BCL SRV2 Siberian 556 Review

The BCL SRV2 Siberian is a Canadian-made, semi automatic, AR180B style rifle. This rifle is on loan from the Canadian Firearms Endurance Testing (CFET) group, of which I’m a part and it had 3600 rounds through it by the time it got in my hands. If you wanted to buy one of these, you’re looking at $1600-1800 retail.

Specifications

1/8 twist ,18.5″ barrel as pictured but also available in 12.5 and 16.5″
Available in 223 Wylde, 300 blackout, and 7.62×39. The barrel profile looks about the same as my gen1 WS-MCR.
7.46 lbs on my scale (not bad, my original WK180C was lighter, but it has a lighter barrel and shorter handguard)
Comes with Magpul Zhukov folding stock but the stock is picatinny mount so you can swap for others
2 tone finish
“Ping pong paddle” bolt hold open and BCL’s proprietary bolt release lever
Ambi safety
Mlok forend with QD cups
8.8 lb trigger pull on my trigger pull scale

This gun has so much promise. It looks cool, it’s got go-fast controls, it comes with a great stock that blends nicely into the back of the rifle, and the price isn’t that bad. But I still can’t recommend it (yet).

Poor Reliability

While I got a few hundred rounds through the rifle, the CFET testing group (see their 181 report here) got 3000 rounds through this rifle before I got to it and it’s just not good.

Personally, I saw failures to fire (my very first round) and bolt locking back on mags that still had ammo in them. The reliability issues mirror my experiences with the BCL 102. I tried shooting this rifle at a rifle match and got fucking roasted because I had to spend so much time fixing jams.

The CFET group saw stovepipes, double feeds, failures to extract, a trigger pin broke, the mag button came lose, the extractor broke, just. . .too much. Watch Mr. MeatShower’s video here for an idea on how reliable it was.

On top of the jams, the side bolt release would only work sporadically for me.

Aside from that, the broader Canada Guns community has seen bigger parts breakages (gas blocks, etc).

What else sucks?

Mostly minor stuff.

The forend needs vents on the top angled part to let the heat out.
Getting to the gas system is a pain in the ass because you gotta remove the forend and gas block
The included trigger is really bad but I don’t think that’s the worst thing in the world. Give me a cheap model with bad trigger (that I’ll replace), or charge more for a model with a gucci trigger.
The charging handle is a bit small and would be better if it was a bit bigger, especially if you’re running a bulkier scope or optics mount with hardware sticking out the left side.
The safeties were really stiff in use.
Mags can over-insert with some mags
The rifle can’t be fired when the stock is folded cause it blocks the ejection port too much.
That’s. . . pretty much it. If BCL can square away the reliability issues, this would be a really cool rifle.

What’s cool about this rifle?

So many things.

The disassembly is fantastic. Push out the pin at the back, hinge it forward, and pull out the guts. The captured recoil springs and assembly makes it so easy to disassemble, clean and put back in, such a good idea.

It looks great. I like the 2 tone look and the stock blends in to the back of the rifle nicely.

The Zhukov stock is great and with the rear pic rail interface, you could replace it with a lighter one if you want (but that’d make it really front heavy)

AR15 compatible trigger, safety, triggerguard, grip, mag release, etc. Lots of aftermarket if you wish, so you could replace the shit trigger and/or safety if you want.

The controls are go-fast. Many Canadian 180’s still lack a bolt release control but this one has a standard ping pong paddle AND BCL’s bolt release.

The forend is the right length and has nice QD cups on both sides. So many handguards just use a cheap cutout or omit cups altogether. QD cups are the best sling attachment in my opinion.