Among the many Americans who belong to the population of AR-owners nationwide — somewhere between five and 10 million people — the great debate about what kind of handguards and AR rail systems are best for your AR-15 continues to rage.

By and large, the community has grown to accept that personal preference, variance in shooting styles, and even the intended use of your AR — survival, home-defense, recreation, etc. — are all important factors to consider when making the choice. However, that doesn’t mean that many people don’t still feel that regardless of what you consider, you should end up at one forgone conclusion.

The reality, however, is that only you can decide which AR rail system is right for you. In today’s blog post from the team at RailScales® — your domestic product of top-quality KeyMod, M-LOK, and other AR rail system-specific tactical accessories and world-class rail covers — we’ll examine a classic system — the Picatinny quad-rail handguard — and the more recent KeyMod AR rail systems. Our hope is that you can glean some information to get you started in the right direction for which one might be right for you. Let’s get started.

The Picatinny Quadrail

Developed in the mid-90s, the Picatinny AR rail system was specifically designed to allow the United States military to mount heavier, more dynamic instruments and tactical accessories to the M16 series of battle rifles. The design was a great success and helped to create a larger market for the customization of privately owned ARs.

The quadrail AR system from Picatinny is great for anyone who is really looking to put some heavy-duty hardware, or just lots of hardware, on their AR-15.

The primary drawback of the Picatinny quadrail system is that it is heavier than the other options available, and it has rather sharp, jagged edges that tend to catch webbing, belts, and wear out the inside of gun cases faster than most other AR rail systems.

However, the longevity, ruggedness, and continued use by the American military and many law-enforcement groups should stand as a testament to the quality of Picatinny designs.

The KeyMod AR Rail System

The KeyMod AR rail system was released to the public in 2012 and has seen a tremendous number of shooters invest in adding KeyMod handguards, KeyMod rails, and an ever-growing selection of KeyMod-specific tactical accessories.

The KeyMod system is a lightweight, modular attachment handguard that only requires you to deploy a rail section large enough to mount the hardware you need. Additionally, all of its angles and cuts are in the interior of the handguard, allowing for more comfort without needing to have rail covers mounted.

Finally, the KeyMod system is an open-source product, meaning that there is a lot of financial incentive for companies to develop specific products for it, and empowering AR owners who use the system to have a pretty decent selection of accessory choices without the need for adaptors.

However, despite being the most successful open-source, modular AR rail system on the market, it is not the only one and faces a fair amount of competition from brands like M-LOK.

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