M17s questions

[Ljungman]

Im picking one of these up in trade. Its an early serial number with windham on the plate.
Question one: is this an ar15 barrel in the sleeve or a totally different barrel?

Question 2: anyone here or any one know a smith familiar or able to work on said rifle if it decides to not be cooperative? Im good with AR 15's but this is a separate animal from what i can see...a piston setup that is unique to this design. I may need a little help with it.

Question 3: any one have one? thoughts opinions? troubles, goods? i lived through an MSAR and got it running fabulously....so im not too afraid of the bad. Ive seen some very nicely modified ones and am looking for a compact tacticool rifle to replace the one being traded.

 

[indykid]

I have an M17S that I enjoy shooting. It is very accurate and low recoil. The only issue I have is because the hot gasses expel into the receiver in the area you hold, it get's very hot. In the summer, gloves are virtually required, but I still enjoy shooting it.

I believe the barrel is proprietary, and not usable in an AR-15 but I could be wrong.

They are a very simple design, and if you are half good with tools should be able to do any work yourself on it. They are also very reliable and at least mine has fired nearly 10K rounds with absolutely no issues.

This is mine as it currently sits. I drilled the holes to match the factory holes to try and cool it, but it still gets hot. I do have a replacement receiver just in case I have to sell it for some reason.