APF Armory's Carbine Earns Elite NTOA Recommendation
Posted by Team APF on 9th Sep 2025
Proven Performance for the Toughest Missions!
Excitement is in the air here at APF Armory!
We're thrilled to announce a game-changing milestone for one of our flagship rifles: the LE Carbine (LE002) has been rigorously tested and officially recommended by the National Tactical Officers Association (NTOA), earning their GOLD-level stamp of approval. This isn't just any endorsement – it's THE standard in law enforcement gear validation, and it puts our Carbine at the forefront of tactical excellence!
We're thrilled to announce a game-changing milestone for one of our flagship rifles: the LE Carbine (LE002) has been rigorously tested and officially recommended by the National Tactical Officers Association (NTOA), earning their GOLD-level stamp of approval. This isn't just any endorsement – it's THE standard in law enforcement gear validation, and it puts our Carbine at the forefront of tactical excellence!
For those who may not be familiar, the NTOA is the premier organization dedicated to advancing the art and science of tactical operations for law enforcement professionals across the nation. Since 2003, their Member Tested and Recommended Program has put over 3,000 products through the wringer in real-world, high-stakes scenarios – evaluating everything from durability and functionality to reliability under extreme pressure.
This isn't a quick lab test; it's field-proven scrutiny by active tactical officers who demand perfection because lives depend on it. Products must score 3.0 or higher on their scale to earn this coveted recommendation, and anything less simply doesn't make the cut. Law enforcement agencies worldwide trust the NTOA's thorough, unbiased process because it ensures gear can withstand the rigors of active duty, from urban patrols to high-risk interventions.
When NTOA says "recommended," it means your team can deploy with total confidence – no compromises, no doubts....and guess what? Our LE Carbine (LE002) didn't just pass – it excelled! This compact, versatile powerhouse, designed for superior maneuverability and pinpoint accuracy, impressed NTOA testers with its unwavering performance in demanding conditions.
Whether you're outfitting your agency or gearing up for personal defense, this rifle delivers the reliability and precision that tactical pros swear by.Don't just take our word for it – here's what real field testers had to say:
APF Armory
LE002 Carbine
Overall Score: 4.5
Tester 1 of 4
Tested by a police officer from Pennsylvania
"I received a LE002 Carbine for testing from APF. The rifle came well packaged with
Magpul sights, stock, grip, and one 30rd Gen 2 magazine. It has a 16" mid-length gas
system barrel with an adjustable gas block under a 15" handguard. The handguard has
a T-marked full picatinny rail on the top and m-lok on the 1:30, 3, 4:30, 6, 7:30, 9, and
11:30 positions for attachments.
Prior to the first range trip the rifle was field stripped cleaned and lubed with Lucas
gun oil. The gun was the set up similar to all my other ones running a QD slip from
the stock to a m-lok QD cup at the front left side of the rail along with a Streamlight
HL-X attached on an Arisaka offset m-lok mount with the tape switch attached to the
top rail. For an optic I installed a 1-4 Vortex PST LPVO in a Midwest Industries
scope mount.
The first range trip was to get the gun sighted in, shoot groups and get some
chronograph data. The gun saw approximately 120 rounds in 98-degree weather. With
the exception of some test ammo on this first day at the range the rifle only shot 55gr
American Eagle FMJ ammo. Chronograph data for the 55gr showed the rifle was
shooting as expected with speeds just over 3,000 FPS using a Garming Xero C1. After
sighting in 5 round groups were shot at 100 yards with expected results of right
around 1.5" (this is what I have come to expect of American Eagle 55gr). To test
accuracy 5 round groups were also shot using Federal Fusion 62gr bonded, Black
Hills 69gr and 77gr, and AAC 77gr. The groups came down in size to just at or under
1" with the best group coming in at .79". Groups were all shot back-to-back without
letting the gun cool off and using a bipod and rear bag from a bench.
LE002 Carbine
Overall Score: 4.5
Tester 1 of 4
Tested by a police officer from Pennsylvania
"I received a LE002 Carbine for testing from APF. The rifle came well packaged with
Magpul sights, stock, grip, and one 30rd Gen 2 magazine. It has a 16" mid-length gas
system barrel with an adjustable gas block under a 15" handguard. The handguard has
a T-marked full picatinny rail on the top and m-lok on the 1:30, 3, 4:30, 6, 7:30, 9, and
11:30 positions for attachments.
