Introducing the Dual Taper Lock system, available in the Quantum DTL rifle. Blackout Defense is the first in the industry to design a method of mounting the barrel and handguard that is both self-centering and resistant to axial movement.
Tapers are well known across industries to be one of the best self-centering mechanical fasteners for critical, continuous load, and loads under thermal expansion. The DTL system harnesses the power of taper locks to secure and center the barrel.
The DTL system uses two tapers and two interlocking barrel nuts. The taper on our custom barrel extension mates with a taper on the I.D. of the first barrel nut; the second taper on the barrel profile mates with a taper on the I.D. of the second barrel nut.
This guarantees the centricity of the barrel and upper bores while stabilizing the chamber. The DTL design delivers a smoother shooting experience while prolonging barrel accuracy by providing rigidity and harmonic dampening right over the chamber.
It also provides an exceptionally rigid base for mounting the handguard that does not result in handguard deflection, while also substantially reducing POI shifts from impact and trauma to the rifle.
The barrel in the DTL system features a heavy profile and precision-machined thermal expansion rings. These rings encourage the barrel to expand in the direction of the bore rather than to deflect and shift MOA when under extreme heat.
Our Blackout Defense barrel, with our muzzle device, is capable of shooting 1MOA or better*
*Based on a 100-yd test in our facility and 77gr OTM Black Hills Ammunition
The Dual Taper Lock system works in conjunction with our proprietary tapered barrel extension and tapered barrel. This provides a "push-pull" relationship ensuring bore centricity of the upper receiver and barrel.
Prolonged shooting creates a lot of heat, which can be the enemy of precision. Hot metal expansion becomes irregular. The thermal expansion rings featured on our DTL barrel guide the barrel to expand in the direction of the bore rather than to deflect and shift MOA.
Thanks to the dual taper mounting system, the proprietary handguard mount delivers extreme rigidity between the upper receiver and handguard. No handguard deflection while keeping the barrel in place when exposed to extreme impacts or trauma.
Our heavy profile precision lapped barrels start with Premium 416-R stainless steel bars that are gun-drilled and reamed in 5R rifling and 1:8 twist with increased cycle times and frequent tool changes for tighter tolerances across the entire production run. They are then lapped to reduce tooling marks and achieve a superior bore finish. The blanks are then fully stress relieved and precision air gauged before profiling, threading, and chambering begins.
Available in Black Nitride or cryogenically treated finishes.
Learn moreThe Quantum series lower receivers are equipped with our patented Presslock™ technology. The Linear Compression Pad ensures a tight, rattle free fitment, essentially "bedding" the upper and lower receiver together while eliminating carrier tilt.
Our uppers and handguards feature precision drilled pinholes for perfect monolithic-like alignment and anti-rotational rigidity.
The DTL handguard features 7 sides of M-LOK compatible slots front to back. Combine that with our full length picatinny top, and your accessories can be configured exactly the way you want them.
Zero pre-travel. Zero post-travel. Combined with our short and positive reset design, the Zero trigger is exceptionally smooth, crisp, and fast.
Learn more or Buy nowThe ambidextrous design allows for multiple ways of use, no matter your shooting side or position.
Learn more or Buy nowIts modular design lets you easily swap from a standard 90° to 45° throw simply by removing the detent pressure and rotating the drum 180° inside the lower receiver.
Learn more or Buy nowBillet steel low profile rear QD plate with anti-rotation limits for ambidextrous sling use.
Learn more or Buy nowOur carrier is manufactured from 8620 steel, while our shot-peened bolt is made from either 9310 or carpenter 158. The bolts are batch high pressure tested and individually magnetic particle inspected after heat-treat to ensure no microcracks.
Learn more or Buy nowOur KeyMo compatible muzzle devices are officially licensed by Dead Air, ensuring proper specs and fitment with your KeyMo equipped suppressor.
