Tag Archives: firearms

So make yourself an ARK: 7.62×39 AR reliability

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In a previous post, I alluded to the canonical article on AR 7.62×39. That is this article, an excellent resource by a guy who goes by Major Pandemic1. It identifies two issues with AR functioning in 7.62×39 rifles: cycling, which I will use to mean exclusively the movement of the action, and feeding, which I will use to mean the process by which ammunition is stripped from the top of the magazine and pushed forward into the chamber. These two issues are, at their base, related, and Major Pandemic hits upon the solutions pretty quickly, along with one which I believe to be superfluous. This is because he hit them in the wrong order.

It’s impossible to claim an AR-pattern rifle is unreliable without first making sure the gas system is functioning as designed. Thanks to parvusimperator’s recent book acquisitions on and general encyclopedic knowledge of the history of the scary black rifle, I have a few instances to cite. First on the list are the M16 and M16A1, where a change in powder from stick-type to ball-type yielded a change in pressure curve. The result: unreliable functioning2. Rounding out the list are your various carbines, from the CAR-15 in the 1960s and 1970s to the M4 carbine through to the super-short Mark 18/Close Quarters Battle Receiver, all of which fall prey to another issue: changing the barrel length without changing the gas system. When you shorten (or lengthen) a barrel, you decrease (or increase) the dwell time. That figure, the measure of how long a bullet stays in the barrel (and barrel pressures remain high), combines with the pressure curve to determine where the gas port should be placed, and how large the gas port ought to be.

Fortunately for 5.56 NATO shooters, the hard work has already been done, and barrel manufacturers have the sizes and locations pretty much figured out. Unfortunately for we 7.62 Russian Short shooters, the same body of work is not yet done, and shooting a different cartridge with a vastly different pressure profile is the very definition of messing around with the gas system. When doing your function tests, be prepared! If you run into cycling issues, try a lightweight buffer and/or a lightweight spring. (I believe the received wisdom is to try them in that order. Parvusimperator will correct me, if not.†) If that doesn’t suffice, you may have to increase the size of your gas port. With a drill, I mean, and a bit. Don’t increase the size too fast: my 7.62 AR functions perfectly with a factory gas tube size of about 1/12″. If you get to larger than 1/8″, you’ve almost certainly done something else wrong. A bluing pen (if you’re using a blued or nitrided barrel) should give you some finish around the gas port.

Next, and obviously, get dedicated magazines. The 7.62×39 cartridge is obscenely tapered, and only magazines specifically designed for it will push your cartridges up in front of the bolt carrier proper-like. This isn’t .300 Blackout; it’s not shaped anything like a 5.56 round, and any magazine not designed to feed 7.62×39, in a word, won’t. Midway’s AR-Stoner brand works well, and they won’t break the bank.

That brings us to feeding issues. By this point, you shouldn’t have any. If you clicked through to Major Pandemic’s article, you’ll see that he decided to dremel out the divider between the feed ramps. Granted, Bushmaster’s successful, functional 7.62×39 AR took the same tack, but my suspicion is that they made the same mistake other manufacturers, plus innumerable individual builders, made: an undergassed or overbuffered gun leaving magazines insufficient time to fully feed the next cartridge before the bolt carrier returns.

If and only if you simply can’t get your rifle to function correctly, you may consider a few courses of action before breaking out the dremel. Different magazines may help. It’s a bit of a shame that you may have to match a specific brand of magazine to your rifle, but if you were expecting rock-solid reliability with any equipment you care to find, you should have bought an AK. You might also try shooting it more. There’s a break-in period to any gun, and springs and lubrication may not take at first. If you do resort to dremeling and you have a barrel with a finish, don’t forget the wee touch-up pen to get your corrosion resistance back.

