• AR build inspired by futuristic weaponry from Halo, Destiny & USSF
• Hera Arms CQR buttstock & Forward Grip
• Custom Cerakote pattern by Koted Arms
It goes without saying that the AR market is something of a dreamworld for the firearms customizer. While the AR platform itself is sort of the F-150 of firearms—reliable, utilitarian, ubiquitous—it remains probably the most versatile rifle platform out there.
The problem, if you could call it that, with AR customization is that no matter how many custom parts or multicolored coating schemes you throw at it, it still has that instantly recognizable AR profile. One of the slickest custom ARs we can recall was a stubby carbine modified to resemble something Boba Fett, infamous galactic bounty hunter of Star Wars fame, might have carried, a gun we featured in UN12’s early days.
A big part of its visual trickiness was the way the handguard-shrouded compensator looked, which really made the front end of the gun look like something that might have come from a galaxy far away.
At the end of the day, though, the pistol grip, upper receiver’s rear portion and receiver extension gave it away once it was subjected to a more careful examination.
That brings us to the build pictured here. It is, of course, an AR platform of the 5.56 variety, but one which at first glance might not be immediately recognizable as such. In fact, it looks about as unlike an AR-15 as any we’ve seen to date. It was put together by JD DeVries, founder and principal of rock-star Cerakote application house Koted Arms. With this firearm, JD set out to build something that might have come out of a parallel universe.
Fictional weapons from video games like Halo and Destiny were a primary source of inspiration, as well as “What if?” sorts of scenarios. For example, with the recent inception of the United States Space Force, he wondered what types of futuristic materiel the enlisted might be called on to carry.
The driving factor for this AR’s futuristic appearance is the one-piece pistol grip and buttstock configuration, which gives the firearm a sleek, monolithic look that makes it appear as though it was engineered as a single unit rather than being an amalgam of mil-spec parts as most ARs necessarily are.
The parts in question include the CQR Gen2 buttstock from Hera Arms, which is designated a buttstock by the company but also incorporates an ergonomic pistol grip that’s linked to the stock itself by a dog-legged length of polymer that serves to join stock and grip together as a single unit. The whole thing is constructed of fiber-reinforced polymer and weighs in at a scant one pound, one ounce. Length of pull out of the box stands at 11 inches, but may be extended with the adjustable butt pad, which telescopes out of the stock’s body rather than the stock itself sliding along a receiver extension (or buffer tube).
That said, the CQR Gen2 fits over and is compatible with standard A2-style tubes. This Koted Arms AR’s monolithic demeanor is further solidified with Hera’s CQR Gen2 forward grip, which mounts using a standard 1913 Picatinny rail. The genius of the Hera parts’ design, both buttstock and foregrip, is the way in which the two complement the lines of the AR’s receivers, both upper and lower. There’s a distinct visual dynamism that’s created with the way the CQR buttstock’s lines rocket backward from the upper receiver’s flat top and the lower’s beaver tail where it curves up from the pistol grip.
Likewise, the CQR forward grip seems to visually transfer this dynamism forward, to the effect that the AR appears as though it’s crouching toward its target and preparing to pounce. Both buttstock/grip assembly and forward grip, when installed together, allow the magwell and magazine to nestle satisfyingly in between them to create a look that is utterly… well, alien, you might say.
All told, it creates a demeanor that is about as far from the standard AR “look” that you can currently get without building out a different platform—that is to say, a different gun—entirely. At first glance, onlookers might even be tricked into thinking it’s arranged in a bullpup orientation. One might even argue that the overall design is an homage to the FN P90, which may or may not have been one of Hera’s sources of inspiration when designing CQR stock kit. It certainly carries that essence, albeit much rangier and residing in a much more spacious form factor.
At its core, this firearm is founded on a Gibbz Arms matched receiver set of the G4 Lite Weight variety. The Gibbz Arms G4 upper is a slick-sided, side-charging unit, so there is no forward assist and no rear-actuating charging handle, all of which also challenges the standard AR appearance. Bolt and carrier are manipulated from the left side of the upper, which features an extended slot that facilitates the maneuver.
The bolt carrier group itself is modified with a proprietary cam pin that replaces the pin the BCG came with and interfaces with a Gibbz-supplied lever, what they call the charging handle, because, in both intent and purpose, that’s what it is. This one is Gibbz’s competition version, which is larger and affords the user more surface area to grip and rack compared to the standard offering. The BCG itself is an Iron City Rifle Works S2 unit in a “Blackdiamond” high-performance DLC finish.
