R18 Mk 3 vs Crypto vs BCL Badger Vs Raven Vs WK 180 Gen 3 Vs...Vs waiting for Poillevre

I know that my thoughts will likely trigger those folks who dislike what I have to say. Oh well....

Of all of the choices CURRENTLY available or soon to be on the market, I would wait for the SAI R18 Mk3. With that platform your $1800 will buy you a previously unheard of degree of quality materials, workmanship, functionality and reliability in a Canadian-made utility/sporting rifle. It may take a few months to come to market (especially if there is a Vancouver Port Strike), but I honestly believe that subject to live-fire testing, the Mk3 will offer the best combination of quality and price on the Canadian market.

The Lockhart Raven isn't a bad choice, however the proprietor's insistence on using CeraKote rather than hard-coat anodizing as his protective finish is misguided and inadquate in my view. Especially because 6064 aluminum alloy is softer than the 7075 alloy normally used in the construction of utility/sporting rifles. The lack of hard-coat anodizing results in the steel Bolt Carrier wearing against the interior walls of the raw aluminum Upper Receiver. Not at all cool over the long run for durability.....

YMMV, but I am waiting for the SAI R18 Mk3 as my next purchase. Followed in 2025 by a SIG SPEAR, hopefully NR in 6.5 Creedmoor....
 
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Depends how patient you are. If you can hold out, maybe try a shotgun or renting in the meantime, it'd probably be best to get clarity, but I was in your position 18 months ago.. Seemed like too long for me so I got an r18 mk2. Overall I like it, but pretty annoying maintenance wise for a first firearm and I often wish my 1st was something easier to maintain. Mk3 looks promising and much more appetizing at the price. Should be able to sell it as a worst case if all our dreams come true lol.

However, even if CPC wins, we'll need to consider if the reversals will just revert back. That would hurt the Canadian manufacturers, and while a lot would say who cares, there is something to be said about improving the economy and rights locally here (customers support the manufacturers, over time we hopefully get better products, those companies would support Canadian lobbies to bolster our rights, etc. vs if you buy American the profit's going out of country to support their economy and rights). Food for thought...
 
Bartok5 said:
I know that my thoughts will likely trigger those folks who dislike what I have to say. Oh well....

Of all of the choices CURRENTLY available or soon to be on the market, I would wait for the SAI R18 Mk3. With that platform your $1800 will buy you a previously unheard of degree of quality materials, workmanship, functionality and reliability in a Canadian-made utility/sporting rifle. It may take a few months to come to market (especially if there is a Vancouver Port Strike), but I honestly believe that subject to live-fire testing, the Mk3 will offer the best combination of quality and price on the Canadian market.

The Lockhart Raven isn't a bad choice, however the proprietor's insistence on using CeraKote rather than hard-coat anodizing as his protective finish is misguided and inadquate in my view. Especially because 6064 aluminum alloy is softer than the 7075 alloy normally used in the construction of utility/sporting rifles. The lack of hard-coat anodizing results in the steel Bolt Carrier wearing against the interior walls of the raw aluminum Upper Receiver. Not at all cool over the long run for durability.....

YMMV, but I am waiting for the SAI R18 Mk3 as my next purchase. Followed in 2025 by a SIG SPEAR, hopefully NR in 6.5 Creedmoor....
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Heh can you show :eek:r tell me where I could view this excessive wear.
I gues the fact that my Raven is 7075 should retard the wear???
 
Bartok5 said:
I know that my thoughts will likely trigger those folks who dislike what I have to say. Oh well....

Of all of the choices CURRENTLY available or soon to be on the market, I would wait for the SAI R18 Mk3. With that platform your $1800 will buy you a previously unheard of degree of quality materials, workmanship, functionality and reliability in a Canadian-made utility/sporting rifle. It may take a few months to come to market (especially if there is a Vancouver Port Strike), but I honestly believe that subject to live-fire testing, the Mk3 will offer the best combination of quality and price on the Canadian market.

The Lockhart Raven isn't a bad choice, however the proprietor's insistence on using CeraKote rather than hard-coat anodizing as his protective finish is misguided and inadquate in my view. Especially because 6064 aluminum alloy is softer than the 7075 alloy normally used in the construction of utility/sporting rifles. The lack of hard-coat anodizing results in the steel Bolt Carrier wearing against the interior walls of the raw aluminum Upper Receiver. Not at all cool over the long run for durability.....