Learn more or Buy now13.9″ MID, P&W KEYMO HYBRID BLACK, ZERO TRIGGER FLAT – 3.0 LBS
13.9″ MID, P&W KEYMO HYBRID BLACK, ZERO TRIGGER FLAT – 3.0 LBS
13.9″ MID, P&W KEYMO HYBRID H900, ZERO TRIGGER FLAT – 3.0 LBS
13.9″ MID, P&W KEYMO HYBRID BLACK, ZERO TRIGGER FLAT – 3.0 LBS
13.9″ MID, P&W KEYMO HYBRID BLACK, ZERO TRIGGER FLAT – 3.0 LBS
13.9″ MID, P&W KEYMO HYBRID BLACK, ZERO TRIGGER FLAT – 3.0 LBS
13.9″ MID, P&W KEYMO HYBRID BLACK, ZERO TRIGGER FLAT – 3.0 LBS
16″ MID, ROCKSETT KEYMO HYBRID BLACK, ZERO TRIGGER FLAT – 3.0 LBS
16″ MID, ROCKSETT KEYMO HYBRID BLACK, ZERO TRIGGER FLAT – 3.0 LBS
16″ MID, ROCKSETT KEYMO HYBRID H900, ZERO TRIGGER FLAT – 3.0 LBS
16″ MID, ROCKSETT KEYMO HYBRID BLACK, ZERO TRIGGER FLAT – 3.0 LBS
16″ MID, ROCKSETT KEYMO HYBRID BLACK, ZERO TRIGGER FLAT – 3.0 LBS
16″ MID, ROCKSETT KEYMO HYBRID BLACK, ZERO TRIGGER FLAT – 3.0 LBS
16″ MID, ROCKSETT KEYMO HYBRID BLACK, ZERO TRIGGER FLAT – 3.0 LBS
Question
Alan (verified owner) –
Is this a DI or Piston gun?
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Jason Stratton –
I had an opportunity to shoot this rifle,and my goodness,,wth have u guys and girls done. it’s really hard to make a ‘difference ‘ in the ar realm I was shocked. I was Savin up for a dd for my son who’s doing some cool stuff in the military and im so proud of him,plys he just had our 1st grand daughter. bc up until now it really did shoot the best out of my experience. but now my side job money is going for this. I love the innovation and attention to detail. then the story of the husband and wife badass team was amazing. thank you guys so much and if u have a blem plz plzplz let me know
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Blackout Defense –
Thank you, we appreciate your support.
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Blackout Defense –
Our rifles are direct impingement.
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Alfonso G –
I love this rifle, it feels nice and looks just as good- that said I have a couple thoughts.
1. for this price it should have come with a full Ambidextrous lower, I understand that one is being created but as an early adopter I can’t stop thinking that for the same price I could have gotten a reputable rifle with this feature included.
2. few parts are as important as the barrel, and barrel wear is happens. I was wondering when the time comes, will I be able to replace the barrel with any barrel of my choice or it will have to be a Blackout Defense barrel? (proprietary).
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Blackout Defense –
We are thrilled you are pleased with your rifle. We know you have a lot of choices and are honored that after a careful review , you chose to purchase from us. You can absolutely change your barrel out at any time with a mil-spec barrel if you desire. If you wish to keep your handguard, simply contact us for the barrel nut that makes it compatible with mil-spec barrels.
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Question
Zach –
Hi, do you plan on offering 1:7 twist barrels in the future?
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Blackout Defense –
We do not currently have plans to offer a 1:7T barrel in .223 Wylde.
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Norsk Armory (verified owner) –
I purchased a QUANTUM DUAL TAPER LOCK (DTL) a month or so back and performed a 1000 round burn down through it with ZERO jams or issues. Outstanding reliability, innovation and customer service, bravo Blackout Defense!
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Question
Josh –
Are your gas blocks pinned
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Duc Tran –
I plan to use Dead Air Sandman S. Do you need an adjustable gas block or is it ready to shoot suppressed out of the box?
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Blackout Defense –
It is ready to shoot suppressed out of the box. Our rifles ship with an H1 buffer, which we believe provides the best balance between suppressed and unsuppressed shooting.
