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Once there was one, the ArmaLite AR-10. That created quite a stir. Then there was another, the Knight’s Armament SR-25. That one created even more of a stir. Today there are many.

What I’m referring to is what is perhaps best termed a “big-chassis” AR. The popularity of the upscaled platform seems to increase yearly, along with the options in manufacturers and in available variations. The good news is, prices have dropped. It’s pretty easy these days to spec-down a custom configuration sheet and assemble a collection of quality parts if you’re a do-it-yourselfer. So I’d like to offer a few of my takes on the big guns, and share a few ideas that could help increase your happiness.

Big-chassis rifles haven’t set NRA High Power Rifle competition on its ear like some hoped.
Building a viable competition gun on a big chassis requires considerably more work compared
to its little brother. This one (below) was built on a milled DPMS component set and chambered
in 6XC. It is the best Glen has seen, and the main reason is the cartridge—a radical evolution
of a .250 Savage with considerably less volume than a .308 case, but still delivers equivalent
velocity. Less propellant, less gas and more room in the magazine box for bullet seating
flexibility. Reducing inherent accuracy detriments required a good deal of machining
modifications to action components, most notably the bolt (above), carrier assembly
and barrel extension.

Issues

Truth is, big-chassis rifles have their issues, and always have had. I don’t have room to cover them all, so I’ll go with—and define—those I think need the most attention.

The whole appeal of the big-chassis is pretty simple to grasp. That would be power. A main objection to the AR-15 series is its lightweight cartridge. Few would classify the 7.62 NATO or .308 Winchester as “lightweight.” So it stands to reason if you put the time-honored battle-rifle round into an AR configuration, it’s going to provide more appeal. (The original Stoner design, was, in fact, the AR-10.)

A scaled-up bolt and bolt face, bolt carrier, and upper receiver makes it possible to accommodate the .308 round. But right there is the source of most issues. The bigger bolt face and lengthier receiver means there’s a whopping chunk of reciprocating mass being fueled by a correspondingly whopping dose of propellant gases.

Most factory-made big-chassis rifles use (essentially) AR-15 gas system configuration specs, and that creates a problem. Gas-port pressure—not chamber pressure—is the issue. Gas-port pressure is the propellant pressure at the at the actual port location. The higher the pressure, the more gas enters the operating system.

When too much gas gets into and through the gas tube, there is then too much thrust passed on through to the carrier. And the carrier gets hit too hard—resulting in what some refer to as “over-function.” While this isn’t a precise description, it simply means there’s way more juice than there needs to be. The bolt unlocks too quickly and the carrier assembly slams back against the buffer and spring with an overabundance of force.

Premature Unlocking

Then a few bad things can happen. The first is when the bolt unlocks prematurely, wreaks havoc on cartridge cases, and can create functional ills. All semi-auto’s can succumb to premature unlocking (M1A’s, for example, are notorious for it). If the bolt starts to unlock when the cartridge case is still swelled up against the rifle chamber walls, the extractor yanks away at it, trying to remove it from the chamber. The extractor can yank off a portion of the case rim, or lose its hold on the rim and slip right over it. Then the case doesn’t extract.

Premature unlocking allows excessive expansion of the case. In an extreme instance the case can rupture in the head area. At the least, inspection will usually show evidence of excessive stretching in the case-head area, and measurements will show additional cartridge headspace growth. When there’s an instant where the case is not fully encased by the chamber, it can blow out to bigger dimensions. None of that may matter to anyone who doesn’t reload.

It’s worth noting here, we are talking about milliseconds, but these scant ticks of time have a huge effect on the function of any firearm.
If the additional velocity imparted to the bolt carrier assembly doesn’t abate during its rearward cycle, the assembly can change directions too quickly and rebound rapidly enough so the bolt may override the next cartridge waiting in the magazine. These are all also symptoms AR-15 carbines can exhibit, and they stem from the same essential cause—too doggone much gas. A stouter buffer spring helps here.

One solution to taming a big chassis AR is to relocate the gas port forward. At right
is a competition gun built for NRA High Power Rifle champion Carl Bernosky. At left is
a standard configuration DPMS .308 LR. Carl’s gun is chambered in .243 Winchester and
has a 4-inch displacement forward in the port location.

If you’re loading for .308, replicating Lake City Match ammo will give your big chassis
gun the required port-pressure characteristics and reduce the chance of over-function.
There’s a discourse on handloading for M1A’s on Glen’s website,
www.zediker.com/downloads/m14.html.
Follow it if you’re a big-chassis rifle owner. And stay away from heavy bullets over 175 grains.

The ultimate fix to excessive port pressure is relocating the gas port forward toward the muzzle. Try to picture the flow of gas through the bore, like an ocean wave that swells and then diminishes. We want this “wave” to crest away from the gas port area, reducing the amount of gas entering the system. Of course, this can only be done on a custom-barreled project. To get a clearer picture of just how much extra pressure is being dealt with, it’s routine for a custom builder to relocate the gas port 1 inch farther forward on an AR-15 Match Rifle (a .223 with a 24- to 26-inch barrel). The routine change for a custom big-chassis gun chambered in, say, .260 Remington, is 4 inches farther ahead. There’s that much difference. There’s that much pressure. For a .308 with a 24-inch barrel, 2 or 3 inches makes a big difference.

Smaller calibers increase port pressure due both to diminished bore volume and also to the slower-burning propellants that normally back up most smaller-caliber .308-based derivatives. Slower-burning propellants produce their peak pressures farther down the barrel, nearer the gas port. On top of it, many big-chassis rifles are going to have 24-inch barrels, and that by itself increases gas pressure contained inside the bore.

Propellant selection (which also includes your factory ammo choice) is the most readily available way to tame the pressures. A handloader should choose a propellant that’s on the faster-burning end of suitability, which in my estimation is anything this side of Hodgdon Varget. And know your factory ammo! Mil-spec 7.62 NATO rounds will have a more suitable port pressure peak than factory hunting loads. Mil-spec rounds are developed for gas guns. Again, this is even more an issue with the .260 Remington and .243 Winchester since both these rounds respond so well to relatively slow-burning propellants.

Delaying bolt unlocking, again, is the goal. Other means to attain it include increased carrier weight via aftermarket inserts, a stouter buffer spring and incorporating some means for gas bleed-off in the gas system. It’s not that difficult to install an adjustable gas tube or gas manifold. Both are effective and provide a means to alter the volume of gas entering the gas tube.

The bolt carrier assemblies on big-chassis guns weigh around 20 ounces, almost double that of an AR-15. When that much metal moves back at that much velocity, you’re talking about a “hit and a half.”

If it will fit your barrel configuration, this Armforte adjustable gas tube provides
easy means to restrict excess gas from getting into and through the gas tube. An
adjustable gas manifold or gas block is another option.

A big-chassis bolt carrier (top) is nearly double the weight of an AR-15’s (below).
Forces imparted by the reciprocating mass means taking precautions with trigger function
with a big-chassis gun. Many aftermarket AR-15 triggers can be shocked into malfunctions.
Of the 2-stage competition triggers, the Knight’s and Geissele are good choices. JP
Enterprises makes a single-stage specifically for this rifle.

Extractor Woes

Polishing the extractor so it slides more easily over the cartridge rim helps reduce the all-too-frequent experience of the case shoulder taking a hit upon chambering. Compounding this problem is the tendency for many to install the “D-ring” style inserts to increase spring pressure in the extractor to remedy the extraction failures mentioned earlier. A good chamber polish also works wonders for extraction ease. As I hope is now clear, extraction failures are a result of premature bolt unlocking, not a weak extractor spring.

Bolt-stop breakage is another sore spot. The stops break because they get hit so hard by the behemoth bolt-carrier assembly. Shortening bolt-stop overrun—which is the amount of clearance between bolt face and stop at the limit of the carrier assembly’s rearward movement—is the solution. Get it set to about the width of a nickel. I use those adhesive-backed phenolic pads intended to cushion buffer impact.

Pierced primers plague the big-chassis platform. The reason? The firing pin hole in the bolt is too dang big! It cannot be fixed by snugging the fit between the pin hole and the pin! It’s a physics thing. The only solution is to drill out the hole and then sweat in a bushing having a smaller diameter hole. I don’t know why the industry continues to manufacture bolts with oversized firing pin holes. AR-15 specs call for a vicinity of 0.063 inch (I won’t use one that’s even 0.065), and somewhere around 0.072+ seems to be the norm for big-chassis bolts I’ve measured. In fact, I’ve seen them as large as 0.082.

This of course just touches the surface of these Big Chassis AR’s. We’ll do more next time.
By Glen Zediker

Brownells Inc.
200 South Front St.
Montezuma, IA 50171
(800) 741-0015
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/brownells-inc/

Superior Shooting Systems Inc.
800 N. 2nd St.
Canadian, TX 79014
(806) 323-9488
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/superior-shooting-systems-inc/

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All Together Now! A Personalized
Upper/Lower Matchup Results In A
Purpose-Built, Accurate AR.

As you all remember during ObamaScare I, prices had gone through the roof and shortages arose on practically everything remotely associated with shooting. ObamaScare II didn’t help much either and it’s only been in the last six months some sort of inventory has been accruing on dealer’s shelves—including spot sales on items for which we used to pay handsomely. If there is a silver lining, it’s this: The shooting sports have drawn millions of new participants.

Recently, Federal released the new “Fresh Fire Pack AR 5.56” and it comes in a 30-round nitrogen purged, waterproof, weatherproof can. The easy-open pop-top can also comes with a resealable plastic lid. This is one of the most sensible products available for those who maintain “bug-out bags” and have chosen the AR-15 as their go-to rifle for self-defense. You have one magazine-load per can, available well-preserved and easily replaceable for long-term storage. The bullet employed? The 62-grain “green tipped” M855 and the ammo is loaded to NATO specs. The retail is a reasonable $23.95, and it is often found on sale.

I ran into a hitch after acquiring the ammo. My AR’s were all .223 Rem. However, like many of you, I bought an AR-15 lower “just in case.” It has been languishing in my safe since January 2013.

There’s always a dizzying array of AR uppers in various states of completion. Rather than surf the catalogs of every manufacturer, I chose Bravo Company because they build in-house and carry a wide variety of rifles and parts from many of the top names in AR’s. If there is a mission suitable for Stoner’s signature creation, Bravo Company has the parts. And, for serious shoppers, the stock status is displayed on the website—something I really appreciate.

The two scopes used in this test were the Leupold Mark AR 3-9X and the
Leupold Mark AR Mod 1 1.5-4X. The 3-9X (above) helps wring out the
accuracy potential and the 1.5-4X is better in the self-defense role.
After the final zero is attained, the setscrews on the turrets of 1.5-4X
are loosened and then moved to “zero.” The upright “L” is your key the
scope is still on zero.

For accuracy testing, Jeff installed a Leupold 3-9x40mm Mark AR scope
with the Mil-Dot reticle using the 1-piece Leupold base. The adjustments
are positive and clearly marked as to direction and clicks. The elevation
turret is calibrated for the 55-grain bullet, and turrets calibrated for
other loads are available from the Leupold Custom Shop.

My lower is a mil-spec US Autoweapons M4 with collapsible stock. I like this one because it was ATF-approved with “safe,” “fire” and “auto” engraved on the receiver, even though the lower is semi-auto only and the safety only operates in “safe” or “fire” mode. I had been planning a varmint rifle, but since the lower was ready to go as a carbine, I dragooned it for my 5.56 build. These days I’m a little more concerned with self-defense than hunting anyway.

I had an idea for what I wanted—a lightweight carbine with a fore-end easy on the hands, slim and versatile. Too many fore-ends are just too thick and with far more rails than I want or need. My current house AR is such, with a big cylindrical forearm with four sharp rails now all covered with MagPul rail covers (making things even fatter). It weighs 8 pounds, 12 ounces loaded with 20 rounds, but feels heavier and clumsier than that.

Paring some weight and slimming the rifle was in order, even though the AR is an inherently heavy platform. My search at Bravo’s website took several visits, mostly because everything starts to look the same to me after awhile. Eventually I settled on a Bravo Company upper with the firm’s proprietary Key Mod fore-end. It didn’t hurt my feelings to find it was on sale at 20 percent off.

The octagon fore-end is made from an aluminum/magnesium blend giving greater strength and lighter weight than aluminum alone. The key slots aren’t sharp, don’t snag and gives the carbine fast handling qualities. The slots are on seven sides with a Picatinny rail along the full 12 o’clock position of the receiver and fore-end. Rail sections, sling swivels, forward pistol grips and dozens of other gizmos can be quickly added anywhere along the rails.

The American Gold trigger is an aftermarket unit and is complete with pins
for mil-spec receivers. Jeff’s US Autoweapons lower has such and the trigger
dropped in as if it were made for the unit.

The Gunfighter Charging Handle provided on the Bravo upper extends further
than the standard AR’s, making it easier to charge when optics such as the
3-9X Leupold are mounted. The bolt carrier key has properly double-staked screws.

The Bravo Mod 0 compensator differs from the usual M4 flash hider in that
it also reduces muzzle rise as well as reducing flash.

Proof Tested

The heart of the Bravo upper is the bolt and barrel assembly. The mil-spec barrel in the lighter GI contour is proof-tested at 70,000 psi, then magnetic particle inspected for flaws. The 1:7-inch twist barrel is NATO chambered. Both bore and chamber are chrome lined, with the barrel exterior Parkerized. The bolt is fitted and the combination test-fired at Bravo. The barrel comes fitted with Bravo’s Gunfighter Mod 0 compensator. It is designed to reduce muzzle rise and side blast, plus lower the flash signature. My combination ran flawlessly throughout the first range session, which was a little more than 100 rounds.

The US Autoweapon lower is also mil-spec, made from hard-anodized 7076-T6 aluminum. It came complete with buttstock and GI trigger. I had one American Gold trigger on hand and have come to desire them in all my AR’s. It’s a light, 2-stage design breaking at a combined weight of just more than 3 pounds—a really delightful let-off and one I believe contributed to the accuracy results immensely.

The Gold’s instructions recommend you to have it installed by gunsmith, but by watching the company’s online video and following the instructions, I successfully installed it. Both the trigger and the upper fit as if they were custom-made for my lower. I don’t usually find anything goes together so easily and happily didn’t have to take a bag o’parts to the gunschmidt!

With an older Leupold Mark AR 3-9X scope mounted in the sturdy Leupold Mk 2 integral mounts for accuracy testing, my carbine weighs 7 pounds, 8 ounces, but feels lighter. There is just enough muzzle heaviness for a steady offhand hold and smooth swings between targets, and it carries easily.

With the aid of an Accuscope chart, I quickly zeroed the scope at 25 yards. Moving to 100 yards, a few more clicks put me into the diamond of the Mountain Plains targets. My shooting technique got me into trouble as my initial groups were in the 2-inch range shooting off a pair of bags. I removed the rear bag and my groups instantly settled down. The American Eagle 5.56mm delivered a 5-shot group of 1-1/2 inches, and four of those shots were in a pleasing 3/4-inch cluster. Federal Gold Medal Match took top accuracy honors with a 5-shot 1-1/8-inch group (four of those shots were in a tight 1/2-inch cluster).

There were no malfunctions throughout the test. The Bravo Company Gunfighter extended charging handle made working the bolt effortless even though the eyepiece of the optic is right over it. The last can of ammo was dedicated to ringing the 14×14-inch steel plates at 250 and 300 yards. A full 20-rounds was loaded into the Brownells magazine (I prefer 20’s over 30’s at the range for the lower profile).

The Leupold 3-9X scope has a simple Mil-Dot reticle. The closest gong required one dot down and centered to produce a satisfying ring. The 300-yard gong only needed the second dot raised to the top of the gong to ring it, and I placed 15 of the 20 rounds on target.

The new American Eagle 5.56mm 62-grain load, used as inspiration for this AR build,
delivered a nice tight 1-1/2-inch 100-yard group. The ammo comes packed in convenient
nitrogen-purged, weatherproof, resealable long-term storage cans holding 30-rounds in each.

Accuracy was all Jeff could ask from a carbine shot off a casual rest at 100 yards. Black Hills .223 77-grain Match ammo (left) delivered this 1-1/2-inch group and the Federal Gold Medal Match delivered a 1-1/4-inch group with four of those shots in a tight 1/2-inch cluster.

As a graduation exercise, after mounting and zeroing the Leupold Mark AR 1.5-4X scope,
Jeff loaded a magazine with 20 rounds and shot the gongs at about a round per second.
With the barrel hot, the final 14 rounds were loaded and fired on paper at 100 yards.
Even in a hot, dirty barrel, the final 14 delivered this 2-1/2-inch group right to
point of aim. Jeff has confidence he can rely on this new AR.

For the second range test, the smaller, handier Leupold Mark AR Mod 1 1.5-4X Illuminated Fire Dot scope now on my present house AR was switched over to this one. The eyepiece is far enough forward it gives easy access to the charging handle. The lower power meant my 100-yard groups were going to be bigger, and they were. My best group landed three shots into 1-1/2 inches with the 5-shot group enlarging to 4 inches. Most groups were in the 2-plus-inch range for three shots with the 5-shot group in the 4- to 5-inch range shooting the American Eagle 5.56mm ammo.

At the end of this 90-round session, I loaded a 20-round mag and shot about one round a second at the gongs. I loaded my last 14 rounds and fired on the 100-yard paper target at the same speed turning on the reticle’s green Fire Dot. The fore-end was now pleasingly warmer (since it was a 50 degree F day) and these last rounds went through a barrel allowed to cool only the time it took to load the mag. The overall group was 2-1/2×2-1/2 inches for 14 shots with no wandering of zero due to heat. The barrel was hot to the touch. I have confidence this outfit will allow me to shoot well hot or cold.

The rifle wasn’t cleaned between these shooting sessions, although I re-oiled the bolt carrier because I shot photos between range sessions. The bolt was lubed with Pro Shot Pro Gold initially and the heavy grease was sufficient for the whole test. There were no malfunctions to feed, eject or fire over these combined sessions of roughly 200 rounds.

All in all, I’m glad I built my own “Mr. Potato Head AR.” I now have a wonderfully accurate and reliable rifle. Weight with a loaded 20-round mag is a manageable 7 pounds, 13 ounces. Future plans are for folding iron sights, and I doubt I’ll add much more to the rails other than maybe a flashlight. My goal was a lightweight uncluttered carbine and that’s what I have.
By Jeff John

Jeff had a spare lower in the safe, so when a good deal on Federal 5.56 ammo came
along, a new house AR was in order to replace the one in .223. The Bravo Company
upper with Key Mod fore-end can handle all manner of accessories. Clutter can
include a simple forward grip to Browning’s new Black Label Rail System knife,
the sheath of which attaches to the M1913 rail. The 5.11 vest holds two 30 round
mags and three pistol mags in three of its 18 pockets. Brownells mags feature
chrome-silicon springs and anti-bind followers. The mags functioned flawlessly.

Mark AR Scopes

Maker: Leupold & Stevens
14400 Northwest Greenbriar Parkway, Beaverton, OR 97006
(503) 646-9171
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/leupold-stevens-inc/

.223 Remington Factory Ammo Performance

Notes: Groups the product of 5 shots at 100 yards.
Magneto Speed Chronograph measures at the muzzle. *NATO-spec 5.56x45mm.

