Patriot Ordnance Factory (POF-USA) manufactures and distributes law enforcement, military and civilian rifles in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...

, and was the first manufacturer and seller of gas-piston-operated weapon systems on AR-style rifles in the United States.

History

POF-USA was founded in 2002 by

aerospace engineer Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is si ...

Frank DeSomma with the intent of solving two common problems with gas impingement systems in dusty conditions found with the traditional

AR-15 An AR-15-style rifle is any lightweight semi-automatic rifle based on the Colt AR-15 design. The original ArmaLite AR-15 is a scaled-down derivative of Eugene Stoner's ArmaLite AR-10 design. The then Fairchild Engine and Airplane Corporation d ...

which are carbon fouling and a short-barreled timing issue.

Innovations

To address carbon fouling and a short-barreled timing issue related to traditional AR-15s, POF-USA developed the Regulated Short-Stroke Gas Piston System. Rather than operating gas being injected directly into the upper receiver like a traditional AR-15, the technology pushes a piston that acts on an operating rod, which acts on the bolt carrier, setting extraction and reloading into motion. This

action Action may refer to: * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video game Film * Action film, a genre of film * ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford * ''Action'' (1980 fil ...

type offers several significant improvements over the

direct impingement Direct impingement is a type of gas operation for a firearm that directs gas from a fired cartridge indirectly (through the barrel, through a gas block, and then through a gas tube) into the bolt carrier or slide assembly to cycle the action. Fir ...

method. Because hot gases are not injected into the upper receiver, carbon fouling in the action is virtually eliminated. POF-USA's solution to timing problems related to AR-15's with short gas tubes, POF-USA developed precise op-rod/piston geometry and regulated gas pressure to enable rifles and carbines to be properly timed and bolt speeds (cyclic rates) to be precisely controlled, enhancing extraction and feeding reliability, as well as reducing wear and fatigue on critical components. The gun also runs cooler, further enhancing reliability and safety. POF-USA rifles feature NP3™ coatings and hard, corrosion resistant,

nitride In chemistry, a nitride is an inorganic compound of nitrogen. The "nitride" anion, N3- ion, is very elusive but compounds of nitride are numerous, although rarely naturally occuring. Some nitrides have a find applications, such as wear-resistant ...

heat-treated barrels and gas blocks, eliminating any requirement for lubrication. Additional innovations developed by POF-USA include the integral bolt-carrier key with the interface behind the cam pin, oversized heat-sink barrel nut, roller cam pin, and regulating gas plug.

References

{{reflist

External links

Defense Review article

Safe Defense Journal article
Firearm manufacturers of the United States Manufacturing companies established in 2002