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Dylan –
Two suggestions Blackout team:
(1) Most companies in this price range are shipping with Ambi controls; To be truly high end AR, you need to make your receiver AMBI.
And (2): This may sound shallow, but current hand guard looks nerdy and not stylish. I just need 3-6-9 MLOKs, so you should consider milling rest of the sides with a more signature look like Radian, LMT, LWRCI.
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Blackout Defense –
Thank you for your feedback. We are working on a full ambi lower with unique controls. We currently offer an ambi safety and mag release. It will take some time for us to engineer and test a unique ambi mechanism for the bolt release, and we appreciate your patience. Regarding the handguard, we are working on a second generation handguard that will launch early next year. We expect that this new generation handguard will have some unique design element in the lower 45 degree positions. We anticipate keeping at least some of the upper 45 degree positions as MLOK to accommodate operators who prefer to mount lights offset and tight to the top pic and for those who like a 45 degree position for their QD sling mount.
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Blackout Defense –
No, we do not pin our gas blocks in the current version of the DTL. Our barrels are dimpled and we properly torque the gas blocks to prevent rotation.
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Question
Aaron Hicks –
Are you going to make your rifle California compliant anytime in the near future.
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Blackout Defense –
Yes 🙂
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Question
smedsbigiron –
any chance of a 308 in future ?
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Blackout Defense –
😉
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Question
Ty –
Quick question about the newly designed ambi receiver DLT rifle. Does the ambi bolt release also function as a bolt catch?
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Blackout Defense –
It does not function as a bolt catch. It only functions as a bolt release.
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Question
Justin –
Do you guys have pictures of the newly designed lower and hand guard? I would imagine if you started including them as the only option when people buy a rifle starting on 4/3/23, then you must have some pictures by now right? Also, can you or will you start making your barrels in 10.5” or 11.5” like you used to? Why did that option go away?
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Question
Aaron –
Being 13.9 pinned, what does that mean exactly? Is it 16 total, or what is the meaning? You should be clear.
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Blackout Defense –
We do not sell these in an SBR configuration, meaning the overall barrel length is necessarily 16″+. The exact overall length depends on the muzzle device selection.
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Question
Daniel –
Is it possible to change the dust cover myself? I see the barrel nut slightly prevents the rod from coming all the way out
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Blackout Defense –
Yes, you can carefully cut right through the rod with a Dremel instead of removing the barrel nut.
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Question
Josh –
Do you have a bolt release available for early adopters who purchased the original MK 2. Something like the “bad lever” by Magpul? Absolutely stunning gun but this is the only thing i feel is missing!
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Blackout Defense –
We appreciate your business. Our rifles continue to ship with the standard mil spec bolt release that is installed on your original Mk2.
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Question
Aaron –
Man these rifles are top tier! I have a few questions for you all, if you dont mind.
The first, will you offer the OSS Flash Hider QD is a muzzle option for the rifles?
Next, when will the new lowers be implemented into production?
Last but not least, do you plan on selling the lowers similar to how you sell your uppers?
Thanks Team!
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Blackout Defense –
1. We do plan to expand our line of OSS muzzle device offerings. 2. The new ambi lowers have a few machining operations left before we send to anodize and Cerakote and bring them into inventory for assembly. 3. We do not anticipate selling the ambi lowers by themselves, but (i) as a set with our upper receiver; and/or (ii) in a builders set with our upper receiver and handguard, and/or (iii) as a set with our complete upper.
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Question
nickfall85 –
is this direct impingement or piston driven?
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Blackout Defense –
This is a DI system.
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GUY GILDNER (verified owner) –
The trigger is phenomenal!
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Question
Soua –
Do you offer any ambidextrous features on the lowers?
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Blackout Defense –
Yes, all of our receivers come with an ambidextrous safety and the option to add an ambidextrous mag release. Our newest receiver in production also comes with an ambidextrous bolt release. The new receiver design should be available for purchase within a few weeks.
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Mike Flippin –
Waiting for full ambidextrous lower. Has a release date been set yet?