AccuScope
P.O. Box 633
Ankeny, IA 50021
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/accuscope/

Black Hills Ammunition
3050 Eglin St.
Rapid City, SD 57703
(605) 348-5150
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/black-hills-ammunition/

Brownells
200 South Front Street
Montezuma, IA 50171
(641) 623-4000
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/brownells-inc/

Federal Cartridge Co.
900 Ehlen Drive
Anoka, MN 55303
(800) 322-2342

Mountain Plains Targets
3720 Otter Place
Lynchburg, VA 24503
(800) 687-3000
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/mountain-plains-targets/

PACT (American Gold Trigger)
P.O. Box 535025
Grand Prairie, TX 75053
(800) 722-8462

Pro-Shot Products
P.O. Box 763
Taylorville, IL 62568
(217) 824-9133

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Because You Can.

The AR-15 is an amazing rifle. It can do most anything a rifle needs to do, except maybe slay a buffalo with one shot. It was a different situation 40 years ago: Colt was the only manufacturer (except for some military-only contracts), and it wasn’t viewed as a “sporting” rifle. The M1 and M14 ruled the target ranges in service rifle competition and 3-Gun was how many guns you owned in a certain caliber not a competition. The M16/AR-15 just wasn’t popular with civilian shooters as it was “an Army gun” and rumors of reliability problems in Vietnam were hard to overcome. I never owned one until recently, having access to M16’s and M4’s while on active duty, I never saw the need. I have an AR now though, and I’m glad I finally got one.

The newest Army M4A1 5.56mm is light-years ahead of the M16A1 I was first issued as a young trooper in the 82nd ABN DIV. Civilian versions are now manufactured in a dizzying array of calibers, barrel lengths, weights, twists, stocks, trigger assemblies and even colors. It’s almost too much of a good thing—deciding on what you need can be confusing. You can have a receiver made to your specifications, with the rest of your rifle built with whatever custom parts you want and in the AR caliber of your choice. Or you can order a complete rifle built by any of more than a dozen custom shops. Optics and iron sights are also available to suit any mission you decide to task your rifle with.

CNN stated recently the AR is now the most popular rifle in the US. All it takes is a look at the amount of .223 ammo being produced, or the popularity of AR magazines and accessories in most any gunshop. The AR is now called “America’s Rifle” by the American shooter, and rightfully so. The AR has seen combat, won national championships, defended citizens and is the preferred long gun for US civilian police forces. From the Bin Laden raid to plinking in the desert, the AR rifle can do it all.

When I started looking for an AR-type rifle I wanted one close to what I’ve used on active duty, but with a few add-ons to make it easier to shoot well. I’ve dealt with horrible triggers since the days of my first issued M16A1 in basic training, so a nice trigger, out of the box, would be a plus. After almost 40 years of using different variations during my Military and LE careers, I had a few ideas how to make it my rifle.

SGM (ret.) Kyle Lamb, owner of VTAC, shooting an S&W M&P “VTAC” rifle
in a demonstration during one of his carbine classes.

Dress up your rifle as you wish, but keep in mind the accessories you really need.

The Rifle

I was selected to attend a carbine shooting school in 2009, sponsored by Smith & Wesson. S&W provided me with a brand-new VTAC rifle. It was accurate, reliable and had the basic features I wanted: good single-stage trigger, a free-floated barrel, excellent collapsible stock (VLTOR) and a SureFire flash-suppressor. It also came with a Surefire light and a VTAC sling. I ended up putting about 1,000 rounds of ball ammo through it during my carbine course, so I knew I had a reliable, good-grouping rifle. I liked it so much at the completion of the school I bought the rifle.

There are many other first-rate AR’s out there; I’ve used FN’s, Colts (a sentimental favorite), Rock River Arms and Bushmaster. All would be fine, set up the way I envisioned. Remember getting a rifle you like, which is affordable, accurate and reliable, is the key. Doing your research before buying will make for a more enjoyable purchase. And cruising the AR-related Internet forums and manufacturer web sites is fun.

A clean breaking, single-stage trigger is a must for accurate shooting, some manufactures know this and make sure they include them, but if they don’t after-market triggers are almost as prolific as rifle manufacturers and are an easy fix. I would also recommend a free-floating barrel. The older non-floated barrels on the issue M16A1’s and even the stiffer, heavy-barreled A2’s played havoc with your point-of-aim if you used a shooting sling or applied any pressure to the barrel. Twist should probably be between 1:7″ to 1:9″, to stabilize heavier bullets. My early (2009) S&W VTAC has a 1:7″ twist. The newest VTAC II is 1:8″ which works well. Lastly, a good collapsible stock and a flattop receiver for mounting sights, optics and accessories are mandatory. Everything else can be added after purchase.

Bab added an ambidextrous safety to his M&P VTAC—a necessary item for lefties, which makes
the rifle much easier to manipulate, whether right- or left-handed.

Troy handguard worked better for Bob. The stock handguard
had a tendency to work loose during firing.

Bob prefers 20-round magazines for most shooting. Both the Magpul and the GI-issue ones (right)
work well. A 30-round Magpul magazine (left) is shown for comparison. 30-rounders are fine for
sustained firefights. Anything else the 20-round mags can handle.

Accessories And Add-ons

This is where you can get carried away, if you’re not careful. There’s lots really cool stuff to play with, but much of it isn’t really needed. Remember less is more, simple is better. The goal is to make the basic system perform more efficiently. Before buying anything, you should ask yourself what you’re actually going to do with your rifle. For example, will you be using your rifle at night? I don’t see myself doing this with my rifle, so I haven’t mounted a light, even though I have the capability.

First, let’s look at the basic controls. The magazine release and safety are properly situated and easy to use—if you’re right-handed. Fortunately, ambidextrous controls are available and easily installed. I’m a lefty, so this is a good thing. Something to remember is even though you’re right-handed, ambi controls are a good addition. Many times I’ve carried or needed to use my rifle from the opposite side, depending on my position. A working rifle with ambidextrous controls is something you should have. I installed a dual safety and lefty-magazine release, both of which are easily obtainable and fitted. Brownell’s keeps both in stock. I like the safety from Troy, if you’re using an issued M4/M16 burst or full-auto capable. My ambi mag release (“Ambi-Catch”) came from Norgon and is an excellent product; I tried one on an issued M4 before buying another for this VTAC.

I didn’t care for the handguard on my VTAC; it had a series of tiny hex-head screws securing it. The screws worked loose and were easily stripped if tightened up too much. I changed it out for a sturdier Troy handguard providing more options for accessory attachment. On the new Troy handguard I mounted a vertical rail grip. I like the ability of pulling the rifle tightly into my shoulder when shooting fast strings. The new VTAC II now comes with a Troy handguard as standard equipment. It has a full-length rail with enough room to mount just about anything you want. I also replaced the pistol grip—the standard M16A2 grip with the finger groove is uncomfortable. If you’re cheap, or don’t like the “grippy” surface of some of the newer pistol grip replacements, a standard GI black plastic pistol grip from an older M16A1 (with no finger groove) will fit. Many Service Rifle competitors make this swap on their National Match M16A2’s.

Good magazines are a must for an upgrade project. Surplus contract GI mags are generally OK, but there have been problems. Half of the brand-new aluminum contract magazines I was issued during my tour in Iraq wouldn’t fit into an M16A2 magazine well. Better would be to buy some magazines from Magpul. These are considered the industry standard and are a sought-after item for troops who are deploying. I like 20-round mags—I don’t see myself needing 30-rounders for the shooting I do now. I have a bunch, but don’t use them. The shorter magazines allow me to get into a low prone, which 30-round magazines inhibit. Bench shooting is also easier with 20-round mags. Magpul makes an excellent version. GI surplus 20-round magazines are also good, if they’re not trashed.

Get a good sling. There’s lots of room here for individuality: 1-point, 2-point, 3-point and other types of slings are out there. I like the VTAC sling. It’s fast, comfortable, easy to install and uncomplicated. All you need and nothing more.

Put together a compact cleaning kit and take it everywhere you go with your rifle. Surplus M16 GI green cleaning kit cases are perfect and will hold everything you need to clean, lube and service your rifle until you get home. Put in a jointed GI steel cleaning rod, patches, CLP tube, grease, Q-tips, bore and chamber brushes as well as punches and a small screwdriver for minor take-downs and repair. I still have an old M16A1 sight adjustment tool in my pouch; it came in handy when I ran into several older M16’s on my deployments.

A Trijicon 4X ACOG, mounted on the VTAC S&W. An excellent, tough optical sight,
in use by both the USMC and the US Army.

Troy rear battle sight; an excellent aperture sight—rugged, easy to
adjust and folds down, out of the way.

S&W-supplied Troy front sight. Both front and rear sights fold down and
don’t obstruct the shooter’s vision when using optics.

Sights, Lights And Optics

I used to be a firm believer in only iron sights on a combat rifle. Not anymore. Optics have proven themselves in the harshest conditions on the planet during non-stop combat operations. Qualification scores have also risen dramatically when soldiers shoot optics. Mounting optics on your AR should be a no-brainer.

I like a low-power variable (1-4X) with a lighted reticle and a 30mm tube. It’s perfect for CQB (close-quarters battle, or what the Army calls “short range marksmanship”) and easily has enough power to reach out and hit a man-sized target at 500 meters. I store a couple of extra batteries in my pistol grip; batteries last awhile and are cheap to replace.

Many shooters make the mistake of buying cheap optics. Get the best you can afford—you won’t regret it. The Army likes Leupold, Nightforce, Aimpoint and Trijicon. Not bad choices as all are combat proven. I have a soft spot for Burris. I had a Burris 4X compact scope with a duplex reticle on my Colt M16A2 when I was in Iraq. It was an excellent scope and it didn’t fail me, despite being bounced around daily in a Humvee. I never felt like I needed more power—4X worked well for me.

On my upgraded VTAC I decided on a Burris 1-4X “Extreme Tactical XTR” set in a LaRue Tactical quick-release mount. I’ve have some experience with the Trijicon ACOG, mostly overseas; it’s an excellent, very rugged sight, but it’s a fixed 4X (actually 3.8X). I wanted a lower-power variable to be utilized in very short-range situations. I also don’t care for the ACOG reticle, but that’s a personal thing. Remember, when choosing an optic, choose wisely and don’t be in a hurry unless you know what you want. Best bet is to try several different brands before you decide. Again, make your decision based on what you actually intend to do with your rifle. Calling in coyotes requires different optics than a rifle dedicated to CQB. After shooting and evaluating several different brands, including some combat use, I’m very satisfied with my Burris 1-4X.

Texas lawman Richard Banduch holding an M4 used for SWAT tactics—a great example of an
M4 set up for a specialized role, with suppressor, reflex sights and full-auto capability.

I haven’t mounted a light on my rifle because I don’t see myself needing one right now. If I were still a policeman, I’d have one on my rifle. I have the capability of mounting one though, so it’s no biggie to add one later for training or evaluation.

Another option for your rifle is a non-magnified optical sight or reflex sight. These are extremely fast, use batteries and have a lighted dot instead of the usual reticle. The Army has bought thousands of these (M68 CCO, or close combat optic) and they have performed superbly in Iraq and Afghanistan. I’ve used both the Aimpoint M68 CompM2 CCO and the later, improved CompM4. Both would work quite well if you will be confining your shooting to 300 meters.

Back-up iron sights are a must for me. I like the idea of iron sights on my rifle in case my optics malfunction. It happens sometimes and staying in the fight is critical. Many rifles come without sights; my VTAC didn’t have any. It gave me the option of adding sights I like. I put a set of Troy folding sights (sold by S&W for the M&P VTAC) on my rifle. These fold down low, with no interference with my optics. They’re first-rate aperture sights and are easy to adjust and very rugged. Not cheap, but well worth the price.

I think I have the perfect AR now. It’s right or left-hand-capable, accurate, comfortable and totally reliable. I’m ready to engage from just beyond the muzzle to 500-plus meters. I can upgrade further if I choose too. I’ve got my eye on a couple lights and maybe a suppressor one day. My wife and kids find it light, compact and easy to use, with no recoil. And it’s fun to shoot. Not an all-around rifle—but pretty darn close.

US Army issued M4A1, showing the selector lever with “auto” instead of the old
M4 3-round burst. Newer M4A1’s will have ambi safeties, full-auto capability
and heavier barrels to prevent overheating and warpage.

The M4A1 and the US Army

The M-16/M4 series is now the longest-serving service rifle in US military history. And some would say the most proven too, having gotten its baptism of fire early in the Vietnam War. It’s gone through numerous upgrades and revisions, with the latest version recently being approved for fielding to troops serving in Afghanistan. The “new” carbine is the M4A1, which will eventually replace all M4’s (now standard-issue to US Army deploying Soldiers) in the Army inventory. The military still has hopes of fielding a new carbine, which will, when developed and tested, eventually replace the M-16/M4. This may be awhile, though, because contracts for new M4A1’s as well as upgrade kits for M4’s have been signed—rifles and kits are now in the supply pipeline.

The M4A1 comes with a heavier barrel, full-auto capability (no more 3-round burst) and an ambidextrous safety. It’s basically the M4A1 issued to SOF (Special Operations Force) units for a while. The heavier barrel is more controllable in full-auto fire and reduces heat and warpage. The full-auto feature allows use of a better, simpler trigger with a cleaner pull. And there’s now (finally) an ambidextrous safety making lefty manipulation easier for us port-siders. All the other M4 features remain, like the flattop and the ability to take standard US add-ons (laser-sights, optics, etc.). The plan is to issue BCTs (Brigade Combat Teams) the rifles first. Rebuild kits for M4’s are being sent to Afghanistan for in-theater upgrades to M4A1 status. Eventually all 400,000 or so M4’s in the Army inventory will be replaced with new M4A’s or rebuilt to A1 specs. 
By Robert Kolesar

Smith & Wesson
www.smith-wesson.com
(800) 331-0852

Magpul
www.magpul.com
(303) 828-3460

Norgon LLC
www.norgon.com
(703) 455-0997

VTAC
www.vikingtactics.com
(910) 987-5983

LaRue Tactical
www.laruetactical.com
(512) 259-1585

SureFire
www.surefire.com
(800) 828-8809

Streamlight
www.streamlight.com
(610) 631-0600

Troy Industries
www.troyind.com
(866) 788-6412

Brownells
www.brownells.com
(800) 741-0015

JP Enterprises
www.jprifles.com
(651) 426-9196

Burris optics
www.burrisoptics.com
(970) 356-1670

Aimpoint
www.aimpoint.com
(703) 263-9463

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The Crucial Element.

It’s true, an AR-15 really does run on springs, as do a preponderance of firearms. More correctly, springs run the parts necessary for function—the extractor, ejector, buffer, trigger mechanism and magazine.

For years (and years and years) most all wound or “coil” springs were made from music wire. That composition is relatively inexpensive and not very durable. Assuming a spring is correctly engineered to function at its job, all we really want from it then is just to keep working. As the cycles mount up, a music wire spring gets shorter and weaker. Some specific springs will endure within a suitable range longer than others, but none for the life of the firearm. A standard coil buffer spring, for instance, usually gives out at 2,500 rounds. It can be, by the way, one of the leading causes for the “mystery malfunctions” that befall AR-15’s at around this point in their life.

Extractor and ejector springs are likewise prone to diminished functional capacity, although they will last a little longer than a buffer spring. This pair also endures heat. It’s common enough for either or both of these springs to just break, especially in rifles getting full-auto use.

Trigger and hammer springs also exhibit functional fatigue. Even if these springs continue to function, weakening tension will change trigger feel and break weight.

Magazine springs are—no kidding—supremely important. Without a properly functioning magazine, we’re left with a really awkward single-shot rifle.

For the most part, better, longer function comes from the use of better spring materials.

Better spring materials are chrome silicon (CS) alloy and 17-7 PH (mil-spec stainless steel). There also have been some engineering and design options over the past few years that have improved the utility of virtually all these springs.

What makes CS superior is a combination of inherent advantages, and then post-production enhancements that aren’t done (or can’t be done) for music wire. CS’s different compression and rebound characteristics essentially provide faster rebound at the same rated spring weight. Via the nature of the material, especially if it’s from material held to 9002 Quality Control Standards, there’s virtually no performance change over the life of a spring. We’ve all heard a new spring will take a “set” (shorten) and then settle in and stay that way. Not true. Not even a little bit. All springs continue to degrade with each cycle, but CS springs will endure 500,000 cycles with single-digit performance loss percentage. CS can also be heat-treated and shot-peened after winding to further enhance spring-to-spring consistency and better control performance. CS also endures heat up to 750 degrees F with no changes whereas music wire is diminished at 175 degrees F. That’s a significant advantage and reason to recommend CS extractor and ejector springs.

As mentioned, the main reason to upgrade to a different spring material for trigger return and hammer springs is consistency. That simply, and importantly, means the trigger break-weight will remain more constant.

Here’s a flat-wire buffer spring from Superior Shooting Systems LLC. This is
a pretty radical change in both performance and appearance from a conventional
round-wire, music-wire part. Function is decidedly superior, and there’s plenty
of room, literally, to tune its function. Compared to a conventional buffer spring,
the flat-wire is considerably longer yet compresses to a much shorter height.

A better extractor spring is the answer to extractor problems, and it’s preferable,
in Glen’s way of seeing it, than the little booster inserts. Do not use one of those
inserts, by the way, with a chrome silicon spring. That’s way-on too much tension.
A chrome silicon ejector spring is a lifetime part (standard springs are prone to breakage).

Arguably the most important spring in an AR is the buffer spring. Well, they are all important, so I should say “most influential.” This spring goes a long way towards either improving performance, or detracting from it.

A better spring material, by experience, does make for a better buffer spring. Beyond music wire, the first step up was CS material in a standard configuration. The current state-of-the-art is 17-7 PH. Instead of round wire, it uses flat wire. Flat wire is thinner. Even though a flat-wire spring is considerably longer than a conventional spring, a flat one compresses to a far shorter height than round wire. This means there is more space for the spring to function.

The buffer spring exerts a load against the bolt carrier when the bolt is in battery (closed, ready to fire). The amount of this force influences the timing of rearward movement of the carrier as the bolt unlocks when the rifle is fired. As I’ve gone on (and on) about in the past, delaying bolt unlocking for a fraction goes a long way toward taming the often overactive AR-15 operating system.

The flat-wire springs exert about a 20-percent higher load against the carrier, but have roughly the same resistance during the full stroke to the rear as the buffer moves back. That means there’s the same benefit from the available “extra-power” round-wire springs, but not the drawback of requiring a stronger thrust to deliver a full cycle. The longer spring has more consistent tension throughout the stroke. It’s a combination of materials miracle and good design. The carrier velocity is slowed at the get-go. That’s all good. I notice a noticeably smoother (and quieter) operation with the flat-wire springs.

Don’t be afraid to cut a buffer spring if needed to customize its function.
If you’re going to tune a spring by cutting coils, count them. Don’t measure
the spring. Rifle “standard” is usually 43 coils, and it’s 37 for carbines.
So, if you want a carbine spring from a rifle spring, count down 6 coils and
zip it right there. Glen uses a Dremel-type cutting wheel and safety glasses!
Very often, this is an easy fix for a combination that’s too stressed to lock
back. Never be afraid to cut coils to get function. Just make sure the spring
is the problem.

Flat-wire magazine springs compress to a considerably shorter height than
round-wire springs. This allows the part to be engineered to provide the
correct amount, and a constant amount, of pressure to the follower. Glen’s
a big believer in these. It’s made from 17-7 PH (mil-spec) and coated with
Sandstrom 28A Solid Film Lubricant. Slick. Other aftermarket enhancements
to followers, combined with this spring, virtually eliminate magazine
function failures.