I think I’ll close with one final note on barrel selection. Faxon Firearms, who I’ve mentioned before, seem to make an excellent product with a gas port able to run just about any example of our favorite Russian intermediate cartridge without issue. I recommend their product. If you ignore that recommendation, I would at least suggest you look for a nitrided/Melonited barrel. Nothing else really makes sense for 7.62×39: presumably, you’re going to want to shoot cheap steel-cased, bimetal-jacket ammo, and a harder barrel helps to offset the additional wear you get from that choice. Combine that with the much lower velocities you have to work with compared to 5.56, and you may be surprised at the barrel life you end up with.

Then again, you may not. As you may have noticed, we don’t have sponsors around here, so I’m engaging in the most rampant of rampant speculation, not being able to afford 1) a second barrel to beat up and 2) the 20,000-40,000 rounds of ammunition it would likely take to really blow the first item out. As always, we’re curious about your experiences with 7.62×39 ARs, dear reader, so leave a comment if you have any.

1. I’m hardly one to talk about strange monikers, though.
2. I found some rather morbid documented accounts of US soldiers found dead next to malfunctioned, torn-down M16s, suggesting the men were killed while trying to fix their rifles.

† I would very strongly recommend messing with buffers, buffer weights, or even a reduced mass bolt carrier before touching the buffer spring. There are plenty of options out there to reduce the mass of the operating components if you want to go that route. Clipping spring coils is a good way to get plenty of malfunctions. -parvusimperator

Parvusimperator Reviews the M1 Garand

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I hit up the gunshow and finally am able to cross a gun off my list: the legendary M1 Garand.

I ended up picking this one up for a bit less than $1,200. It’s in great shape with matching parts and parkerizing, and a stock in good shape. The bore and breech score highly on the gauges. I was going to just get a CMP rifle, but I moved recently, and their stock is drying up. Plus, there’s a several month wait. And a quick gunbroker check showed that I wouldn’t save much there for rifles in comparable condition. Once I factored in shipping and transfer fees, the difference in price wasn’t much. Maybe $50 or so. Screw that. I’ll take Garand in hand. This one even came with the cool CMP hard case, which is well made and lockable. So it’ll work for airline travel, should I want to fly somewhere with a rifle.

The Garand probably needs no introduction, but I’ll review it anyway. This was the standard American service rifle in World War 2 and the Korean War. It was the frontline rifle from 1936-1960 or so. It soldiered on quite a bit longer in the National Guard (some units went directly from the M1 Garand to the M16), and was also widely used by many American allies. South Korea was a particularly heavy user of the type. General Patton himself described it (perhaps a trifle hyperbolically) as “the greatest battle implement ever devised.” It fires the .30-06 cartridge from an eight-round en-bloc clip and weighs about 10 lbs, depending on example. It also spent decades dominating service rifle competitions.

Mine was made by Harrington and Richardson in February of 1956. Production would stop in 1957. On the one hand, I’m a little sad that my rifle didn’t see combat service. On the other hand, this also means it’s in absolutely superb condition. It’s just as good a touchstone this way, and now the only one who’s going to be putting wear on it is me. And make no mistake, I got it because it’s a touchstone. Both of my grandfathers served in the Second World War, and this is a nice way for me to have a connection to them, and the rest of the members of the greatest generation. Plus, it’s a nice companion for my Mauser Kar 98k and my Lee Enfield No. 4 Mk. I. Also, did I mention it’s pretty? Because it is absolutely gorgeous.

The lines of the M1 Garand are just right. That said, it’s also on the heavy side. 10 lbs is hefty. Of course, it’s also firing a full power rifle cartridge in the .30-06 (7.62×63 mm). You probably don’t want to go too much lighter. And again, this is a military rifle. Weight means strength, which means abuse resistance. And recoil absorption. Carrying it, I notice the weight. Shooting it, I’m very happy for the weight.

