Young Manufacturing

Lightweight Chrome BCG Review

Written by: Buddy Murphy

This is a review of the Semi-Auto/Full Auto M16 Complete Bolt Carrier Group (BCG), manufactured by Young Manufacturing Inc. This bolt carrier group is manufactured using MIL-SPEC quality steel and milled on their in-house CNC machines, ensuring precision and reliability in every component. The particular carrier in this review is their SLC (Super Lightweight Carrier), which they no longer have on their site, but can still be found for sale on 3rd party sites. All attributes from this carrier extend to their M-16 BCGs - except weight.

Each bolt carrier undergoes a meticulous process of getting heat-treated, hard-chromed, and the bolt throat is then chrome-lined for enhanced durability and performance. They remove all sharp edges and rough finishes. Ensuring smooth operation and preventing any unnecessary wear and tear on your firearm.

What does hard-chrome do for you? Well, it adds durability to the BGC and it makes the surface very hard so carbon has more of a problem sticking to it. Here are some before and after pictures. With half of a dry paper towel and about 10 minutes, this BGC went from this…

…to this.

That carbon has been building up since Forgotten Weapon’s “Moons Out Goons Out” in March of 2024. It has done several other competitions and practices since – all suppressed in a direct impingement rifle. I have run Nitrided BCGs and they will get sticky (and NiB to a lesser extent) after getting a sufficient amount of carbon, this BCG did not get sticky. I have become a Piston AR snob because of direct impingement BCGs becoming inoperable without constant care, when shooting suppressed. But with this BCG, I am starting to question my own snobbery.

Now, let me draw your attention to the innovative HMB Bolt by HM Defense, that is included in this carrier group. The HMB Bolt represents a significant advancement in bolt design by eliminating the traditional pass-through cam pin hole. Replacing it with a cam pin socket and radiused cam pin. This patented design addresses the inherent weak point in Mil-Spec bolts. It increases the amount of metal—and thus strength—at the cam pin location. The result? No more broken bolts, at least at the cam pin.

Moreover, the HMB Bolt reduces contact between the cam pin and firing pin, allowing for smoother operation of the firing pin, bolt lugs, and aft gas rings. The cam pin socket also retains lubrication, ensuring extended operational performance.

You may have noticed in the photos that the gas key is not staked, that is intentional. Here is a link as to why they don’t stake their gas keys from the Young Manufacturing President: Read it here. The long and short of it is if you do it well enough, they don’t need staking. The gas key is supported by a recoil lug, a feature designed to enhance overall reliability and function.

Firearms Insider Reviews - Key Points

Claim to Fame:

Very durable, easy to clean BCG, that still runs smooth even when filthy.

Target Market:

Suppressor host rifles, people who don’t clean their rifles, heavy use operators

Features, Benefits, and Specifications of this product:

Mil-Spec
Hard-chromed
Advanced design bolt
Full-auto rated
Operates smooth when dirty
Easy, in-field cleaning

What other aesthetic options or finishes are available?

M16 BCGs are also available in Black Nitride, with or without the HMB bolt

What others are saying?:

Nothing found as of publishing

Link to other reviews:

Nothing found as of publishing

Price point:

MSRP = $299.95 for M16

Retail = Same

I need it now! Availability:

Young Manufacturing or KE Arms

Our Rating:

Pros:

Hard-chromed, including the bolt throat
Advanced bolt design
Recoil lug supported gas key
No sharp edges

Cons:

Price
Some people will require staking the gas key

Score: 9.00 Amazing

Titanium bolt carrier groups (BCG) are one of the mysteries of the AR world. A few companies manufacture them, but what are they really for? I’ll try to answer that with the Walker Defense Research Titanium BCG.

If you are looking at a Titanium (Ti) BCG, like the Walker Defense one, it is probably because of weight. Meaning you are trying to get the lightest possible parts around. The Walker Ti BCG weighs 7.8 ounces complete. A standard BCG weighs 11.8 ounces on my scale. That’s an off the shelf weight saving of 4 ounces. I know, that doesn’t seem like a lot, but when every ounce counts, that's a bunch. An important note is that the bolt is not titanium, it is 9130 steel with a Nickel Boron coating. The bolt is also magnetic partical inspected (MPI). A Ti bolt just doesn’t have the correct metallurgy to work, but for the carrier, it’s great. The Ti carrier, without the bolt, only weighs 5.7 ounces.

The Walker Defense Ti BCG is of the standard M16 profile. This is done so that it will work in almost every scenario, except piston guns. It is for direct impingement AR’s only. The M16 profile also gives the BCG strength and reliability. Cutting away material can weaken a BCG or make it not function correctly. Walker makes the BCG out of 6AL-4V grade 5 titanium. This even goes above my material knowledge, but I bet that they know what they are doing, especially since this titanium seems to be the standard for Ti BCG’s. An Ionbond Diamond Like Carbon (DLC) is then put on the carrier. This DLC coating gives the BCG a longer lifespan and makes it super smooth. Of course you need excellent machining to have a smooth coating, and the Walker Defense BCG definitely is machined super smooth.

Another reason for choosing a titanium BCG is for reduced recoil. The Ti BCG reduces recoil because there is less moving mass. This does come at a price. One also needs an adjustable gas block. This is a must for any lightweight BCG, not just the Walker Ti one. Then you have to tune the adjustable gas block. Good ones come with instructions on how to do this. Some might say that you can “tune” the Ti BCG by using heavier buffers and stuff. But a heavier buffer just adds more weight and more recoil. Isn’t one reason you would choose a Ti bcg is for weight? I can attest to the lower recoil of the Ti BCG. I have a Superlative arms adjustable gas block, tuned to eject the brass at about 3:30. According to the Mantis x, it reduced muzzle rise by over 50% and recoil width by over 80%. You can see in the short video that even with an A2 flash hider, there is hardly any recoil or muzzle climb. I could definitely feel the difference.

I was a little hesitant to try the Walker titanium BCG out. I just didn’t understand why I needed it. After using it thoroughly for some time, I can say it definitely makes the AR shoot so much smoother. All the claims are correct. Reduced muzzle rise. Reduced felt recoil. Faster follow up shots, due to those previously mentioned reductions. Yes, the BCG price can make you gasp a little. But in the end, it’s not much more expensive, if any, than other low mass BCG’s. Even some enhanced BCG’s are in the $250 range. The Walker Ti BCG also has forward assist notches, something a lot of the other lightweight carriers don’t have. For me, I just can’t get over how smooth the recoil impulse is with the Walker Ti BCG.

Probably the last reason to choose Walker’s Ti BCG is durability. Titanium tends to be more resistant to heat and pressure. What do direct impingement guns have? Hot gasses being directly blown into the carrier. So anything that is more resistant to heat is a good thing. Walker also correctly stakes the gas key on, so it won’t be moving around causing problems. Just lube your Ti BCG as normal, and you should get a long life span from it.

The Walker Defense Titanium BCG does everything a BCG should do and more. The “more” is why I really like it. It’s lightweight, reduces recoil, is durable, and has a standard M16 profile. Hopefully you have a better understanding of why you would want the Walker Ti BCG. So if you want that “lightweight everything”, or just a super quality bolt carrier, head over to the Walker Defense Research website and give them a look. Everything I have from Walker is top notch and is always made in the USA.