Adler Ad500A 223

[u/Minute_Act_3457]

Well, I pulled the trigger… literally 😂 on the new AD500A in .223, and for around $1,200 after tax, I can honestly say I’m seriously impressed. I couldn’t find any real world reviews on the AD500A in .223, so I finally said screw it and had to get my hands on one myself.

Put about 200 rounds through it today and with the factory mags it didn’t jam once — not a single issue. It was also amazingly accurate at 50 yards, especially considering It was quickly sighted in before shooting on the temp sight I have on it for now (Vortex Crossfire 2)

The rifle itself feels great in the hands. It’s not heavy, recoil is very manageable, and overall it’s surprisingly ergonomic and comfortable. Everything felt well balanced and natural while shooting, which made the whole experience much better.

The only real issue I found was with some of the factory fit and finish. I originally bought another one but noticed a lot of small surface manufacturing imperfections. Luckily, G4C was great about it and allowed me to exchange it, and thankfully the replacement I got has been solid with no issues or visual imperfections.

If you’re going to look at one, I’d definitely recommend taking a really good look over the entire rifle before leaving the store. Check the overall hardware, alignment, screw heads and even the tools provided. On the first one I had, there were little things that looked slightly out of line, some screw heads appeared warped/damaged, and even some of the included tools weren’t quite right. Nothing I experienced with my replacement, but definitely something I’d recommend checking closely before purchasing.

As for magazines, I bought a couple Amend2 mags to try out and unfortunately had issues pretty much every time I tried to use them. The two factory magazines that come with the rifle were a completely different story — zero jams throughout the day. I ended up pairing the two factory mags back-to-back to make a flip-mag setup, and so far I’m definitely sticking with them.

I ran PMC Bronze 55gr through it and it ran mint. One thing I did notice is that this rifle seems to perform best when running heavily lubricated. I kept mine well lubricated throughout the range session and, paired with the factory mags, it ran flawlessly.

Overall, I’d highly recommend the AD500A in 223 to anyone looking for a cool-looking semi-auto that performs amazingly and looks just as neat. Between the reliability and how accurate it was at 50 yards with just a quick sight-in, it definitely exceeded my expectations.

I’ve still got a bunch more parts planned and on the away for mine, so the build isn’t finished yet. For around $1,200 after tax, I’m thoroughly impressed with it so far!

[u/Intelligent_Chard_10]

Did you have chance using pistol mag? Like STANAG, PMAG or LAR? Wonder if they would work well.

[u/Minute_Act_3457 → u/Intelligent_Chard_10]

Placing my order now! I’ll definitely follow up very soon with an update. It didn’t seem to like the aftermarket Amend2 mags I tried, so I’m curious to see how it performs with some other options and whether it cycles more consistently.

[u/Intelligent_Chard_10 → u/Minute_Act_3457]

I also saw the “tighten the barrel nut after 250 rds” in the manual, did you experience it being loosen so far lol? That’s the most funny thing I have ever seen for a gun

[u/Minute_Act_3457 → u/Intelligent_Chard_10]

Lmaooo I saw that too haha

Weirdly enough, I checked the barrel nut after my range trip and found absolutely no play in it.

I honestly feel like they put that in there as a fail-safe so there’s something they can point fingers at if a warranty claim ever comes up. Kinda like a car dealer saying, “Well, you didn’t do 100 oil changes every other day at exactly 3:18 PM, so unfortunately we can’t honour your warranty” 😂 Seems like some random technicality they have or maybe it actually does get loose who knows! Just follow the damn book takes 2 seconds to put the tool on it 😂

I in al honesty though, I did put the tool on mine afterward and gave it a little pressure just to see if it would tighten or lock in any further, but there was zero movement.