Prior to the first range trip the rifle was field stripped cleaned and lubed with Lucas
gun oil. The gun was the set up similar to all my other ones running a QD slip from
the stock to a m-lok QD cup at the front left side of the rail along with a Streamlight
HL-X attached on an Arisaka offset m-lok mount with the tape switch attached to the
top rail. For an optic I installed a 1-4 Vortex PST LPVO in a Midwest Industries
scope mount.
The first range trip was to get the gun sighted in, shoot groups and get some
chronograph data. The gun saw approximately 120 rounds in 98-degree weather. With
the exception of some test ammo on this first day at the range the rifle only shot 55gr
American Eagle FMJ ammo. Chronograph data for the 55gr showed the rifle was
shooting as expected with speeds just over 3,000 FPS using a Garming Xero C1. After
sighting in 5 round groups were shot at 100 yards with expected results of right
around 1.5" (this is what I have come to expect of American Eagle 55gr). To test
accuracy 5 round groups were also shot using Federal Fusion 62gr bonded, Black
Hills 69gr and 77gr, and AAC 77gr. The groups came down in size to just at or under
1" with the best group coming in at .79". Groups were all shot back-to-back without
letting the gun cool off and using a bipod and rear bag from a bench.
The next 2 range trips the gun saw approximately 500rds each. The 2nd trip was in the
rain and focused on shooting steel from different distances and running drills. The 3rd
trip was similar with the difference being the weather was in the 80s and overcast, and
the adjustable gas block was turned down a little from the factory setting which made
the recoil impulse extremely soft and allowed for faster split times. The rifle was not
cleaned between range trips but was lubed between trip 2 and 3 due to the heavy rain.
Ultimately the gun was run for approximately 1100 rounds without cleaning and did
not experience any malfunctions or issues.
Some observations I had about the rifle are that the barrel appears to be on the thicker
side up front, which balances the rifle well so long as the only attachments you're
looking to put at the front of it are a light. The use of IR lasers or suppressors would
likely make the gun front heavy and push it balance point forward. While I like and do
use adjustable gas blocks on my competition rifle, I try to avoid them in duty use or
when a rifle may be used by multiple people to avoid things being changed. The
factory gas setting was just at what I would expect a non-adjustable mid-length gas
system to shoot and while I like the ability to have adjustments, I would likely forgo it
for a standard pinned gas block. Lastly, the mil-spec trigger in this rifle is one of the
better ones I've used. I generally immediately swap my triggers to one of the well
known 2 stage ones, and this will likely get swapped to, it says something as it stayed
in the rifle for way longer than I expected.
Overall, I am impressed with the quality and set up of the rifle and would recommend
it for duty/patrol use."
Tester 2 of 4
Tested by a member from Michigan
Overall Score: 4.8
Initial observations of the APF Armory rifle I was very underwhelmed. It looked like
a very basic AR rifle. Once I picked it up though I started to see it wasn't.
Ambidextrous selector switch was first thing that I noticed as a major plus for a patrol
rifle. Our has close to 300 patrol rifles issued out with about 5% of employees being
left-handed. So, when sending this patrol rifle out for duty the ambi switch is
definitely a plus. The mag pul furniture on the rifle was very nice as well.
The next thing I noticed was the staked castle nut, I know this doesn't seem like much but after
having other manufactures that we have used for patrol rifles come in and not be
staked and start backing off it is a great thing. Having the sling point installed was a
very nice feature. The BCG seemed a little rough to me and I was afraid that I was
going to have drench it in oil to make it run smooth. However, I wanted to just run it
straight out of the box to get a good feel.
having other manufactures that we have used for patrol rifles come in and not be
staked and start backing off it is a great thing. Having the sling point installed was a
very nice feature. The BCG seemed a little rough to me and I was afraid that I was
going to have drench it in oil to make it run smooth. However, I wanted to just run it
straight out of the box to get a good feel.
I placed a Unity riser and an Eotech on the
rifle before I took it onto the range. Once on the range I really started to like this gun.
Trigger is super clean and crisp. The gun was a tack driver out of the box, holding
super tight groups.
rifle before I took it onto the range. Once on the range I really started to like this gun.
Trigger is super clean and crisp. The gun was a tack driver out of the box, holding
super tight groups.