A Faxon Firearms 14.5-inch barrel chambered for 5.56 is affixed to the Gibbz Arms upper and shrouded by an Aeroknox 10.5-inch handguard. The Aeroknox guard, with its various lightening protocols—trapezoids and parallelograms up top and “cheese grater” style holes at the bottom—as well as the interrupted Picatinny rail at 12 o’clock, which is intended to accommodate shooters who employ an “over hold” grip at the firearm’s forward end—help accent the AR’s “from another world” appearance. An Aeroknox AE/01 Butterfly muzzle brake is pinned at the barrel’s business end, its high-tech look only adding to the otherworldly build theme.
The Gibbz G4 lower is of the Lite Weight PDQ variety, PDQ referring to the ambi bolt catch which is included as part of the PDQ receiver set. The PDQ latching mechanism includes a standard upright tab on the left-hand side paired with a horizontal lever on the right side. This lever allows a right-handed shooter to release the bolt using his or her trigger finger. Fire and safe modes are toggled with a TacFire ambi safety selector, while fire control is facilitated by a CMC single-stage, drop-in flat trigger.
In its pictured configuration, the AR feeds from a 10-round Hera magazine augmented with an Aeroknox +5 basepad, giving it a 16-round capacity with one round chambered. Although it can of course host larger magazines, this setup also plays into the overall future-gun look.
With the green accents, one might imagine the mag unit is in fact a battery pack that allows this AR to spit bolts of lightning or searing orbs of plasma from the business end. Targeting is assisted by a Holosun 510C red dot (green in this case, though) and by an Inforce WLM rifle light slung underneath the barrel at the handguard’s far end.
And speaking of green accents, the calling card for any Koted Arms build is a custom Cerakote scheme and execution. Here, the coloring, pattern and collection of hard parts that constitute the gun itself really come together in a way that makes the build far more than just the sum of its parts, to use an old but germane cliché.
“I had been planning a ‘futuristic’ design for a while,” says JD. “When Hera released the Gen2 furniture, I knew it was the look I was going for. The fact that the combination of the furniture and other parts created a monolithic look actually aided in the design. There was no need to tie the design together, especially when there is normally a gap between the receiver set and the stock.”
Subtle gray-and-white coloration was used to sell the futuristic look, with white primary accents complementing the dark and light gray geometric shapes to prevent the whole from looking too busy. Take a close look at the interlocking light and dark gray shapes and you might be able to truly appreciate the level of painstaking detail that went into masking these various shapes. Originally blue or red color accents were considered, but in the end green was chosen as a better, more subtle option. Green adds the needed splash of color, but it’s low-key enough that it doesn’t detract at all from the pattern, and we think it was the right call.
JD elaborates further on the gun’s overall look: “The Gibbz side-charging upper finished the look by relocating the iconic and easily identifiable traditional charging handle to the side. It still to this day makes people double-take and question what type of gun it is.”
So what’s it like to handle? JD gives us a little further insight. “Much like the P90 it fits, ergonomically, surprisingly well,” he says. “We’ve taken it around on display, hundreds of people have handled it, and it has received mixed reviews. Everyone loves the look and most agree that for the most part it’s more comfortable than they would have anticipated. Where they differ in opinion is the very end of the stock when it’s shouldered. For some, it sits just right and overall they are happy with it. For others it’s a bit too small and rides too high on the shoulder, making it uncomfortable to handle and impractical especially when wearing a plate carrier. In the end, we designed and built it because it’s something fun and different.” Images by Jay Canter
Build Sheet
Hera Arms x Koted Arms
Halo AR
Specifications
Caliber: 5.56mm
Capacity: 15 + 1
Barrel Length: 14.5 in.
Finish: Custom multi-cam Cerakote by Koted Arms
Featured Accessories
Receiver Set: Gibbz Arms G4
Lite Weight PDQ
Barrel: Faxon Firearms 5.56
Buttstock & Grip: Hera Arms CQR Gen2
Optic: Holosun HE510C-GR
Parts & Accessories: Aeroknox AX15 10.5-inch handguard, Aeroknox AE/01 muzzle brake, Aeroknox +5 mag extension, ICRW S2 BCG, 2A Armament takedown & pivot pins, CMC drop-in flat trigger, Hera Arms CQR Gen2 forward grip, Inforce WML Gen 2 rifle light, Faxon gas block & tube, PDQ bolt catch, TacFire safety selector
About the Builder
Koted Arms
URL: kotedarms.com