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  1. #1
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    Jan 2012
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    Ruimsig, Johannesburg, South Africa
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    Default DM-4 Rifle - First Impressions

    Hi All,

    Thought I'd share my first impressions of the DM-4 rifle.

    I was in the market for a second Semi-Auto rifle in 223/556. Due to my budget, the locally manufactured Diplopoint DM-4's fell right into the budget gap, but I was apprehensive. I had heard from people that the DM-4's were unreliable, had feeding problems and that the fit and finish left a lot to be desired. Many, however, also said that these issues were related to the earlier models. I thought I'd investigate and find out for myself.

    I had a look at the DM-4's at Waterfall Arms and was impressed with the overall finish for the money. I liked the fact that the barrels were hammer-forged, bolts and buffer-tube nut was staked, and the keymod fore-grip was sturdy. The trigger-pull was heavy but crisp.

    I purchased the 12" version as I wanted a shorter AR (I own a Colt LE6940 with a 16" barrel). I originally wanted a 10" version, but the general consenses is that the 12" barrels are more reliable due to the extended dwell time.

    Only real gripe I had was that I was supplied with a commercial stock on a mil-spec buffer-tube. The stock wobbled around and I replaced it with a Magpul SLK stock. I fitted a Holosun ACSS red-dot, Magpul MOE grip, ALG single port brake, ALG mil-sim trigger and QD mounts.



    A 1000+ rounds in, here's my initial impression:

    Reliability: I have fed the rifle different loads and bullet weights. Have not yet had a single failure to feed or cycle different ammo types.

    PS: The rifle does however not consistently feed from a fully loaded magazine when the bolt is dropped due to the spring tension in the magazine. Hoping that this gets better as the rifle "loosens up".

    Accuracy: At 25m - 50m, the rifle does really well with the Holosun ACSS red-dot, but I was curious as to how accurate the rifle would be out to 100m with the 12" barrel. I dropped a Vortex 4-16x scope and a Numenor supressor on the rifle and tested two different bullet weights from the bench.



    I tested with my own reloads which consisted of 55gr Federal bullets with 24gr S321 and 69gr Nosler CC bullets with 23gr's of S321.

    The best four-shot groups of the morning were the 55gr Federal's, printing at a MOA consistently. The 1:9 twist barrel naturally would prefer the quicker/lighter loads as the 69gr Nosler bullets printed consistently at 1.5 MOA.



    Overall, at this stage, I am impressed.

  2. #2
    User
    Join Date
    Jun 2011
    Location
    Cape Town
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    35
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    7,152

    Default Re: DM-4 Rifle - First Impressions

    I still can’t unsee that from the first picture it looks like you are using a Kydex glock holster as a buttstock :p

    Nice write up

  3. #3
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    Jan 2010
    Location
    Pretoria
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    Default Re: DM-4 Rifle - First Impressions

    Cool review

  4. #4
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    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Location
    Pretoria
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    3,327

    Default Re: DM-4 Rifle - First Impressions

    Following this. At one stage they advertised uppers, I was keen on either a 300 BLK or 10" 223 upper.

  5. #5
    User
    Join Date
    Aug 2014
    Age
    35
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    634

    Default Re: DM-4 Rifle - First Impressions

    Great review for someone looking at 1 of these.. also good to hear the local ARs doing well

    Sent from my SM-A715F using Tapatalk

  6. #6
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    Join Date
    Mar 2020
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    34
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    398

    Default Re: DM-4 Rifle - First Impressions

    Quote Originally Posted by pdh View Post
    I still can’t unsee that from the first picture it looks like you are using a Kydex glock holster as a buttstock :p

    Nice write up

    Luckily its his side arm in a OWB Kydex holster

    Very cool display and wright up and glad you are actually enjoying it. I know many happy rifle owners with locally manufactured & assembled rifles.

    As other mentioned, thanks for contributing with reliable first hand experience

  7. #7
    User
    Join Date
    Mar 2021
    Location
    Randburg
    Posts
    52

    Default Re: DM-4 Rifle - First Impressions

    Cool review Lawdel! I also have a DM4 and I have to admit that had my fair share of issues with it however, Diplopoint sorted me out rather quickly and I think it's safe to say that the newer models are reliable. I also like the fact that there is a life time warranty on the DM brand.

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