For a traditional layout rifle, the Garand has pretty good ergonomics. The trigger is a little gritty, but otherwise a solid mil-type trigger. This isn’t a match trigger, and that’s okay. The sights on the Garand are absolutely amazing, especially for the time period. It’s a great sight picture that would be directly copied to the M14, and used with minor mechanical tweaks (but the same fundamental picture) on the M16A1 and M16A2. It’s great.

How does it shoot? Wonderfully. It is not abusive. It is very precise, and the iron sights are fantastic. Even more so when you consider that these sights were designed in the 1930s. Compared to its contemporaries, the Garand is amazing. Today, it’s still a super fun rifle for blasting. Plenty accurate. And I love the ping of the ejected clip. Hear that? That’s the Ping of Freedom.

So make yourself an ARK: Fishbreath builds an AR-15

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That’s right. It finally happened.

Of course, it’s me, so I built it from a lower parts kit (some years ago) and random upper parts (a few days back), not simply by pinning a prebuilt lower and upper together.

Oh, and it’s in 7.62×39. That’s right: an AR-15 in 7.62×39. A 7.62×39 AR-151.

First thing’s first. Why ARK? Well, I have two existing 7.62×39 rifles. One is the BRK, the Bullpapniy Russkiy Karabin. Another is Kat, which is my competition Russkiy Karabin, or CRK. There’s an obvious theme developing here, so ARK it had to be. In traditional Fishbreath rifle naming style, the acronym has two meanings. The first, most obvious one is that the rifle is an AK caliber in an AR pattern: AR-K. The second is the also-traditional Russian name, the Amerikansko-Russkiy Karabin.

Why build an AR-15 in 7.62×39, you ask? I have a few reasons. First: it’s a deeply underrated caliber. It can do everything .300 Blackout can do, although I grant it’s harder to find subsonic 7.62×39 than .300 Blackout. In ballistic terms, the two cartridges are so nearly identical that the drop-compensating reticle in my chosen optic works for both with the same zero. The difference between the two comes down not to innate capabilities, but to modern development effort2.

Second: the AR platform is admittedly pretty neat. I can hardly deny that the ergonomics are good, and the Lego-for-adults aspect is deeply appealing to me, an adult who rather wishes he had more Legos.

Third: I can’t abide by being so normal as to build an AR in 5.56. Parvusimperator often accuses me of being a gun hipster… and I absolutely agree. An AR-15 in 5.56 does very little to interest me: hipsterish though this sentence may be, it’s played out. 7.62×39 is much more oddball, and therefore more interesting as an exercise.

Fourth: ammo is super-cheap, even if I have to pop by a local gun store. Much ink has been spilled on this front, so I won’t spend too much time on it. Suffice it to say that I don’t even mind having to occasionally pay friendly local gun shop prices for 7.62×39.

To be honest, though, it’s mostly the hipster factor. 7.62×39 AR is an odd combo, I like odd combos, and most of all, I like building things. Let’s get into the nitty gritty on parts.

Lower receiver
Surplus Ammo in Washington State, which is mainly a surplus ammo outfit, also makes decent forged lower receivers. It’s a lower. How much is there to say?

Lower parts/furniture
I got the standard Palmetto State parts kit, minus grip and stock. All the mechanical/internal gubbins are the same, with the exception of the trigger and hammer pins. I went with versions retained by wee c-springs for those, since I’d been hearing horror stories about the pins coming out under use at the time. It seems unlikely, pressing on the pins with my thumbs now, that they might, but better safe than sorry.

For the grip and stock, I went with the sadly-discontinued ATI Strikeforce set. The grip is heftier than most AR-15 grips, swelling to actually fill an average-sized hand, and nicely padded. The stock has an adjustable cheek riser which I’m not currently using, and is also padded. I purchased this set when I was planning to make this lower a 6.5 Grendel rifle, so that explains the slightly more marksman-oriented setup.

Upper receiver
Again, I went to Surplus Ammo, who had a billet upper in stock, charging handle included, for $75 delivered. I have a hard time arguing with that. It has a dust cover and a forward assist, as the Army intended. No side-charging or anything like that. It’s a $75 receiver. You can’t expect much beyond the standard for that money.

