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SIG 556R Gen 2

47K views 58 replies 24 participants last post by  Dobe 
#1 ·
Hi, I just got my 556R today. i have not had a chance to shoot it yet but i have to admit that im a bit disappointed with my first impressions. the first issue i have is with the amount of play between the upper and lower reciever. i can hold the grip and rock the upper reciever side to side and up and down. Is this normal for this rifle? I also have the same issue with the forend, movment side to side and forward and aft. I was very excited about this rifle because i own several AKs but going on first impressions i am disappointed. If anyone who owns a 556R Gen 2 could give me some feedback it would be greatly appreciated.

Also does any one know of any aftermarket forends that would work for this gun. I have found some for the 556 classic and would assume that it would work for the 556R but i am not sure. Thanks
 
#3 ·
Welcome from Pa. I dont own a 556 but from what i have read they had a lot of early problems. Is your weapon new? Anything mfrd after aug 2012 is supposed to have all the bugs worked out and all the gen 2 fixes and upgrades. I have a colt and an M400 and there is no play in either spots. Good bang for your buck are magpul products.
 
#6 ·
Just gotta add my 2 cents worth. I just bought my 3rd Sig, 716, (02-Oct-12) 516, (14-Mar-13) and a R556, (01-Apr-13) The R556, NOT a 556R if the position of the 'R' makes a difference?? Anyway, the R556 left the factory on 28-Feb-13. It is. like the other 2 Sig rifles, very tight, no wiggle at all, ANYWHERE. A solid built rifle in .223 Rem.
The only thing I don't like about the R556 is the ejected cases leave with a force at 1 to 2 o'clock. Unlike the 716 & 516 that eject in a predictable fasion to 4 & 5 o'clock with much less force. For a reloader, that is really important.
 
#8 ·
The model designation on the box is: R556-16B-CS-RD.
Small print under above exactly: Sig556, 5.56 NATO, SWAT, 16 IN, FLD, GRAD, F
As statedviously, it's 'birthday' was 28-Feb-2013, purchase date was 01-Apr-2013. I had it on lay-a-way for 2 weeks before pick-up.
SO! Question in my mind is; how is the placement of the R before or after the model number significant to the rifle?
 

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#9 ·
The 556R is calibrated in 7.62x39 and is basically a Sig version of an AK47. It takes "most" AK magazines with the exception of the US Palm. Early versions had problems with an aluminum mag well that showed excessive wear when using metal magazines, it has since been upgraded to a steel reinforcement.
 
#11 ·
The 556R is calibrated in 7.62x39 and is basically a Sig version of an AK47. It takes "most" AK magazines with the exception of the US Palm.
Mine was purchased in Nov 2012 and my box states R556-762R-16B, but your description describes mine perfectly. The salesperson also referred to it as 556R. Could it be that the "R556" refers to the Gen 2 version?
 
#14 ·
#13 ·
I'll call Sig CS in the morning and see "if" they can explain it...that should be interesting LOL
 
#15 · (Edited)
If you go to SIGs website, go to products, rifles, then click on SIG 556 you will see the 7.62x39 version is referred to as a SIG 556R.

Back to OP's remarks.

I received my 556R 7.62x39 from my FFL last night. I already had the Zurich Wedge and Samson 556 BUIS waiting to be installed. Mine had a little play between the upper and lower receiver but after I installed the ZW it is rock solid, no play.

I also have some play in the handguard but knew that before I received mine as its normal. There are ways to fix that which you can find on WT. I don't care because I'm putting a quad rail on mine. I know of 2 quad rail option. First is the Troy rail but the folding stock does not latch to it. Not a big deal for people that will remove the existing stock to install a Magpul CTR or similar (which I may do). Second option is sending the gun to SIG Custom Shop to have them install the SIG 556 quad rail which the folding stock will latch to.

My 556R came with a SIG 20% off accessories or Custom shop coupon so I will probably have SIG install the quad rail.

I also purchased the http://www.onesourcetactical.com/4x32browecombatoptic-4.aspxBrowe BCO 4x32 LED 7.62x39 glass for my 556R which was just released and designed specifically for the 556R. Testing had the 556R with quality Lapua ammo ringing steel out to 800 yards. I got one from the first batch which arrives this week.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S III
 
#16 ·
I also purchased the 4x32 BROWE Combat Optic - 7.62x39mm Chevron ReticleBrowe BCO 4x32 LED 7.62x39 glass for my 556R which was just released and designed specifically for the 556R. Testing had the 556R with quality Lapua ammo ringing steel out to 800 yards. I got one from the first batch which arrives this week.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S III
I'll be interested to hear how you like that...
 
