Functionally, both should, in theory, have an advantage over the AR-15 in terms of reliability due to the gas systems of the 180 and JAKL not venting gases into the receiver. Although, to be fair, if you fire enough .223 in one session to gum up your AR you probably have a much bigger problem on your hand. But, on the other hand, a system that can be indifferent to the occasional benign neglect is always nice. You don’t always have time to detail clean your gun at the end of the day.My reaction was something like this:
So, when I took that carbine class from Pat Rogers, he had me using "Filthy 14", rather than my own blaster. I know it had been cleaned once back around the 26,000-round mark, but I'm not sure it had been cleaned since, although some grime was probably knocked off as parts were replaced on schedule.
It was certainly dirty enough to spew a fine mist of carbon mixed with Slip 2000 with every shot. Seriously, the gun was so filthy that I got freckled on my hands and cheeks with garbage blowing out of the receiver. Keep it lubed and it will run.
I don't know that my current school carbine has ever been what you'd call "cleaned", outside of having a bore snake pulled through it a few times. It stays well-lubed and that's about it, now that all it gets used for is classes. (If I were still using it, rather than a gauge, as a house gun, I'd keep it cleaned on general principles.)
No matter how many times this pre-GWOT myth gets debunked, it somehow lingers in the collective consciousness of a segment of the gun-owning community.
(IMO, the main reason to prefer a piston gun to a DI one is if you're running a suppressor. The increased back pressure can spew a lot of nastiness into the shooter's face with a direct impingement gun.)
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