Self Promotion
Information in this article was adapted from The Competitive AR-15: The Ultimate Technical Guide, published by Zediker Publishing. Glen is a card-carrying NRA High Master and earned his classification in NRA High Power Rifle using an AR-15 Service Rifle. For more check www.zedikerpaublishing.com or call (662) 473-6107.
By Glen Zediker

Brownells Inc.
200 South Front Street
Montezuma, Iowa 50171
(800) 741-0015
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/brownells-inc/

Superior Shooting Systems LLC
800 N. 2nd St.
Canadian TX 79014
(806) 323-9488
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/superior-shooting-systems-inc/

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A Deluxe Model 1873 Returns In Its
Original Chambering—The Legendary .44-40.

We’ve covered the history of this storied rifle many times in the past, so let’s cut to the chase (I’ll put some notes in the sidebar nearby as a refresher). This Miroku-built copy of the Model 1873 Winchester is simply superb. When first offered, it came in .357 Magnum, then .45 Colt. But not in its original chambering.

Until now. This new iteration is in .44 WCF, today called the .44-40. Fit and finish is first cabin. The stock, cut from a very nice piece of walnut, is given a matte finish. The case colors on the receiver, lever, buttplate and nose cap are nicely done, although they don’t compare with the colors Doug Turnbull achieves on the custom ones from Navy Arms.

The buttplate has no trap for the cleaning rods, both of which were provided with original Winchesters. Normally the hammer would be case hardened, but in this case it’s blued. The action is silky smooth, and the bluing is deep and rich. The dustcover opens and closes smoothly and is perfectly fitted to the receiver—I found no play when sliding it open or closed.

There are new safeties added to this design along with the originals. The half-cock notch on the hammer was originally designed to provide a safer way to carry the rifle with the chamber loaded. Today it would be prudent to leave the chamber empty and only chamber a round prior to shooting.

The downside, however, is the fact these actions are a bit noisy when chambering a round, enough to spook an animal within range. I suspect most of these Miroku ’73’s will be used as “fun guns” rather than hunting arms, but I know people who fill tags shooting vintage guns for the Old West experience. This rifle could easily provide it.

One of the new safeties is an inertial firing pin. In a casual test—at the range with the muzzle pointed downrange—letting the hammer slip off my thumb from half-cock on a factory round produced no ignition after five tries. But letting it fly from three-quarters of the way back-fired the rifle. Be careful lowering the hammer to the half-cock notch! This was not a scientific test, so you shouldn’t take it as gospel, but the lesson here is to take caution when lowering the hammer.

The new 2-piece firing pin system prevents the lightweight forward pin (fitted with a rebound spring) from striking the firing pin without the blow of the hammer. The heavier rear outer pin is hollow and has an internal spring-loaded pin with a stop coming through a slot in the outer pin. This stop meets a stud coming down through the dustcover rail. (This stud has a dish cut into it on top and a capture screw orients it correctly.) When the firing pin receives the blow of the hammer, this internal pin flies forward and cams down to pass the stud and so the whole pin flies forward to fire the rifle. A custom maker told me this system is problematic and causes occasional misfires with Large Rifle primers, but I experienced none with the Large Pistol primers .44-40 ammo is loaded with, and no misfires or malfunctions of any kind throughout the 250+ round test.

The traditional lever-actuated safety in the lower tang is present to prevent trigger travel unless the lever is held closed. The safety is powered by a music wire spring pinned within the lower tang along with the hammer and trigger. This spring is light and is no impediment to shooting. There is one odd quirk. If you employ the lever lock to hold the lever closed, the trigger-block safety is defeated.

Needless to say (but I’ll say it anyway), you must thoroughly familiarize yourself with the rifle’s manual of arms. If you are familiar with the original 1873 or its copies, this one will offer no surprises. If you are not, the owner’s manual will instruct you in handling the arm safely.

Nothing quite says “Old West” like the .44-40 1873 Winchester. Used by
lawmen, outlaws, homesteaders and hunters, they were tremendously popular
and well regarded for reliability, accuracy and dependability. This new
Winchester holds up the tradition.

The dustcover (above) is well fitted and opens smoothly when the action is
levered open. Note the plunger and screw at the rear of the frame, part of
the inertial safety system. Action open (below), and you see the stop atop
the inside firing pin which rests against the stud in the frame. When the
hammer strikes the inside firing pin, it flies forward, camming down to
pass the frame-mounted stud allowing the whole rear firing pin to strike
the inertial pin within the breech pin. Then things go boom. Rube Goldberg
would be proud.

The rear portion of the firing pin has a pin within. The small pin flies
forward to unlock the whole pin to strike for ignition.

The buckhorn rear sight (above) isn’t a direct copy of the ones equipping
original Winchesters, but is nicely made and finished. Its U-notch mates
up nicely with the Marble’s gold bead front sight (below).

The traditional lever safety is included, along with the lever latch. The
trigger is blocked until the finger lever is held closed firmly. The spring
is light and requires little pressure. If the latch is employed to hold the
lever closed, the safety is depressed far enough to fire the rifle.

Some Dimensions

The Miroku ’73’s octagon barrel is 24 inches long. The rifling is thin with a groove diameter of 0.429 inch, and the bore 0.422, according to my horseshoe micrometer. Most of the factory loads use bullets of 0.427 or 0.428 inch and they shot great. I decided to try a favorite handload using 0.430-inch cast bullets from a now-defunct caster. I still had a box of the bullets, which turned out to measure 0.431-inch. A loaded dummy went into the chamber too tightly for comfort, making me remember why the box was still nearly full. I had some 0.429-inch bullets on hand and a dummy loaded with one chambered freely. Just as important with the 1873 Winchester system, the cannelure was positioned correctly for a good crimp, with an overall length sufficient to feed from the magazine.

I took a handload to the range along with several factory loads and was humbled. Black Hills and Hornady factory ammo shot rings around my handload and Winchester jacketed softpoints didn’t shoot badly at all. I don’t shoot a bead very well, but if the 3-shot groups were all I recorded, then this rifle would be a dandy.

My handload, consisting of 6.0 grains of TiteGroup, delivered 1,160 fps and a 3-shot group of 1-3/8 with 5 shots into 3-1/2 inches. While my handload (worked up for another gun) shot ok, factory ammo won the day. Black Hills was the champ delivering a 5-shot group of 1-5/8 inches, but Hornady won the 3-shot group title delivering a 3/4-inch group. All groups were fired in calm conditions at 50 yards.

I raised the rifle’s sight elevator to the mid-point to get the groups printing just over the front sight at 50 yards with a 6 o’clock hold on the bull. This rear sight is a U-notch and pairs of well with the bead. It’s well made, but not a copy of the original, being off in several style particulars. It is nonetheless easy to acquire.

Speaking of shooting, the trigger pull is nice and crisp. Breaking at 5 pounds on average, it felt lighter. The action cycles smoothly and makes the nice “clank/clunk” original Winchester ’73’s do.

Anticipating small demand, Winchester didn’t make many of these case-hardened 1873 rifles in .44-40. The good news is Navy Arms ordered the .44-40 and will be offering them next year finished by Doug Turnbull. The blued, round-barrel Short Rifle will be available in much greater quantities and at a lower tariff.

The new Miroku-made Winchester 1873 is a very nice copy of the most iconic rifle of the Old West. The original ’73 made Winchester’s fortunes and wound up all over the world during its 40+ years of production. It was used by outlaws, lawmen and hunters. If you let your imagination wander, this new Winchester ’73 can walk you into—and through—the history of the Old West.

Black Hills Cowboy ammo (above, left) delivered the day’s best group of 1-5/8
inches at 50 yards, and Winchester 200-grain JSP loads also shot just fine with
a 5-shot group of 3 inches. Hornady Cowboy ammo delivered a fine group of
1-7/8 inches at 50 yards (below).

The factory loads tested included (left to right) Hornady 205-grain lead
flatpoint, Black Hills 200-grain LFP and Winchester 200-grain jacketed
softpoint. Note the double cannelure of the Winchester load to prevent
the bullet from “telescoping.”

Disassembly

First, as always, make sure the rifle is unloaded! Next, make sure your screwdrivers fit the screw slots. I emphasize fit because it appears thread locker was used on some screws and others are very tight. I got to thinking Winchester didn’t want this gun disassembled, and that’s throwing a glove down to a monkey like me. The owner’s manual is absolutely no help, another clue. Not having an official parts list, I made up some names, and got others from the Gun Digest Book of Exploded Firearms Drawings. I’m not going into complete disassembly here, just a few points concerning the new changes. The rest of the gun comes apart much like an original 1873. The Gun Digest Book of Rifle Assembly/Disassembly will help.

Remove the sideplates. This screw is very tight and you must use a good screwdriver (Brownells has ’em). This one appears to have thread locker on it. Don’t bung the screw head with a poor fitting driver! Next, lift off the links straight up (you may have to open the lever a bit). They are well fitted to their pins and a little wiggling may be necessary (sometimes they just fall out). The center pin in the lever operating the links may fall out. Be careful not to lose it.

Removing the new multiple breech pin differs from the original. Drift out the small pin holding the breech to the 2-piece firing pin. The rear half of the firing pin is removed from the rear. The breech is now pulled to the rear and tilted down for removal. The dustcover will likely need to be partially disassembled to remove the breech. The lever needs to be in the open position if it hasn’t been removed. The front half of the inertial firing pin and its spring are inside the breech and will fall out. (I did not disassemble the rear half of the firing pin further.)

The lower tang comes down like a 3rd Model 1873 (the most common variant). The hammer, trigger, trigger safety and its music spring are pinned in place and I didn’t disassemble further.

The mortise cover or dustcover need not be removed. If you do—the screw at the front of the cover has been factory honked down and is small. Use of a properly fitting screwdriver is a must. Remove the screw along with the dustcover stop. This is all you need do to remove the breech pin. Warning: In sliding off the dustcover to the rear, after about 3/8-inch of dustcover rail is exposed, a recess with a small coil spring and ball bearing are revealed. Keep your thumb over the hole in the dustcover until you feel the ball bearing. Remove the ball bearing through the hole for the dustcover stop screw (be careful—it is easy to lose, and so is the small coil spring).

Reassemble in reverse order. Note the firing pin will need to be pushed into the breech pin with your thumb in order to replace the pin. Push it in until you see daylight through the hole and push in the pin. The pin should go in with finger pressure alone.

The new 1873 breechpin assembly (top) is more complicated than the original (bottom).
The frame stud is shown removed and above the firing pin lever. This lever cams down
when the internal pin flies forward to clear the stud and allow the whole pin to fly
forward with enough force to strike the small inertial pin within the breechblock.

With the mainspring in the lower tang removed, the new music wire lever safety spring
is clear. The trigger, hammer and lever safety are pinned to the lower frame and
further disassembly is rarely needed.

With the dustcover removed, one secret to its smooth function is exposed.
The small ball bearing, riding atop its coil spring provides tension. The
dustcover is also well fitted to its dovetail. Be careful you don’t lose
the ball bearing if you remove the cover!

The Winchester ’73 (top) had few peers in its heyday. One of its first competitors
was the Whitney-Kennedy (bottom) in the late 1870’s. Larger and heavier, the
Whitney-Kennedy was made in few numbers until the mid-1880’s, and chambered
in most of Winchester’s 1873 and 1876 cartridges, although primarily in .44 WCF.

The Gun That Won The West

Whether it singlehandedly won the West is debatable, but there is no doubt the 900,000+ 1873 Winchester Rifles made between 1873 and 1919 certainly had an impact. In its initial .44 WCF offering, the rifle combined sustained firepower with portability. It was as capable of taking game as it was for self-defense. Two other calibers were eventually added (three if you count the .22 rimfire), the .38-40 and .32-20, all of which were as successful in Colt revolvers as they were in the 1873. The .44 WCF became extraordinarily popular and was chambered in a wide variety of belt-sized revolvers. Besides Colt, few handgun makers offered the competing .45 Colt as an optional chambering, although both rounds are about the same length.

The Winchester 1873 outsold all its rivals combined between 1873 and 1892. The Winchester’s only competition early on was the Whitney Arms Co., but the storied firm started by Eli Whitney early in our country’s founding sold fewer than 25,000 rifles. After a disastrous fire, Whitney Jr. sold out to Winchester in 1887. With the Browning patents in hand—designs superior to the Whitney-Kennedy and Whitney Scharf—Winchester closed the operation. The introduction of the Model 1892 and smokeless powder did more to slow sales and doom the Model 1873 to obsolescence than Whitney, Marlin or Colt.

Beginning in the 1880’s, both Colt and Marlin began competing seriously with Winchester, chambering their own arms to Winchester cartridges. It may seem funny today, but both Marlin and Colt hated the idea of putting the name “Winchester” on their guns to designate caliber. Marlin used “.44-40” and “.38-40” while Colt even went to the trouble of marking their arms and offering ammunition headstamped “.44 CLMR” for Colt Lightning Magazine Rifle. Whitney merely wrote “.44 C.F. CAL.” or just “.44 CAL.”

Taking another approach, however, handgun makers such as Merwin & Hulbert considered the Winchester name a selling point, and labeling their guns with “.44 Winchester Cartridge.” The .44 WCF could be found chambered in arms around the world, not just in America. It was truly one of the first international “superstar” chamberings.
Story & Photos By Jeff John

.44-40 Factory Ammo Performance

Notes: Velocities taken at the muzzle with
Magneto Speed Bayo Chrono.
Accuracy the product of 5 shots at 50 yards.

Black Hills Ammunition
3050 Eglin St., Rapid City, SD 57703
(605) 348-5150
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/black-hills-ammunition/

Birchwood Casey
7900 Fuller Road, Eden Prairie, MN 55344
(952) 937-7933
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/birchwood-casey/

Brownells
200 South Front Street, Montezuma, IA 50171
(641) 623-4000
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/brownells-inc/

Hornady
P.O. Box 1848, Grand Island, NE 68802
(308) 382-1390
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/hornady-manufacturing-company/

Winchester Ammunition
600 Powder Mill Road
East Alton, IL 62024
(618) 258-2000
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/winchester-ammunition-div-olin-corp/

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It Was Running Fine, But Now It Isn’t. Why?

If your AR-15 stops working, or works sporadically, it’s likely to be one of three root causes: it’s dirty, it’s beat, it’s got a leak. Details are coming.

Now, if it’s a new gun, function problems can be more tedious to solve. That’s because a freshly-constructed firearm has the potential for a slew of quality issues—build quality and parts quality. Not all are tested prior to shipment as they should be either. Problem with a new gun? Take it back where you got it.

Let’s focus on a previously ginning AR-15 that’s decided to go on operational vacation. I’ll be talking about cycling issues. If you pull the trigger and nothing expected happens, then, son, you got a broken part somewhere, and the fix for is plainly to replace the part.

Since AR-15’s are semi-automatic in function, there are two essential operational errors. Failure to feed, failure to eject. Both those together are a failure to cycle.

About the only shooter-supplied change creating function issues is ammunition. There are differences in available ammo, especially if we’re comparing commercial to Mil-spec. The handloader needs to do some double-checking on case sizing, and possibly some rethinking on propellant charge or choice.
Even though this may not be perfectly agreeable, given supplies and expenses, it’s best to run the same (known-to-work) ammo all the time, if, of course, the ammo is doing the job you’ve called on it to do. If ammo changed, the plainly easiest way to determine if it caused the problem is to try a few rounds of what it replaced.

I’ve talked around the horn a few times on this next, but cyclic failures are not always due to “light” loads. Not nearly. If you’ve either knowingly or innocently switched to a brand of ammo loaded to a higher pressure, what some call “overfunction” can fool us by its symptoms. Depending on the pressure levels of the before and after load, and depending on the rifle’s previous system suitability to function with the lighter load, introducing extra gas into the system can create excessive carrier velocity upon unlocking after firing, which can ultimately lead to excessively rapid return to battery. The carrier can outrun the magazine spring, in effect, and fail to chamber the next cartridge. Solutions for this require employing some means to slow carrier unlocking. I’ve addressed this before, but an adjustable gas flow system, a stouter buffer spring, or adding weight to the carrier can do the job.

Gas rings don’t last forever and a broken one, or well-worn set, can let too much
gas slip by. Replacement is easy and Glen thinks such should be part of anyone’s
maintenance plan.

Here’s a new key (above). Staking can be done with a hammer and a prick punch, but likely
means it won’t result in a showroom-finish-quality job. As long as metal is displaced inward
from the key to secure the screw heads from rotating it will be functional (and the reason
for the knurling on the heads). Glen uses a specialty staking tool called the MOACKS (below).
It’s an expensive investment for someone who might use it only once or twice, though.

If a spent case won’t eject, reduced gas flow or grit and grime top our suspect list. Could also be a broken extractor spring, or broken ejector spring. When either of these fails, they usually break, not just weaken.

Often a previously reliable rifle commences short-stroking. That’s when the carrier doesn’t get kicked far enough to the rear to pick up a cartridge from the magazine to chamber the round, or far enough to allow the bolt stop to engage and lock back the bolt. The cause for this is either not enough “flow” from the gas system (a leak) or too much operational friction (grit and grime).

If I suspect reduced gas flow, my first check is for a loose bolt carrier key. If it’s loose, then there will be your leak. Installed correctly, it should not loosen. Installed incorrectly, it probably will loosen. I have seen a slew of incorrectly installed keys.

The key is secured by two screws with knurled heads. Most specs call for 30 to 40 inch-pounds of torque, but I say that’s not enough. They need to be tighter than that. Most of the better builders I know don’t even use a torque wrench for this op. They just turn them down tight—good and tight.
However, tight is not, by itself, enough. The last few new AR-15’s I’ve seen weren’t staked. There’s a trend toward using high-strength threadlocker (glue) in lieu of staking. Wrong. If the screws are not staked, the screws are not going to stay put. That’s that.

The area inside the bolt carrier where the tail end of the bolt fits will get caked with carbon. That fouling is tough to remove because it’s tough to reach. After this recess gets coated with carbon residue, the bolt gets “sticky.” There’s a specialty scraper-type tool I prefer, but GM Top Engine Cleaner (get it from Mr. Goodwrench, which is the parts counter at a Chevy dealer) and some brushing can dissolve the majority. This is a stout chemical.

Keep everything clean and lubed. Glen likes this stuff, but there are a number of
good lubes. What matters is your maintenance plan includes continual cleaning,
lubing, cleaning and so on. “Fresh” lube works better.

It’s known AR-15’s tend to develop function problems around the 2,500-round mark. Two likely reasons, aforementioned dirt if this area has been neglected that long, or the buffer spring. A conventional music wire spring lasts only 2,500 rounds. Replace it, and (better beyond belief) replace it with a chrome silicon or 17-7ph stainless spring. Then you’ll never have to think about it again.

The gas rings on the bolt won’t last forever. A break creates a leak, meaning gas is dissipated away from functional utility. Here’s an easy fix. Keep spares. A 1-piece design aftermarket ring normally holds up better.

Another area creating unwanted permeation of propellant gas can be the gas manifold (the apparatus the gas tube fits into on the barrel), especially when there’s an aftermarket gas block installed. Fit issues are common enough when there are incongruencies between block inside diameter and corresponding barrel area exterior dimension. It doesn’t take much gap to provide an outlet for gas under the sort of pressure we’re dealing with. You can usually see the blow-by firing the rifle from the hip, or look for dark streaks.

If you’re suspicious this is a permeation point, make sure the block retaining screws are tight. Threadlocker on the screws helps keep them that way. I do not recommend applying any such glue to the manifold/barrel contact because there’s a risk of the glue getting into the gas port, which is a sure way to cap the flow.

Last, for this little ditty, but decidedly not the least, is keep the daggone rifle clean and lubricated. Clean the chamber! This area is often neglected in rifles with otherwise meticulously maintained bores. Thread a .357-caliber pistol brush on a short rod and scrub the chamber walls each barrel cleaning. Keep the bolt carrier assembly well lubricated (bolt body, cam pin, carrier body) and keep changing the oil: lube it, shoot it, clean it, lube it, shoot it.