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Blackout Defense –
The first production batch is going to anodize this week.
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Question
Kent –
Are your barrels rated for 5.56?
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Blackout Defense –
Yes. We chamber our barrels in .223 WYLDE, which is a hybrid chamber that is rated for BOTH .223 and 5.56 ammunition. The Wylde chamber has more room in the throat to accommodate the higher pressure of 5.56 NATO, while maintaining the improved centricity – and accompanying accuracy – of .223 Remington.
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Question
John Mcglasson –
Mark 2 and the quatum dtl. 2 separate rifles? Or is the dtl the new one with all the features of the mark 2 plus the taper
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Blackout Defense –
The DTL has all the features of the M2, plus the tapered barrel locking system AND a 7-sided MLOK handguard with a machined area for low-profile QD sling mount installation. The M2 has a 5-sided MLOK handguard with no machined QD profile.
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Raul Monreal III –
As a 30+ year engineer in DOD Space & Intelligence, I can clearly see the innovation and attention to quality/reliability that went into the Quantum DTL rifle. Plus the multi tone clear anodized/burnt bronze cerakote is simply stunning!! I will be ordering one soon and since I’m a resident of Chandler, I might just stop by your office and place the order in person (if that’s allowed). Keep up the good work!!!
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Question
Mit samlee –
Which dead air suppressor is recommended?
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Raul Monreal III –
As a 30+ year engineer in DOD Space & Intelligence, I can clearly see the innovation and attention to quality/reliability that went into the Quantum DTL rifle. Plus the multi tone clear anodized/burnt bronze cerakote is simply stunning!! I will be ordering one soon and since I’m a resident of Chandler, I might just stop by your office and place the order in person (if that’s allowed). Keep up the good work!!!
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Blackout Defense –
Thank you so much for your support. We are an ITAR-registered company that continues to do sensitive aerospace and defense work. Please call us in advance of visiting.
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Moe –
Are you planning to release other calibers in the future? Seems like a missed opportunity to make a rifle in 300 Blackout considering you’re blackout defense.
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Blackout Defense –
We absolutely plan to offer .300BLK in the near future.
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Blackout Defense –
In our testing, the new Sierra 5 has demonstrated a much quieter sound profile than Sandman with .223 and 5.56 ammunition. The Sierra 5, however, is a dedicated 5.56 suppressor. If you are looking for a more versatile suppressor that you can use with other calibers and platforms, including bolt action, we would recommend the Sandman. The Sandman exhibits a good overall sound profile with .223 and 5.56 ammunition, but has a larger bore diameter and is rated for up to .300 RUM.
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Question
Nicholas –
Is it possible to order a longer barrel for the DTL (i.e…, 16″ or more?)
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Blackout Defense –
We are not currently in production for a 16″ DTL barrel. Our mills and lathes are busy machining 13.9″ and 14.5″ DTL barrels and our forthcoming Keymo muzzle devices. We do plan to offer a 16″ DTL barrel option for our rifles and complete uppers in the future, however. In the meantime, we do offer pinning and welding to qualify our shorter barrels as 16.0″+. Subscribing to our newsletter and following our Instagram is the best way to stay up-to-date on the latest products in production and development.
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Question
Jeff Herndon –
What is the lead time from payment to delivery currently?
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Blackout Defense –
Approximately 2-3 weeks.
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j –
This kind of transparency is rare to find. Thanks.
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Moe –
What kind of rifling is in the barrels, button rifling, cut rifling or cold hammer forged? And if button rifling, why not cut or cold hammer forged?
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Blackout Defense –
Our barrels are 416R stainless steel and button rifled in 1:8, 5R. Our complete uppers and rifles with these barrels are sub-MOA guaranteed. Given our ability to achieve this accuracy with button rifling, the amount of investment needed for cut and/or cold hammer forging (upwards of $7M in investment) and our desire to keep our rifles and complete uppers relatively economical and to serve a wider audience, it was a business decision to not pursue cut rifling and/or cold hammer forging. It may be something we reconsider down the line.