Barrel
Faxon Firearms makes a 7.62×39 barrel with a 1-8″ twist. Unfortunately, it’s built to the surprisingly odd government profile, but crucially, it has a much larger gas port than your average 5.56 barrel. Since 7.62×39 is a lower-pressure cartridge by a significant margin, the extra gas port diameter is all but a requirement for adequate functioning.

The 1-8″ twist is also nice: a faster twist can better stabilize a heavy cartridge, and if I eventually load subsonic ammo for this rifle, that’s a handy trick.

Bolt carrier group
LJ’s AR Parts, who I had not heard of until I built this rifle, make a nitride BCG with an extended firing pin for better primer strikes on the harder primers of the standard cheapo steel-case ammo often fired through 7.62×39 rifles. That’s the one I’m using.

Gas block
I got one of the low-profile ones wot attaches by set screw. I prefer set screws to pins in basically every case.

Handguard
Parvusimperator had a spare Troy Industries 9″ jobber lying around. It’s a nice lightweight handguard, ventilated so it doesn’t get hot easily. It also avoids the quadrail problem of heavy rails you don’t need by having a single top rail with attachable sections for other accessories.

Muzzle device
I went with the Strike Industries King Comp, which is well-reviewed and seems effective enough. In my estimation, it works better than the AK-74-style brake. Happily, it’s not quite as bad in terms of side concussion as Parvusimperator’s favored brakes, although it does considerably increase the noise. Factoring in my ear protection, I had a hard time differentiating the report from Parvusimperator’s Garand and the ARK.

Magazines
Ordinarily, these wouldn’t merit mention, but this is a 7.62×39 AR-15 we’re talking about, and standard magazines need not apply. I found Midway’s house brand, AR Stoner, works fine.

Sights
Finally, the bit I alluded to at the very beginning. I chose a fancier optic than is my usual wont: the Primary Arms 1-6x ACSS scope for 7.62×39/300 Blackout. I have to say, I’m sold on the concept: an illuminated variable-power optic with 1x or near-1x magnification on the low end, for use as a red dot-style sight close up, and a bullet drop compensation reticle for longer-range work. This one is a particularly nice example. Parvusimperator, that noted glass snob, said the glass is “not bad”. The reticle is perfect for my purposes: a large illuminated chevron, to be zeroed at 50 yards, plus drop markings for 300-600 yards, the latter being just about the maximum effective range for 7.62×39. Rangefinding markings for each range are built into the reticle ACOG-style, where the crosshatch on the vertical line corresponding to a given range matches the width of an adult male’s shoulders at the same range. There’s also a rangefinder marking off to the side for standing height.

Other handy markings include dots for a 5mph crosswind at each range, and dots for leading a running target (at 8.6 mph, the generally-accepted speed for a man running with a rifle). The latter isn’t especially useful to me, since I don’t really hunt for anything, much less the most dangerous game. The former dots are nice to have, though; crosswind shooting comes up a lot, although I don’t expect it to do so too much with this rifle.

Final notes
There’s a canonical article on AR-15/7.62×39 reliability I want to address fully in a later post, but I do want to touch on reliability concerns and my results here. I went into this project with some trepidation on the reliable-functioning front, but emerged from Saturday’s range test with no remaining concerns: 40 rounds of slow fire while I was zeroing my scope and verifying that zero yielded no problems. Nor did 60 rounds of rapid fire, including some fast double taps, from magazines loaded to a full 30 rounds. 7.62×39 AR owners commonly cite two related pain points: cycling and feeding. For 7.62×39, you want a biggish gas port for the barrel length: at 0.087″, the port on the Faxon barrel in the ARK would yield a tremendously overgassed rifle for 5.56, but seems just about right for the ARK.