As I mentioned before, I took this straight out of the box and
started putting it through the paces. I experienced no malfunctions with the weapon. I
used duty Hornady rounds as well as some FMJ training rounds. After a few thousand
rounds through the weapon, I still have yet to have any malfunctions.
This rifle truly impressed me for what it is. This rifle will be a recommend rifle to my
agency when replacing or adding patrol rifles to our armory.
started putting it through the paces. I experienced no malfunctions with the weapon. I
used duty Hornady rounds as well as some FMJ training rounds. After a few thousand
rounds through the weapon, I still have yet to have any malfunctions.
This rifle truly impressed me for what it is. This rifle will be a recommend rifle to my
agency when replacing or adding patrol rifles to our armory.
Tester 3 of 4
Tested by a member from Virginia
Overall Score: 4
"This review is of the Law Enforcement 5.56 AR15 Carbine by APF Armory. The
tested model came equipped with a 16-inch chrome lined barrel, an adjustable gas
block, ambidextrous safety, and an MLOK handguard. The rifle was finished out with
Magpul MBUS flip-up sights, grip, adjustable stock, and one 30-round magazine.
Pretty much everything that wasn't Magpul was hard coat anodized to a dark
grey/black.
Tested by a member from Virginia
Overall Score: 4
"This review is of the Law Enforcement 5.56 AR15 Carbine by APF Armory. The
tested model came equipped with a 16-inch chrome lined barrel, an adjustable gas
block, ambidextrous safety, and an MLOK handguard. The rifle was finished out with
Magpul MBUS flip-up sights, grip, adjustable stock, and one 30-round magazine.
Pretty much everything that wasn't Magpul was hard coat anodized to a dark
grey/black.
Out of the box, it looked very nice, but felt a little on the heavy side.
Everything cycled smoothly and the components were extremely well fit together, no
rattles or wobbles anywhere. I think the weight difference I noticed came from the
SOCOM barrel contour. I am used to standard M4 barrels that is thinned out a little.
At first, I felt that I would not want this weight slung around my neck all day,
especially during a "hurry up and wait" mission, but I completely changed my mind
once I got it out on the range and found out what a difference that little extra weight
seemed to make.
Everything cycled smoothly and the components were extremely well fit together, no
rattles or wobbles anywhere. I think the weight difference I noticed came from the
SOCOM barrel contour. I am used to standard M4 barrels that is thinned out a little.
At first, I felt that I would not want this weight slung around my neck all day,
especially during a "hurry up and wait" mission, but I completely changed my mind
once I got it out on the range and found out what a difference that little extra weight
seemed to make.
The fit was first rate, but so was the anodizing. There were no drips,
missed spots, or milky areas anywhere. APF certainly paid attention to the little things
on this rifle and the result is what shoots and feels like a high-quality rifle. Most of the
range tests took place off of shooting bags, but there was a small section of picatinny
rail under the handguard that could easily have accepted a bipod. We put an ACOG on
the full-length upper rail so we get a better feel for what the rifle was capable of. Once
sighted in, the rifle performed very well over all distances out to our maximum range
of 350 yards with groups that exceeded our expectations.
missed spots, or milky areas anywhere. APF certainly paid attention to the little things
on this rifle and the result is what shoots and feels like a high-quality rifle. Most of the
range tests took place off of shooting bags, but there was a small section of picatinny
rail under the handguard that could easily have accepted a bipod. We put an ACOG on
the full-length upper rail so we get a better feel for what the rifle was capable of. Once
sighted in, the rifle performed very well over all distances out to our maximum range
of 350 yards with groups that exceeded our expectations.
The really nice surprise that I alluded to earlier was how well the rifle managed recoil. I don't know if it is the little extra weight or just the balance of the components, but the recoil felt like it was
coming straight back with very little barrel rise or jumping around. That turned into
the point that really sold me on the rifle. The rifle performed well all day and had zero
issues through several hundred shots. Most shooters walked away impressed. Because
it was shooting well, we did not experiment with the adjustable gas block. There were
no surprises when it came to cleaning it after the tests. Wear was minimal if it could
be found at all. The BCG did have that new rifle feel/sound even after all those
rounds, so that is a testament to APF's treatment process.
coming straight back with very little barrel rise or jumping around. That turned into
the point that really sold me on the rifle. The rifle performed well all day and had zero
issues through several hundred shots. Most shooters walked away impressed. Because
it was shooting well, we did not experiment with the adjustable gas block. There were
no surprises when it came to cleaning it after the tests. Wear was minimal if it could
be found at all. The BCG did have that new rifle feel/sound even after all those
rounds, so that is a testament to APF's treatment process.