A gas manifold should be seated flush and snug (top). Standard-duty threadlocker on
the set screws is a good idea, but don’t risk heavy-duty gluing the manifold to the
barrel. This is a Mark Brown Carrier Scraper from Brownells. A few turns each cleaning
will prevent carbon build up from ruining your fun (below). The volume of grunge
emerging from the use of this tool on a dirty carrier will amaze you. It doesn’t
smell as bad or is as toxic as Goodwrench Top Engine Cleaner.

Shameless Plug

This material was specially adapted from The Competitive AR-15: Builder’s Guide, available from Zediker Publishing.
Visit ZedikerPublishing.com and BuyZedikerBooks.com for more.
By Glen D. Zediker

MOACKS
Michiguns
P.O. Box 42, Three Rivers, MI 49093
www.m-guns.com

Brownells Inc.
200 South Front St., Montezuma, IA 50171
(800) 741-0015
www.brownells.com

Superior Shooting Systems LLC
800 N. 2nd St., Canadian, TX 79014
(806) 323-9488
www.davidtubb.com

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Whether In Subsonic Or Supersonic Trim, The
.300 Blackout Defines “Purpose Built.”

There seems to be a rifleman’s law, you can’t like a certain cartridge without hating another. If shooters say they like the .280 Rem or .375 H&H, they have to point out they hate the .270 Win or .375 Ruger. Seems odd somehow, like saying you hate a TV show or movie. It takes no effort whatsoever to just not watch it.

Personally I don’t dislike any cartridge, though I admit to being puzzled at times what niche they fill. One recent example is the .300 Blackout. A good way to learn about a cartridge is to read about it. Another is to actually shoot it—which is more fun.

The .300 Blackout was SAAMI-approved in 2011, based on specifications from Advanced Armaments Corp. (AAC). Its roots go back considerably further. Back in the 1990’s J.D. Jones developed the .300 Whisper, which is virtually identical in appearance and ballistics.

J.D. was an early proponent of handgun hunting, an indefatigable experimenter with the energy and resources to get many of his ideas into production through his business, SSK Industries. Certainly he is one of the most influential figures in the world of handguns and cartridge design.
Both cartridges are based on the .221 Fireball case. Some sources say the .221 Fireball was a shortened version of the “parent” .223 Rem. Quite a trick, since the Fireball was announced as a commercial cartridge two years earlier than the .223.

Actually both cartridges, along with the .222 Rem Mag, resulted from experimental work done by Remington in the mid-to-late 1950’s. All are descendants of the .222 Rem, one of the very few cartridges in which the designers started from scratch.

The Fireball case was designed to hold about as much powder as was compatible with the 10-3/4-inch barrel of the original Remington XP-100 bolt-action handgun. Water capacity varies with brass thickness, but in approximate terms, the Fireball holds 20 grains of water, the .222 Rem 24 grains, and the .223 Rem about 28 grains.

According to J.D. Jones on his SSK website, among the parameters of the .300 Whisper were (1) compatibility with the AR design and magazines, (2) a heavy-bullet subsonic load for use with a suppressor, and (3) a light-bullet medium velocity load. The .300 Whisper meets all these goals (as does the .300 Blackout).

Accuracy results from the HPR 110-grain TAC-TX load (above) and the SIG Elite
125-grain OTM (below) show the potential of the .300 Blackout.

The Quiet Side

A quality suppressor can effectively reduce the muzzle blast of even powerful cartridges such as the .338 Lapua. As long as the bullet stays supersonic, there’s nothing can be done to muffle the sound. Anyone who’s manned the target pits while shooters fire from 1,000 yards knows a supersonic bullet makes a loud crack as it passes overhead, followed a couple of seconds later by the distant, relatively mild report of the rifle.
Keeping a bullet subsonic is no problem. Just use a .22 Short or standard velocity .22 LR. In terms of using such bullets for hunting or military combat, the problem is you might actually hit something, which at best would irritate them and at worst make them really angry. In order to increase lethality without breaking the sound barrier, the only option is to increase bullet weight. SSK has a whole line of Whisper designs to accommodate various bullet weights.

The military niche of the suppressed .300 Blackout, so I’m told, is the elimination of sentries both two- and four-legged. I’ve never encountered such a need and having reached senior citizen status, it’s unlikely I ever will. Other than the fun factor, I personally don’t have a need for subsonic loads.

A selection of .300 Blackout loads from SIG and HPR (above) all fit and functioned
from Brownells’ AR 20- and 30-round magazines. Loaded in the mags are SIG 220- and
125-grain loads, and HPR’s 150-grain load. The “StripLula” loader from MagLula holds
10 rounds and makes loading faster and easier on the fingers. The load with the
lightest bullet actually has the longest overall length, due to the sharp plastic
tip (below, from left) HPR 110-grain TAC-TX and 150-grain SP, SIG 125- and
220-grain Open-Tip Match loads.

Supersonic Menu

But the supersonic .300 Blackout loads are another story. In what I think is the order of importance here are some thoughts on some currently available supersonic 110- through 150-grain loads:

(1) The ammunition from HPR and SIG is absolutely superb. Quality control, consistency, and accuracy of all loads tested were exceptionally good. The HPR 110-grain FMJ is strictly for targets and training, but the others are fine hunting bullets. It’s true there are no inexpensive military surplus loads available as there is for, say, the 7.62×39. But the quality of the ammunition, not to mention fine brass cases suitable for reloading, more than makes up for the lack.

(2) Recoil is so mild as to be practically nonexistent. Weight of the powder charge plays a greater role in felt recoil than is generally recognized. With the .300 Blackout, velocity is adequate for shorter ranges and medium game, achieved with small powder charges for minimal recoil and muzzleblast.

(3) Compatibility with the AR design is another issue. I loaded several 20- and 30-round AR magazines (Brownells) with the various loads on hand. All fit and fed reliably. Only a barrel swap is needed to convert a .223/5.56 AR to .300 Blackout, though in practical terms it’s much handier to have a complete upper assembled.

The rifle used for Dave’s .300 Blackout range session was built from parts by Mike Nason.
It features Yankee Hill lower and upper receivers and barrel, MagPul stock, UTG Pro
Super Slim handguard, CBR handgrip and an EOTech QD sight.

The rifle is one put together by my friend Mike Nason, who is currently a captain in our county’s sheriffs department. Mike built the rifle on Yankee Hill upper and lower receivers and a Yankee Hill 16-inch barrel with a 1:8 twist. Other components used include a MagPul collapsible stock, UTG Pro Super Slim free-float forearm, Vltor charging handle, and CBR handgrip.

Mike has purchased an AAC suppressor and is currently awaiting the tax stamp. The bolt carrier assembly is also an AAC component. It has a very hard, smooth, nickel-boron finish for durability and easy cleaning.

Subsonic .300 Blackout loads typically rely on the backpressure from a suppressor to ensure reliable operation. Without a suppressor the SIG subsonic loads didn’t impart quite enough momentum to the bolt carrier for reliability. About 20 to 25 percent of the time the carrier wouldn’t go back far enough to pick up a fresh round.

All the supersonic loads proved completely reliable and provided very good accuracy along with minimal recoil. I can’t help thinking what a neat little deer rifle could be built on, say, a Sako Vixen action with a very light 18-inch barrel.

With a synthetic stock, weight would be maybe 4-1/2 to 5-1/2 pounds with scope, rings, bases and a full magazine. If I went to the trouble of doing a custom rifle, I’d likely chamber it to .300 Whisper for two reasons: (1) in order to use .300 Whisper cartridges from Black Hills Ammo, and (2) as a gesture of respect to J.D. Jones, one of the true innovators in the handgun and cartridge world.

Too much trouble and expense? Ruger chambers its American Ranch Rifle for .300 Blackout and offers a Youth version with 12-3/4-inch length of pull and a weight of 5.9 pounds. I may have to buy one!
By Dave Anderson

HPR Ammunition
1304 W. Red Baron Rd., P.O. Box 2086
Payson, AZ 85541
(928) 468-0223
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/hpr-ammo/

SIG SAUER Inc.
16 Industrial Drive, Exeter, NH 03833
(603) 610-3000
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/sig-sauer-inc/

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The Carrier Assembly Is Why The AR Is Our
Most Accurate Self-Loader. Case Closed!

By Glen Zediker

AR-15’s aren’t like other rifles, not even a little bit. The action, in particular, is way on different. The heart of the difference, which is also the heart of the rifle, is the bolt carrier assembly. It’s also one of the reasons AR-15’s out-shoot any other centerfire semi-auto design, or so I say (backed by a few others). On-target accuracy, at distance, can be astounding from an AR-15 if it has been carefully constructed around a premium barrel.

The main difference in an AR design is all the “lock-up” is in the bolt and barrel (barrel extension, which is affixed to the barrel)—not in the rifle receiver. The AR-15 upper receiver functions to hold the barrel and provide a channel for the bolt carrier to ride in. The bolt-carrier assembly is, in effect, isolated from the upper receiver, free-floating, is one way of looking at it. When the bolt locks over, there’s no influential stress on the carrier because the fit of this assembly within the upper receiver is relatively loose.

(Now, I do know it’s not really free-floating; it’s touching the interior of the upper; but the point is that it’s free to move, to locate itself.)

The reason I (and I’m not the only one) think this is a key to the AR-platform accuracy is simply because of what was just said: in effect, it’s like the rest of the rifle is detached from the bolt/barrel lock-up.

The multiple-lug bolt is another reason. Most other designs, whether semi-auto or bolt-action, use two lugs. It’s pretty well-known, at least in long-range target shooting, that more than two lugs shoot better, especially with a greater variety of ammunition, and especially with ammunition not listed under the “premium” heading in the catalog. It’s been conclusively demonstrated with the 4-lug bolt-actions used for some Palma rifles. Seven lugs in the AR bolt spreads out the stresses and single points of surface contact. I know some builders who have experimented with lapping in the lugs with the barrel extension, with no improvement in accuracy. Lapping the fit with the bolt lugs and their respective receiver channels is mandatory for best accuracy in anything else (along with truing up the action).

I’ve talked many times in this space about the importance of a gas tube that doesn’t bind—touching nothing but its receptacle in the gas carrier key (attached to the bolt carrier) and looking dead-center. If gas tube installation is not stress-free, then there is force applied to the bolt carrier, and this, no doubt, affects accuracy. The reason is the gas tube relocates the carrier away from its “free-floating” orientation. Firing forces then can create additional inconsistent pressures on the parts, and pressures likewise induce inconsistent vibrations and, well, there goes the group.

Unlike virtually all other popular rifle designs, all the lock-up in
an AR-15 has nothing to do with the receivers, and essentially no
interference from anything else. In effect, it’s as if the bolt and
barrel are hanging in space. Glen thinks this, along with the
multi-lug bolt, is the reason these rifles shoot so doggone well.

This premium specimen is designed by Dan Young and sold by Les Baer.
flutes help it hold lube, and the hard chrome makes it resist grit.
Some suggest hard plating makes the carrier harder than the upper
receiver, but, uh, steel is already harder than aluminum, remember?
Lube the fool out of it!

The bolt carrier functions to carry the bolt (easy) and also to reset the hammer. The carrier also bears the brunt of gas pressure during firing. The gas travels through the gas tube into—and then through—the carrier key.

The thing itself is available in two essential varieties: “AR-15” and “M16.” Since we’re talking only about semi-auto-only firearms, the influential difference is in the form of the back-end of the part. AR-15 carriers have a shorter section of full diameter at the tail; the M16 carrier has a longer section. The M16 carrier has a shrouded firing pin and so requires a “large-collar” firing pin style (the extra diameter is necessary for it to be reset). When Colt did the “receiver-block” to prevent installation of full-auto parts, they sliced the rear bottom slap off.

An M16-style carrier is a little better than 1-ounce heavier. The shrouded firing pin is purported to be more reliable, but I can’t warrant that. Keep this area clean! Dirty guns are unreliable, no matter the parts design.

I like a heavier carrier. I’ve written a mountain of words before about the virtues of delaying bolt unlocking, and that’s exactly what the extra weight does. Delaying unlocking a fraction improves spent-case condition, especially with a max-level load, or any other time when gas port pressure (and the resultant increase in gas volume) increases.

This is a very worthwhile addition to any bolt carrier. It’s an adjustable
carrier key from Sun Devil. It works as effectively as a barrel-mounted
adjustable gas manifold, but can be installed in any AR-15 (and it’s legal
for NRA/CMP Service Rifle competition since it’s not an external modification)
just as-is. Woohoo!

Here’s another way to up the mass without swapping parts (although Glen
uses them on M16-style carriers, too). It’s a “Carrier Weight Insert”
designed by David Tubb. This appliance is very effective. It’s a mandatory
item on his build-sheets for competition rifles and also carbine-length guns.

I’ve used carriers from different sources, GI-spec and custom aftermarket. The “premium” carriers are indeed a step up, but I honestly can’t say I’ve ever seen one make a rifle shoot better. Think back to the start of this article and it’s probably clear why. Extra “precision” in a part that doesn’t really make critical-contact with anything doesn’t really matter. However, the premium carriers are a day-in, day-out step up. Coated or plated carriers are an asset but not an advantage. Lemmesplain. The coating makes them slicker, which makes them clean up easier. Lower friction means, likewise, smoother running, but whether Parkerized, oxide-coated, chrome, or ti-nitride, they still need oil.
The bolt matters, as does the cam pin. I prefer Colt-brand for both; I’ve yet to see bad ones. Firing pin hole size should be checked and critiqued. I’ve had good luck on these parts from aftermarket custom shops, like Smith Ent.

The bolt carrier, by the way, has nothing to do with rifle headspace. That’s all in the bolt. Using the same (correct) bolt in different carriers is “safe.”

Back to the bolt carrier. Look over a new one for rough spots, ridges, or burrs and smooth them over. Keep the entire assembly (cleanly) lubed. I put some grease on the underside and oil all over. It’s particularly difficult to do a thorough job cleaning the recess where the back of the bolt resides, but it’s necessary! Malfunctions ensue after enough carbon has built up (usually after 2,500 rounds). Carbon is tough. Try GM Top Engine Cleaner from your Chevy dealer.

Shameless Self-Promotion

The preceding is a specially-adapted excerpt from The Competitive AR-15: Builders Guide, a book by Glen Zediker and Zediker Publishing. For more information, visit ZedikerPublishing.com and get it at BuyZedikerBooks.com.

Les Baer Custom
29601-34th Ave.
Hillsdale, IL 61257
(309) 658-2716
LesBaer.com

Brownells Inc.
200 South Front St.
Montezuma, IA 50171
(800) 741-0015
Brownells.com

Smith Enterprise
1701 West 10th St., Ste. 14
Tempe, AZ 85281
(480) 964-1818
SmithEnterprise.com

Sun Devil Mfg
663 West 2nd Ave. Ste. 16
Mesa, AZ 85210
(480) 833-9876
SunDevilMfg.com

Superior Shooting Systems LLC
800 N. 2nd St.
Canadian, TX 79014
(806) 323-9488
DavidTubb.com

Young Mfg
5528 N. 51st Ave.
Glendale, AZ 85301
(623) 915-3889
YoungManufacturing.net

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The Daniel Defense DD5V1 Provides
.308 Insurance For Perilous Times

By Will Dabbs, MD
Photos By Takashi Soto

Around the turn of the latest century, Marty Daniels started a small company to produce the sorts of tactical rifle accessories he wanted but could not find. What began in a tiny corner of another business has since grown tremendously. Daniel Defense produces the forearm rail systems currently used by the US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM). They are also the sole supplier for rail systems for the L85 bullpup Infantry rifle used by the British Ministry of Defense (MOD).

Daniel Defense is one of five companies on the planet equipped to make cold hammer forged rifle barrels. With the addition of a second hammer forge machine in 2014, Daniel Defense can now produce 14,000 barrels per month. Daniel Defense was recognized by Inc. 500/5000 Magazine as one of the fastest growing private companies in America. That’s not bad for a tiny outfit birthed in the corner of a workshop.

Daniel Defense gained a bit of notoriety a few years back when they attempted to buy advertising space during the Super Bowl. Apparently the NFL’s reputation as an organization of manly men was somewhat overstated, as they refused to run an ad for a gun company. I am reticent to use the term “spineless pansies” myself, but I would not object if others did.

I needed a tricked-out black rifle because there is no better tool with which to defend my castle. I had to have a powerful handgun to keep the family safe on the road. Then came the precision rifles, pocket guns, competition pistols, NFA pieces and collectible iron.

But what if you really could only have one? It’s not like the government could take them away without fomenting a second civil war, but what if there was an economic downturn in the family? What if you had to thin the herd to pay for diapers or rent? If the exigencies of life demanded that you cull down to a single gun, what might be the one perfect all-around utility firearm?

Origin Of The Species

Way back in 1956 Eugene Stoner’s Space Age wondergun was chambered in 7.62x51mm from the very beginning. The original AR10 was plastic and aluminum and so far ahead of its time it put many conventional folks off. However, the jungle war in Vietnam coupled with a comparable helping of skillful marketing and raw unfiltered luck conspired to scale the gun down to 5.56mm, selling a zillion copies. The subsequent M16 is the longest serving military rifle in American history. Now that ranges in Afghanistan and Iraq frequently reach out beyond what the 5.56mm is capable of servicing, the big-bore AR10 is making a comeback.

Up until recently, Daniel Defense focused solely on 5.56mm AR’s. Nowadays, however, they are applying their legendary penchant for quality to a full-sized .30-caliber AR rifle called the DD5V1. The result is pretty darn cool.

Origin Of The Species

Way back in 1956 Eugene Stoner’s Space Age wondergun was chambered in 7.62x51mm from the very beginning. The original AR10 was plastic and aluminum and so far ahead of its time it put many conventional folks off. However, the jungle war in Vietnam coupled with a comparable helping of skillful marketing and raw unfiltered luck conspired to scale the gun down to 5.56mm, selling a zillion copies. The subsequent M16 is the longest serving military rifle in American history. Now that ranges in Afghanistan and Iraq frequently reach out beyond what the 5.56mm is capable of servicing, the big-bore AR10 is making a comeback.

Up until recently, Daniel Defense focused solely on 5.56mm AR’s. Nowadays, however, they are applying their legendary penchant for quality to a full-sized .30-caliber AR rifle called the DD5V1. The result is pretty darn cool.

The buttstock offers a textured overlay for your cheek and an oversized
triggerguard for use with gloves. Brownells’ new 7.62 magazines ride
in the flared mag well.

The Gun

If you are savvy enough to be reading this magazine, you know how an AR runs. I’ll spare you the details. Everything about the DD5V1 is just slightly scaled up over a comparable 5.56mm AR15. The receivers are billet cut and will still be rendering superb service for your great-grandchildren.

The KeyMod forearm rail is topped with numbered Picatinny slots; the upper receiver is railed for optics. The charging handle sports a cool spring-loaded ball bearing detent to keep it closed, along with oversized ears so there are no latches with which to contend. The collapsible stock sports multiple positions for accommodating body armor or variously statured shooters.

The pistol grip is ergonomic, proprietary and nearly square to the bore axis for proper manipulation with the elbow tucked. The fire selector is bilateral as are the bolt and magazine releases, and the flash suppressor / muzzlebrake is a Daniel Defense original design called the Superior Suppression Device. The trigger is a superb Geissele SSA 2-Stage with a predictable 2.5-pound take-up as well as a crisp 2-pound break for a total pull weight of 4.5 pounds. All up, the rifle weighs 8.3 pounds empty.

