Home AR-15 Carbine vs. Mid-Length Gas System

Carbine vs. Mid-Length Gas System

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It all depends on how you plan to use the AR and what you will be expecting out of the firearm.
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48 COMMENTS

  15. If you're getting a 14.5 inch barrel, you'd mine as well get a carbine length gas system and use an adjustable gas block. If you're getting a 16 inch barrel, then you still mine as well get a carbine length gas system with an adjustable gas block. Although depending on what type of shooting you're going to be doing, if it's going to be a longer range hunting gun or hotter loads or something. Maybe a longer mid length gas system could work, or a slower twist rate. Seems like most AR's made that are between 14 and 16 inch, are cqb focused and have a carbine length gas system. With a 1:7 , or 1:9 twist rate. Under 14 inch is probably going to have a pistol length gas system, cause that would be kind of crazy to have a 9.75 inch gas tube on a 10.5 or even a 12 inch barrel.

    If it's above 16, at like 18 or 20 inch barrel. Then you'd probably have a mid length gas tube, an I would think that you'd really only have a rifle length gas system on a 20+ barrel. I guess most manufacturers build their AR's with carbine gas systems, so there's less chance of failures to cycle. An the guns are over gassed so that they'll work with most ammunitions. While at the same time, they're setting people up to put more wear an tear on their AR's and on their parts. Which again works out perfectly for companies that have proprietary parts, and are trying to sell stuff more frequently lol.

    I forget what the standard diameter is for AR gas ports, I think it's like .071 – .084 or something like that. I bought a some what budget 16 inch 7.62×39 upper, not like a BCA or anything but. A Grid Defense, that didn't really have some of the more detailed specs listed to it. Was kind of surprised that it had a 1:10 twist rate, carbine gas system, but I'm not mad at that. I reached out to the company with some questions on more details specs, they said that they make their gas ports a little larger to comp for various ammunitions. Basically they over gas their AR's, an said that the dimensions were somewhere in the range of .092 – .104 which is pretty large comparably. I haven't yet even shot the build, but I imagine that their AR's / barrels / uppers. Probably have pretty decent recoil kick, but I put a Geissele super 42, H2 buffer in it. Which should probably help pretty good alone, and still added an adjustable gas block. We shall see though, I also through in a pretty light drop in trigger. That I'm not sure I'll keep, super light hammer springs on drop in triggers I've noticed.

  18. Carbine with adjustable gas block is the way to go, just don't cheap out on the block and install it properly.

    You can adjust for various ammo types, reliability and feel…. i can't believe we're in the year 2025 and adjustable blocks aren't standard equipment at this point.

  25. Bruh let the beard get up on ur face. You look like a dude going down on a chick from the 70s. Like part Amish. Its like your facial hair couldn't decide if it wanted to be a thing or not. Your mustache decided to move out to the country cause it didn't like neighbors. Did your sideburns kill themselves. For real tho I'm just talking shit cause the internet is like that. Im sure we could be buddies. But it does look like a Santa beard that got pulled down.

  35. Always go with the longest you can get away with. There are other ways to increase gas pressure (like if your shooting underpowered steel ammo or in situations where the bcg is gonna be gunked up real bad ), but as far as gas system length, longer is better. Another way you can kind of cheat the system is by putting an a5 buffer system. That makes a carbine feel like a midlength and a midlength feel like a rifle etc

  36. I’ve never heard nor read that a carbine length gas system is more or less reliable than a mid length. Only that mid length tends to shoot softer/smoother. This was very specific to a 14.5 barrel and dwell time. I would suspect that ammo selection would be a major factor in reliability more than gas system/dwell time length. Interesting position.

  38. Carbine length is solid because you don’t need to clean them as often, since they recoil harder there’s less of a chance that the bolt hangs up. That being said you also wanna make sure you have a beefed up bolt carrier group since that extra force will degrade it faster.

  41. I have a carbine length system that I slapped an adjustable gas block on. It’s feels super smooth now and soft and I can adjust for any ammo I’m shooting I have have it closed nicely for high pressure rounds or suppressor, or as open as I want desire for anything else. I did this because at that time. When I purchased the firearm i couldn’t afford much of anything fancy, and it just ended up coming with a carbine length gas system. From rags to riches is the joke I make with the gun 😂. But that’s also what’s so impressive about the Ar-15 platform. Everything is so easy to work on and change/replace that if all you can afford is a $350-$600 rifle then so be it but you can also easily change nearly everything to how you would like it to be

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