Why we ditched Daniel Defense - Part 1 (DDM4V7 Review)

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I've worked in the firearms industry, so ill give you guys a bit of insight to the other side of the counter. DD champions their RISII quad rails because they are legitimately the best 1913 rails on the market. I hear you guys saying "well its too heavy" but thats the point. Those rails are built like tanks. They are designed to be beat to shit and not chip, crack, or lose zero. You dont get that benefit with MLOK. Its the only quad rail system that beat out Knights. Its attachment system to the receiver adds so many additional contact points than most other rails to guarantee its free floating rails that, again, do not lose zero. Regarding triggers: yea their standard triggers suck, but they also offer models with Geissele 3 gun triggers that are phenominal (DDM4V7 Pro models). They're mostly in 18" barrel models which, to be fair, makes sense. DD mostly markets for mil-spec durability and reliability, but they also make a damn good basic competition gun out of the box. Lastly on to their receivers. If you want full ambi, you have a couple options: LMT, Knights, or Radian lowers which is the option you guys went with. 100% full ambi receivers are not a priority for mid/upper-mid tier companies. DD havent done it because they put that money and time in R&D for their RIS III which from their perspective will be far more financially beneficial. They won military contracts when they dropped the RIS II, theres a very good chance they will change the course with RIS III. Not to mention, their customers have been asking for MLOK RIS II way more than they've been asking for a full ambi lower. Why would they prioritize changing their receiver when they know that isnt a priority for their customers over their rail system. Customers cant build RIS II/III rail systems, but they CAN buy a radian lower, pop the pins, and call it a day. I understand where you guys are coming from, but all due respect: the stuff you're complaining about doesnt get solved at your price points. 1500$ isnt cheap for a rifle, but its far from the top of the hill. DD is a one stop shop for a functional, reliable rifle. It isnt a one stop shop for a rifle that caters to every single need. If you want that, you'll have to double the price tag and start looking at LMT, which put DDs to shame in every other aspect if you can afford or find them. This isn't an attempt to 'poor shame' or anything, i sure as hell cant afford an LMT, im simply pointing out that in reality your complaints at your price point isnt exactly realistic or far at this time. maybe in 7 or 8 years the market will expand and these kinds of features on rifles will be standard at the sub-2,000$ mark, but right now that just isnt the case

I love my Daniel Defense V7. Reliable, tough, and just a great all around rifle.

My buddy owns two DDs and their customer service is unreal. They fixed his MK18 up, gave him a new gas block and barrel for free. There’s no way a company has better customer service than Daniel defense. Just a factor to consider. But I wish they had gieselle triggers that came with their prebuilt rifles

I proudly own a DDM4 V7, which I’ll never sell. But after owning a few rifles by Bravo Company, FN, and Aero Precision, I couldn’t justify paying the premium price for another Daniel Defense.

Some good points here. I’m a DD guy, and their M4A1 is still my favorite rifle. The V7 Line isn’t bad, but I think they’re new RISIII line is really going to set the standard and be hard to beat. Are they a little overpriced? Yup. But honestly, I got all of my DD rifles new from authorized dealers for $1,500 - $1,700 street price, which isn’t that bad these days. Their quality is debatably the best, their customer service is the best, and you don’t have to wait 8 months to a year for one of their guns. Not bashing any other rifles though, but DD is top notch as far as standard AR’s go.

I always built AR's until I bought a DD. The quality on the mk18 I got was incredible. To each their own. Next time I want a good AR i'll just buy another DD.

After owning several ar15s and serving in the corps the thought that you need a $2k plus rifle to be combat effective is a joke. The gun community gets way to caught up on the minute details. I’m guilty of this myself

I got a DD5V4 in 308 and I was so impressed with it I'm moving from a Geissele URG-I to a 14.5 RIII. The Geissele rail just doesn't seem up to the task of rough duty.

DD makes a phenomenal product. They are innovative, proprietary furniture, light as hell with a full size rail, battle proven, varying colors, strong, reliable.

Most any gunsmith can remove a pinned and welded muzzle device and replace it with nearly whatever muzzle device you want and then pin and weld the new one on. All without doing any damage to the barrel. Also, they've been making suppressors for a few years now.

I own a DDM4V7 but I also live in Cali, so improving some AR capabilities (suppressors) are pretty limited for me. They’re solid starter rifles for anyone trying to get in to the platform. But for the price tag it’s unfortunate that it comes with a sub par trigger and no back up irons.

I bought my ddm4v7 for $1400. It's the reliability that makes me feel confident. For me, confidence in me weapon is huge. I love it! My buddy has a giessele urg 16" and I shoot better with my dd than that. Not sure what you think about that but I'm very happy with my dd after about 500 rounds and some cqb drills.

I really agree with all the points you guys made. Small issues are big issues when you are trying to go premium and still are annoyed about something with the rifle. For that money, the rifle should be your dream gun

FYI the V 7 PRO comes stock with a Geissele trigger, that's the best I've ever shot. And it has a legit muzzle mitigation. Rifle length gas system. You can put an incredible amount of rounds on target with this piece of equipment. One last point: the V7 PRO will get you around 200 ft per sec more velocity. The difference between 2900 FPS and 3100 FPS is significant.

I was torn in between a BCM build or buying a DD off the shelf. Went with BCM and never looked back. Fit and finish is awesome and I have ran at least 3500 rounds thru it and never had a issue, plus it shoots steel and brass without any problems. Really happy with my decision.

For the prices I’m willing to pay, I only really trust Daniel Defense and FN. Are there other manufacturers that do a better job? Sure! But for the accuracy/precision of the barrels, quality of parts, assembly, QC, and availability Daniel Defense and FN are it for me. I get sub MOA accuracy with match grade ammo so I’m happy.

Yeah, I looked hard at DD but steered away from them for all the reasons you stated. Great video.

I appreciate you guys and your reviews for sure but I’ll trust my life to a Daniels Defense rifle without question any day everyday. I have several of there guns with thousands of rounds with no failure and95 percent of that suppressed

You can always build something better a lot cheaper than buying off the rack. Doesn’t matter what you buy. DD makes some of the best barrels and rails in the industry. I bought just the upper (v7lw) with bcg and ambi charging handle with shipping and tax for $1069 and it’s by far the best rifle I have. Buying off the rack the whole rifle I believe is not worth it. But if you can do what I did you can build an entire quality fighting rifle loadout for under 2000. I went with m4e1 lower with a cmc trigger. Lpvo and canted rmr.