AR-15 Front End Possibilities

I am quickly learning to hate new wave forends ( re : my thread in Rifles ) . Enough to make me look at options .

What's involved to switch to 1st Generation Free Float ? ( That's plain ol knurled aluminum )

What's involved to switch to normal ( GI style 2 piece ) ?

Or to be off the wall, a quasi- Dissapator , the kind introduced by pre- buyout Bushmaster, in the medium back era ? ( Low profile gas block in carbine position , Front Sight Base ( not running gas) installed @ Rifle position , and thence, Rifle style GI style 2 piece handgaurds )

I was the same way. But with the drive towards making rifles lighter before add on crap it makes sense. I like quad rails but most were heavy and sharp. Now with the newer forends they are slimmer and you only add sections as you see fit. As for your options the plain jane free float would be an option, a quasi dissapator with the A2 front sight would give you a sling point but you would need to have the A2 sight installed and taper pinned or at least cross pinned. There are handguards with M-Lok or Keymod slots but also have QD holes machined into the handguards so you do not need to add an adapter to use your QD mounts.

Have you ever considered the Hogue tubes? They make extremely basic free float tubes that aren't filled with random 'cooling' holes / designs a la Strike Industries. I love the AR I have with the full length Hogue tube.

The new crop of modular rails have a lot of benefits, lighter and more comfortable than 4 rail, more rigid, no FSB requirement and free floating compared to 2 peice/mil spec. They also come in lengths that allow you to run your support hand out front for better control, and cover more of the barrel for better protection, use around support/barricades, and better protect you from burns. I personally run an M-lok rail about 1-2" shorter than the rearmost port on my muzzle device. It's super easy to swap things like bipods between rifles, and you can mount most anything most anywhere. At this point most designs include QD sockets for slings built-in, as do stocks, so it's easy and conveniennt to mount/dismount slings. The main difference is in mounting the rail, you need a barrel nut wrench(sometimes included) a 1/2" torque wrench, and some type of vise and upper block assm(Bev/reaction rod/claw etc). I usually run optics, and hate a FSB in the view, so none of my AR's have them, rails are easy to mount with low-profile gas blocks. The easy ones simply torque a proprietary barrel nut with no need to time it for the gas tube or rail position, but some either require a bit off torque-retorque work to line up the gas tube, or shims between the nut and barrel extension flange in order to get the nut postiioned just right. Have had really good luck with Aero rails, great for the cost. The gen2s are fairly large diameter and great on short barrels, especially with suppressors, they can mount directly to Aero "enhanced" uppers easily with the forged integral mount, or require shims/timing and 4 screws to mount to any upper with an adapter. The ATLAS rails are slimmer and lighter, they also use a single ratcheting turnbuckle screw that is really easy to install on the timed/shimmed barrel nut, and won't back out or come loose, they are extremely solid and comfortable.