Overview
Billed as a light, fast-handling carbine, the Guardian complements the rest of FN's AR (FN 15) line of rifles in the respect that it is priced at a more entry-level (MSRP $999) rung on the ladder than some of the company's other offerings, which have an ask of $1,350 (FN 15 Patrol Carbine) to $2,350 (FN 15 DMR3). Thus, according to the marketing materials, the new addition is "making FN quality accessible to all home defenders and sport shooters."
In a nutshell, the FN 15 Guardian is a carbine-sized (16-inch, 1:7 twist barrel) direct gas impingement action AR with a mid-length gas system that has a flattop, smooth-sided (no forward assist) upper, a 15-inch aluminum handguard with a couple dozen M-LOK slots, and a lot of mil-spec parts. This keeps it light, at just 6.6 pounds, and with a streamlined aesthetic.
For full disclosure, FN supplied Guns.com with this rifle for T&E purposes, and we'll be sending it back once the testing is complete. All testing was done on this one gun.
The Specs
- Barrel: 16 inches, 1:7 RH twist, nitride coated 4150 CMV
- Overall length: 32.1-to 35.5 inches due to 6-position stock
- Weight (unloaded, sans optics): 6.6 pounds
- BCG: 9310 Steel bolt, M16-style bolt carrier group, MPI/HP tested.
- Handguard: 15-inch aluminum, free-floating, continuous top rail, 24 M-LOK slots
- Gas system: Direct impingement mid-length gas system, low-profile gas block
- Mag capacity: 30-round standard
Features
The most eye-catching part of the Guardian design is the slick-sided billet upper receiver, which does not include a forward assist. FN points out this reduces snag points and cleaning time. As for the fundamental need for a forward assist, or "jam-enhancer" to some detractors, it wasn't in Stoner/Sullivan's initial designs for the AR-10/15. There are lots of guns on the market that don't carry one, while Aero, Anderson, and others sell such assist-less uppers. Heck, even Wilson Combat makes a variant of the Protector without a FA.
While it doesn't sport the hulking A2-style brass deflector of Loren Brunton fame, the more streamlined FN 15 Guardian does still have a short deflector bump built into the side of the upper's ejection port that seems to be getting some work during the firing process.
The FN Guardian is clad in synthetic furniture that seems to be made by THRiL, a U.S. company that specializes in AR accessories and has a good reputation and growing market penetration. This includes an adjustable stock with a recessed release. FN has been using these same style stocks on its TAC3 series of FN 15s.
The furniture doesn't have any QD sling points, but the stock does have three horizontal slots, while the handguard includes 76 ventilation cuts (which are too big for QD points). Not the end of the world, after all, the M16/M4 didn't run QD points for generations. The buttstock is adjustable and minimalist in nature and uses a recessed lever for adjustment which is less likely to catch than a more traditional M4 style stock.
Trigger
The single-stage trigger is listed as "Mil-Spec," and we found ours to be better than you would expect from that. FN lists it as ranging from 4.75 to 7.5 pounds in terms of break weight, and we found it out of the box to run an average of 5.5 with a short take-up to the wall followed by a short reset. After 500 rounds, we found this to smooth out to almost 5 pounds on the dot, which is fine for a general-purpose AR trigger.
If all Mil-Spec triggers were this good, folks would be a lot happier.
Reliability
Deep down, FN took the time to make sure the Guardian was built correctly. In our "first looks" piece on the gun published back in July, we noted little things like the fact the castle nut was staked in two different locations, and that the gas key is Mil-Spec sealed, torqued, and well-staked, all of which gave us a good impression of the quality control that went into the gun.
This bore out on the range.
We used just over 500 rounds of 5.56/.223 caliber ammunition drawn from across at least 15 different brass-cased loads I had around the house, including German, Malaysian, and South Korean military surplus, Federal XM855 Green Tip, Winchester NATO-marked overruns, Winchester black box BTHP Match, and bulk pack Wolf M193 NATO, all running the gamut from 55-grain to 77-grain in weight. The primary load we used was Federal's high-value red-boxed American Eagle .223 55-grain FMJ BT (AE223), of which we ran 300 rounds in the FN.
Across this run we logged a single malfunction, a double-feed suffered with German milsurp MEN-made 55-grain M193 loaded in a PMAG that was easily cleared with a Type 3 clearance drill after stripping the mag. This was about 350 rounds into the test. Of note, the testing was done with the gun right out of the box with no cleaning or additional lube until after the 500 rounds were run.
When it came to running it suppressed, we put right at 100 rounds of Federal red box 55-grain FMJ through the Guardian as part of our initial review while a can was fitted. This was done while the FN AR was carrying a SilencerCo Omega 36M, a modular multi-caliber suppressor rated up to .338 LPM and .350 Legend that we've used on dozens of other platforms. The Guardian chewed through all 100 rounds with no issues other than a typical backblast of gas to the face that could probably be mitigated with a suppressor-optimized charging handle.
A typical run with the Omega-carrying Guardian, which we ran directly threaded to the 1/2x28 TPI pattern muzzle after taking off the A2-style flash hider:
The all-up weight of the Guardian as shown, outfitted with a Magpul PMAG loaded with 30 rounds of M855, an Aimpoint Patrol Rifle Optic red dot reflex sight on a QRP2 mount, a full-length direct-thread SilencerCo Omega 36M can, and a field expedient Israeli-style sling, is just a hair over 9 pounds.
Also, we didn't find the lack of a forward assist to be a detriment.
Accuracy
The FN 15 Guardian in initial testing has proved accurate. Most of the shooting we've done so far is primarily for reliability testing, running fairly rapid strings off-hand about 75 rounds at a time and then letting the barrel cool. However, what we have done from the bench showed promise.
We'll spend some more time on the bench with different loads at a distance to see what we can get in our extended review.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Entry-level priced AR without an entry-level feel
- Light and functional
- Great build quality
- Reliable
- Accurate
- Runs suppressed
Cons
- Some may want a forward assist
-
Stock is minimalist in terms of features (e.g. No QD sling points)
Conclusion
The field of "basic" mid-length gas system ARs is probably one of the most crowded markets in the gun industry. The fact that FN, which has been one of the gold standards when it comes to the M16/M4 platform since the mid-1980s, is attempting to move into that space is very interesting.
Is the Guardian perfect? Well, no. It is going to be hard to find a perfect AR, especially at an under-$999 price point. However, it does have a lot going for it. In initial testing, it proved omnivorous when it came to ammo types and magazines – even when throwing a can on – hit everything we aimed at and looked good while doing it. Candidly, it felt remarkably similar to many of FN's much higher-priced ARs.
Over the next month, we'll be doing some more accuracy work with the Guardian, seeing how it runs with steel case, and bumping up the round count.
Stay tuned for a final review.