The integral machined triggerguard is oversized to accommodate gloves, and the magazine well is flared for quick use with SR-25-type magazines. Its bolt carrier group is designed with an enlarged cam pin and enhanced extractor geometry. There are two redundant ejectors for utterly flawless reliability.

The 16-inch cold hammer-forged barrel mounts to the receiver via the most intriguing proprietary mounting system. Four heavy Allen-head bolts connect the handguard linearly to the upper receiver such that it eschews a conventional barrel nut. A mid-length gas system is hidden underneath the handguard and the barrel is fully free-floated. The end result is sleek, rigid, lightweight and lethal.

OVERLEAF: The DD5V1 is fitted with a Blue Force Gear sling, the rifle
case is an Eagle Industries OD Green, the flashlight a Streamlight
ProTac HL3 and the folding knife a Strider Model SNG.

Accessorizing

A modern black rifle looks naked without some proper glass. Burris has produced high-grade riflescopes for as long as I can recall. The XTR II is a 2-10x42mm variable power precision riflescope built around a 34mm tube. This particular model comes with an illuminated first focal plane MOA reticle, ultra-high performance glass and index-matched multi-coated lenses. The scope’s click adjustments are tuned to its reticle, and it sports true zero-stop adjustment knobs. The wide-bodied tube sucks in light better than a black hole.

For easy access, the focus knob is oriented on the left side without looking away from the scope, and the optic comes with nice flip-up scope caps. The Burris P.E.P.R. mount allows up to 2 inches of forward positioning for optimal eye relief and is available for both smooth and rail-topped versions. It is designed to optimize field-of-view atop AR rifles. The Burris XTR II on a P.E.P.R. is a robust, combat-ready optic.
Brownells sent us their newest magazines; they offer everything you might need to feed your shooting addiction.

The Key Mod fore-end runs nearly to the muzzle and has a rail section
for its entire length. The flash suppressor / muzzlebrake is an original
Daniel Defense design called the Superior Suppression Device.

The proprietary 4-bolt attachment of the Key Mod fore-end is secure
and allows the fore-end to be free-floated. The scope is mounted in
the Burris P.E.P.R. 34mm mount allows great flexibility in
positioning the scope.

Synergy

Mix all this together and you get a remarkably versatile working firearm. The DD5V1 carbine is almost as short, handy and lightweight as its 5.56mm brethren, yet remains markedly more powerful. Unlike its .22-caliber counterpart, the DD5V1 is proof against most any North American game animals as well.

With appropriate ammunition, the 5.56mm round can be devastating, but it doesn’t have quite the downrange horsepower to drop a whitetail deer reliably. By contrast, the 7.62x51mm /.308 is arguably the most reliable deer cartridge around. For survival or hunting applications, the Daniel Defense DD5V1 is perfect.

For defensive uses around the home, that .30-caliber bullet means not having to say you’re sorry in any language. This supple rifle maneuvers indoors and inside a vehicle almost as well as its small-caliber counterpart. The heavy .30-caliber ball round renders splendid penetration if the threat is in a vehicle or behind light barrier material. Excessive penetration is always a consideration where there might be friendlies on the other side of a wall but, to be honest, I wouldn’t trust wallboard to protect my children if the weapon was a pellet gun. Hardware particulars are never a substitute for situational awareness and an appreciation for what is behind your target.

The combination of the top-end Burris tactical riflescope really does optimize the capabilities of this fine firearm. The wide adjustment range of the reticle and light-grabbing glass allows the sight to be effective in bright sunlight as well as dim twilight. So long as I did my part, I could drop my rounds in place out as far as my range allowed. With the magnification screwed down to 2X and the reticle illuminated, the Burris XTR II made for a decent both-eyes-open close-combat optic as well.

The bolt and carrier have an oversized cam pin, enhanced extractor geometry
and dual ejectors. The charging handle dispenses with a conventional latch
and uses a simpler ball detent to stay closed.

Practical Tactical

You can drag any piece of high-speed iron out to the range, burn a few rounds and wax poetic regarding its salient attributes. However, when I was a soldier, our weapons were literally our constant companions. I live on a rural farm nowadays and like to tote a gun around between shooting sessions to see how it would work if I really lived with it.

The DD5V1 is bulkier than a 5.56mm AR but not by too much. On a proper sling, the DD5V1 can hang across your back or underneath your arm with little more trouble than its smaller brother. Ammo is heavier, but I honestly can’t fathom any possible Real World scenario requiring more than three magazines at a sitting. We live in the greatest, securest country the world has ever seen and most of us will not be humping Hindu Kush with our weapons. With one magazine in the rifle and two on my vest, I would feel ready for literally any unpleasant thing my little world might have to offer.

Muzzle blast and recoil are indeed spunkier than your smaller AR, and the price you pay for packing serious downrange thump. I could double tap targets up close and transition to long-range engagements in less time than it takes to describe, thanks to the utility of the Burris scope and spot-on Daniel Defense ergonomics. A properly tricked-out DD5V1 is light and handy enough to run indoors while remaining tack-driving accurate out to the limits of the cartridge. The Brownells magazines ran well, but they did fail to lock the bolt open on the last round fired fairly frequently.

In Will’s test, a variety of ammo was fired at 100 meters. All these brands
(above) shot extremely well, with the HSM as the solid standout in the DD5V1.
Photo: Sarah Dabbs. This tiny little 5-shot cloverleaf at 100 meters was
delivered by the DD5V1 using HSM Match ammo (below) and may be the best
group Will has ever fired through a .30-caliber rifle. Photo: Sarah Dabbs

Why This Rifle?

The .30-caliber 7.62x51mm round is a workhorse and everything about this rifle is state-of-the-art. When launched through the Daniel Defense DD5V1, the heavy .308 will reliably do the deed at any range, from contact out to 1,000 meters in the hands of a seasoned shooter. This rig will put venison on your table, drop the zombies with aplomb and dissuade inquisitive grizzlies that might have the poor judgment to invade your space. It will also shut down any bipedal predator, whether he is in a vehicle or on foot, out in the open or behind light cover. The new DD5V1 takes everything righteous and wholesome about 5.56mm rifles and supercharges it with enough horsepower to really reach out and touch something. If life went sideways and you really could only have one, the new Daniel Defense DD5V1 offers a little bit of everything for any range.

DD5V1
Maker: Daniel Defense
101 Warfighter Way
Black Creek, GA 31308
(866) 554-4867

Action: Direct gas impingement, semi-auto
Caliber: 7.62x51mm/.308 Winchester
Capacity: 20
Barrel Length: 16 inches
Overall Length: 33-3/8 inches (collapsed), 37 inches extended
Weight: 8.3 pounds
Magazine: Magpul PMAG 20-round box
Price: $2,899

XTR II 2-10x42mm
Maker: Burris Company
331 E. 8th Street,
Greeley CO 80631
(970) 356-1670

Magnification: 2X, 10X
Objective Diameter: 42mm
Eye Relief: 4.25 inches (2X) to 3.5 inches (10X), Internal Adj.
Range: 90 MOA elevation, 55 MOA windage at 100 yards
Click Value: 1/4 MOA
Tube Diameter: 34mm
Weight: 22.7 ounces
Overall Length: 13.5 inches
Reticles: SCR MOA
Price: $1,139

.308 Factory Ammo Performance

Notes: Caldwell Ballistic Precision Chronograph (www.btibrands.com) set 10 feet from muzzle.
Accuracy is the product of best 4 of 5 shots at 100 meters fired prone off a bipod.
FMJBT: Full Metal Jacket Boattail; HPBT: Hollowpoint Boattail.

Brownells
200 South Front Street
Montezuma, Iowa 50171
(800) 741-0015
www.brownells.com

Federal Cartridge Co.
900 Ehlen Drive
Anoka, MN 55303
(800) 322-2342
www.federalpremium.com

Gorilla Ammunition
3895 39th Square
Vero Beach, FL 32960
(772) 766-5805
www.gorillaammo.com

The Hunting Shack, Inc.
4406 Rathbun Lane
Stevensville, MT 59870
(800) 856-2857
www.thehuntingshack.com

Winchester Ammunition
600 Powder Mill Road
East Alton, IL 62024
(618) 258-2000
www.winchester.com

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Order Your Printed Copy Of The GUNS Magazine August 2016 Issue Now!

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By Jeff John

It’s always a sickening feeling to get a gun all up and running to find one component—a critical one—out of whack. When it comes to reproductions (especially faithful ones), you have to take the Old World charm warts and all, such as arose trying to fit Meopta’s reproduction WWII ZF4 scope atop the SMG Guns FG42 using repros of the original quick-detach rings. The originals were fitted and sighted by armorers who often numbered the scope/rings to the rifle.

In this case, the windage was off far enough that the small amount of adjustment the scope possessed couldn’t compensate. The ring maker confirmed the rings aligned on his rifle, and the scope base had been factory aligned before being riveted and welded.

There was no easy fix. Removing the scope base is a major affair, since it included welds, rivets and complete refinishing. I’d be out of the rifle for an extended period of time, too. Since it shoots well, such major surgery was not appealing. So I thought I’d try a simple solution first. Brownells offers a steel shim kit with sheets measuring 2-1/2 x 6 inches in thicknesses of 0.001, 0.002, 0.003, 0.005, 0.010, 0.015 inch for $19.99. A more expensive kit offers even finer increments, but this one proved good enough for me.

My sight correction formula said a 0.015-inch shim should correct the problem. The pieces of shim (one for each ring placed on opposing sides) were cut with scissors, and 0.015 sheet was about the upper end of my scissor’s cutting ability. I placed the cut shim on a steel rule and used the shaft of the Brownells Magna-Tip screwdriver to iron out the slightly raised edge caused by the scissors at the cut, cleaned up further with a file. I gently hammered the shim around a 3/4-inch dowel to start the curve.

The Brownells Shim Kit offers an inexpensive way to fine tune elevation or
windage in scope rings or bases. In this case, the Meopta ZF4 reproduction
needed shims to align the windage properly on the SMG Guns FG42. Note the
first of two shims has been started under the rear ring.

The boresighter now shows the windage is aligned. Next, the elevation
turret cap will be disassembled (removal of three screws and lifting
the cap) for adjustment.

The Wheeler Professional Boresighter is an important part of this equation,
since the initial scope adjustment has no click values.

The ZF4 scope is designed to be zeroed by the armorer who fits the scope. The
adjusting screw is beneath the caps of both windage (top) and elevation (side),
held by 3 very fine screws. Once zeroed, the scope can be click adjusted by the
soldier, but the initial adjustment requires some method of boresighting.

It wasn’t enough. I had to add two 0.005-inch pieces to both 0.015 pieces, and even then used up all the scope’s adjustment in zeroing. I won’t bore you with the effort involved in putting the rings back together, but it took plenty of patience to get the ring’s QD levers timed again while trying to keep the reticle level. Believe me, after this, I have nothing but praise for today’s modern scopes and mounts!

Necessary for the success of this operation was the Wheeler Professional Laser Boresighter. These early scopes don’t have click adjustments like modern ones. Here, math won’t help adjust the point-of-impact. Adjustment requires removal of 3 small screws in the turrets to access a screw to adjust zero with no point of reference. This wasn’t an operation I relished doing at the range, and the laser boresighter verified the need to install the additional 0.005-inch shim to complete the job before going to the range.

The Wheeler Boresighter is magnetic and attaches to the muzzle. According to Wheeler, it is not sensitive to its position on the muzzle, and I found that to be true, having taken it on and off so many times. I removed the muzzlebrake (since it may not be square like the barrel’s crown), attached the boresighter and checked the double-checked unloaded rifle in my backyard at 28 yards to fine tune the zero. The green dot was easy to see against my shaded fence at 28 yards.

The Wheeler Boresighter makes modern jobs much easier, too, since you can get the scope on paper without firing a shot. The boresighter works on one CR123A battery and emits a red laser or a green laser. It works best in shade, but I found even the green wasn’t visible at 25 yards in open sunlight (not surprising). The red laser is $124.99 and the green is $174.99.

Brownells
200 South Front Street
Montezuma, IA 50171
(641) 623-4000
www.brownells.com

Wheeler Engineering, (Battenfeld Technologies)
2501 Lemone Industrial Blvd.
Columbia, MO 65201
(573) 445-9200
www.btibrands.com

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Order Your Printed Copy Of The GUNS Magazine August 2016 Issue Now!

Download A PDF Of The GUNS Magazine August 2016 Issue Now!

By Dave Anderson

My new favorite PFR (perfect farm rifle—I’m borrowing from John Taffin’s term PPP, for Perfect Packin’ Pistol) is the Ruger American Rimfire Compact. It is less than a yard long, weighs about 6 pounds with scope and rings, uses the dead-reliable Ruger rotary magazine and is very accurate and tough as nails.

The American trigger is actually quite good. It can be adjusted down to about 3 pounds. But I was so pleased with the accuracy and handling of the little rifle I decided it deserved a bit more.

So, as always, when looking for gun-enhancement components, it’s off to the Brownells website. Timney makes triggers for both the rimfire and centerfire Ruger Americans. I’ve used enough Timney triggers in various rifles to have absolute confidence in their quality.

The Timney is a self-contained, drop-in unit. Experienced gun tinkerers should have no trouble removing the factory trigger and installing the Timney. You will need proper roll-pin punches, a pin block and plastic mallet or hammer. The only parts retained from the factory trigger are the safety button, linkage and spring.

If you don’t have the right tools, simply have your gunsmith order the trigger from Brownells and do the installation. It took me about as much time and trouble as fitting scope bases and rings, and I’m sure any gunsmith could do it faster than I could.

The product description says the trigger is CNC machined, the sear EDM cut and Teflon-nickel coated for a smooth and durable trigger release. Out of the box pull is set at 3 pounds. At the adjustment screw’s lowest setting the Lyman gauge indicated almost exactly 1.5 pounds with barely an ounce of variation.

A little tweaking and I had it set at a beautiful, crisp 2 pounds. What a joy it is to shoot the little rifle—especially offhand—where a good trigger really makes a difference. Is it the PFR? Well, I kind of wish the rifle was stainless steel…

To install the Timney trigger on the Ruger American rimfire, remove the stock
trigger by tapping out two roll pins. The safety button, spring and linkage
from the stock trigger are used with the Timney trigger. Install the Timney
using the original roll pins, trying not to mar the ends of the pins as Dave
did. Roll pins need special punches (Brownells has ’em). If you don’t want to
add them, it’s another good reason to consult a gunsmith.

The screw in front of the Timney trigger body (above) adjusts weight of pull.
At its lowest setting, the weight of pull was a crisp 1.5 pounds, though Dave
eventually set it for a 2-pound break. The factory trigger’s safety button,
spring and linkage are used with the Timney trigger. This one (below) is
marked “RF” for rimfire. Timney also makes a trigger for Ruger American
centerfire rifles.

Brownells

200 South Front Street
Montezuma, IA 50171
(641) 623-4000
www.brownells.com

Timney Triggers

2020 W. Quail Avenue
Phoenix, AZ 85027
(602) 274-2999
www.timneytriggers.com

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It’s The Old-Fashioned Way

By Dave Anderson

How many rifle shooters are capable of shooting accurately with iron sights? Does it even matter any more? Like most shooters of my generation who grew up in the 1960’s, I learned to shoot using open iron sights. I shot small game and vermin with iron-sighted .22’s, and shot my first couple of deer with iron-sighted .30-30 Win and .303 British rifles.

I didn’t own a scoped rifle until I was 16, but in the 1/2-century since, I’ve used scopes almost exclusively. As a sighting device for rifles, scopes are so superior I’d just be wasting your time discussing it. It is rare indeed to see a hunting rifle without a scope. In competitive shooting, iron sights are used only when the rules require it. Even in the military, the last bastion of iron-sighted rifles, optical sights, both scopes and red dots, are rapidly taking over.

And yet … a couple of recent events got me thinking about iron sights. One occurred during an inspection/maintenance check of the gunroom. It dawned on me there were quite a few iron-sighted rifles. It kind of surprised me. Some were collectibles or family heirlooms, but there were several I actually use on a regular basis.

The other event was a series of e-mail exchanges with my editors, Jeff John and Roy Huntington. You might think discussing assignments and articles would be enough gun talk. Not so. A lot of the chat is just good ol’’ boys yakking about guns, especially about guns recently acquired. Boys do like to talk about their toys.

Maybe it was just coincidence, but both Roy and Jeff sent photos of some cool looking, iron-sighted rifles. Moreover, the target photos they sent suggested 1) the rifles were pretty darn accurate, 2) the boys know how to shoot with iron sights and 3—most importantly) here was an opportunity to let the editors do some of my work for me.

This 100-yard group was made with a CZ-527 carbine in 7.62×39, using an NECG
receiver sight and a higher front sight with gold-colored bead. First group
(right) is about 2-1/2 inches, and the second (left) is after sight adjustment
and is about 2 inches.

Iron sights are often touted as being tougher than scopes, but they aren’t always.
The Savage 1920 .250-3000 (left) has a strong base integral with the barrel, but
the sight blade looks awfully vulnerable. The Ruger Gunsite Scout (right) has
protective wings, much like many military rifles.

Most experienced riflemen know the arguments for iron sights:

• Iron sights can be used as a backup in the event of scope failure.

• Iron sights can save a pound or more of weight compared to a scope and its mounting system.

• Iron sights help keep the rifle slimmer through the receiver area, easier to fit in a scabbard or to carry with one hand in the “trail” position.

• Iron sights are less likely to lose zero due to impacts or vibration.

• Iron sights require less maintenance in extreme weather conditions, such as rain, snow or dust.

Well, those are reasons, not necessarily good reasons. I could offer rebuttals to most of them. For example, I’ve had scopes fail during testing, but in over 50 years of scope use, I have never had one fail in the field. I do take a backup sight on hunting trips, usually in the form of a spare scope (or sometimes a spare rifle).

Are iron sights really tougher and more dependable? They aren’t always, though they can be. Rear sights tend to be pretty tough, but many front sights look mighty vulnerable. I’ve seen bent front sights and gold beads or fiber optic inserts knocked off. The military figured out long ago to protect the sight with blades (“wings”) on either side.

My primary reason for using iron sights is quite simple. Some of my favorite rifles are not readily adapted to accept scopes. Some are vintage sporting rifles, such as my Savage 1920 in .250-3000 Savage or my Remington-Lee .30 US (.30-40 Krag). Others are collectible military rifles, such as my Lee-Enfield No. 5. Yes, there are ways to adapt them to scopes but I prefer to keep them original.

Aesthetics, weight, and handiness matter too. Lever-action carbines look right to me without a scope. They are more pleasant to carry with a hand wrapped around the receiver, and they fit nicely in a saddle scabbard (though admittedly, these days the scabbard is more likely to be attached to the Ranger UTV than to a saddle).

I can’t work up too much enthusiasm about barrel-mounted open sights, although I can still shoot OK with them. About the only ones I use are on a couple of vintage .22s, Dad’s old 1914 Savage, a ’50s era Winchester 61 and a neat little Browning BL-22.

Editor Jeff shot this group at 100 yards with open sights
on the .54 caliber flintlock US M1803 rifle.

American Handgunner editor Roy Huntington shot this fine group with an Uberti Low Wall
from Cimarron. He says, “Just got it not long ago. I was looking for a Rook rifle but
thought this is basically the same thing. I haven’t had time to shoot at 100 yet,
but this is at 50 yards, using Black Hills cowboy .32-20 (115-grain bullet at 1,045 fps).
It has a Marbles tang sight, and I slightly enlarged the peephole in it on my mill.
That group is a solid 3/4-inch, and I think I can do better once I slick the trigger up some.”

