.

[Beretta Lover]

Fwiw you can get a heat gun at home depot for this

[blkexp98]

Thanks for the replies so far. As it stands i have the scope on a Larue cantilever riser (LT-101)and that isn't far enough forward. All i have on hand are medium rings its a little too high and the ring spacing set like that doesn't give the scope body the support i want it to have.

I tried going to the Firebird site but the products page is down. Is there anywhere else i can get some info on the extension?

The wrench i have is the Guntec one that has USMC printed on it. I tried both sides with no luck but the three pin side (FF tube side) was really a better fit. Both are too loose though.

[AlamoShooter]

The -Firebird hand rail- I have exstends 1.5" past the font of the upper rail. (BUT) I use a LaRue SPRE 1.5 and it is still on the normal rails /not mounted on the extention.

Edited November 14, 2010 by AlamoShooter