Addax Tactical Gas Piston Upper Review
Statistics:
Upper assembly: 14.5” 1/7 twist government profile chrome lined barrel, middie gas system.
PWS gas piston conversion and Bulldog compensator by Addax Tactical.
12” Daniel Defense Lite Rail FSPM, free float.
Midwest Industries folding front sight (Dark Earth).
Magpul Dynamics MBUS rear (Dark Earth), Magpul XTM rail covers (Dark Earth).
Lower assembly: Rock River Arms lower with RRA National Match 2 stage trigger.
ErgoGrip Ambi (Dark Earth).
Magpul CTR collapsible stock (Dark Earth).
Enidine AR-restor carbine buffer.
Misc: EOTech XPS 2-2
LaRue Tactical magnifier mount and rail QD sling mount.
Hensoldt 2.5x magnifier.
Brownell 26mm to 30mm scope ring adapter.
BufferTech extractor upgrade and Accu-wedge.
V-Tac 2 point sling Mk 2 (Dark Earth).
Greetings and salutations to the fine folks on AR15Armony.com. I've been a long time lurker on the board trying to absorb information, trying to understand the important information versus opinions, researching, fact checking and gradually forming an opinion of what type of rifle I'd like to have. I will attempt to explain why I went with a particular set-up and most importantly how the Addax Tactical GPU shoots.
This was my second AR build (the first one being a 3 Gun Match gun). I took my time and over the course of 10 months, researched, collected and pieced together the weapon. I've had experience using the M4 and had a chance to test, think and rethink about what works and doesn't work while frequently away from home in dry sandy places of the world. I went with a gas piston AR because I wanted something different than a DI system and something to use during tactical carbine classes and range plinking. Some of the training classes and range sessions involve many rounds and dirty conditions so something that was easier to clean was definitely a plus. (I know there are many many opinions about reliability, accuracy, bolt carrier tilt and weight but I'll leave that to the experts to discuss ad infinitum). Went with the PWS systems because it has been around for a few years, also liked the design of the bolt carrier group that mitigates bolt tilt, the adjustable gas system and having the upper rail height profile of a standard M4 sold me on the PWS system. The next step in the build process was to determine what company would build the upper using the PWS gas piston upper. Word of mouth referral, positive board reviews, the the DiamonBlack IonBond finish nudged me to go with Addax. Finally, talking to Chris and picking his brain on what works and what doesn't work solidified my decision, a weapon system is nothing without a good builder who is honest about the system's capabilities and supports the product 100%.
The curve ball during the GPU selection process was the availability of the newer ATAC long stroke system. Although the system looked appealing, the proprietary nature of the fore-end panels, non free floated handguard and further deviation from the widely available standard AR15 parts dissuaded me from going for the newer shinier bit of kit.
I placed my order for the upper in mid July and at the time the website listed an expected delivery time of 12-16 weeks. I decided that getting it built correctly by a knowledgeable builder / gunsmith was definitely worth the wait. To my surprise, Chris called me 6 weeks later to verify some of the final specs on the upper before he completed the build and testing.
The lower had been finished and sitting in the gun safe for 8 months before it was mated to the lower. The RRA lower mated perfectly to the Addax upper. Initially when I put the upper and lower together, I had to use the carpeted floor to exert downward pressure to seat the rear portion of the upper and lower. Once pinned together, there was ZERO slop between the upper and lower. The Accuwedge is more of an insurance rather than a necessity. The RRA NM 2 stage trigger lets off at 4.5-5 pounds and has a short reset. IMHO it is of the best “bang for the buck” upgrade to an AR.
Believe it or not, the portion of the build that took the longest to obtain was the EOTech XPS 2-2. I placed the order in April but delays from both the manufacturer and the retailer was finally resolved in October. The optic is smaller and lighter than the previous EOTech models and the CR 123 battery is mounted transversely. There are some reports of battery contact failures in other EOTech models with knuckle dragger magnum rounds and high round count, but the redesign should address this issue. Furthermore, the 65 MOA outer reticle is great for CQB err... training classes in my case and odd angle shooting (supine, under vehicle, etc) drills. The center 1 MOA dot gives it an edge over other red dot systems that are 2 or 4 MOAs. Finally, the icing on the cake is the second 1 MOA dot that acts as a bullet drop compensator. The manual lists the lower dot at 300 yards, but of course this will vary greatly with the different bullet weights, charge, barrel length amongst other variables. My familiarity of using the EOTech in the field, the transverse mounted redesign using the CR 123 battery and the added functionality of the second 1 MOA dot won me over versus other capable carbine optics.
The Hensoldt magnifier is originally from an anti-tank system from Germany. The optic is clear and bright with minimal distortion. It is a 2.5x magnifier, and I'd prefer a 3x or 4x magnification and an longer eye relief, but for ~$20 it is an excellent, durable reach out and touch someone scope. LaRue used to make the "Po Boy special" (the LaRue EoTech QD swing mount and the Hensoldt scope sold together in combination) but is no longer available last time I checked. LaRue Tactical QD swing mount is the cat's meow or what-ever jargon you want to use: sturdy, well designed, simple yet elegant.
