Daniel Defense M4 Carbine
Daniel Defense, known for manufacturing AR-15 parts, have produced their first complete rifle.
Daniel Defense M4 Carbine
The carbine features:
* their own in-house manufactured lower receiver
* 1:7 16″ barrel
* Daniel Defense Omega X 12.0 FSP rail that extends forward of the front sight / gas block
* Daniel Defense A1.5 rear sight.
* Magpul stock.
* Daniel Defense forward grip
I like the look of the A1.5 rear sight.
Promotional video:
No word on pricing.
More info at DDM4.com
UPDATE: MSRP seems to be $1600. See randomhero58’s comment below.
Hat Tip: Tactical Life
Not too sure what to think of this “product”, can’t say I’ve heard of Daniel Defense until today. It depends on the price but as far as I can see it’s a purchase for those who don’t have a few extra magpul stocks laying around or for those who aren’t wanting to mod their rifle with their own hands.
I wonder who their target consumer is with the upgraded iron sites as a “feature”. I know the first thing I do when I get a new gun is attach a EOTech or Trijicon, unless of course it’s an AK…
From their website it appears they have some well build products. And maybe introducing a rifle will bring their name forward. Because I am a geardo & gun nut but I have never heard of them. I will definitely look into ordering a few of their products to test them out.
i just picked up a DD lower for an SBR build i’m working on. its an extremely nice lower and everything is of visible quality. the mag well flaring is very nice as well. And the new magpul MOE stock is very nice. Just like a CTR but it feels more sturdy and just lacks the “memory” settings.
btw, does anyone know what type of muffs the guy is using? they look very low-profile for electronic hearing protection.
AIM Surplus has them listed for $1549 (not currently in stock).
Looks like a nice carbine. It is interesting what they have done with the forearm rail. It certainly makes for a different look for a gun with a carbine-length gas system. Makes me wonder why they didn’t just go for a midlength gas system, which I have always preferred for 16″ barrel AR’s, in terms of both functioning and aesthetics.
Quite a few places have been selling them for a few weeks lately. Apparently pretty slowly and people are blaming there rail design that goes forward of the front site base. Though I love that design and I’ve been looking to replace my current rail with that model on my carbine.
Other than some spiffy accessories what makes this AR15 platform different form all the others?
If it still shit’s were it eats I’ll pass.
Gun, thanks for the price. I don’t think they are ready to ship yet.
@ Cadpat
Daniel Defense is actualy a really well known company. if you go with nice, high-end, “tactical” sling mounts and other mounts, you would most likely use Daniel Defense. they have traditionally stuck to these markets. I personally only owned a couple of sling mounts from them until a few weeks ago when i bought their lower as I stated up there. my primary AR is a s&w M&P15, and it hurts me to say but the DD lower is a fair bit better build quality than the M&P15
Yah I feel a little odd not recognizing the brand, maybe it’s because of my geographical location. It does look like some real quality work & hope to pick a few things up.
Another clone for the clone wars I see. This AR trend seems to be like the SUV thing….everybody is making em. When will it go bust? See my previous gripe:
http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2008/11/07/the-turkish-hk416-mehmetcik-1/#comment-8490.
They’ve been on sale for at least a month or so from what I’ve seen. ADCO has it: http://www.adcofirearms.com/itemdetails_.cfm?inventorynumber=3415 , PK Firearms has it: http://www.pkfirearms.com/store/get_items.aspx?type=0&term=142 , Rainier Arms has it: http://www.rainierarms.com/?page=shop/detail&product_id=1283 , AIM has it too (but not in stock at the moment): http://www.aimsurplus.com/acatalog/Daniel_Defense_.223_5.56_M4_Rifle.html
Haven’t heard any negatives about it so far.
randomhero58, thanks for the links.
DD primary business is AR15 accessories. They are well know in the AR15 community. Their Omega 12 rails is popular. I’m not sure if they were the first one to introduced extended forward front sight rail. Many other companies have similar products in the market.
I prefer a low profile gas block with rife length rail on a 16 inch barrel then the extended forward front sight rail tho.
Great Product! Daniel we are all very proud of you and your team! Best regards, Lee
Purchased my DD M4 a couple of weeks ago, chose between 6920 Colt, i love my DD M4, lightweight, rail system, 30 round clip.
Sweet shooting machine.
I recommend it.
Clyde Armory in Athens GA has them for $1495.
Can the DDM4 free-float rail be removed and attached to another AR-15 (or MR556) or is it proprietary?
If it’s proprietary I will be heartbroken.
