Greybirch RDR initial impressions

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Voshay

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I purchased a Greybirch Fusion RDR to use as a fun plinker. Something small and lightweight that would essentially fill the same sort of role as a GSG-16 but with superior built quality. I still haven't actually fired it but here are my initial thoughts

Pros

Build quality is excellent which is what I was after. The finish is clean and there are no sharp edges. I believe it uses GLOCK MOS plates but Greybirch never confirmed this for me when I asked. It ships with plates 01, 02 and 04 and I believe they are machined aluminum as the finish on them matches the receiver.


Cons

Not compatible with TUF22 high capacity magazines. I did inquire about this prior to purchase and got an answer along the lines of what are those? I find it incredibly hard to believe they don't know what their competitors are offering. Given that the drawing for the modification was made freely available I don't really understand why this wasn't at least considered. As an example, the Spectre Ballistics C-71 receiver is compatible with the TUF22 mags. I guess they want people who are interested in using a high capacity magazines to support Spectre for their 597 adapter instead of Dlask.

However the biggest complaint I have is with the Greybirch chassis. The ergonomics are just off. The problem is that there is very little drop at comb, in this case cheek rest. It measures approximately 3/4” at the lowest position. For comparison my Winchester 9422 has anywhere from 1.5” at the front of the comb to 2.25” at the back.

Why is this an issue?

You can't physically get your head low enough to use the Red Dot Optic that you have attached with the MOS plates. I've mounted a Holosun 507c and for me the only way to see the dot properly is to hold the rifle out in front of me like I was shooting a pistol. This setup needs a riser to get the RDO higher or the stock needs to be able to be lowered so the firearm can be used correctly. Potential fixes would be to make riser plates (stackable would be nice so you can set your height) or a picatinny plate. Searching Google I did find the Battle Steel Glock MOS Picatinny Rail but am unable have it shipped to Canada from what I can tell.



This firearm looks to be good quality and I don't have anything to bad to say about the barrelled action. However I can not recommend buying the complete rifle. This barrelled action requires a more traditional stock that has a reasonable drop at comb so you can get down low enough to shoot iron sights properly, or in this case a RDO. If you are set on using the Greybirch chassis buy the LDR model with integrated picatinny rail and get an optic that sits higher.

As a side note, if anyone can suggest a RDO that mounts to Glock MOS plates but sits about an inch off the plate I would be potentially interested. I would also be interested in knowing if there are any buttstocks out there that could be swapped onto this chassis. The provided interface is a vertical picatinny rail. The alternative is to find a new stock/chassis which is probably where I will end up.
 
Three days and no responses or reactions to this initial review. As a matter of curiosity, are there any forum readers who have experience with these Grey Birch rifles?

Recent posts by a member associated with producing/selling the product said the Grey Birch shoots extraordinarily well, with 200 yard sub-MOA groups. Is there further information that can be shared about how they shoot?
 
I purchased a grey birch foundation chassis for my Dlask build to compare to the Victor Co stock I had been running for a couple years. I ran it in a couple matches (NRS & ORPS), found the fastener for the stock was constantly coming loose no matter the torque applied. The ergonomics as mentioned by the OP weren't the best, short forend was the only option at the time and was not the best for PRS type shooting. The QD socket on the stock was out of spec so I wasn't able to use a sling in offhand shooting. There was no noticeable improvement in accuracy over the Victor Co Titan stock which I ended up going back to.

I ordered their fusion barreled action and it wouldn't fit in their foundation chassis. Support told me to dremel the chassis to make it fit, at that point I asked for a refund for the barreled action and it was given - so I never did get to see how their rifle shot. They're a small company trying to go big, I think they will be successful but still have some hurdles ahead that will only be solved with time and feedback from customers. From others I've spoken to on the topic, it seems to be 50/50 in terms of a rifle that people would recommend.
 
Thats seem like an oddball with not a lot of buyer falling for it.. that will explain easily why you don’t get answers.
Myself, never heard of it before your post…was curious to see what it is..but no pictures..
 
Voshay said:
I purchased a Greybirch Fusion RDR to use as a fun plinker. Something small and lightweight that would essentially fill the same sort of role as a GSG-16 but with superior built quality. I still haven't actually fired it but here are my initial thoughts

Pros

Build quality is excellent which is what I was after. The finish is clean and there are no sharp edges. I believe it uses GLOCK MOS plates but Greybirch never confirmed this for me when I asked. It ships with plates 01, 02 and 04 and I believe they are machined aluminum as the finish on them matches the receiver.


Cons

Not compatible with TUF22 high capacity magazines. I did inquire about this prior to purchase and got an answer along the lines of what are those? I find it incredibly hard to believe they don't know what their competitors are offering. Given that the drawing for the modification was made freely available I don't really understand why this wasn't at least considered. As an example, the Spectre Ballistics C-71 receiver is compatible with the TUF22 mags. I guess they want people who are interested in using a high capacity magazines to support Spectre for their 597 adapter instead of Dlask.

