Time For An AR-15 Upgrade - LanTac USA Enhanced Bolt Carrier Group (E-BCG)

Do you remember your first AR15 Rifle? Does it look the same today as the day you bought it? Chances are, your first AR is now one of several and it has been modified for your specific style of shooting and/or hunting. As an avid deer and wild boar hunter, I’m always looking for ways to increase my tactical advantage in the field by adding additional tools to my arsenal. Earlier this year I was fortunate enough to be introduced to LanTac-USA. The company is primarily known for its flagship product, the LanTac Dragon Muzzle Brake DGN556B for AR15, M16 and M4 Rifles. Since the Dragon Brake’s introduction, LanTac-USA has continued to introduce revolutionary and innovative AR accessories. The LanTac-USA Enhanced Bolt Carrier Group (E-BCG) is one of these products. The E-BCG is a beautiful and innovative piece of engineering. It’s visually impressive and provides many upgrades to the standard mil-spec design. LanTac-USA’s E-BCG is the next must have tactical upgrade for your AR style rifle.

LanTac-USA LLC is the US division of Lanner Tactical (LanTac-UK). The European parent is well established in the UK and manufacturers LanTac Raven Rifles, Dragon Brakes, rails, uppers and lowers. LanTac-USA is a privately held company originally established in Nevada in 2013. The company is now headquartered in Texas. LanTac-USA manufactures high quality accessories for AR15, M16 and M4 type rifles. All the products manufactured by LanTac-USA are precision made in the USA and are sold worldwide.

The LanTac E-BCG is the product of extensive research, engineering and innovation. It’s a drop in replacement part for semi-auto and auto AR15 rifles which makes it a multi-rifle tactical upgrade. I’ve had flawless performance in my AR-556 and AR-300BLK SBR rifles. My 6.8 SPC and 450 Bushmaster will be added to the mix by the end of this year.

The E-BCG weighs in at 11.7oz and has a smooth Nickel Boron (NiB) finish with a .2 coefficient of friction, one of the lowest in the industry. The precision carrier is made of 8620 steel and has forward porting with enlarged vents. The enlarged vents allow the rifle to run cooler and cleaner, producing a flatter running rifle. The enlarged vents also reduce the pressurization of the receiver, which is a huge plus for suppressed short barreled rifles.

Less friction translates into a cooler and smoother shooting rifle and less wear and tear inside the receiver. The high quality NiB dissipates heat faster than the standard mil-spec BCG and controls carbon buildup. This keeps the rifle shooting smooth and consistent after hundreds if not thousands of rounds. On the hunt, I have no time for failures due to heat or carbon buildup. My double taps need to work 100% of the time, especially when hunting dangerous game. The forward port and enlarged gas ports keep my receiver cleaner, especially when shooting with my suppressor. Engaging game with burnt powder blowing back into my eyes and face is not in my game plan. The LanTac E-BCG provides me many functional and tactical advantages which keep my rifles running cool, clean and on target.

Jamie Franks, a fellow LanTac-USA shooter and History Channel “Top Shot” competitor has shot thousands of rounds through his E-BCG. Jamie is also a Pro 3-Gun Shooter and he recognizes the need to make his rifle as light as possible. Per Jamie, “one of the first go-to parts is usually a reduced mass carrier. It is my opinion that this is the LAST place you should cut weight.” “In the case of the LanTac E-BCG, the additional weight of the carrier serves to increase bolt lock time and really smooth out the action.” He also explains that the E-BCG “helps keep the rifle’s cycle of operation smooth, soft and tight, keeping the rifle shooting flat.”

The balanced flared boss is more than just a cool look. LanTac-USA’s engineering tested and upgraded the E-BCG to provide a more consistent lock position within the receiver. This upgrade balances the carrier and enhances accuracy. This consistency gives me confidence in the field. When hours of preparation come down to just seconds of opportunity, my weapon system is ready to make that one shot count. Do you have the same confidence in your gear?

The Smooth Cam (CP-R360 Domed Cam Pin) is another unique feature to the E-BCG. Its precision machined 17.4PH stainless steel and heat treated. The ultra smooth head has a unique shape which reduces wear inside the receiver. Unique is right! Why continue to use a square cam pin in a cylindrical receiver body? LanTac-USA’s brilliant response to this small, but vital part of the weapon system is to be admired. This innovative piece of technology just makes sense and it complements the E-BCG’s overall smoothness.