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j –
What kind of bolt catch and side release do you use? Can a customer send small controls / parts to you for to install with one of your builds?
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Blackout Defense –
Please contact us directly at [email protected] or 480-781-0573 to discuss the parts you wish to add to your build.
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Question
Zach Hansen –
Is there a reason you elected not to have a forward assist on the rifle? What is the extrusion aft of the dust cover? Is there a reason you would recommend 13.9 vs 14.5? Is there any specific companies you would consider to be your direct competitor that you outshine? I love the engineering that appears to have gone into your rifles.
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Question
Jack –
With the Quantum DTL it shows a barrel length of 13.9 my state requires my rifle to be 16″ can this be pinned/welded to meet my state requirement or am I only to be able to purchase the older gen rifle at 16″
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Blackout Defense –
We likewise require that our 13.9″ rifles be pinned and welded before shipping, as we are not selling SBRs at this time. Our standard 13.9″ rifle configurations come with a pinned and welded Keymo (Dead Air compatible) brake. On our “build you own” page, you must select one of the muzzle device options from the drop down menu or send us an appropriate length-muzzle device of your choosing for pinning and welding.
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Question
Adam Elghriany –
I am interested in purchasing the Quantum DTL in the near future but I live in New Jersey. I see that you say that you need assurance in writing from my local dealer that the gun will be made state compliant. How would you need that provided. My local dealer has a gunsmith on staff and can do what needs to be done to bring it to state compliance. In other words how would you need it to be provided in writing?
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James Sullivan –
1. Why is the Quantum DTL only available in a 13.9″ barrel?
2. Is 13.9″ with a 1.1″ (for the 16″ total length) muzzle device the longest barrel the DTL system will safely secure?
3. Would you please post picture of each color scheme with an appropriate label on items that offer a color choice? For instance, on the lower/upper/handguard and builders kit there are several choices for color with no picture giving an example of that color. One company’s version of burnt bronze is not the same as another company’s version burnt bronze, etc.
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Blackout Defense –
Business considerations such as inventory control and lead time impact what is made available on the site at any given time. Our Cerakote colors are depicted throughout the website on various pages.
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Adam Elghriany –
Another question, what would need to be modified on the DTL in order to make it NJ compliant?
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Blackout Defense –
Please call your local New Jersey dealer to discuss the necessary modifications. You may also consult the guidance published by the New Jersey State Police here: https://nj.gov/njsp/firearms/firearms-faqs.shtml (FAQ #15).
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Blackout Defense –
We typically request that your dealer e-mail us stating that they are capable of providing the required gunsmithing services and will perform those services in advance of transferring the rifle to you.
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Question
Darrin bega –
It doesn’t come in 556 or 300 blackout just checking
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Blackout Defense –
We chamber our barrels in .223 WYLDE, which is a hybrid chamber that is rated for BOTH .223 and 5.56 ammunition. We do NOT offer .300BLK at this time.
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Question
M. H. –
Do you offer support for filling ATF paperwork for the DTL’s barrel length 13.9″ ?
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Josue Castellanos –
What about the cryo option? It doesnt ask if you want it pin and welded when its chosen
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Blackout Defense –
Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We have added pin & weld as an option for our cryo barrels.
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Blackout Defense –
We do not sell SBRs at this time. All barrels shorter than 16.0″ are pinned and welded to an appropriate length muzzle device to exceed 16.0″ total overall length.
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Question
Kyle –
Do you offer, or make, a 6.5 PRC?
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Blackout Defense –
No, not currently.
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Question
James berinti –
Will you build me a .300 blackout? Thank-you, James
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Blackout Defense –
We do not currently machine .300BLK barrels, however, it is something we are looking into.
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Question
brandenbovard13 –
What would be the recommended barrel finish for a duty firearm? A jack of all trades. Durable and accurate. something that can be ran hard for long periods.
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Blackout Defense –
We would recommend black nitride for duty use. It is exceptionally corrosion resistant with a long life.
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