Keymod accessories install install#

Its a very sturdy, holds well and helps to keep the rifle as low as possible for prone and bench shooting. It is made for sling stud bipods like a Harris or clone thereof. The K-Pod is less than ½” and attaches the bipod very close to the rail instead of a typical picatinny sling stud mount that can be almost 1” high. Most impressive is the low profile bipod attachment. One thing that I was really impressed with was the attachments that ODIN Works has made with the rail.

Keymod accessories install install#

You can screw the rail onto the barrel nut for further tuning then remove it again to tighten up the locking nut and then install the rail section again, making sure everything is tight. If all was done right, the top picatinny rail will form a monolithic rail across the top. Once everything is tight and the gas system is installed, the rail slides right down and attaches with 6 screws to the barrel nut. All of the hardware needed is included in the purchase of the rail, including an alignment rod for the gas tube port. The whole process was less than 15min with the proper tools like a vice and upper clamps and blocks. All I needed to do was spin on the new barrel nut, align it to the gas system and lock it down with a locking nut. There are several ways to do this, all of which can be found on YouTube. With a delta ring rifle you will need to remove the delta ring. Although the rifle I installed it on was not a delta ring style, so all I needed to do was spin off the old handguard and barrel nut. Installation of the ODIN Works rail system was actually a very easy to do. Other products are in the works, so keep an eye on their website for other product offerings. Their product line includes barrels, forend rail systems, KeyMod accessories and magazine release button extenders. A small company out of Boise, ID with just a total of 12 employees they make high quality small batch products. One such company making a remarkably light weight, well made KeyMod rail system is ODIN Works.

I personally know several companies that are making KeyMod that is “soft” to the touch. Many say that KeyMod is sharp by the very nature of it. Soft edges can be done in milling or by media tumbling the rails once milled. In this day and age there are several ways to make sure that the KeyMod holes are smooth and not going to cut the user, or ruin a pair of gloves. One big point of contention for me is sharp edges on KeyMod holes. While all of them are basically the same in terms of function, what tends to set different companies apart is the little things. Now an open source standard, just about every company out there is making a KeyMod system. If this lug doesn't do that you do not have your accessory installed correctly.As we all know very well, KeyMod is here to stay. These lugs contact that larger hole in the KeyMod slot and make it so the accessory can not slide backwards. In addition to the shoes and screws for tension every KeyMod accessory piece I have had my hand on has had some sort of lug that rests in the back of the large slot between the two screws or forward of the front tension screw. This can cause slipping and wiggle also and is hard to see due to how tight most of these handguards fit to the barrel. If you allow your shoe to be too loose before fitting it into the handguard you are using it can become crooked and even though it feels tight as far as torque wise it is just resting on the edge of the slot it fits into and not doing a thing for your tension. Like I said earlier the shoe should fit snugly down into the slot, this fit combined with tension is what serves as a backer.

This has been the issue with several of the QD cup sling mounts I have seen in regards to improper installation. This causes an issue with your accessory not locking in correctly and having the ability to slide loose. If is in backwards like the photo below it causes a slight space between the edge of the shoe and the end of the KeyMod slot, which you can see in the next photo. There should be no gap or space between these pieces. This allows for the backer nut, which I am going to refer to as the shoe because that is exactly what it looks like, to slide in then forward as far as possible so that the shoe rests in the machined slot that it is made to fit into. The photo below shows the proper orientation for the backer nut in relation to the KeyMod slot. KeyMod is obviously a larger hole that is connected to a smaller, longer slot with a half circle on the muzzle end. Please do not think that because I am doing a write up that KeyMod is complicated, because it is not, in fact it is probably simple enough that some folks are over thinking it. so I thought I would throw together a write up with some photos. Alright folks, while bouncing around the forums I have seen a lot of people who either were against KeyMod, didn't understand it or loved it but were having issues attaching accessories.