Should I trade my POF towards an MDR?

[BurnOut]

Alright, no fanboying, but if you were in my shoes, would you trade your like new (never fired) 2nd gen 20" P308 towards an MDR? My original thinking with the P308 was along the lines of a SASS, but obviously I haven't used it as such. The MDR appeals to me for a variety of reasons, but I am concerned with some of the posts/threads I've seen regarding the trigger pull and/or gas systems out of whack to the point that the included adjustment valve still can't get the rifle to run reliably.

Those who have MDRs and have experienced issues, has Desert Tech been taking care of you? What kind of accuracy have you been seeing once any issues have been resolved?

 

[diverdon]

Hell no, get that thing to the range and shoot the hell out of it. Find out what she will do, and what you can do with her. Then decide if you want to keep or trade her.

 

[Luke]

It all depends...if you are looking for a semi-auto for a practical application, I would say, yes, there are probably better options out there than the POF. If you like either gun based on the style, design, gives you a warm fuzzy, whatever, that's up to you to decide.

I've owned a POF P308, various bolt guns, AR's etc, and my personal experience has led me down the road where for practical reasons only, the semi-auto 308 is a pretty niche application gun. A 5.56 AR shooting 75gr-77gr bullets is very capable out to 600 yards, and a bolt action .308 or 6.5CM can be run equally fast at 600+ yards, and be lighter, more reliable, etc.

 

[Tex68w]

I owned a few POF 308's and a 415 in the past, they've all gone on down the road. They make a very nicely built/finished gun and with the Rock Creek barrels they are usually very accurate shooters too. I hate the raised top rail, their forends are large, and they are heavy. Every single one that I owned was finicky with ammo and had extraction issues. For the money there are better options IMHO. The MDR is an interesting piece but I swore off the bull pups after the DTA SRS and Tavor. If the MDR interests you then sure, go for the trade and try it out. I don't think it'll shoot as tight of groups as the POF but it'll certainly be lighter and easier to handle. In all honesty I think your best option would be to sell your POF and pick up a LMT MWS or KAC SR-25 if you want more of a SASS/DMR role rifle.

 

[samnev]

I wouldn't do the trade for the MDR unless your having problems with your P308. I've never had problems with mine and its more accurate than my LMT MWS.

 

[newguy2k3v2]

My mdr seems to be fairly accurate despite the trigger. It has had some issues though. Went back to dt soon after I got it to fix a few things. Some were fixed, some weren't and I handled myself. Just sent it back again with some new issues and some old ones popping up again.

If I didn't already own and could do it again I'd wait for a gen 2 mdr and hope they fix the issues. A few of which I see as design flaws. I'd buy a MWS or something else that is proven. I had a Rfb and it wasn't bad but the accuracy wasn't there.

 

[padom]

My P308 never had a single issue, ran like a swiss watch and was extremely accurate. Loved that gun and wish I never sold it.

 

[deersniper]

Love my P308. Super accurate and light. Still need to polish the chamber due to extraction issues when dirty after shooting a bunch suppressed.

Was real excited to hear about the MDR when I heard about it. But F that thing. Seems like everyone has problems. Love my Covert SRS

 

[houndog]

I own a P308 and a P415. I love both guns. Have shot the hell out of the 415 (probably 3000-4000 rounds through it) and never had an issue. I clean it every 1000+ rounds, whether it needs it or not. Haven't shot the .308 nearly as much, but have had 0 issues with this gun and it is a tack driver. The P308 is front heavy, and heavy in general, which is why I shoot it less, but if you're ok with the weight and the balance, I would definitely keep it.

Don't have any experience with the MDR, but I do own a Tavor SAR. Honestly, if your looking for a bull pup, the Tavor is so good, I don't know why you'd buy an MDR. The Tavor is 100% reliable, easy to shoot and plenty accurate if you want to shoot steel out to 400. Also, if you want/need a .308, IWI will be releasing a .308 version of the Tavor sometime in the next year, so I would definitely go with that, rather than messing with the MDR.

 

[ChadL]

My P308 never had a single issue, ran like a swiss watch and was extremely accurate. Loved that gun and wish I never sold it.

I bought a P308 a couple of weeks ago and have the same observations as you. Very smooth and accurate. It's a keeper for sure.

OP....I looked at the MDR as I own an DT SRS-A1 and I like their MDR design a lot. However, I think some further refinements are needed before I buy. The POF though has been perfect right out of the box.

 

[Jcgodfrey]

I owned a few POF 308's and a 415 in the past, they've all gone on down the road. They make a very nicely built/finished gun and with the Rock Creek barrels they are usually very accurate shooters too. I hate the raised top rail, their forends are large, and they are heavy. Every single one that I owned was finicky with ammo and had extraction issues. For the money there are better options IMHO. The MDR is an interesting piece but I swore off the bull pups after the DTA SRS and Tavor. If the MDR interests you then sure, go for the trade and try it out. I don't think it'll shoot as tight of groups as the POF but it'll certainly be lighter and easier to handle. In all honesty I think your best option would be to sell your POF and pick up a LMT MWS or KAC SR-25 if you want more of a SASS/DMR role rifle.

I had the same issues with my pof that I sold.

 

[TheGerman]

In for the inevitable, 'Should I trade my MDR towards a KAC EMC?' thread.

 

[newguy2k3v2]

At this point just skip the mdr all together if you plan to run it suppressed and expect it to eat whatever ammo you feed it like one would expect from a "battle rifle".

Kac, MWS... Lots of good options out there.

 

[hypno02]

At this point the only AR10 I would consider besides a LMT or KAC would be a PWS.

 

[deersniper]

At this point the only AR10 I would consider besides a LMT or KAC would be a PWS.

I would add JP and Larue to that based on reports here

 

[hypno02]

I would add JP and Larue to that based on reports here

Depending on what you're using the rifle for.

Cherry picked test groups don't excite me. Neither do race guns built solely for accuracy and speed.

 

[hlee]

Yeah, I hate semi autos that shoot tiny groups, and allow quick transitions and near effortless follow ups. F that noise...

Btw, I think I know what you are saying. But, the whole "bomb-proof" thing and the need to feed the rifle "whatever range trash I'm able to scrounge on the post-apocalyptic waste-land" are both way overblown for the majority of shooters...

 

[hypno02]

I'd trust one of my above aforementioned brands to perform flawlessly in adverse weather conditions much more so than a JP. Rain, snow, dirt, etc. I am not a fair weather shooter so I want a rifle that I can trust to work properly in any environment at any given time.

If you want a target rifle then get a JP. That's what I'd do. If you want a purpose built no sacrifices to reliability in any condition rifle get a LMT or KAC.