So I’ve been kinda experimenting with the AR-180 and Palmetto JAKL. Both are AR-type guns that utilize a different gas system than the usual AR-15. In addition to the different gas system, they also both incorporate a recoil assembly system that allows for a folding stock, unlike the AR-15 which requires a buffer tube in the stock.

Why the interest in this sort of thing when the AR-15 is the undisputed king of .223 carbines these days? (And by king, I mean most prolific and ubiquitous, not necessarily ‘best’.)

Well, I’ve always had an interest in guns that were compact. The Ruger A-Team Special, the HK93A3, the Daewoo K series, side- and underfolder AK’s, etc, etc. But when it comes to logistics, there is absolutely no intelligent dissent that the AR series is the most easy-to-feed carbine.

The original AR-180 used proprietary mags, scope mount, and a bunch of other features. From a logistics standpoint it was suboptimal. The JAKL was built from the ground up to have a large amount of commonality with the AR…in fact, other than a minor tweak to the bolt release, the JAKL uses a completely bog-standard AR lower…thus, your supply of AR lower parts is completely useful. The Brownells AR180B also uses, with zero mods, a stock AR lower.

The JAKL uses a forward mounted non-reciprocating charging handle on the left side of the gun. I like this much better than the right-side reciprocating bolt-mounted handle on the AR180B. I find it handy since I’m right handed..I can hold the gun in my right hand, swap a mag and charge wth my left hand.

Both guns, though having different operating systems, have a tendency to heat up the handguards. My experience is that youre going to really want a vertical foregrip. Both guns, since they dont use a buffer tube, have a pic rail at the back of the receiver so you can mount whatever 1913-compatible stock you may want. On the AR-180B I purchased a original-style sidefolder from Midwest Industries, and for the JAKL, I rather really like the JMAC side folder skeleton stocks. The JMAC aren’t cheap, but they appear to be exceptionally well made and solid.

Functionally, both should, in theory, have an advantage over the AR-15 in terms of reliability due to the gas systems of the 180 and JAKL not venting gases into the receiver. Although, to be fair, if you fire enough .223 in one session to gum up your AR you probably have a much bigger problem on your hand. But, on the other hand, a system that can be indifferent to the occasional benign neglect is always nice. You don’t always have time to detail clean your gun at the end of the day.

For my needs, a compact .223 carbine is what I want to tuck away in the truck. A full size M4-style is compact but not as compact as a gun that doesnt have 9″ of buffer tube hanging out the back.

Both guns, by the way , are a good bit more money than your average mid-tier AR. This is what happens when you haven’t achieved sales figures to get you into the economies-of-scale territory.

Depending on how the ‘arm brace’ thing goes, one of the JAKL pistols with an arm brace would be a super sweet and compact package…not to far from the SIG Rattler. A specialty gun, to be sure, but when you have that one-out-ten occasion when its exactly what the doctor ordered…..well, it’ll be handy.

Further updates on both of these platforms as warranted.

I assure you that it wasn’t planned, but it seems that I am, inadvertently, testing all the non-direct-impingement AR clones these days. I picked up a couple JAKLs which are using the long stroke gas system of the AK. And, for no reason that I can think of except for a wild impulse, I seem to have picked up one of the new Brownell AR-180 reintroductions. This particular flavor of AR-wannabe uses the short stroke piston system. What both of these designs have going for it is that they allow for a folding stock, and they are a bit more hygienic in terms of keeping fouling out of the action.

Years ago, I took a defensive carbine course. Unsurprisingly everyone was using some flavor of AR-15. I recall that I could fire about 400 rounds before the gun needed a couple squirts of lube or some quick cleaning to keep it running. In theory, the non-direct-impingement guns should run way past that without needing cleaning. Guess I’ll find out.

For those who are a bit unfamiliar, Brownells took the concept of the AR-180 and ran with it. They updated the design to work on any milspec AR lower, which is a huge win since it allows the gun to use plentiful AR mags rather than the proprietary AR-180 mags. (Although, yeah, you could modify an AR mag to work. Usually.)

The tradeoffs are the usual ones when moving away from the direct impingement system…a hit to accuracy since there are now moving bits along the barrel. In fact, best I can tell, the only semiauto .223 carbines out there that dont have moving parts on the barrel are the direct impingement ARs, the gasless HK93, and the wierd lever delay of the FAMAS.

If someone would bring out an HK93 that takes AR mags and has a bolt hold open I would buy a dozen. (And, interestingly, Hk did exactly that.)

So, as soon as a couple accessories show up for this thing, I’ll take it out and see if it’s got anything going for it. Right now, the most interesting thing about it is that….its NOT an AR.

So a while back I purchased a Palmetto State Armory JAKL. It’s basically an AR with an AK gas system. So, you get the top-notch ergo of Stoner and the better-than-direct-impingement reliability of the long-stroke gas system. Yup, there’ll be a tradeoff in accuracy since the barrel has moving parts attached to it that the AR does not. But, for my purposes, I’ve no doubt it will be plenty accurate for my needs.

It had some teething issues, but after about 200 rounds it was nicely broken in and its been running like a champ since. And, since we know that “one is none” it was time to…uhm…get another one.

What’d I get? Same thing but with a slightly longer barrel. In olive green, naturally. One thing I have to give PSA credit for…in a world of black guns (or is it ‘guns of color’?), they offer most of their products in green or desert. It’s nice to change things up once in a while. From a tactical standpoint, black seems a bad choice for when you’re out running around playing ‘Red Dawn’. Black objects stick out quite a bit during the day, and at night pretty much any dark color looks black.

The two things that, for me, make the JAKL attractive are the lack of a buffer tube which means a folding stock is a breeze, and the can-take-more-neglect-than-an-AR gas system. It’s also rather handy for logistics that the JAKL lower is simply a regular AR lower with a couple parts changed out.

So, I’ll grab a couple hundred rounds of .223, a couple pmags, and head to the range this weekend and break this little guy in.

By the by, from a mathematical standpoint, the AR pattern rifle makes more sense than the JAKL. They are much cheaper, probably more accurate, and are easier to accessorize with third-party parts. However….I rather like the side charging handle and the compactness. If/when this wrist brace nonsense blows over, the pistol version of this thing with a ‘brace’ makes for an exceptionally handy little carbine.