APF's price point is around $1640 per rifle. I think the slightly above average price is justified by the quality of the components, and attention to detail of the fit, assembly, and finish. From what I
have heard, APF's customer service is pretty good and very LE supportive. I know
that they quickly got back to me with answers to all the questions I threw at them. If
another department was considering a rifle refresh, I would 100% recommend that
they give this carbine a test drive."
have heard, APF's customer service is pretty good and very LE supportive. I know
that they quickly got back to me with answers to all the questions I threw at them. If
another department was considering a rifle refresh, I would 100% recommend that
they give this carbine a test drive."
Tester 4 of 4
Tested by a member from Florida
Overall Score: 4.64
"APF Armory has a variety of rifle options in their arsenal, with one of those rifles
being their Law Enforcement 16" barrel Carbine LE002 in 5.56 NATO. Some of their
basic specs for Carbine LE002 includes Ambidextrous Safety Selector, Magpul
MBUS flip-up sights, Ambidextrous sling plate, Magpul CTR 6-position stock, and a
Magpul MOE grip.
Their website highlights several other features that makes this rifle
standout, but for me the above features are what I really noticed as being a positive
selling point. I will also note the barrel is suppressor-ready, but since I do not have a
suppressor for this caliber, its is really just a fun feature for a future date.
First impression of this rifle is that it is "Beefy". Unlike my department issued patrol
rifle, this rifle has a hand guard that extends almost the entire length of the barrel. It
adds noticeable weight to the overall design, but it also adds more territory to mount
accessories with the extra rails space. Though I noticed the weight, it did not affect
my ability to throw it up and get on target quickly. This rifle shoulders naturally and
has a rather comfortable feel. The controls are intuitive and the ambidextrous safety
can allow the shooter more freedom of use. The adjustable stock makes it adaptable
for different shooters, yet I’m one to keep it tight when I can. Like I said before, the
rifle is a bit heavier than other options out on the market, yet it gives it a feel of being
sturdy enough for any demanding situation.
In regards to the performance, it shoots flawlessly. The action is smooth, and the rifle
cycles cleanly without a hitch. The accuracy was superb to say the least. With some
easy to make adjustments, the Magpul flip-up sights were easy to see and line up
down range. I noticed I was able to obtain tight groupings even at extended distances,
which I contributed to the consistent and crisp trigger making follow-up shots fast and
controlled. The recoil was more than manageable, which adds to its versatility in both
training and operational environments.
APF Armory’s Carbine LE002 is really an exceptional rifle that delivers everything I
feel professionals in the field would want to see and experience. Everything from its
reliability and precision, this rifle leaves the shooter with a greater level of confidence
knowing their desired target is well within their grasp. From the moment I picked it
up, the quality and attention to detail was clear. Durability, reliability, and
functionality seemed to be their top focus during the design and execution process,
setting themselves apart from many of the other top brands out there. Maintenance is
not really any different than a typical long gun, which is a plus when considering the
upgrades this rifle comes with, making it a great option to implement on patrol (where
equipment takes the most abuse and neglect).
Now, especially in this economy, a big factor most departments have to take into
account when making decisions on equipment, it is not only ruggedness and
dependability, but it's getting the biggest bang for your buck. I am not exactly sure
what the going price is for this specific model as it requires direct contact with the
company for details. However, the civilian version has an MSRP of over $1,400, and
that one does not come with the flip-up sights. Comparing pricing with the other more
commonly issued brands, which run less than $1000, an agency is forced to decide
where their loyalty lays. Whether it is more important to have something that will
hold up over the years and provide shooters with the ability to be more accurate
overall, or if they rather be budget friendly and equip their units with equipment
which is adequate, but subpar in comparison.
Overall, APF Armory has produced a rifle on a platform law enforcement officers can
trust with complete confidence, and I highly recommend it to any agency or individual
looking for a serious duty-ready rifle."
See the APF Armory LE Carbine here: https://www.apfarmory.com/5-56-nato-16-carbine-le/
P.S. Share this exciting news with your colleagues – together, we're building a stronger, more prepared community!