Florida-based Diamondback has been making its .308 Winchester-chambered DB10 models for the past several years, and the pistol versions are increasingly popular.
In the past year, we have toured the company's state-of-the-art factory in Cocoa and kicked around their affordable DB15 series ARs with good results. However, we were surprised to be told by the good folks at Diamondback that their DB10s have been among their most in-demand models with retailers and consumers across the country.
To find out why we decided to take a look at one up close.
The DB10 history
Diamondback introduced their DB10 rifle series in late 2014, initially offering the .308 AR-pattern autoloader with an 18-inch heavy barrel with a black nitride finish, machine billet lower Odin KeyMod rail (hey, it was 2014), and a Magpul ACS stock. Since then, at least seven different rifle models followed including variants with stainless steel fluted barrels, carbines with 16-inch barrels, swapping out KeyMod for M-LOK, a precision rifle with a PRS stock and CMC trigger, and even a 6.5 Creedmoor (the DB1065) model.
And they made a lot of them. According to ATF data from 2018, the most recent available, Diamondback produced 46,593 rifles that year, all ARs, with a hefty percentage of that being DB10s.
Newer to their catalog is their DB10 pistol series.
Meet the DB10P13P
The DB10P13P compared, top, compared to a DB15 7.5-inch pistol, bottom. (All Photos: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
The Diamondback sent to Guns.com for T&E is, specifically, the DB10P13BGSB, a designation that rolls from the tongue. Deciphering the alphabet soup, it is a DB-10 pistol with a 13.5-inch barrel that uses the company's Black Gold Lower.
This.
When it comes to specs, the pistol is 31-inches long overall with the brace fully collapsed, and weighs 7.8-pounds, unloaded, making it still pretty hefty for a handgun. Therefore, it is a good thing that it has a workable brace in the form of a telescoping Gear Head Works Tailhook Mod 2 stabilizing brace. Diamondback, who has flirted with a variety of braces over the years on their AR pistols, tells us that the Tailhook has long been a crowd-pleaser.
The Gear Head Works Tailhook opens to allow for one-handed firing, a daunting prospect on a .308 pistol that in practice works rather well. It telescopes across a 2.75-inch range, allowing a maximum overall length of the 33.75-inches for the pistol.
When it comes to the barrel, the DB10P13 uses a medium-weight Diamondback-produced 13.5-inch 4150 chrome-moly barrel with a black nitride finish. It has a 1-in-10-inch right-hand twist and uses a mid-length gas system with a port distance some 9-inches from the upper.
Surrounding the barrel is a 13-inch hand guard with M-LOK accessory slots and anti-slip texture pads and lightening cuts to help trim weight. There are seven slots each at the 3-, 6- and 9-o'clock positions to allow for lights, sling hardware, bipods, lasers, or chainsaws.
The DB10 field strips easy and the rear pin on the lower is captive, which those who have ever lost one will find nice. Note the AR-10 style cut to the upper--meaning DPMS uppers will not fit the lower-- although it does use DPMS-style threads to allow for a wide array of handguards.
The massive AR-10 style carrier group is shot-peened, marked Magnetic Particle Inspected on the bolt, and the carrier itself is 8620. It uses a multi-cal bolt-- and will work with 6.5CM et. al-- and uses a high-pressure firing pin to make it more reliable. Note the rounded-tip ejector that is gentle on brass, sure to be a delight to reloaders and brass trolls. On the inside is a one-piece gas ring rather than a dancing three-piece. The gas key, as is the castle nut, is well-staked and rock solid.
The Diamondback Black Gold Lower is hard-coat anodized forged 7075 T-6 aluminum with what the company terms an enhanced trigger guard and comes standard with a Magpul MOE K2 grip. It has a two-position (sigh) safety selector that is ambidextrous along with a standard hammer and trigger with what we found to be a consistent 6.5-pound pull weight. The upper is a forged 7075 T-6 aluminum flattop that is T-marked, allowing a maximum sight radius-- when using the included Magpul MBUS sights-- of 18-inches.
To help tame the recoil on the DB10, the 13.5-inch barrel ends with one of Diamondback's in-house CNC muzzle brakes-- or as I like to call it, an "en-loudener"-- with four topside compensating ports and two chambers each on the left and right. Should you want to change it out or add a can, the barrel uses standard 5/8x24TPI threads.
The pistol ships with a single 20-round Magpul Gen M3 PMAG, but we found that SR-25 pattern steel mags, such as this C-Products DuraMag, worked fine and dropped free with no problem.
In all, the DP10 pistol is handy while allowing a bit more power than a comparatively-sized 5.56, especially for tasks such as hog hunting or in a situation where you just want to make a bigger hole in a tougher target. On the downside, it is kinda chunky, with an all-up weight including 21 rounds of Federal 180-grain, mag and sights being 9.58-pounds.
MSRP on the DB10P13 is $1,089, which compares well to similar offerings in this niche AR market, especially on one that has a great fitment such as this one.
How does it shoot? We are working on that as ammo slowly dribbles in and are excited to see how it stretches out to 100-yards and beyond. Initial testing points to the 13.5-inch barrel still wringing about 2,500 feet-per-second from standard .308 loads, which is promising. With 100 rounds in, we have no problems to report other than the fact that it is really loud!