YMMV, but I am waiting for the SAI R18 Mk3 as my next purchase. Followed in 2025 by a SIG SPEAR, hopefully NR in 6.5 Creedmoor....
Click to expand...
Think it’s worth selling a Raven to get into the mk3?
 
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Sigh said:
Think it’s worth selling a Raven to get into the mk3?
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For the average user who perhaps shoots 100 rds once per month, either platform should be fine. I don't think that I would sell at a loss just to get into the other platform, however if the right deal came along, why not? Variety is the spice of life for me, so I like to collect 'em all. I will own both at the end of the day...
 
Greentips is spot on. When the OIC was going on in 2020, people were asking the same questions. Just buy what you can and enjoy it. Don't worry about shtty governments and dumb politicians. Buy it and enjoy it.
 
45C said:
Heh can you show :eek:r tell me where I could view this excessive wear.
I gues the fact that my Raven is 7075 should retard the wear???
Click to expand...
the Silver edition is supposedly machined from 6064, so a softer alloy than the Platinum's 7075. That said, I have a Silver Edition Upper Receiver and a Platinum Edition spare Upper Receiver that I built up into a .300 Blk. Both Upper Receivers show early signs of wear on the interior walls where the Steel Bolt Carrier slides back and forth. You can see where the CeraKote has worn away, exposing the raw alloy to wear from the parkerized steel Bolt Carrier. This is where I expect accelerated wear to occur, seeing as how the Bolt Carrier has already worn away the "protective" CeraKote, which is hardly protective at all.

I will continue to criticize Lockhart's deliberate decision to NOT apply a mil-spec Type 5 Hard-Coat Anodizing to his alloy parts, in particular the Uppper and Lower Receivers. This is a definite long-term durabililty issue with the Raven rifles. Unlike JR Cox and the R18 MMk3 where end-user input is welcome, Samuel Lockhart is apparently not interested in user feedback, as he has fvcked me off twice now regarding his lack of anodizing....

Note the wear areas on the Receiver walls, adjacent to the Charging Handle Slot and Ejection Port - that is exposed Alloy! After less than 500 rounds, that counts as excessive wear to me. None of my high round-count AR Receivers look anything like my Raven Uppers with their exposed patches of unprotected, raw alloy.

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Bartok5 said:
For the average user who perhaps shoots 100 rds once per month, either platform should be fine. I don't think that I would sell at a loss just to get into the other platform, however if the right deal came along, why not? Variety is the spice of life for me, so I like to collect 'em all. I will own both at the end of the day...
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This is the way.

That said, I picked up a Raven for 3 gun. So the long term is a concern now.
 
If that was my rifle I'd be sending it for anodizing before it gets any worse

And switch to a nickel boron bcg
 
A buddy tried to have his Raven anodized after it had already been CertaKoted by Lockhart. The anodizer had a heck of a time sand/bead blasting all of the CeraKote out of the nooks and crannies of the Upper and Lower Receivers, leaving small bits of CertaKote behind. It ended up looking terrible (blotchy, etc) when the anodizing process was eventually applied. So there's that.

Can't switch to a Nickel Boron Bolt Carrier unless you know of a place to get a parkerized Carrier coated, as the Raven Bolt Carrier is proprietary. You can't just swap it out with an AR15 Carrier....
 
SigWig said:
Can you do just the inside channel? humm



right got you
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Not sure if you can do selective anodizing, as the part gets immersed into an electrically-charged, heated chemical bath. That said, if you didn't remove the CeraKote on the exterior of the Receiver halves, I suppose only the inner channel where you bead-blast the CeraKote away would get the surface conversion and hardening process. Theoretically, at least.....
 
I'm in the wait and see (and enjoy what you've got!) camp as there are still so many unknowns with these platforms. I'd add that the IWI Carmel should be coming to Canada at some point and depending on price could be nice option (with a factory NR barrel).

That said, not much out of Crusader or BCL has impressed me in the past so I doubt that is where I will be going.
 
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