Receiver sights on current production rifles include (from lower left) the
Ruger Gunsite Scout, Ruger Ranch Rifle (both Rugers with factory-provided
receiver sight) and (top right) the CZ-527 carbine in 7.62×39, with a
receiver sight by New England Custom Guns (NECG).

Take A Peep

Aperture (“peep”) sights are another matter. It amazes me how well a good rifleman experienced in using aperture sights can shoot. My friend Barrie Gwillim shot in competition with aperture sights. He often hunted using a pre-’64 Winchester 70 Featherweight .308 with a Redfield receiver sight. In one of his last hunts, he used it for a one-shot kill on a mule deer at well over 300 yards.

Assuming the rifle/ammunition was capable of it, Barrie could shoot about 1 MOA with aperture sights. I can’t, not on demand, but can generally hold 2 MOA.

A key element for me is the target. Accuracy with iron sights requires a sharp focus on the front sight. With too small a target, I find myself focusing on the target while the front sight goes fuzzy. This may sound odd, but often I shoot tighter groups by turning the target around and shooting at the back. The eye tends to naturally center the front sight on the target, and against a white background the eye tends to focus sharply on the front sight, as it should.

This is probably just a personal failing, but I have to fight a tendency to get a bit lazy and complacent about technique when using iron sights. Consistency, minimal contact with the rifle, adjusting point-of-aim with the rest rather than “steering” with the cheek and a quality trigger press are as important with iron sights as with a high-power scope.

Even in this era of the scope, quality aperture and open sights are available. As always, your best bet is to go to the Brownells catalog to see what is available for your rifle. I’ve listed contact information for several aperture sights I like and recommend.

I thought getting the editors to contribute to my column was pretty smart. When I started to shoot a few targets of my own, I realized I might have outsmarted myself. I was facing the same ethical choices as a junior executive playing golf with his boss. How do you let the boss win, without being too obvious about it?

For me it gets even more complicated. A certain amount of knowledge about rifles and reasonable skill at shooting is the only reason they keep me around. It certainly isn’t my looks or winning personality. Back off too much and the editors might start having unworthy thoughts (such as, if this is the best the guy can shoot, why are we paying him vast sums of money every month?).

The challenge was to shoot decent groups, so the guys know I’m still the right man for the job; yet not so good as to wound their fragile egos. Believe me, I’d much rather face a wounded buffalo than a wounded editor. I think I hit just the right note and hope the discerning reader understands how much skill was involved in doing so.

Brownells
3006 Brownells Parkway
Grinnell, IA 50112
(641) 236-0001
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/brownells-inc/

Lyman Products Corp.
475 Smith St., Middletown
CT 06457
(860) 632-2020
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/lyman-products-corp/

New England Custom Gun, Ltd.
741 Main Street
Claremont, NH 03743
(603) 287-4836
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/new-england-custom-gun-svc-ltd/

Williams Gun Sight, Inc.
P.O. Box 329
Davison, MI 48423
(810) 653-2131
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/williams-gun-sights/

XS Sight Systems
2405 Ludelle St.
Fort Worth, TX 76105
(817) 536-0136
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/xs-sight-systems-inc/

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Maintaining An AR Can Be Painless
With The Right Stuff.

By Glen Zediker

A few AR-15-specifc tools make some essential disassembly operations borderline effortless, well, at least compared to the effort without them. Right. I could live without them. Technically. I could also live without tacos, just not happily.

This tool collection has saved me various consternations, ranging from frustration and irritability to puzzlement and blood-blisters. Some are for cleaning, some for routine maintenance, some more for builds.

All the Sinclaire Bolt Vise does is compress the ejector, but, man, that’s a lot. The vise works effortlessly to assist in disassembly and reassembly. Anyone who has done this job with the “suggested” 1/4-inch wooden dowel quickly learns they need at least one more hand. The tool even has a hole for the pin to dislodge through.

The Sinclair AR-15 Bolt Vise makes disassembly of this component
a snap. Otherwise, you usually need 3 hands—just not as quick or easy.

The Mark Brown Carrier Scraper removes crud from places all but inaccessible
in the carrier. Get it from Brownells. And do get it, unless you don’t shoot
much, or at all. Then you can wait.

Carrier Scraper

I’ve gone on and on about the Mark Brown Carrier Scraper for years because it does a difficult job in a few seconds. The area, way back in the bolt carrier, where the tail of the bolt lives gets filthy—caked with carbon. This tool cleans it completely away. I’ve had folks try it on what they said was a “clean” carrier and then just shake their heads at the resulting pile of black residue it removes. The reason this tool is so valuable is this area is one of the prime causes of those “mystery malfunctions” that baffle AR owners.

These “M-M’s” show up at about 1,500 and 2,500 rounds (usually) and many are restored to full function after 5 or 6 turns of this scraper. Without such a tool, we’re forced to apply some serious carbon-cleaning chemicals (like GM Top Engine Cleaner), but because a round bristle brush will not reach in the recesses, there’s still residue. I run mine each cleaning. It’s that easy.

I’ve used pretty much all the upper receiver clamps or blocks out there. I do not like the “clamshell” varieties, even a little bit. The better designs fit inside the upper receiver and use pins through the receiver front and back to secure the part against stresses. And there’s a lot of stress installing a barrel, tightening the collar onto the upper receiver.

The best thing about the XS AR Upper Receiver Armorers Block is they can be used with any upper. That’s because only the inside matters to its fit and security, and all AR-15 uppers are the same on the inside. Outside, there can be big differences, especially among the billet-made parts.

The MOACKS Carrier Key Staking Tool isn’t cheap, and it may seem like an excessive purchase for most of us, but it does a very important job perfectly. That job is to stake the carrier key screw heads in place against possibility of rotation. I have increasingly encountered carriers with screws not staked, but glued. That’s not enough. I’ve seen this on rifles sold whole and in a few carrier assemblies I’ve had here of late.

Back to “mystery malfunctions,” another common cause is if the carrier key screws get even a little bit loose, there goes some gas—too much gas. It’s also a troubleshooting tip, and if yours are loose, this tool prevents that from happening again.

This is the latest take on upper receiver blocks or “clamps.” It’s different because
instead of fitting into the interior of the upper, it’s got cutouts for the receiver
bottom lugs. The push-through pins then snugly retain those. It’s stout and secure
containment. This block can work for an AR-10 or AR-15: one on one side, the other
on the other.

Cleaning “clips” are available from various sources, and this one is from Sinclair.

Trigger Pin Punch

Well, it’s not really used as a punch. It’s a rod with a rounded end to replicate an AR-15 trigger pin (same diameter) and locates and retains the trigger or hammer in place so you can install the pin. The punch is pushed out as the pin replaces it.

Hammers—especially ones with an extremely stout spring—can be a bear to install without this. It’s hard to get the pins through the hammer hole and then through the other side receiver hole with everything in alignment. Your thumb will thank you because it won’t have to crank back and hold the hammer nearly as many times.

Here is the MOACKS staking tool (above). It doesn’t look impressive, but it aids
staking the gas key screws firmly in place. If they aren’t, they come out. This tool
works with all configurations of key screws. It’s goof-proof, which really helps (below).
Otherwise it’s going to usually be an ugly job, albeit effective, done with a punch and
hammer (unless you’re a diamond cutter by trade).

Cleaning Clip

A few different outfits make these. It’s simple. All it does is separate the upper and lower receivers and hold them fixed, while we clean the bore and chamber. But it’s all we need! Without this, the ever-hinging receivers require constant attention. Combine it with an AR-specific cleaning “cradle” and routine maintenance just became way easier.

Even though it’s not specifically an AR-15 tool, I use the Hornady LNL OAL Gauge continually for mine. It’s a handloading tool technically, and it allows you to find the bullet seating depth (cartridge overall length, actually) so you can seat your bullet to touch the lands in your chamber. I say “your” because that’s the whole point of the tool (for me): it helps define your chamber dimensions. That matters, even if you never seat bullets to touch the lands.

It’s easy to determine the chamber throat specs in a rifle, and you can compare the amounts of “jump” different bullets have (distance the bullet has to travel to get into the lands). I use it to keep up with throat erosion, too. After a few reads and a few notes, you’ll easily distinguish between a SAAMI and a NATO chamber, for instance, and those in between.

It’s also of value to some who shoot the long match bullets. We can’t always safely load these to a length allowing them to fit into the magazine, and call it a day. In order to avoid the bullet being jammed into the lands, because of the ogive (nosecone) dimensions or profile, some bullets will need to be seated more deeply into the case than what would give the usual 2.260-inch maximum cartridge overall length of the AR-15 magazine. That’s a dangerous mistake you needn’t make.

There are more special tools to be sure for those who build AR-15’s, and we’ll discuss those in the future if there’s enough interest. Write the editor and tell him. He might listen. Or not.

This is the Trigger pin “punch” at work. It’s from Brownells, and
makes standard trigger and hammer installation a whole lot easier.

The Hornady LNL OAL Gauge was formerly the “Chamber-All Gauge” from
Tom Peterson at Stoney Point, and Glen was the first kid on the block
with one. There are angled or straight versions, and either will work
with an AR, but the angled version gives significantly more consistent
readings.

Shameless Self Promotion

The preceding was a specially adapted excerpt from The Competitive AR-15: Ultimate Technical Guide, from ZedikerPublishing.com or BuyZedikerBooks.com.

Brownells
200 South Front St
Montezuma, IA 50171
(800) 741-0015
http://americanhandgunner.com/company/brownells-inc/

Hornady
3625 West Old Potash Hwy
Grand Island, NE 68803
(800) 338-3220,
http://americanhandgunner.com/company/hornady-manufacturing-company/

MOACKS Michiguns
P.O. Box 42, Three Rivers
MI 49093

Sinclair Int
200 South Front St
Montezuma, IA 50171
(800) 741-0015
http://americanhandgunner.com/company/sinclair-int-l-inc/

XS Sight Systems
2405 Ludelle St
Fort Worth, TX 76105
(888)744-4880
http://americanhandgunner.com/company/xs-sight-systems-inc/

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This Long-Range Rifle Game Requires
Specialized Gear And Gizmos

By Dave Anderson

Recent years have seen a remarkable growth in F-Class competition. Shooting is at various distances from 300 to 1,000 yards depending on the particular match and shooting range. All shooting is from the prone position. Scopes and front and rear rests are allowed.

The two major divisions are F/TR (target rifle) and F/Open. In F/TR, rifles must be chambered for either .223/5.56mm or .308/7.62mm. Maximum weight is 8.25 kg (about 18.2 pounds) including any attached sling or bipod.

F/Open has a maximum weight limit of 10 kg (about 22 pounds) and can be chambered for any cartridge subject to limitations (in the club where I shoot maximum caliber is 8mm).

Some associations also recognize F/Factory division. I’d like to see this encouraged as a way to bring in new shooters and keep costs down. Nonetheless it will never be an inexpensive game. In addition to the basic rifle, scope, base/rings, ammunition, you’ll need a few accessories.

One of the least expensive yet most useful accessories is a shooting mat. Each stage of a match can take a half hour or more, and during the course of a match you’ll likely be in the prone position for two or more hours. The more comfortable you are, the better you will shoot.

The bottom surface of the mat should be water resistant, and with a sticky, tacky material to keep it from slipping. The top should be padded but still firm and stable. Most shooters like a fairly large mat so they can move around a bit while getting aligned on target. Plus it is nice to have your ammo box and log book on the mat rather than in the dirt.

Some mats have grommet holes so they can be staked down on windy days. Personally if the wind is so strong it’s flipping over shooting mats, I may as well shoot offhand for all the difference it would make. Still, in a match you take the conditions as they come and deal with them, so it’s not a bad feature.

Brownells offers several shooting mats, including the Crosstac Precision Long Range Shooting Mat and the Boyt Harness Bob Allen Tactical Mat. (I do love those names!)

Midway USA has a range of competition mats. If you like room to roam, check out the Half Acre Padded Shooting Mat Olive Drab. Currently I use a mat bought on sale at Cabela’s, which they call—wait for it—Cabela’s Shooting Mat.

Other than the lame name, the only thing I dislike is the partial black color. Black gets hot on sunny days, and can provide camouflage for ticks.

F-Class shooters at the 800-yard line shoot at the little white things at the base
of the backstop. If you’re wondering why there are 12 shooters and only six targets,
two shooters share one target and score for each other. After a shot is fired the
target pullers in the concrete bunker lower the target, mark the shot with a white
paster, and the value of the shot with a red paster positioned on the target border.
The shot is recorded on the shooter’s scorecard, then the second shooter has 45
seconds to fire.

At the upper end of rifle builds, master-class competitor and rifle builder Dennis
Lair uses this rifle for F/Open. It’s a Stolle Panda single-shot action, 32-inch
Benchmark barrel with 1:9 twist, Joe West stock, topped with a Nightforce 15-55×52
scope in Nightforce rings chambered for the .284 Shenane (an improved version of
the .284 Win). Using the new Sierra 183-grain MatchKing and H4831 powder, Dennis
gets a muzzle velocity of 2,850 from the long barrel.

F/TR requires the front rest (sling or bipod, though no one uses a sling) attached to the rifle. A rear rest such as a sandbag can be used provided front and rear rests are not attached to one another.

Harris bipods are fairly popular as they are well made, widely available and reasonably priced. Many rifle shooters have one on hand for varmint and big-game hunting, so naturally select them when giving F-Class a try. I’ve also seen several Atlas bipods in use and their owners speak highly of them.

Many experienced competitors prefer bipods with wider leg spacing, to better resist torque when the rifle is fired. Generally they attach to the rifle using an Anschutz or Picatinny-style rail rather than a sling swivel stud. Leg bottoms often have “skis” so they can slide smoothly on the shooting mat during recoil. Other desirable features are precise adjustments to get the rifle level and on target, and light weight, to stay within weight limits even with a long and heavy barrel.

The EVO FTR bipod is highly regarded since it is light (20+ ounces), strong and easily adjustable so the shooter can level the rifle at the desired height. Brownells has the Sinclair F Class bipod, a bit heavy at 30+ ounces but a very strong, rigid model with 10+ inches of elevation adjustment. Brownells also offers the Rorer bipod for F Class, a light (17.5 ounces) from Duplin Rifles.

Mystic Precision offers the MPOD at less than 13 ounces. It is the lightest F Class bipod I know of. Beautifully made by Evolution Gun Works (EGW) in Pennsylvania for Mystic Precision, the MPOD is adjustable for height and cant, and despite the light weight is very strong. A neat feature of the MPOD, as height is increased the legs get further apart for greater stability.

These days, if you use a solid front rest and do your fine aiming by squeezing the rear bag, it likely means you’re an old timer (like me). Currently shooters prefer a solid rear rest, with precision adjustments built into the bipod or rest for fine aiming. As all riflemen know, “precise” generally means “expensive.”

The Joypod from SEB Engineering is a bipod which allows fine aiming using a joystick, for making adjustments from the shooting position. It is so precise, in fact, some F/Open shooters use it instead of their usual heavy front rest when they have to travel to matches by air.

If you have a favorite rifle, don’t be afraid to compete and have fun even if it
doesn’t look like all the others! Rob Moroz uses his Desert Tech Stealth Recon Scout
with a 26-inch .308 Win barrel (above). The bullpup design gives a compact overall
length even with a fairly long barrel. Sighting is by a Schmidt & Bender 5-25×56
scope over an Atlas bipod. For a truly competitive, off-the-rack rifle for F/TR
division, the Savage 12 FTR (below) stands alone. With a rigid single-shot action,
trigger adjustable down to 6 ounces, heavy 30-inch barrel chambered .308 Win, it
offers excellent performance and value. This Savage has a Vortex 6-24×50 scope.
The SEB Joypod bipod is beautifully made, light and strong, and the joystick
allows precise aiming while maintaining the prone shooting position.

Incidentally the “SEB” in SEB Engineering refers to Sebastian Lambang of Indonesia, an avid rifleman, engineer, and something of a mechanical genius. Prices fluctuate with currency exchange rates and cost of material but seem to be in the $550 to $600 range. Don’t expect to haggle over price as they are chronically backordered.

F/Open division doesn’t require the front rest be attached to the rifle. The rest can be as heavy and solid as you like. If you’re really on a budget, a sack filled with 30 pounds of beach sand doesn’t cost a penny.

On the other hand a solid, precision, joystick-adjustable rest costs quite a few pennies. One of the best, and most popular, is the Farley Coaxial II with joystick adjustment. Ready to go it is currently priced at $1,115—and when you see how beautifully it is made, and feel how smoothly it operates, the price will seem reasonable indeed.

SEB Engineering makes the NEO rest in several variations. For F Class shooting the NEO Coaxial with joystick is recommended. As with the Joypod, it seems nailing down the price is like trying to find a politician’s true views on something. But there’s no question about the quality, and as with the Joypod, there is a long waiting list.

Most shooters use “bunny ear” sandbags as a rear rest, sometimes with spacers to raise the height. If you do your fine aiming by squeezing the rear bag, the smaller “Protektor” brand bags are excellent.

Shooters using adjustable front rests usually want a heavier rear bag, since all you ask of the bag is for it not to move. A good choice is the Protektor “Loaf,” a large rabbit-ear bag.

Edgewood shooting bags are next to none in terms of workmanship and appearance. They offer a couple of models specifically for F Class in the “Original” and the “Minigator” bags, but with larger bases having an integral carry handle.

Brownells
200 South Front Street
Montezuma, IA 50171
(641) 623-4000,
www.brownells.com
Tier One
EVO Leisure Ltd., Unit H Orchard Works
Spenvale Street, Heckmondwike
West Yorkshire, WF16 0NQ
www.tier-one.eu

Evolution Gun Works, Inc.
52 Belmont Ave
Quakertown, PA 18951
(215) 538-1012
www.egwguns.com

Edgewood Shooting Bags
8033 Snow Ave. NE
Albuquerque, NM 87110
(505) 888-2866
www.edgebag.com

Farley Manufacturing Inc.
(405) 732-7852
www.farleymfg.com

GRS Stocks, Kelbly’s Inc.
7222 Dalton Fox Lake Road
North Lawrence, Ohio 44666
(330) 683-4674
www.kelbly.com

Mystic Precision (MPOD)
Jerry Teo, P.O. Box 1245
Summerland, BC V0H 1Z0
Fax (no phone): (250) 494-9610
www.mysticprecision.com

Protektor Model Company
1-11 Bridge Street
Galeton, PA 16922
(814) 435-2442
www.protektormodel.com

Sebastian Lambang (SEB Engineering)
Jl. Wedoro PP 20, Waru
Sidoarjo, 61256, Jawa Timur, Indonesia
www.sebrests-usa.com

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Ruger’s M77 Hawkeye Varmint Target in
.308 Was “Just What The Doctor Ordered.”

By John Taffin

My first dedicated hunting rifle was a sporterized 1917 Enfield .30-06 with a club of a stock. It must’ve weighed at least 10 pounds, but I was young and strong and carried it up and down the Idaho mountains.

But even as young as I was, it still got awfully heavy. So I switched to hunting with a Smith & Wesson 6-1/2-inch .44 Magnum or a Ruger 7-1/2-inch Blackhawk or Super Blackhawk—all in Mexican loop holsters of my own design on a wide cartridge belt. For the past 50 years my life has been spent mostly with handguns, however, there have also been a lot of rifles—especially leverguns. I’ve shot a lot of heavy loads, especially in .45-70 leverguns, as well as such bolt-action favorites as the .338 Winchester and .375 H&H. Now I’ve come full circle and I’m back to a heavy bolt action—the Ruger M77 Hawkeye Varmint Target. How did this come to pass?