I’ve hit my about-1400-words target pretty handily with this first article. Stay tuned for the next one, in which I rag on the AR as a platform!

  1. I repeat this not because it’s necessarily strange (though granted, it is a little strange), but for SEO purposes. Hello, Googlebot!
  2. In defense of this rather bold claim, I present the 7.62 US cartridge (scroll down a bit), which was a subsonic 7.62×39 cartridge capped with a ~200-grain bullet intended to be used with the PBS-1 silencer on the AK-47 and AKM. Sound familiar? In any event, I intend to try some subsonic handloads and perhaps a suppressor of my own down the road.

Parvusimperator’s SiG Predicton

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To paraphrase a song lyric, Connect two three facts…

FACT: We know that Glock won the biggest law enforcement pistol contract with the FBI. Many had thought the SiG P320 was a shoo-in. Glock thought the contract was worth some effort, and the FBI went with Glock.

FACT: SiG has just disbanded its shooting team. It’s pretty complete; as of Friday, October 7, 2016, websites and facebook pages are gone. We know this team was created to market the P320. Shooting teams get axed for cost reasons. Not justifying the ROI, that sort of thing.

FACT: The Modular Handgun System Competition entrants have been informed of who’s in and who isn’t. We know this because of S&W’s investor communications indicating their elimination. So as of the end of September 2016, S&W knows. Which means SiG and Glock and the rest also know.

Now. Connect these facts. No luck with the FBI. And no more shooting team. Now, is this the the course of action you would take if you were one of the three downselects? Of course not. In both of these cases, the prize is the knock-on effects. It’s not just the FBI contract that Glock won. There’s a whole bunch of alphabet soup agencies at the federal level that are allowed to simply “Take what the FBI’s got” and skip their own evaluation. Plus a bunch of other police departments will no doubt to the same. The FBI is a big-name agency. Plus, a lot of smaller agencies/departments don’t have the budget or knowledge to do their own big evaluation. If the FBI did a massive one, and Glock came out on top, then it’s likely pretty good. Certainly good enough. Plus many citizens who will no doubt pony up dollars.

The Modular Handgun System (for it’s stupid, stupid name and high likelihood of being a boondoggle) holds promise of similar secondary contracts from smaller nations, plus more agencies, civilian sales, and “mindshare”. After winning the 1985 contract, the M9 was in the hands of action heroes for the next 10 years. And again, got a ton of sales.

So the smart money says SiG is out too. And with two contracts down, why spend the money on the shooting team? So that’s my prediction. We’ll soon hear that they didn’t make the cut.

Parvusimperator Reviews the Vickers Glock 17 (RTF2)

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This review is going to be a little different. I’m actually going to focus more on the Vickers-specific add-ons/changes than the gun itself.

What we have here is a Gen 3 Glock 17. So it’s a 9 mm, “duty-size” handgun. Holds 17 in a mag, striker fired, super reliable. Runs great. Again, you probably know if you do or don’t like Glocks already. Gen 3 means that it doesn’t have the revised striker, ejector, and recoil spring assembly of the gen 4. It also doesn’t have interchangeable backstraps or a reversible mag catch. Note that Gen 3 mags will work in a Gen 4 for righties, gen 4 mags will also work in a gen 3. The Gen 4 is less proven than the gen 3, simply by virtue of not being around as long. The guts of the Gen 3 are the same as the earlier gen Glocks. Also possibly noteworthy is that the trigger on the Gen 3 is a little better than the one on the Gen 4. Not much, but noticeable if you focus. This one is a Vickers Glock, so it comes with a number of extras from Larry Vickers’ company and Larry’s preferences. The first you will notice is the frame.