DD is great for the cash, quality and fit is great and its just a trigger job away from a real knocker.
What is a good optic for this weapon?
After having done several weeks of research as well as looked at a dozen or so AR’s, I have concluded that the DD M4 is the gun to get. Its versatility is significant offering the buyer many options to add everything from front grips to red LED’s to flashlights to a bayonet. If you are taller, the longer rail is also VERY nice offering the shooter a more comfortable and stable forward grip. The gun also comes with the forward vertical hand grip, which would be at least $100 to add with any other gun.
The 1:7 twist ratio is also nice, although I’m not convinced that it’s necessary. But, having it means that if I want to fire an 80 grain bullet with any accuracy, I can.
The sights are simple and one can easily and quickly sight a target and shoot. The weighting of the weapon is excellent and it sits well (comfortable) in your hands (better than almost every other gun I looked at in any case in my opinion).
Having multiple positions available for the adjustable butt stock is nice. One thing here that would be nice would be to have a metal stock although I was unable to find a metal stock on any gun that was under several thousand dollars.
Again, in my opinion, the next closest AR is the Smith and Wesson M&P15T. The S&W is also a very nice gun, but there are several things about it that I believe make the DD M4 the gun to get. The S&W has collapsible sights, where as the DD does not. I’m not sure what the benefit of collapsible sights other than storage or perhaps moving through rough country. I don’t plan on trekking through the jungle and I also don’t think I need to protect the sights. I’d rather have them set like they are on the DD.
Although the rail on the M&P15T is a lot longer than the rail on the M&P15X, it’s still shorter than the DD. Also, the S&W does not come with the forward vertical hand grip. Getting it adds a minimum of $100 to the price, making the total cost of the Smith and Wesson the same as the cost of the DDM4
Finally, I simply think the quality of the DD M4 is better than the S&W M&P15T. The DDM4 looks better and it feels better in my hands.
My guess is both guns fire close to identical (I have not fired the DDM4). But I suspect the DDM4 is more durable and thus will last longer.
Since the price of both guns (as I would equip them) is identical, the M4 is a no brainer for me.
Other guns I looked at include:
Colt AR15 LE – $1600, 20 round mag, shorter rail, weighting not as comfortable as the DD or the S&W. Pass
Bushmaster Modular Carbine AR15 – $1400, 1:9 twist, shorter rail, also the rail is slightly more limiting in what you can use with it. I liked this gun, but for $200 I can get the forward vertical hand grip, the longer rail, the more adjustable stock and the better weighting feel, all which come stock on the DDM4. If you don’t need the vertical grip nor do you care about the longer rail and you want to save $200 but still get a metal rail, then this is probably a good choice. For me, pass.
SIG 556 Classic Swat Diopter – $2,100 – This is an awesome gun! If you can easily spend the extra $500, then this gun is worth it. You get the 1:7 twist ratio, the 16″ barrel with Swiss style hinged stock that is collapsible. The diopter sights are also very cool. The gun “feels” super comfortable in your hands. It is weighted perfectly. The only other gun that is comparable, in my opinion, is the Daniel Defense M4 Carbine.
Unfortunately I can’t tell you what all of these guns are like to fire (other than the Smith and Wesson M&P15T) but after extensive conversation and research, I believe the Daniel Defense and the SIG to be the best performing guns. The Smith and Wesson M&P15T and the Bushmaster are also very nice guns. But, taking everything into consideration, I believe the gun to get is the Daniel Defense M4 Carbine.
In any case, these are all my opinions.
Jason, Phoenix, AZ
Its awesome gun. The best price I found was with bmc tactical. $1299. Cant beat that price
http://bmc-tactical.com/2009/08/12/daniel-defense-m4-carbine/
I’ve had this gun for about a week now. I’ve put roughly 200 rounds of a mix of standard 223 and m855/ss109. The gun is built very very well! That is one point on which dd thrives. In addition, this gun functions flawlessly. A really great shooter. I will tell you though, that if you are going for accuracy, steer clear of 55grain bullets. They fire safely and are great for plinking but the 7:1 twist seems to “overspin or over stabalize” them causing more fliers and a really spread out group. The m855 with a 62 grain was very accurate. So my advice would be 62 grain or heavier, and you’ll have one of the top carbines on the market today! Happy shootin!
bought the ddxv version which has less bells & whistles. exact same rifle. the look and feel is much better quality than others. this is the first rifle i’ve ever fired. after sighting in with laser bore sighter my grouping was within 1 1/2 inch. very accurate rifle once sighted in considering i have never fired one before. this is a very good rifle.