However the biggest complaint I have is with the Greybirch chassis. The ergonomics are just off. The problem is that there is very little drop at comb, in this case cheek rest. It measures approximately 3/4” at the lowest position. For comparison my Winchester 9422 has anywhere from 1.5” at the front of the comb to 2.25” at the back.

Why is this an issue?

You can't physically get your head low enough to use the Red Dot Optic that you have attached with the MOS plates. I've mounted a Holosun 507c and for me the only way to see the dot properly is to hold the rifle out in front of me like I was shooting a pistol. This setup needs a riser to get the RDO higher or the stock needs to be able to be lowered so the firearm can be used correctly. Potential fixes would be to make riser plates (stackable would be nice so you can set your height) or a picatinny plate. Searching Google I did find the Battle Steel Glock MOS Picatinny Rail but am unable have it shipped to Canada from what I can tell.



This firearm looks to be good quality and I don't have anything to bad to say about the barrelled action. However I can not recommend buying the complete rifle. This barrelled action requires a more traditional stock that has a reasonable drop at comb so you can get down low enough to shoot iron sights properly, or in this case a RDO. If you are set on using the Greybirch chassis buy the LDR model with integrated picatinny rail and get an optic that sits higher.

As a side note, if anyone can suggest a RDO that mounts to Glock MOS plates but sits about an inch off the plate I would be potentially interested. I would also be interested in knowing if there are any buttstocks out there that could be swapped onto this chassis. The provided interface is a vertical picatinny rail. The alternative is to find a new stock/chassis which is probably where I will end up.
Click to expand...

email sales@greybirchsolutions.com and they will send you out a riser / space to bring your optic up higher.
 
grauhanen said:
As a matter of curiosity, are there any forum readers who have experience with these Grey Birch rifles?
Click to expand...

I have one of their LDR Receivers & 12" barrels, the old standard vblock one, I like them. Their customer service was outstanding as well.
A little disappointed I don't see the standard style barrels on their site anymore.
 
I recently bought the LDR Fusion as a complete rifle. Certainly haven't put it through it's paces in any serious way but the little I've shot so far looks promising. My winter shooting will mostly be limited to the 25m indoor range so real accuracy testing might not happen soon.

The fancy stock and chassis doesn't have as much useful adjustment range as it would appear. Even with high rings the cheek piece stays all the way down and the butt plate is really only adjustable for length. The pistol grip is very vertical which I like but a hard plastic that left something to be desired so I replaced it with an MDT.

I was told the trigger group is a BDX but it's not marked as such and I wasn't impressed by it. I'm not all that familiar with different 10/22 type triggers but it had more creep and weight than I expected. So does the Timney I replaced it with but that's certainly better. They might be wise to offer some better trigger options on the LDR. The BDX might suffice for the RDR but I'm not sure what those users need.
I hope they do well but continue to develop their offerings. It's nice to buy Canadian made quality gear.
 
In the early summer a friend of mine brought a receiver and CF barrel purchased from Grey Birch. The machining looked top notch. Ive been building for a while and supplied a Kidd bolt and trigger with a Dlask charge handle and Kidd white spring. Put it in a Magpull X22 stock and torqued the bolt at 25 inch pounds. Shot 50 rounds of 5 different higher end ammos and it wasnt really impressive at fifty yards off BR rest and rear bag. Changed the bolt to30 inch pounds and tried some more. It did improve some but not enough to get all warm and fuzzy over. I realize this isnt real extensive but I normally get much better results off the get go with Dlask receiver with the same components and a Kidd barrel. Maybe the lightweight CF barrels are just not capable of the accuracy of a SS match barrel? I was impressed by the machining and tight tolerances. It never had a hiccup in any form while putting around 600 rounds thru it.
 
I have an LDR complete rifle. I think the quality and machining is excellent. It’s super light with a primary arms GLX 4-16x50 on it. I have about 400 rounds through mine and I can only think of a few malfunctions. I’m a little disappointed with accuracy, I haven’t spent a ton of time with it, but my initial impressions is that the rifle is very ammo picky.

I finally found decent accuracy using eley sport, which I’m ok with, I have lots of it and it’s not too expensive. The problem I have is accuracy seems to fall apart at longer distances. I routinely shoot out to 150 yards with my Cz 455 mini sniper using cci standard. I usually hit small spinners at that distance, but the grey birch LDR won’t do it. I literally can not get the rifle to hit the largest spinner.

Unfortunately I haven’t been able to source any match grade ammo locally. And I’ll make it out again to give it another shot. Maybe I’m asking too much from a semi auto compared to my bolt gun. I realize they’re both very different setups. I’m going to keep it, Because I actually really like it, but was hoping the LDR would live up to its name.

Also was kinda po’d they had a 20% off sale 2 days after receiving my rifle! Just my luck it seems.
 
I only have the chassis and it’s my go to everything package now. Camp/small game / truck or ATV. Love it
 
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