On September 23, 2010, everything changed dramatically. The day dawned beautifully and I awoke at 6 a.m. to get everything ready for a day of shooting. But first I had to deliver Diamond Dot and her friend to the bus depot at 7:30 so they could catch the bus to Portland and spend the weekend at a quilt show. Once I got them on the bus I would head for the desert south of town to meet my friend Denis for some shooting, followed by lunch at a Mexican restaurant. Friday would be more of the same and Saturday the kids and grandkids would come over to watch football. It all added up to great plans for an enjoyable weekend.

I got dressed and prepared to load the pickup. As I walked out of the bathroom I experienced the most excruciating pain of my life. It’s often hard to pinpoint where real pain is coming from, but this seemed to be coming from my back and throat. At first I thought I’d pulled a muscle and could just tough it out. Then the dizziness came and I knew something was drastically wrong. I worked my way to the other end of the house and told Dot she better call 911. I went into the front room to sit down and wait for the paramedics. They were there in what seemed like minutes and I remember them putting me into the ambulance and starting to drive. However, I do not remember arriving at the hospital. The rest of the day—plus some of next—is just a blur.

Turns out if Dot had not called 911 immediately I would’ve died within a few hours. What had happened was a tear in the artery to the aorta of my heart. I was on my way to bleeding out. The emergency operation took almost 6 hours. They had to open my sternum from top to bottom and then spread it apart to get to the artery and repair it. Afterward I was informed my chances of survival were less than 20 percent (actually closer to 10).

But evidently it was not my time to go and I did survive. However, I thought it would be a good idea to avoid heavy-recoiling rifles, so I set the .243 as the maximum recoil I wanted to experience. I definitely missed the bigger rifles but I decided to err on the side of caution. But as great as the .243 is, I wanted to experience something somewhat larger. But I remained cautious.

Fully rigged out, John’s Ruger is no lightweight, but it’s set
up for easy, superbly accurate shooting. The scope is Leupold’s
VXR 4-12×40 with a Fire Dot reticle.

Weight Is The Answer

As I watched several of my friends shoot their .308’s, I wanted to do the same, however, I just didn’t think it was a good idea. When my son-in-law told me he wanted to go deer hunting for the first time with his friend, I thought about breaking him in on the couple .308’s I still had in the safe. Naturally, I would have to shoot them first to make sure they were sighted in.

My spirit said yes. My head said no. So I went with the Ruger .243. My son-in-law had never before shot any long gun except a .22, however, he proved to be a quick learner and with a minimum of effort was shooting the .243 extremely well and his deer season was successful. However, I still wanted to shoot something larger and began my search. I didn’t want to experience the relatively heavy recoil of the sporter-weight .308’s I had. I began looking for a solution. It was not difficult to find as Ruger was advertising an M77 Hawkeye Varmint Target rifle in several calibers, including .308. As I looked at the specs I saw the weight was just over 9 pounds. This would be my answer. Almost.

A call to Ruger had one on the way and I looked for solutions to outfit this .308 to make it as pleasant shooting as possible. First I ordered a Ruger muzzlebrake to tame the recoil even more. I dropped the rifle and brake off at my gunsmith at Buckhorn for installation. I soon got a call from them telling me this particular brake had too small of a diameter to fit the heavy barrel of the Varmint Target. I told them to order a proper one and I’d put the smaller one on a Ruger Mini-30.

A look through the Brownells catalog revealed a Shrewd muzzlebrake in satin stainless finish with a diameter of 0.860-inch. This was ordered and definitely required the work of a gunsmith, as not only did the barrel have to be threaded, it was also necessary to open the .22 exit hole of the brake to 0.020-inch over the bullet diameter to be used. This had to be done correctly or accuracy would suffer. The Shrewd brake has multiple offset-pattern gas dispersion holes with a 7-degree forward brake with a length of 2-5/8 inches. This adds approximately 2 inches to the already lengthy 26-inch Ruger barrel. The Shrewd muzzlebrake is designed to reduce recoil and muzzle flip, moving blast and sound forward. I was soon to find it worked.

John renews his acquaintance with a .308 bolt action—in this case,
the Ruger M77 Hawkeye Target Varmint.

This Shrewd muzzlebrake (inset) from Brownells really helps soften things.
That, plus the rifle’s heft may account for John’s surprised “Where’s the
recoil?” expression.

While the Ruger was in the shop I asked the boys to order and install a quality bipod. I had looked at a couple of the cheaper ones they had in stock, but I wanted something substantially stronger with a quality to match the rifle. They went with the Harris Engineering Ultralight Series 1A2. I would be doing the major part of my shooting from a bench and I needed a bipod which would extend a few inches. The Harris works perfectly, extends easily and the legs are locked securely in place. When not in use, the unit folds forward out of the way.

The final step was the scope. I found a Leupold VXR 4-12×40 on sale for nearly 40 percent off and bought it without hesitation. However, when I went to install it I found it was not a standard 1-inch tube but actually required 30mm rings, so the project was held up for about a week while I ordered the right rings from Ruger. This particular scope is a “Fire Dot” which means pushing a button on the left side of the scope results in a red dot in the reticle which can be adjusted for varying intensities. With the muzzlebrake, bipod and scope installed, the total weight came to 11-1/2 pounds. No, it’s not a rifle I would want to carry, however, off the bench it is especially pleasant to shoot—exactly what I was looking for.

The Varmint Target is equipped with a non-rotating Mauser-type controlled-round-feed extractor, a 3-position safety which allows the shooter to lock the bolt or to load and unload the rifle with the safety engaged. The barrel is cold-hammer-forged with a target crown. The 2-stage adjustable trigger has a short take-up stage and breaks at just under 3 pounds with no creep or overtravel.

I chose the .308 not only for its effectiveness and long-range accuracy, but also for its historical significance. Winchester introduced it commercially in 1952. In 1954 the military version (7.62×51) arrived. In 1955 the .308 was necked down to become the .243 and necked up to become the .358 Winchester. By 1958 the wildcat 7mm-08 arrived and in 1980 was standardized as the 7-08 Remington. Another wildcat, the .338-08 became the .338 Federal in 2006. I have had extensive experience with both the .243 and 7-08 and found them to be extremely accurate cartridges. But for this time around I wanted a .308.

I believe in breaking in every barrel “properly” Taffin-style. Regardless of the type of firearm, I break in every one by shooting it. I do not go through the long and laborious shoot/clean, shoot/clean process which many shooters do. I am too old to waste my time working this hard. For the Ruger .308 I fired three rounds at 25 yards to make sure it was on paper. This was followed by three shots at 100 yards which resulted in a desired point of impact about 3 inches high. My first serious group (shots No. 7 though No. 9) was then fired at 100 yards. It measured 1/2-inch. The ammo? Trajectory Technologies Trajetech load featuring a 168-grain Sierra MatchKing at 2,632 fps. With this very first group I knew I had an extremely accurate rifle.

Four different .308 Match Grade loads from Black Hills were then used as well and they exceeded my expectations. Their 168-grain Sierra MatchKing load clocked out at 2,691 fps and delivered a 3-shot, 100-yard group of 3/8-inch. The 168-grain Boattail HP (2,637 fps) grouped at 3/4 inch. Black Hills’ 175-grain Boattail HP (2,607 fps) also stayed at 3/4 inch. But their 180-grain Nosler AccuBond load ( 2,531 fps) proved to be the most accurate load thus far with three shots in 5/16.

All groups were fired using the Harris 1A2 bipod. I am not a rifleman by any stretch of the imagination. I’ve never learned the “breathing techniques” and I’m too impatient to shoot slowly. This makes these groups even more astounding. As I was testing the Ruger, a shooting friend handed me a box of 173-grain military match loads from 1965. It clocked out at 2,658 fps and grouped 3 shots into 3/4 inches. So much for questioning the performance of old ammunition!

John tested his rifle with four Black Hills Match Grade .308 loads
(from left): 168-grain Sierra MatchKing, 168-grain Boattail HP,
175-grain Boatttail HP, 180-grain Nosler AccuBond.

Targets shot at 100 yards (above) with various Black Hills .308 loads
show the rifle’s tackdriving potential. More of the same — the Hawkeye
M77 Target Varmint can do this as long as you can (below).

Making Plans

I pronounce my “Fragile Old Man Rifle” a resounding success. However, this is not the end but only the beginning. The next step is shooting at 200 yards and I’ve also made arrangements with the Black Powder Cartridge Rifle shooters to shoot my .308 at 500 yards on their range. I also have some gas-checked cast bullets loaded up in .308 brass and I will find out how they shoot.

Then there are 700 rounds of factory moly-coated bullets which have been sitting on my ammo shelf for a couple decades just waiting to be tried. These will come last as I have inquired about the use of moly-coated bullets from three knowledgeable people with three different answers. One says it is a real chore to get the moly-coating out of the barrel, another says it cleans out easily, and another says it can be shot out using regular jacketed bullets. I’m in no hurry for any of this so time will tell.

What about hunting with this Varmint Target Rifle? I’m long past the age of walking the Idaho mountains, let alone when carrying a cumbersome 11-1/2 pound rifle. But perhaps someday I’ll get a chance at a long-range coyote, or even at a nice buck while sitting in a deer stand waiting for the sun to come up. No hurry.

We’ll see what develops.

Black Hills Ammunition
P.O. Box 3090
Rapid City
SD 57709
(605) 348-5150
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/black-hills-ammunition/

Brownells
200 S. Front St.
Montezuma, IA 50171
(800) 741-0015
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/brownells-inc/

Federal Cartridge
900 Ehlen Dr.
Anoka MN 55303
(763) 323-2300
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/federal-premium-ammunition/

Harris Engineering
(203) 266-6906

Hornady
P.O. Box 1848
Grand Island NE 68802
(308) 382-1390
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/hornady-manufacturing-company/

Sierra
1400 W. Henry St.
Sedalia, MO 65301
(888) 223-3006
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/sierra-bullets/

Trajectory Technologies
3765 Roundbottom Rd.
Newtown, OH 45244
(513) 233-6585

Winchester Ammunition
600 Powder Mill Rd.
East Alton, IL 62024
(618) 258-3340
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/winchester-ammunition-div-olin-corp/

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By Jeff John

Years ago, after hearing DS Arms discontinued their wood-stocked FAL, I managed to purchase one of the last ones. I lived in California and had it sent to my brother’s house in the Free World until I moved.

The rifle was billed as a reproduction of the US T48, which our country tested prior to adopting the M14. But enough details were just enough off, I couldn’t quite see a way to make it a T48 replica without some major work. Unfortunately, this would’ve included the fabrication of several important parts (translation: really expensive). So I decided to enjoy it the way it was.

I made one sojourn to Arizona to visit and shoot my rifle while living in Calif. Within 100 rounds, a big chip had blown off the top of the butt, and I didn’t notice it. By the time I did, I was 200 miles from the rifle range, since I had taken it along to shoot with friends north of my brother’s place.

The FAL buttplate is a stamped piece of sheetmetal and the butt itself is cut for the buttplate’s rolled edges to fit over the wood. For this to work, the stock’s buttplate relief cut must be long enough so the large flat of the buttplate rests solidly against the end of the stock, without the sharp edges of the buttplate’s lip touching any wood itself. In this case, the thin rolled edges of the buttplate were in contact with the wood and the large flat part was not. Thus the lips of the buttplate acted as a “splitting maul”— blowing off a chip on top, where, of course, it is most obvious.

Thoroughly depressed, I looked over the fit of the buttplate-to-stock closely (now) and discovered the buttplate fit poorly all the way around, touching wood on one side and hanging over the wood on the opposite side. There was really no good way to repair the stock chip, although I relieved the wood so no further damage would occur and I could still shoot the gun. The stock was an ugly, knotty thing anyway. The fore-end and pistol grip were beautiful, however.

The rifle shot very low, too, so I had another problem to ponder. My next big mistake was not buying the tool set necessary to disassemble the gun and adjust the sights and gas system. By the time I really needed the tools, the 1st Great Obama Ammo & Gun Scare dried up everything associated with firearms, including the three specialty tools the FAL needs. These include a gas nut wrench (almost easy to do without), a front sight-adjusting tool (not so easy to do without) and a stock nut removing tool (best have one if you want to take the stock off).

The finished stock sporting a hand-rubbed oil finish. Perhaps too pretty for
a military weapon, but you can never own too nice a rifle!

The original FAL stock underwent many changes to strengthen and improve it, ending with the rifle entirely stocked with synthetic materials. The last wood-stock versions had a reinforcing ferrule fitting over wood at the stock/receiver junction to strengthen the joint, and is the version fitted to the DS Arms (one hurdle recreating the T48, since it uses the earlier style). I prefer the slimmer, more attractive earlier 1950’s-style stock. The book The FAL Rifle, Classic Edition from Collector Publications describes the interchangeability of the variants.

After moving to Nevada, I casually searched out wood and tools on the Internet to no avail until discovering Ironwood Stocks located (of all places) smack in the bluest part of Calif. And, of course, we were in the midst of another ObamaScare and their backorder list was so high they weren’t taking new orders.

One day bright and sunny when Obama was probably golfing, and everything was calm (in the US at least), I saw the tools in stock again at Brownells. More good news, Ironwood’s backorder time had plunged to a reasonable 6 weeks. So checks sent and everything arrived exactly as hoped. Things were looking up!

Sometime during the wait, I stumbled across a Canadian surplus buttplate with a trap for the cleaning kit (the DS Arms stock had neither), and it came with an oiler and pull-through.

The Ironwood stock is about 98 percent shaped and sanded to 150 grit, which is just about perfect for a military gun. The grain runs straight and true and is pleasing to the eye. The sanding is expertly done and has no ripples or other mistakes. It took about 2 hours to spot-and-scrape the butt to the receiver. I perhaps could’ve done it faster, but I wanted good wood-to-metal fit here because the recoil shoulder is so small. Besides, it was a nice cool Sunday, and there was a good race on TV. So why rush? Tools required were inletting black, a Swiss file and Jerry Fisher scrapers (Brownells has ’em). I fit the buttplate so a piece of paper could run easily around the edge between metal and wood. This plate won’t chip out the stock. Even better, the new wood is proud all around the edge. The stock was a hair wider than I liked, so I spent another hour with a file trimming it on both sides, and sanding to 220. A military stock doesn’t really need such careful fitting, but I was enjoying the work.

The interior dimensions of the DS Arms stock were different from the Ironwood stock, and its recoil spring nut—which is also threaded for the buttplate screw—sat a full inch higher in the tunnel. The DS Arms buttplate screw proved an inch short. Looking through the FAL book, the schematic showed the buttplate screw should be 2 inches (or at least it looked to be twice as long), so it would need a washer stack or a new screw.

At Apex Gun Parts I found the 2-inch screw for peanuts (it even came with its peculiar lock washer!). The shipping was three times the part’s cost, so I surfed around and found a rounded triggerguard (the T48’s is square) and a reasonably-priced wooden carry handle. The elusive wood handle was high on my list and had been expensive elsewhere. It wasn’t perfect—it’s used and they do get knocked around—but cleaned up well enough after stripping it of oil, steaming the dents and refinishing.

The DS Arms stock (above) chipped badly due to a poor fitting buttplate and was replaced
by new a stock from Ironwood Stocks. The new one came 98 percent fitted and sanded to 150
grit. During shooting, the sharp lip of the buttplate acted as a “splitting maul” on the
top of the stock (below) and took a huge chip off the end where it is most noticeable.

I stripped the old fore-end and pistol-grip finish with Brownells’ CertiStrip, since I had no idea what was present. I cleaned up the original contours a little, stained and finished the wood with Pilkington’s Oil Finish. A sanded-in oil finish is the lazy man’s way to fill wood pores. It takes time but little else. Oil finishing a stock in this manner takes about an hour every other day for about two weeks. But then I was awaiting the new buttplate screw, handle and triggerguard anyway.

I mix up stock finish in a baby food jar. Since it will begin hardening after a couple of days, if any is left, I spritz a little propane from a plumber’s torch in the mouth of the jar before putting the lid on. The propane keeps oxygen from starting the hardening process.

After the final coat sets, the stock needs rubbing out. Unhappy with the method I had been using, I experimented a bit on this one. My usual method calls for mixing Pilkington’s Stock Rubbing Oil (clear linseed oil) with Rottenstone (a Brownells brand which I had on hand) on a felt pad and rubbing out the stock. This time I thinned 1-part Stock Rubbing Oil with 2-parts mineral spirits and used a cotton 12-gauge cleaning patch. I put a small amount of Rottenstone on the patch and added enough rubbing oil mixture, using an eyedropper to make a paste. I had the whole stock rubbed out in an hour or so and I’m very pleased with the results.

The complex swivel base dropped into its inlet perfectly. A small manual drill was used to drill the three holes for the buttplate swivel and forward stock screw.

The Ironwood stock is very well crafted, has enough wood everywhere and not too much anywhere. The grain layout was excellent. Incidentally, my experience with Ironwood was excellent (owner Matt works to ensure you are buying the correct patterns).

Ironwood also makes wood for most of the Com-Bloc guns should you want to replace a ratty set of surplus wood, or upgrade a rifle imported into the country disguised as a “sporting” arm.

PEX Gun Parts
3105 North Stone Ave
Colorado Springs, CO 80907
(719) 481-2050
www.apexgunparts.com

Brownells
200 South Front Street
Montezuma, IA 50171
(641) 623-4000
www.brownells.com

DS Arms
P.O. Box 370
Lake Barrington, IL 60011
(847) 277-7258
www.dsarms.com

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Choose Wisely, Mount Intelligently, But
Don’t Be Afraid To Mix Things Up A Bit

By Dave Anderson

Back in 1961 when I turned 12 and was old enough for my own deer rifle, choices in a bolt action were Winchester, Savage or Remington. It would be chambered in .270, .30-06, or the then-avant-garde .308.

Yes, there were also rifles from Browning, Weatherby, Steyr-Mannlicher, Sako, but they were for rich people. Not only did I not know any rich people, I didn’t know anyone who knew rich people.

Then came scope selection—Weaver, Leupold, Redfield or Bausch & Lomb. It would be either 2-1/2 or 4X. That’s a total of … 3x3x4x2 = 72 possible combinations—more than enough for many a ferocious campfire debate.

To this day I’m an inveterate scope swapper, indecisive as ever. Sometimes after a few tries my scope/rifle combo seems just right. I do have a few setups I don’t plan on changing. At least not in the near future!

The virtually unlimited choices we have today are a wonderful thing, but can be perplexing. I certainly sympathize with a young shooter who has bought a rifle, and needs a scope. Could I make a recommendation? I could probably list a couple hundred and they would all work. Not helping, I know. About all I can do is suggest a few guidelines, along with a couple of ideas on how to get the most value for your money.

The first consideration is, what are you trying to accomplish? If the scope is for a hunting rifle, what are you planning to hunt? What hunting method do you expect to use most often—from a stand, still hunting, small group drives, spot and stalk? Will you be mostly sitting in a comfortable blind a 1/2-mile off the road, or hiking back into rough, hilly terrain? Do you get out early and stay out late when the light is dim?

Your level of experience is another issue. Novice shooters often seem to hunt around to get a full field of view to pick up the target. The rifle is shaky enough already without magnifying the wobble 8 or 10 times. Such shooters may be better served with a lower-power scope with non-critical eye relief and a large field of view. They’ll shoot better, which means they’ll enjoy shooting more, and pretty soon they won’t be novices.

Some conditions—and some shooters—are hard on scopes. Adjustments may work fine for those who want to sight the rifle in and then leave it alone, yet not prove durable enough for those who like to spin turrets for different distances and wind conditions.

Heavy recoil, especially fast heavy recoil, is tough on scopes. So is constant jiggling, such as in the rack of an off-road vehicle. And as the Corb Lund song goes, some people are just Hard on Equipment.