The Vickers Glocks are all built on the RTF2 frames. This was the second attempt by Glock to make a pistol with more texture. The RTF2 was thought by focus groups (or whatever testers) to have too much texture, so Glock softened it a bit for what would eventually end up on the Gen 4 guns. I prefer the Gen 4 texture to that of the Gen 3, but remember, I like texture. I like RTF2 even more. Not quite enough to put a ton of effort into hunting it down, but given the choice, it’s my preference. I also like that the texturing goes higher on the frame, right up to the slide rails on the RTF2. This is where I want texture, because this is where I want my grip to be strong: as high as possible. The RTF2 has texture right where I want my support hand to be locked in, yay. Also, my Vickers Glock 17 happens to have a cool Wolf Grey frame color. It’s different. Kind of a feldgrau, but lighter.

Now lets get to the Vickers parts. The next thing you’ll notice is that the Vickers Glocks have good sights. No really. Real sights!

I’m saying that again, because it’s worth repeating: THIS GLOCK HAS GOOD SIGHTS OUT OF THE BOX!

Thank you, Larry! You rock! These sights are the Vickers Glock sights, and consist of a fiber optic front sight and a plain black, u-notch rear sight. Front sight width is 0.125″, rear sight notch is 0.145″ wide. OUTSTANDING! Note that if you would like a narrower front sight, you can hit up Dawson precision for a front fiber optic sight in a matching height. Or some other height if you’d like to change the sight picture’s relationship to where the bullet goes. Anyway, these are exactly the kind of sights I like. It’s also kinda weird to have actual good sights on a factory gun. Especially a factory *Glock.*

The Vickers Glock also comes with the Vickers slide stop and Vickers Mag release catch. The Vickers slide stop is basically the perfect size. It’s got some more texture than the stock one, and it’s bowed out a little. So it’s easier to hit with your thumb. However, unlike the Glock factory extended slide stop, no amount of high, aggressive gripping will accidentally trip it, or prevent it from locking the slide. It’s great.

The Vickers mag release catch is just a bit bigger than the stock Glock Gen 3 one. That’s fine. I don’t really have a problem reaching the factory one. This one is easier to reach. But it’s not so big that the mag will fall out of your holstered gun. It’s a good thing to try if you want faster reloads, or have trouble reaching the stock one. It’s a pretty cheap part to experiment with. That said, it’s still not reversible. Lefties should probably get a Gen 4 if they care.

The Vickers Glock comes with some baseplates for the included mags. The Vickers baseplates are, well, baseplates. They hold the mag guts inside the mag body. Very important. They seem to work. They also have little notches in the side for extra leverage in case you need to rip the mag out to clear a malfunction. I’ve never had to do this, but it’s a nice feature.

Finally, the Vickers Glock comes with Larry’s Grip Plug/Glock tool. Lots of people don’t like the gap at the back of the Glock grip. Some people have noticed reloads getting hung up there. It’s pretty easy to fix with a grip plug if this bothers you. The Vickers Grip Plug does this job, but also includes a Glock Tool. Remember, all you need to thoroughly detail strip your Glock is a 3 mm punch. One is built right into this grip plug. It’s a nice value add for this part. While I don’t generally like the idea of disassembling out in a field, or at a match, it’s nice to know I could. Plus, if I want to work on the gun, it’s nice to not have to wonder where my Glock tool and my punch set have gotten to. There’s a tool built into the gun instead.

So overall, while the Vickers Glocks are a little more expensive than a factory Glock, I think the included extras make the package worth it. They’re certainly worth it from a simple calculation of what it would cost to buy the parts separately. If you like Glocks, or striker fired pistols in general, this is a good buy.

US Military Modular Handgun System Update: S&W Eliminated

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We’ve got some news on the US Military’s Solicitation for the M9 replacement.

First, a brief aside. I am extremely skeptical that this program will actually result in a pistol being procured by the US Military. There have been many, many attempts to replace the M16/M4, and all have failed. At this point, I’m pretty sure the carbines just start laughing at the attempts. So color me skeptical of this XM17.

