If you have been around AR-15s for any length of time, you have probably encountered guns that were either over or under gassed. Guns that cycle too fast, or guns that are over gassed / under buffered, will eventually beat themselves up and wear parts out faster. Guns that run too slowly, or are under gassed / over buffered, will not run properly and will suffer ejection or feeding issues, or both.
Most experienced AR users are aware that buffers for ARs come in several different weights and the buffer system also has a number of options (carbine, rifle and now A5). All of those changes in the buffer system are designed to get the gun to run at the correct speed.
There are positives and negatives to this system. It is quick and easy to swap buffers, but the heavier the buffer, the more they cost. Unless you have a large selection of different weight buffers laying around, trying different buffers until you find the right one can be an expensive proposition.
Another negative is that as buffer weights increase, so does your reciprocating mass. While more reciprocating mass generally ensures the gun will continue to run as it gets dirtier, it also has the downside of making the gun harder to keep on target.
Again, everything is a tradeoff.
But there is another option, a different way of fine tuning the gun, one that does not change your reciprocating mass and one that you only need buy once. That is by going with an adjustable gas block. This allows you to fine tune the gas system and allows you to choose your buffer weight without affecting how the gun will run.
In the world of adjustable gas blocks, most of them operate on the same principle. They shrink the size of the opening that sends the gas down your gas tube. Most that is except for the ones made by Superlative Arms.
Superlative Arms gives you two options for how to handle the excess gas. They let you do the same thing as the others and just limit how much gas can get through the hole. But they also give you the option of venting the extra gas outside of the gun instead of keeping the excess gas in the system.
How much of a difference does that actually make? Not a clue, but I can tell you it absolutely works.
Well, if you are like me and you lean toward piston guns, Superlative Arms has got you covered. Their piston gas block adjusts in the exact same manner as their DI version, but instead of sending gas rearward, it moves a piston instead.
Another way to support my work here is to support my sponsors, several of whom are now offering discounts to people referred to them by 2A Cops.
Their piston kit is obviously more expensive than their DI block, but that is because it includes a whole lot more. It comes with the gas block, the piston, a bolt carrier, a bushing for your upper receiver and the needed tools.
The only caveat is that the installation process for the piston system is a bit more involved than the DI version. Not only are there more parts, but depending on the version you get, you might need to drill some dimples in your barrel for the set screws on the gas block.
I can tell you from personal experience, if you don’t dimple the barrel enough, the gas block will end up moving, especially if you run it on something equipped with an FRT trigger, so do it right the first time.
The video below is some footage of the Superlative Arms uppers running on my FRT equipped lower, footage I am prevented from including in my YouTube video.
Both versions of the Superlative Arms adjustable gas blocks did exactly what they are supposed to do, and they did it under the harshest circumstances I could subject them to. After getting them adjusted properly, both ran flawlessly mag dump after mag dump on a lower equipped with an RFT trigger. Neither gun was cleaned during the entire testing process and other than when I first lubed them, using lubricant from Aegis Gun Care, no lube was added once testing began.
I was able to fine tune both guns to run exactly the same despite being different operating systems. That fine tuning allowed me to get the guns running as softly as I could while maintaining excellent reliability. I cannot ask more of an adjustable system than that.
If you are looking to fine tune your AR, whether or not you want it to be a DI gun or a piston gun, you would be hard pressed to find a better option than those offered by Superlative Arms.
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