FBI HRT Carbine c. 2014-2015 Clone (Pt1)

To kick things off, let me start with a short bit about my last-couple-of-years-white-whale, my airsoft clone build of an FBI HRT rifle.

It's like the physical representation of the transitory period between Magpul Dynamics DVDs and GBRS Patreon videos.

 

    I first saw this thing in the hands of an FBI Hostage Rescue Team agent in in a couple of photos arranged together by AR15.com. I was young, I had just learned about airsoft and thought, "Wouldn't it be cool to dress up like a real soldier guy?" 

    At the same time, I was really fascinated with the at-the-time relatively new Counter-Strike release, Global Offensive. I bought the game on disc for PC at a local Data Blitz store. While I probably couldn't find the paper sleeve it came it, it still is special to me as it was the first game I ever asked my parents to buy, and a game that I owned on the Steam account I created myself.

    I saw the FBI guys in that game and thought that they were really cool. So a couple years later, I thought that I should try to copy their look. I never did, and after a couple of questions that would have probably gotten me banned from that chatroom later, I decided to hold off on it for a while. But I never really stopped wanting it. It was just out of reach for someone my age.

    A couple years later, I had a little bit more disposable cash. I was browsing some forums and did eventually find someone who somehow was in possession of the rail being used in that gun. The handguard itself isn't common, and was produced only in little numbers. I jumped on the opportunity to grab it, as it was kind of the keystone of the whole build. A couple hundred dollars, a few continents and a long couple of months later, the rail was in my hands.

I, uh, might have also bought the same model handguard a few months earlier, just the wrong length. I promise there's a visually distinct difference! 😅

    The handguard itself is a Geissele Super Modular Rail, Mk3, Mod1, RevB, in a length of 9.5 inches. That's a mouthful, so I'll just abbreviate it into the Geissele SMR Mk3 9.5".

    Geissele at the time of writing is a pretty familiar name in the firearms space. First known for their triggers, they later ventured out into making scope and red dot mounts, charging handles, firearms and most importantly, handguards. They are best known for winning the contract for US Army SOCOM's  Upper Receiver Group - Improved (abbreviated URG-I). What most people picture the URG-I is a standard A2 Flat-top Upper receiver with a Daniel Defense 14.5" barrel with a mid-length gas system. The handguard present on the URG-I is Geissele's own SMR Mk16.

I originally wanted to build a clone build-ish, but halfway through decided "fuck it" and did my own thing. This isn't representative of what a military URG-I looks like. The handguard is the same, though.

Obvious tooling marks on the concave corner.

    However, the Geissele Mk16's reputation is not the best. Reports of it bending under stress circulated the internet, putting it's reliability into question. The military mounts infrared laser devices on these handguards in order to better shoot at night, and these laser devices have to be adjusted to the rifle. Should the handguard shift, the "zero" of the laser would no longer be accurate.

    In addition, people have called into question the prices of their triggers, citing that equally as good -if not better- triggers could be bought at cheaper prices from companies like LaRue Tactical. Geissele also does not have a good reputation for QC, as visible tooling marks can be seen on handguards, signifying a lackadaisical approach to milling the handguard out. This was even present on my 10" Mk3 handguard, which surprised me as I thought this problem was a relatively modern thing.

    As a result, people don't trust Geissele as much as they did in the past. The present community was not there for Geissele's initial offerings into the market. This was during the era of picatinny rails, when keymod wasn't even a thing, and when Magpul was still fairly new at making accessories.

    They first opened into the market with the Geissele SMR. At the time, it utilized a mounting system that was unique for the AR-15 platform. The barrel nut was completely smooth, save for groove and a couple of holes. The handguard would slip fit onto the barrel nut, and two cross bolts would go through the groove and the taper in the middle and behind the barrel nut. This theoretically allowed for ease of installation and un-installation while also being secure enough for mounting lasers or iron-sights.

    The design was -by their own admission- based on the HK416 barrel nut and handguard system. At the time, all other handguards would either use the same mounting system as typical M4A1s (a slip ring with a spring pressing against a handguard cap) or a complicated barrel nut system that required shims to time the nut to allow the handguard to screw directly into the barrel nut. Geissele was the first at this, and the entire industry would later use a variation of this system coming forward.

    Attachments are mounted via picatinny rail sections that screw into the sides and the bottom. This system, while archaic, is secure and can be trusted to hold zero for laser devices (unlike in my opinion M-lok and Keymod.) This system is also present in the Geissele HK SMR for the HK416. That handguard was adopted by US Army CAG, which is why most people see the old Geissele AR15 SMRs and think it looks like a weird HK416 handguard.

    Geissele would later go on with the Mk2 and the Mk3, addressing concerns of weight during that time. They would make the Mk4 in first a unique standard, then Keymod and then M-lok, putting an end to their screwed-on picatinny sections. This system would live on in Geissele's wife's brand ALG in their Enhanced Modular Rails. However, all ALG handguards would go on to be quietly discontinued, probably in favor of moving production of handguards to the main Geissele brand.

    Meanwhile, the FBI Hostage Rescue Team was at this point using a mixture of Troy Alpha Rails on their carbines and default HK416s. However, in both a Washington Post article and a manhunt both featuring the unit, they would be seen sporting carbines featuring the Geissele Mk3 handguard. One was a 10.3" barrel, while the other was a 11.5" barrel, but both were in a similar layout. 

    This was towards the end of their use of Troy Alpha rails. They would go on to move towards Mk3 SMRs. Given the rarity of its use and the FBI's eventual universal adoption of upper receivers with Mk4 handguards, I assume that the FBI were testing and evaluating Geissele products for a future standardization. Or, these uppers were custom built and sent to the FBI or an individual agent. Nonetheless, it's an interesting note in history that makes me wonder about what went on behind the scenes.

    Next post about this will probably be about the clone build itself. I wrote this in like 30 minutes to an hour last night (It's the next day as I'm editing this)

 

 

 

 

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