#18 ·
I have a couple of questions for padom. First how did you install your zurich wedge? I would assume that you would remove the allen head bolt that holds the grip to the lower than install the wedge under the bolt head. Then the flat side of the wedge would be what presses against the upper, which removes the play between the two. Is this correct???

About what you said regarding the quad rails. I have seen them advertised on several websites but their very generic in the description. Would a rail described for a 556 classic or any other 556 models work for my 556R. I would assume that they would but i want to be sure before i buy. Also i called sig about the quad rail they offer and they told me that they were out of stock but when they became avaliable that they could be shipped to me and i did not have to send my rifle to them. (Unless you wanted to)I found the Troy rail on CTD but its only avaliable in Flat Dark Earth color the black is out of stock. The last place i found one is at is Samson industries.IF you find some rails anywhere else please let me know. Thanks
 
#22 · (Edited)
I have a couple of questions for padom. First how did you install your zurich wedge? I would assume that you would remove the allen head bolt that holds the grip to the lower than install the wedge under the bolt head. Then the flat side of the wedge would be what presses against the upper, which removes the play between the two. Is this correct???
To install the Zurich Wedge I put my finger up the inside of the grip holding the grip and nut in place. I took out the grip bolt. Put the ZW on the bolt then put the bolt right back into the grip and tightened everything back up. I used the tip of a micro flat head screw driver between the receiver and ZW to keep it from twisting as I tightened it up. I now have zero play between my upper and lower. Here is a picture of it installed.
 

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#19 ·
I did go ahead and buy the rotary diopter rear and hooded front sight for the 556r.(but there on backorder from sig). I can't stand the red dot that comes with it. I plan on buying a EOtech red dot and magnifier. I talked with someone who works at EOtech and they told me it would take 16 weeks for my order to process. So I'm just going to wait for now. When I finally do get the EOtech do y'all think that because the front site from SIG does not fold down that it will get in the line of sight of the red dot
 
#20 ·
YES. The front sigh of the 556 definately will enterfer with the Eotech. I did exactly what you plan and the front site was smack dab in the middle of the Eotech window. The red dot of the Eotech was just above the front sight post, which made it worse because then there is a very strong tendency to site with the post instead of the red dot.
Hopefully you can borrow an Eotech from someone to check it out BEFORE you lay out the big bucks for something that will not suite you.
 
#36 ·
YES. The front sigh of the 556 definately will enterfer with the Eotech. I did exactly what you plan and the front site was smack dab in the middle of the Eotech window. The red dot of the Eotech was just above the front sight post, which made it worse because then there is a very strong tendency to site with the post instead of the red dot.
Hopefully you can borrow an Eotech from someone to check it out BEFORE you lay out the big bucks for something that will not suite you.

Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't that called cowittness?

KK
 
#21 ·
I spoke to Sig CS this morning about something other than R556/556R, but before hanging up, I did ask the difference. CS explained that "556R" (Russian) is the name of the weapon and that "R556"-762R-16B is the part number.
 
#23 · (Edited)
In regards to quad rails I only know what I posted previously. I know a few people that have the Troy installed along with a Magpul CTR stock and love the setup. I was told by a guy that you could send your gun back to SIG, have them install the quad rail and everything would be under warranty since you would be using SIG parts and they would be doing the install. If SIG told you they can mail you the rail (once available) then thats great because you save the $55 round trip VIP shipping and dont loose your gun for 10-14 days. I will call SIG today and see what they have to say.

Update:

Just got off the phone with Tim at SIG Custom Shop. He informed me that they have quad rails in stock and ready to install on the 556R for $299.99 and they MUST be installed by the SIG Custom Shop. They confirmed they would honor the 20% off coupon as well making the rail $240.00 installed. They will NOT ship you the quad rail.

Tim is emailing me a shipping label so I can ship him my gun to have the quad rail installed. He said turn around is about 14 days.
 
#25 ·
I think that I will cancel the order that I placed with SIG for there iron sights go with the ones I saw on the Samson industries sight. Both the front and rear sights fold down.

I got a chance too shoot my 556R today and I was very impressed with the rifle. I put about 100 RDS through it today with various metal and plastic mags. No issues whatsoever!! Very accurate as well and I was using tula and WPA military classic. Definitely more accurate than my Maddi AK.
 
