Desert Tech MDR

The Desert Tech MDR rifle is a gas operated, conventional rotary bolt Bullpup Semi-Auto rifle. The gas system features a gas piston located above the barrel and a 6 position manual gas regulator.[5]

MDR rifle is designed to be ambidextrous.[4][2][7] The MDR contains an ambidextrous forward and side eject port and viewing window that allows for tool free forward ejector side change.[7] A non reciprocating ambidextrous charging handle is installed on both sides of the gun, and two or three-position safety / selector levers and magazine release are provided on both sides of the pistol grip.[5] The rifle is compatible with Desert Tech Caliber Conversion kits that allow the rifle to change caliber.[6][2] This provides a unique feature in which the rifle chassis can accept both intermediate cartridges and full-powered rifle cartridges on the same serial number platform (such as 5.56×45mm NATO and 7.62×51mm NATO magazines).

The outer shell of the gun is made from impact-resistant polymer with an aluminum receiver.[5]

The .308/7.62 MDR was 10,000 round endurance tested with .308 win 150 grain FMJ American Eagle, 7.62x51 149 grain American Eagle, 7.62 m80 ball US Surplus and averaged 1 failure in 2000 rounds.[8]

The 2017 MDR in .308/7.62 win received public feedback that resulted in an upgrade program by Desert Tech on the gas and extractor system in 2019 to improve the rifle's ammunition tolerance without having to adjust the gas setting as frequently.[2] This update is considered the Generation 2 MDR Gas System.[7]

Desert Tech publicly addressed the MDR criticism on January 10, 2019. Desert Tech directly attributed the most vocal criticism of the platform to the InRangeTV company in collaboration with the Forgotten Weapons Company that demonstrated numerous failures in the system that were identified to be from varying ammunition loads used in the gas system on December 13, 2018.[9] In addition to addressing the criticism, Desert Tech, provided a technical root cause analysis presentation on the platform failures and resulting improvements with the generation 2 gas system. As a supplemental incentive, Desert Tech announced their MDR generation 2 gas system upgrade was to be covered under their warranty program for all owners.[8] The resulting generation 2 gas system received favorable reviews by the InRangeTV company on February 18, 2019.[10]

The Micro Dynamic Rifle eXtreme, MDRx,[11] variant was produced and marketed as a separate firearm in 2020. Improvements to the firearm include the following: Improved impact-resistant polymer,[3] improved trigger,[3] improved gas block,[12][3] and a new "Ratchet" compensator.[13]

The firearm was offered in .300 BLK, 6.5 Creedmoor, along with its original .223/5.56 and .308/7.62 calibers[1][5] as well as 20" barrel and side ejection options.[3] This update is considered the generation 3 MDR Gas System.[7]

A California compliant variant was produced with a 20" barrel, shark fin grip, reduced magazine size, and California compliant Ratchet compensator to qualify for a featureless rifle restrictions.[1][3]

The MDRx, with its various caliber kits, is rated from the manufacturer between 1-2 MOA. [14]

On January 28, 2021, the MDRx Micron conversion kit was announced that allowed the purchase of a 11.5" 5.56/.223 Wylde barrel, replacement hand guard, ejector plates, a new 'Raiden' flash hider, and bolt replacement for a side eject bullpup with a total length of 23.43".[15] These kits allow standard MDRx/MDR rifles to be classified and regulated as a Short-barreled rifle (SBR) requiring the user to apply with the appropriate regulatory bodies before install of the conversion kit in their rifle. These kits became available for sale on January 29th, 2021. [16]