The scope size should be compatible with the rifle. I like the scope rings to be fairly near the ends of the main tube, but at least 1/4-inch away from the power adjustment ring, the adjustment turrets, and the front bell. A third or half the scope extending out past the front ring looks wrong to me, though I admit to having some such setups and they do work.

What about weather conditions? Do you expect to hunt in extremes of cold, heat, rain, snow, dust? How much shooting will you be doing with this rifle, 100 rounds a month or 50 rounds a year? Last but by no means least, how much are you prepared to spend?

At left, a Sako Finnlight .243 with a Swarovski Z3 3-10×42. At right, a
Savage Lightweight Hunter .260 Rem with a Burris Fullfield II 3-9×40.
Dave would like to see the rings near the ends of the main tube, but
without getting too close to the power ring, adjustment turrets,
or front scope bell.

It took me a long time to learn the wisdom of the old adage, “Only a rich man can afford a cheap scope.” In my penniless youth I begrudged money spent on scopes, when the same money could go towards ammo or even another rifle. I’ve probably broken more scopes than many shooters have owned (happily, never during a hunt). Fixed or variable, it didn’t matter—what they had in common was they were cheap. I’d rather buy a good name-brand used scope than a new $59.95 blister-pack “Big Box” special.

With scopes the old rule “you get what you pay for” applies, though I suppose there are exceptions at both ends of the price spectrum. A couple other economic principles apply. One is diminishing returns. Additional production costs bring progressively smaller returns in quality.

Another is the concept of fixed and variable costs. Property taxes (just one example of a fixed cost) are the same whether the company makes 100 scopes or 10,000. Higher volume means lower cost per unit, and vice versa. Because scopes in the 3-9×40 range are so popular, they tend to be exceptionally good values.

Check what sort of warranty and service the manufacturer offers. Don’t just check what they put in writing; ask around among your shooting buddies and see how customers are really treated. Among consumer products in general, scope manufacturers are exceptionally good in guaranteeing their product and keeping customers happy.

To get the most value for your money, be realistic about how rifle and scope will be used. Most big game rifles get shot a lot less than people think. The average casual hunter who owns one big game rifle probably shoots no more than 20 to 50 rounds annually. The rifle enthusiasts who read gun magazines usually shoot a lot more, but they generally own several rifles to share the workload.

I promised a couple tips on getting the most value for your money. Remember the law of diminishing returns? Well, it works in reverse as well. You can save a lot of money while not giving up much.

Realistically, if your rifle will be fired maybe 50 to 100 times a year, you don’t plan to spin turrets, you’re pretty good about not dropping your rifle in a creek or out of a tree stand, and you’re not shooting an 8-pound .416 Rem, you have lots of options. A $200–$300 3-9×40 from any reputable manufacturer will provide a lifetime of satisfactory service.

In the foreground a combo from the 1970s—a BSA Royal .222 Rem on a short Brno action
with a Weaver T10 Microtrac scope, one of the first with reliable, repeatable and
durable turret adjustments. The reason it doesn’t get out much anymore is in the
background: a Kimber Montana .223 Rem with Bushnell Elite Tactical 5-15×40 in Leupold
Dual Dovetail bases/rings. Although the scopes extend past the front ring farther than
Dave likes to see, he can’t say it’s caused him a problem.

Now let’s say some of those conditions do apply. If you shoot a lot, spin turrets, hunt rain or shine, snow or sleet, shoot long range with powerful cartridges, the best you can afford is none too good. Or maybe you just want a top-of-the-line scope. You’re a free American and wanting it is reason enough.

Most of us who like rifles probably have more than one, probably a half-dozen or more. Instead of buying six $300 scopes, consider buying the high-end $1,800 scope you’ve always wanted, and moving it from rifle to rifle. Yes, I know the arguments against such a philosophy, but I also know it can work because I practice it.

What got me thinking along these lines is a truly remarkable scope, the 2.5-10×42 Nightforce NXS. It is the most versatile scope I’ve ever used. If I owned just one scope, this would be it. I’ve used it with .22 LR rimfires, bolt-action and semi-auto .223/5.56, a Weatherby Vanguard 6.5 Creedmoor, and a heavy-barrel Tikka .308.

I don’t yet have a rail on my .375 H&H but when I do it’ll work fine on it as well. I’ve used this scope for target shooting at 1,000 yards and for hunting whitetails in the last few minutes of daylight.

Adjustments are accurate, reliable, and durable, the glass is excellent, and for low light I can press a button and illuminate the reticle (either green or red).

Changing scopes can be a pain if it means changing or moving rings, and burning up a dozen rounds to resight. What makes it practical is the use of Picatinny rails. With a rail on each rifle, the changeover takes about a minute. Loosen the bolts and lift scope and rings off Rifle A, set them on Rifle B, and use the Brownells torque wrench to tighten the crossbolts to 65 in-lb.

It won’t be sighted in, of course, due to differences in cartridge trajectory and minor differences in rifles. But in my experience it will be close enough to hit a 2×2-foot target at 100 yards. Then use the accurate adjustments to dial in the required correction.

If you’re the trusting sort you could get by with just one shot, theoretically. But I’m not, and anyway I like shooting so I’ll fire a few more rounds. Then reset the turrets to zero and refer to the appropriate range card for come-ups and windage adjustments.

Rails cost a bit more than regular scope bases, but you only need one set of rings. I won’t argue it is a perfect system, but a little inconvenience in return for the use of a top-end optic is not a bad tradeoff.

Evolution Gun Works, Inc.,
52 Belmont Ave.
Quakertown PA 18951
(215) 538-1012
www.egwguns.com

Near Manufacturing
P.O. Box 1677, Camrose, AB
T4V 1X6 Canada
(866) 608-2441
www.nearmfg.com

Nightforce Optics, Inc.
336 Hazen Ln.
Orofino, ID 83544
(208) 476-9814
nightforceoptics.com

Talley Mfg.
9183 Old No. 6 Hwy.
P.O. Box 369
Santee, SC 29142
(803) 854-5700
talleymanufacturing.com

Warne Scope Mounts
9500 SW Tualatin Rd.
Tualatin, OR 97062
warnescopemounts.com

Weaver Optics
1 Vista Way, Anoka
MN 55303
(800) 379-1732
www.weaveroptics.com

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Seldom Has The Old Cliché “New And
Improved” Been More Appropriate

By Holt Bodinson

It has punched a jillion targets, plinked a million tin cans, served sportsmen well in woodchuck pastures and jackrabbit flats and has even seen action in distant, clandestine theaters of war. Ruggedly constructed, it shoots and shoots forever, much to the delight of millions of owners. Having been America’s favorite .22 pistol for 67 years, it was high time for a major facelift.

Over its lifespan, the Ruger .22 pistol had undergone incremental changes as reflected in the Mark I, II and III. Over the same span, custom gunsmithing houses and suppliers like Brownells, Volquartsen and Majestic Arms brought to market a variety of mechanical, stylistic and handling improvements for the stock pistol—enhanced triggers, bolts, firing pins and extractors; extended bolt and magazine releases and safeties; compensators, sights, Picatinny rails, magazines, extended magazine base pads, complete accuracy kits, stocks and maybe the most important accessory of all, the Majestic Arms “Speed Strip System” which enables the shooter to remove the bolt of his Ruger without tearing the pistol apart.

While Bill Ruger’s design for the Standard Pistol of 1949 was easy to make and economical to buy, it had a certain degree of complexity capable of defeating many an owner who was adventuresome enough to disassemble it in order to remove the bolt and clean the pistol from the breech end. The problem was many owners were not knowledgeable enough to put the parts back together again. The Ruger is indeed a bit quirky when you have to reinstall the mainspring housing assembly properly in the frame.

Simply because there are so many millions of them out there, I imagine more Ruger Mark I, II and III pistols have been brought into local gunsmiths as parts-in-a-box than any other design of our era.

When I went into Murphy’s Gun Shop in Tucson to pick up Ruger’s new Mark IV for review, I just had to ask Brian Murphy, the owner and a skilled gunsmith, what his experience was with Ruger pistols and frustrated customers. He laughed and admitted he once charged his customers to put their disassembled Rugers back together but now provides the service for free. He’d gotten tired of seeing mangled guns from exasperated owners and untutored hands.

The fluted-barrel Hunter was Holt’s pick from the Mk IV series.

Addressing A Need

Suppose you were the engineer tasked with updating the pistol. Where would you start? You’d probably begin by reviewing all of the custom accessories and upgrades contained in the aforementioned catalogs. Sources for custom parts for the Ruger pistol and 10/22 rifle represent a formidable megabucks industry in itself. You can virtually rebuild a stock Ruger for enhanced performance and invest more in upgraded components than you paid for gun in the first place.

Next, you’d probably winnow through all the aftermarket upgrades to identify those popular or solving a major design complaint and were the easiest to change on a production basis while keeping the pistol competitively priced.

The end result would look a lot like the new Mark IV. Frankly, I was surprised how far the redesign went. Gone is the 67-year-old, 2-piece, welded-up frame. In its place is a solid, one-piece CNC frame machined from stainless steel or aluminum. The solid frame facilitated the major design change of the Mark IV—a 1-button takedown system.

At the front of the solid frame is a steel hinge pin, similar to that of a shotgun. The barreled receiver is notched to ride and rotate on it and is locked down to the frame by a button-activated lug engaging a recess on the rear underside of the receiver. The system is simple and ingenious. Push the black button at the rear of the frame and the barreled receiver can be rotated down and lifted off the frame.

Ruger’s new Mark IV Hunter model is ideal for small
game hunting or paper punching.

Since the bolt is no longer captured by the projecting bolt stop pin, the bolt can be simply slid out the rear of the receiver, enabling you to clean the barrel, bolt and internal fire-control components. Speaking of cleaning, I spend more time cleaning the cruddy bolt than the barrel and use Q-Tips to remove powder residue from the internals. My favorite cleaner-lubricant at the moment is G96 Synthetic CLP Gun Oil. Good stuff!
(For those of you who own Mark I, II and III pistols, the same easy access to the bore and bolt can be had by replacing the solid factory bolt stop pin with Majestic Arms’ 2-piece pin which permits bolt removal without separating the receiver from the frame.)

There are several other significant upgrades in the Mark IV. The traditional round safety button has been replaced by a big ambidextrous safety that locks the sear. And the new bolt stop is also finally big, smooth and finger friendly. Interestingly, gone is the “loaded chamber indicator” seen on the Mark III.

Mark III and Mark IV magazines are interchangeable (you get two). Hitting the magazine release on the Mark IV expels the “drop-free” magazine so be forewarned. There is also a magazine disconnect safety preventing a discharge if the magazine is removed.

Ruger indicates they’ve made a number of internal improvements to the hammer, sear, bolt and firing pin “for smoother, more reliable feeding.” The 2-stage trigger on my Hunter model test gun averaged 4 pounds, 10 ounces on a Lyman electronic gauge. The release was crisp with a minimum of overtravel.

How did the fluted-barrel Hunter perform? Personally, I don’t like the HIVIZ sight set-up for targets or game. To my eyes, it seems coarse, and the HIVIZ light pipe “blooms.” You do get 5 extra green/red light pipes but I’d rather have a standard Ruger target sight. That being said, I like optics on a combination target/game pistol and my choice is the Majestic Arms customized Bushnell Trophy 1x28mm optics package. I used the Bushnell Trophy rig for testing at 25 yards.

Majestic Arms’ Bushnell package features hand-lapped QD
rings mated to a custom rail.

Measuring the best 4 shots in each 5-shot group, the results were as follows: Federal AutoMatch (0.45), Armscor HP (0.52), CCI Mini-Mag (0.55), CCI Pistol Match (0.66), CCI Copper (0.84), CCI Quiet Segmented (1.98).

Overall, the new Mark IV line is an extensive and successful redesign of an iconic pistol. It’s available in two 5-1/2-inch barreled Target models as well as the Hunter. I like the Hunter’s longer barrel and sight radius, its balance and its fluted barrel. It’s ideal for either bull’s-eye punching or bunny rolling.

Brownells
200 S. Front St.
Montezuma, IA 50171
(800) 741-0015
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/brownells-inc/

Majestic Arms
101A Ellis St.
Staten Island, NY 10307
(718) 356-6765
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/majestic-arms-ltd/

Volquartsen
24276 240th St.
Carroll, IA 51401
(712) 792-4238
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/volquartsen-custom/

Mark IV Hunter

Maker: Sturm, Ruger & Co.
200 Ruger Rd.
Prescott, AZ 86301
(336) 949-5200
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/sturm-ruger-co/

Action type: Semi-automatic blowback
Caliber: .22 Long Rifle
Capacity: 10
Barrel length: 6.88 inches (fluted)
Overall length: 11.1 inches
Weight: 44 ounces
Finish: Satin stainless
Sights: Adjustable rear, fiber-optic front, drilled & tapped for Picatinny rail
Grips: Checkered laminate
Price: $769

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Accurate Bullet Delivery
Is “All About The Tube”

By Glen Zediker

This is probably about the 20th time I’ve written such an article, but it is important. Basic understanding of elemental components aren’t inherent, and there are always “new” folks out there needing to know. So this time I want to talk about the most important component to accuracy in any AR-15. That there would be the barrel.

I freely admit to being a barrel snob. I’m a competitive shooter and I want all the points I hold for. The only way to ensure peak accuracy is to install a truly good “match-grade” barrel.

Now, you can’t swing a dead cat without hitting somebody’s “match-grade” barrel out there in our industry. Folks, no objective standards apply. None. “Match-grade” is a term entirely freely applied. To me, a true match-grade barrel will win championships. There are more, but here are three names to know: Krieger, Lilja, Schneider. Satern fits in there too.

The best way to judge the quality of a barrel is by cost. Sorry. But it’s true. A handmade or custom-made barrel is expensive. It costs a lot to produce because of the quality controls. It takes time.

For the do-it-hisselfer, Satern Custom makes a truly good barrel available
ready to torque down onto your upper, correctly headspaced (bolt included).

Glen anticipates barrel replacements by following a “motor racing” philosophy where
all parts have a stated service life. They get replaced on schedule, regardless of
“perceived fitness.” It’s how to keep a race car—and a race-gun—winning. Glen uses a
Hornady Chamber All Gauge to monitor throat erosion. When it hits 0.150, he knows
the barrel is done.

What’s Good?

There are tiers of “good” barrels. Those from the first tier, represented by the makers I named. The next tier are “graded” barrels: these are produced relatively en-masse and then checked over for things like straightness and end-to-end uniformity. Shilen, Douglas, and Pac-Nor offer such options. The other tier are barrels that are maybe good, maybe not. They can all claim to be “match” barrels. This last follows the PDL grading method: Pure Dumb Luck gets you a tube that hammers. Some of my Colt HBAR barrels shot as well as all, and others didn’t.

I no longer tell everyone they need to have a truly good barrel. Truly good barrels are ballpark $500, ready to shoot (turned to contour, extension fitted, chambered, port drilled, assembled onto the upper). A little less maybe, but not much. What do you get with a truly good barrel? I’ve had enough experience with this to tell you such a barrel, correctly chambered and installed underneath a likewise correctly done free-floating fore-end tube, will easily group under 1 MOA, often well under. Not can, will. If your AR-15—no matter the barrel dimensions or length—won’t shoot under an inch at 100 yards, then there’s your solution. And now consider your judgment: what level of accuracy do you expect? If you can be happy with groups between 1 and maybe 1-1/2 MOA, then something from the “second tier” will be rewarding. Anything lower than that could be, well, anything…

Another thing a truly good barrel has had done is stress-relieving. This process varies from maker to maker in specifics, but the point to it is to eliminate any heat-induced warpage issues. Some barrels, especially small-diameter profiles, can “look” to a different point when they get hot. This factor is extremely important in a carbine-style barrel. If you want a light barrel that shoots well, it had best have been properly stress-relieved. Internal finish also favors the custom barrel. They’re all hand-lapped.

Stainless or chromemoly? Stainless. Stainless doesn’t shoot one bit better, but it shoots at its peak accuracy longer. Usually to the tune of about 15 or 20 percent more “best” accuracy rounds. The problem with stainless is when it stops shooting its best, it stops right then and there. It’s abrupt. Chromemoly tends to fall off over a narrower cone of shot dispersions and will still shoot “OK” for a good number of rounds after it’s lost its edge.

The two materials wear differently and this is a culprit in the discrepancy. First, barrel “wear” is virtually all in the chamber throat (it’s the area immediately ahead of the cartridge case neck area within the chamber). Focused burning gases eat away at the barrel steel, deteriorating it. The commonly used term is “throat erosion,” and that’s descriptive.

Stainless vs. chromemoly is another endless argument. Stainless steel will give
more on-point accurate rounds, but when they quit, they hit the wall. Chromemoly
has a less notable decline, meaning less noticeable. They’ll shoot “pretty well”
for a pretty long while. If you want to shoot the heck out of a barrel, go with
chromemoly. Of course, corrosion resistance favors the stainless.

Looking at the throat area of seasoned stainless and chromemoly under magnification, they’re quite different. The stainless surface looks like a dry lake bed. It will have cracks between flat areas. Chromemoly will have an overall roughened appearance, like coarse sandpaper. I think this is why the stainless shoots better longer: the bullet can still ride the smooth flats OK for a spell. Well, until the cracks get too big, then it’s like a cheese grater. It just rips at the bullet jacket. The chromemoly more or less just continues to rough-up the jacket, to abrade it but not necessarily as severely as the very worn stainless throat will.

As counterproductive as this may sound, testing by myself and others seemed to show we continue to get better groups for a little longer time if we abandon the use of a copper-solvent in stainless barrels. Seems the fouling hiding in the cracks makes a smoother surface. I noticed this after seeing the more age the barrel got, the more and more rounds it took to settle back in on zero after a thorough bore cleaning. I’m not saying don’t clean your barrel: just don’t use anything with ammonia in its later stages. And, speaking of such, how long does a barrel last?

An AR-15 barrel lasts around 5 seconds. Put another way, say, 5,000 rounds at one millisecond per round (which is the approximate amount of time the bullet spends inside). How many rounds is partly subjective. A High Master is going to think a barrel is done before a beginner will. And there are some very good shooters who report upwards of 7,000 accurate rounds.

The primary contributor to the progress of the severity of throat erosion is bullet weight. Even though a smaller, lighter projectile has more burning propellant behind it, it’s the slower acceleration of the bigger bullet that does more damage. The intensity of the flame-cutting is higher over a shorter distance. So a steady diet of 50-grain bullets extends barrel life over constant use of 75’s.

Next time, more and more specifics. I want you all to understand barrels! It’s the most important part of your rifle.

The preceding was a specially adapted excerpt from The Competitive AR15: The Ultimate Technical Guide, by Glen Zediker and Zediker Publishing. Check it and other materials by Glen at ZedikerPublishing.com or BuyZedikerBooks.com.

Brownells
200 South Front St.
Montezuma, IA 50171
(641) 623-4000
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/brownells-inc/

Douglas Barrels
5504 Big Tyler Road
Charleston, WV 25313
(304) 776-1341
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/douglas-barrels/

Krieger Barrels
2024 Mayfield Road
Richfield, WI 53076
(262) 628-8558
http://gunsmagazine.com/company/krieger-barrels-inc/

Lilja
P.O. Box 372
Plains, MT 59859
(406) 826-3084

Pac-Nor
99299 Overlook Road
Brookings, OR 97415
(541) 469-7330

Satern Custom
33 S 18th St.
Estherville, IA 51334
(712) 362-4991

Shilen Rifles
P.O. Box 1300
Ennis, TX, 75120
(972) 875-5318

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