The Ruger AR-556 16.1 rifle is a semi-automatic rifle made of 7075-T6 aircraft-grade forging aluminum and features a 11-aluminum free-floating handguard to improve precision. The Ruger AR-556 has a 16-inch barrel with fixed front sights and a polymer-rounded handguard, whereas the Ruger AR-556 MPR sports an 18-inch barrel within an aluminum handguard that is free-floated. An AR with a folding stock and free-floating barrel inside a longer aluminum handguard is considered to be the way to go for a tactical rifle or a competitive one nowadays, though really you see only 18-inch barrels in competitive rifles and the Mk12 Mk12 MPR knockoff. The Ruger AR-556 semiautomatic has nice, chunky foregrips suitable for most hands, and the handguard is small enough to accommodate a wide variety of accessories.
What I liked best about the rifle were the barrel nuts and the Delta rings, both patent-pending designs that fit handguards up to the length of a carbines, and utilize a standard-sized, tang-wrench Delta ring. The DB-15 is a great semi-automatic rifle in general at the affordable price point, and it has the same gas-impingement system as the Ruger AR-556, a Magpul pistol grip, and slightly heavier weight. The Ruger AR-556 semi-automatic has the traditional carbine-length (mid-length) direct-impingement system, whereas the previous model, the SR-556, had the piston-driven gas system. Unlike the original AR-556, which had a carbine-length gas system, the longer Ruger AR-556 MPR barrel allows Ruger to utilize a rifle-length gas system.
The Ruger AR-556 handgun also accepts the same magazines that AR-15s do, including 20- and 30-round magazines in standard capacity, as well as 10 or 15-round magazines for handgun owners living in states with stricter gun control laws. The use of NATO-style StANAG magazines is a change from the older Ruger Mini-14 and Mini-30 rifles, which used Ruger-branded, relatively expensive magazines. The Ruger 8529 features a 11 aluminum free-floating handguard that allows it to achieve better precision, it also features Magpul M-Lok accessory-attachment slots along the 3, 6, and 9-of-the clock positions, and further slots along the angle-facing portion near the muzzle.
The Ruger AR-556 rifle also has additional attachment points on angled slots near the muzzle, so you can customize your handguard as desired. The flat-top upper receiver handguard is a free-floating design that allows you to adjust it to fit accurately, and it has Magpul M-LOK attachment slots along its 3, 6, and 9 positions. The lower receiver of the Ruger AR-556 MPR rifle features Magpul MOE foregrips and the Ruger Elite 452 dual-stage AR-trigger, offering a smooth, clean, 4.5-pound trigger pull.
With the stock extended all the way, the weight point of the Ruger AR-556 MPR sits just below the forward takedown post, a very good position for a rifle that is 18 inches long. The barrel is floating freely within the handguard. Most of the handguards, as mentioned, also feature rails to add accessories that will help to make the Ruger AR-556 even more tactical.
This Ruger AR-556(r) model features an M-LOK-compatible handguard that is loosely floating to allow quick accessory attachment. For example, the handgun grip is hollowed on the inside, the six-position stock is fairly basic, and the handguard at the front of the Ruger AR-556 is fairly thin with no attachment options. While that handguard does indeed technically function, and it does a decent job at protecting your hands from heat generated from the barrel, it is also incredibly basic, and a part of why the AR-556 is sold at such a cheap price. While upgrading to a new handguard would obligate you to invest more cash in your Ruger AR-556, it would make your AR-556 much stronger and easier to add lights, lasers, optics, and whatever else you would like to add.
The Ruger AR-556 was designed as an affordable AR-15, and when youare forced to upgrade to a new upper handguard, it honestly feels like youare not buying an AR-15 on a budget anymore. For anyone scraping by with a bare bottom for budget barrels, sure, Iam sure that their first direct-impingement AR15 is going to hold up against anything a casual shooter might throw at it. Compared with a Smith & Wesson M&P Sport, I may be tempted to pick the Ruger up, based on a few features.
The DPMS Oracle AR-15 is slightly lighter than a Ruger AR-556 semi-auto, has a gas block on the rail, an A3-forged 7076 T6 lower receiver with Picatinny rails, and a GlacierGuards handguard that is heat-resistant. The Ruger Elite 452 AR-Trigger features full-strength trigger springs to ensure consistent primer ignition, and lightweight triggers allowing faster hold-off times to improve accuracy. The Ruger 8529 features a cold-hammer-forged, full-profile barrel with super-precise rifling that delivers outstanding precision, durability, and ease of cleaning. With its brushed-black, satin-finished design and cast-aluminum alloy, Mil-Spec 8620 bolt carrier, and Chrome-Moly, zero-flying barrel, the DB-15s handling and durability will meet your needs for those long hours at the shooting range.
Available in carbine or medium-length gas systems, Knights Armament is free-floating nature helps to provide precision from the AR-556, though it comes at the cost of handguards not being stabilized well enough for adding most optics. The rear sights on your AR-556 are the Rapid Deploy folding sight by Ruger, which has windage adjustment, and is likely to be all that you need out of a manufacturers box sights. Below the Ruger logo on the left side of the receiver, you will see these two rifles are manufactured at the Ruger plant in Mayodan, NC. I am not one to worship on the altar of fat barrels on combat rifles, and with the multi-purpose just in the name of Rugers AR-556 MPR, this qualifies.