LanTac-USA didn’t cut any corners with the standard mil-spec requirements and maintenance recommendations. The E-BCG’s staked gas key is NiB coated and its 8 fasteners are staked in 4 places. The precision bolt is made of carpenter 158 steel, NiB coated and magnetic particle inspected (MPI). Lastly, the CAM Pin is made of stainless H900 and the firing pin is hard chrome plated.
These features continue to strengthen the overall benefit of this unit. Cutting corners when every detail counts is not going to win your next 3 gun match or harvest your once in a lifetime game animal. Build it right and good things happen.

For maintenance, the E-BCG comes with a 5ml tube of Froglube CLP and LanTac recommends periodic cleaning with Froglube solvent and CLP. LanTac-USA stands by their product with a lifetime warranty from defects.

The LanTac-E-BCG has been on my wish list for some time. It was a significant upgrade to the Spikes Tactical BCG which was initially part of my custom suppressed 300BLK SBR build. I built the rifle specifically for short range wild boar and deer hunting. As you can see from my prior comments, each part contributes to the tactical advantage I need when stalking deer and dangerous game. The barrel is a Daniel Defense CHF 10.3” barrel, complemented with a SYRAC adjustable gas block. The adjustable gas block was chosen to mitigate the pressure created in the SBR upper receiver with a suppressor attached. The rifle is suppressed with a SilencerCo SAKER 762 with the SilencerCo SAKER muzzle brake.

The LanTac E-BCG testing and evaluation was done at Stone Hart’s Gun Club & Indoor Range, the premier indoor gun range in Miami, FL. Fortunately, Stone Hart has a compact shooting rest which was very helpful when adjusting the gas block and zeroing in my rifle. For ammunition, I chose SilencerCo’s Harvester 300BLK 220g Sierra MatchKing subsonic ammunition.

LanTac is very protective of their E-BCG’s research and development, so the engineering behind the features outlined above is proprietary and not readily available. My evaluation was based on my specific use of the E-BCG as part of my suppressed 300BLK SBR system. Given my build started with the Spikes Tactical BCG, I tested the gas pressure difference given the E-BCG’s forward porting and enlarged gas ports.
My theory was simple. The forward porting and enlarged gas ports of the E-BCG will need additional pressure from the gas block to efficiently push the unit back to chamber an additional round and lock back on the last round. Fortunately, the use of an adjustable gas block made this experiment easily observed and measured in the range.

To start the experiment I installed my Spikes Tactical BCG with standard gas ports. Numerous shots and gas block adjustments were made until the BCG locked back on the last round after several three round rapid fire shots. Once the rifle was shooting at the most efficient gas block setting, I replaced the Spikes BCG with the LanTac E-BCG. The control was established and now for the experiment.

To prove my theory I needed an assistant to help me keep count of clicks as I tested a range of clicks in both directions. My daughter tagged along with me and she was my official gas block click counter assistant. She’s not a hunter, but she’ll shoot paper targets anytime.

It only took a few shots and clicks to come to a conclusion. The experiment was further tested and confirmed with several three round rapid fire shots leaving the bolt locked back after the last round. Yes! My theory was correct, the gas block needed to vent additional gas to allow the bolt to lock back. There was only a click difference when it was all said and one. The rifle system was now reset to a new benchmark to create the perfect efficiency between the gas block, E-BCG and the subsonic ammunition. LanTac’s claim was spot on!

My choice to add the LanTac E-BCG to my 300BLK suppressed SBR build was a solid choice. I couldn’t be happier with the rifle’s performance. In fact, all my AR hunting rifles will be upgraded to LanTac USA premium parts over the next few months. Just in time for deer and bear firearm season!

Much of LanTac’s innovation and engineering is proprietary and closely guarded. I spoke directly with senior management and I can’t share what they told me, but I can tell you that LanTac-USA will change the way you look at the industry and the way you build your next rifle. It may just be the next Apple Computers of the firearm industry. That’s how confident I am of their management and the products being rolled out over the next 12 months. The LanTac-E-BCG and the LanTac Dragon Muzzle Brakes are available now. Please visit http://www.lantac-usa.com/gun-dealer-search.html to find the your local LanTac-USA dealer. If you live in South Florida, please call or visit Stone Hart’s Gun Club & Indoor Range (https://stonehartsgunclub.co). Let them know Erik from SHWAT sent you.