#26 · (Edited)
Did you shoot today with the Zurich Wedge installed? I haven't shot mine yet so I won't have anything to compare as my ZW is installed already but I hear with the ZW installed people are getting tighter groups than without out. I am going to shoot mine tomorrow, clean it then box it back up and ship to SIG for the quad rail install. I just can't stand all the play in the stock handguards (even though I knew off the bat there would be play).
 
#27 · (Edited)
Sorry for the misinformation. I guess I misunderstood what they told me. As for the wedge, it was not installed. I ordered it sunday off of the internet. I took the handguard off and cut a small piece of black duck tape and wrapped around the forward lip of the handguards then trimed it with a razor blade. It took away the side to side play. I did not have any issues with it while I was shooting. Still I thought it was funny to be using duck tape on a1500 gun but like you said I plan on having SIG install a rail as soon as I have the money.
 
#28 · (Edited)
I also heard of guys installing a rubber O-Ring around the front end of the handguard to reduce play.

I'm not really interested in all that. Just going to get the quad rail installed now and get it over with. I want to get the gun back, get my Browe zerod and run a bunch of rounds through it. I will be using my 556R setup for the SI Combat Rifle Marksmanship class in early August and want to get everything done and get comfortable with it in advance.
 
#29 · (Edited)
I'm an old man and a lifelong gunner who wanted a rifle that I could shoot and break my kids (3) and grand kids (3) in on that was cheap to shoot. I had most of my long guns stolen many years ago, so I was like a newbie once again. Looked around and read all of the reviews and decided I wanted a good gun (not a cheap one). Finally decided on the 7.62mm and went with the Russian 7.62 x 39 as ammo was cheaper because when my family gets together to mix it up we can burn through a lot of rounds.

Read all of propaganda and decided the Sig 556R fit the bill for a rifle around $1,000. Finally found one in November 2012 and purchased it. Right away I had misgivenings about it. Puny rear sight and no front sight, the Red Dot didn't appear all that great. Took it to a local guy who said he agreed and he ordered Troy folding battle sights. After a couple of misques he finally got the right ones. But there was no way the Sig Red Dot would line up without a riser or something else. While in the Ft. Worth Texas area I walked into a gun shop in Weatherford Texas (Shootist Arms) to get a shotgun repaired and asked the owner what he thought about the Sig 556R. He pointed to a tricked out one on one of his showcases. He said, "I like it so well that all of the guns I could own that's my pick. You selected the cream of the crop."

He suggested that I put a EOTech XPS2 sight on it to solve my problem, which we did. I have a problem with my hands (trigger fingers on both my small fingers) so he suggested I buy the Magpul AFG2 angled fore grip which solved my grip problem.

Here are a few suggestions for new players with this gun. Personally I like the gun after we've put about 500 rounds through it. Yea, the front fore grip is sorta loose, but I lean in to it so no problem. The rest of the gun was tight so no problems there. It is heavy but this also makes it easy to shoot for my grand kids because recoil in nada. But one piece of advice that the instuction books tells you ... CLEAN it before you use it or it won't operate correctly.

Would I buy another one? You bet. Would I rcommend it for others? Yes, if it fits your needs and you can live with the shorter range 7.62 x 39 shell. For me and mine it is the perfect gun but ya'll need to know that most of the Russian ammo isn't allowed in indoor ranges, so try to pickup some of the Rumanian brass to shoot there. My biggest gripe is the fact that I haven't been able to find any 5 or 10 round mags for it yet.
 
#30 ·
The Sig 556R is a fine rifle and accurate also out to 400 yards. It has shot any ammo I have put into it with no problems to include the inexpensive steel cased Russian ammo. I've got a an EOTech EXPS3 on it - works great. I'm thinking about getting an ACOG set up for the 7.62x39 for it as well.
 
#32 ·
To ole dog ralphie, I found some 5rd tapco mags that work just fine in my 556r. I'm like you, it took some additional purchases to get my rifle the way I want it but now I love it. I bought a Zürich wedge to eliminate the play between the receivers. Samson front and rear sights, Samson quad rail, magpul front grip, and I just got my leatherwood Hi-Lux 762R scope. I haven't shot yet with the scope but I plan to this weekend.
 
#35 ·
Hi everyone! Ive been very interested in this rifle .I ve been thinking about it & researching it . I ve read alot of bad & good . Any regrets? I dont like the sound of the play in the stock,for the money every thin should be gtg. Iam very interested in hearing about accuracy out of this thing? I ve been considering an ak but then you read the accuracy report & them & it turns me off them. How does the ctr stock mount on to it? Also has anyone put a muzzle break or compensator on it?
 
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