The slings, sling attachment, rail covers, stocks are all subjective to personal taste. I've found that the above listed items work for me, work well for the guys who've trained me, and work well for the guys I've worked with who've been to hell and back. I personally don't like the broom handle grip especially when shooting around or over barricades and going up and down ladders. Of note, I would have gone with the Magpul front MBUS, but thought better of putting a polymer sight on a hot front gas block. The Midwest Industries ghost ring flip up front system in Dark Earth added the matching bling-bling for the aesthetics of the Addax GPU in Dark Earth build.
The original packaging – well padded and included items
Finished build
Kind of funny that it ended up looking very similar to this offering from LaRue tactical!
The Addax GPU Dark Earth build
Range report:
We'll I finally had a chance to shoot. The beautiful day, mid 70's with a 5-8 MPH wind blowing left to right at the range. I wanted to test different ammunition and its effect on grouping. The rifle was shot from a bench with my range bag as a rest at 100 yards using the EOTech XPS 2-2 with the Hensoldt 2.5x magnifier. Each grouping was a 3 shot group with no cleaning or lubrication in between the groups. The orange sticker measures 1.5” in diameter. The furthest 2 holes were measured outer edge to inner edge.
Fiocchi 55 gr soft tip. Grouped OK. My thought was that the bullet is probably too light for the 1/7 barrel. No problems with function to include lock back at the last round. I suppose it might be a decent HD round, but may barely be enough for 8” steel plate accuracy at 200-300 yrds, so I kept on looking.
M855 62 gr green tip. Surprisingly good group. I'm impressed! The milspec ammunition shot very well. No problems with function to include lock back at the last round. Great overall round with increasing availability and prices coming down. I'd definitely use it for training and shot better with this ammo and Addax GPU combo than any time during qualifications / zeroing with the standard M4.
I just wish I had more in hand but I used the M855 to zero the rifle, so we're limited to a 3 shot group.
Fiocchi 69 gr Sierra Match King BTHP. Ding ding! I think we have a winner. Sub MOA at 100 yards on the first group, I thought that this was pure luck so I adjusted the EOTech a few clicks and repeated. Sub MOA again at 100 yards. Color me impressed. I'm sure that the grouping could be even tighter with a better scope. For what the rifle is intended to do, this is more than adequate for 8” steel plates out to 300 yards. ***Note there is a solitary hole in the 1 O'clock position. This is a stray as I was trying to sight in the rifle initially with the M855.***
Fiocchi 77 gr Sierra Match King BTHP. Very nice group. This combo might be very adequate due to the heavier weight of the bullet and better penetration and terminal ballistics at longer distances. I've never shot Fiocchi center fire ammunition before, but their 22 LR has been amazingly accurate in my handguns, rifles and AR-22 conversions. These results might sway me toward stocking up on some of their match grade .223 ammunition.
I've shot a total of 200 rounds through the rifle with zero malfunction and accuracy I'm not used to seeing in the M4 and even my 3-gun AR15. I have used several different magazines including the Magpul windowed and non windowed, OK industries GI spec, D&H GI spec among other magazines with zero issues and full bolt lock back after the last round. The mid length GPU was ~20% less kick than the carbine length DI system in my experience. With the Enidine AR-restor buffer in place, it felt similar to my 3-gun AR15 (16” middie with full length buffer and buffer tube). The clean up was a breeze. Bolt carrier tilt? I don't see anything more than regular wear circumferentially around the buffer tube. The bolt carrier group's sharp edges seem to have been rounded to help as well, a nice touch.
I used a wrench to open up the front gas plug, broke it down and dropped the small parts into a tin can and sprayed it down with brake cleaner. Lightly brushed the carbon off the piston parts. The chamber had only some primer flakes and small amounts of brass shavings, but was able to clean the chamber and the barrel in 10 minutes. The only issue I've had was with the firing pin retaining pin. After taking it out of the bolt carrier group, I couldn't get it back in for the life of me. Upon inspection, one of the leg was slightly bent out. I straightened it with a needle nose plier, filed the tip to make it a bit smoother and it went back in just fine.
Overall, I am impressed with the quality of the Addax GPU and was blown away with the accuracy and reliability of the rifle. The easy clean up is just an icing on a delicious cake. The crazy thing is that it can probably shoot better with a target bench rest and a better scope! It is my opinion that the rifle is a better shooter (already shooting sub MOA) than I am capable of shooting.
If you want an excellent rifle built by knowledgeable builders who backs up their work, I highly recommend the Addax Tactical GPU. You know it's a good weapon when it moves to the position nearest to the door on the gun safe. That's where it is and I don't see it moving out of that position any time soon.
If you have any questions I'll do my best to answer. If you have any recommendations or suggestions for improvement, please post as well.
Cheers,
Mr. Wolf
Mr. Wolf - "That's 30 minutes away, I'll be there in 10."
November 6th 2009 6:59 AM
I just keep saving the $$$ up for more 
Waiting for the Zombie Killer Addax GPU later this year or early next year. Of course Santa has my 6.8 SPC Addax GPU on the "Wish List" 