See, a large part of the problem with replacing the M4 is that its really quite good. There are some perceived flaws, but it’s a great gun. It’s actually really reliable. And it’s in the system. Spare parts, armorer training, the whole lot. So when compared to a bunch of expensive “wonderguns” that don’t live up to the ad copy, or a bunch of slightly different guns that still shoot the same damn 5.56 mm round, it’s no shock that the M4 sticks around.

But what about the M9? Well, here’s my two bits, though it’s not really at issue here. I think it’s a fine gun. I’m also not personally a big fan1. I think the decocker/safety is in an awkward place. I’m not a fan of double action pistols. And you’re basically stuck with the sights its got, though newer models have rectified this somewhat, depending on sight availability. But that’s the opinion of one guy. Who’s a pistol shooter and pistol enthusiast. The M9 is mostly in the hands of guys whose job doesn’t involve lots of shooting. They don’t get a ton of practice with it. Changing the pistol isn’t going to change the fact that they won’t be able to hit a barn from the inside, and they won’t care about their pistols. Now, people who actually care about and frequently use pistols, the elite forces types, get enough training to make it work and have budget items to buy whatever they please. And really, pistols aren’t that important. Since the competitors all shoot 9 mm rounds, I’m not sure this is worth the effort.

But for now, the Army disagrees on that last point. Or perhaps they agree with my earlier point of disliking the M9. So they solicited a new “Modular Handgun” which was a really, really long document when compared to the FBI’s solicitation. We’ve learned one of the entrants has been tossed.

Smith & Wesson.

Now, part of me was surprised by this. S&W had partnered with General Dynamics Land Systems for its offering. And GDLS is one of the biggest American contractors, with lots of experience getting contracts in Washington. I thought this was a great business move for them, work with someone who has experience in dealing with the Pentagon. But it wasn’t enough. They’re out.

And now, time for some rampant speculation!

First, who might we expect in the downselect? Glock, of course. Especially after winning the FBI contract. Glock is the big, obvious, 800 pound gorilla in the room. They’ve also been selected by SOCOM, so those guys whose job involve lots of faceshooting seem to like them. I might also expect SiG to go far, and then possibly FN or Beretta, since FN is a big weapons contractor, and Beretta makes the current pistol. We’ll see from there.

Now, let’s talk about the S&W entrant, the M&P. I’ve got some time on an M&P40. It’s a solid gun. Of course, the US Army is interested in 9 mm. And the M&P9s have a poor reputation for quality control and accuracy at range (beyond 25 yards). Not all of the full size 9 mms have the problem, but that’s the rep they’ve got. Maybe there were QC issues with their submission? Maybe there were production concerns?

Note of course that the M&Ps come with a manual safety option, but the Glock, P320, and the Beretta APX don’t. Doesn’t really matter. It’s something that can be added if a competition demands it. I’m also not sure if that’s a requirement of the MHS, or something preferred, or if the US Military has moved on from that desire.

1.) It is, however, quite iconic. The Beretta 92 is the weapon of choice of many wonderful fictional characters, including John McClane, Martin Riggs, and the S.T.A.R.S. team.

Meet Madeline, Parvusimperator’s Sweet Sixteen (A5) Build

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Let me walk you through an older build. It taught me a lot. Plus, my range notes are at hand already. You will no doubt be amused, dear reader, at this. Because it’s decidedly not a “cool kid” rifle, at least for the roughly present day definition of “cool kid”. This is about as gun hipster as I get. Fishbreath is even snickering.

Also, yes, dear reader, I know. There’s no such thing as a codified M-16A5. It’s not a thing. I am very aware. There were lots of proposals for what an M-16A5 should be, and I cribbed from a few proposals to make mine. Things I wanted were a 20″ barrel and a collapsible stock. Also, something a little more fancy than the regular plastic A1 or A2 style handguards. Let’s break it down.

Why would I want a 20″ barrel? Because I can. I have some other 16″ barrel carbines. I wanted to play around with a 20″. 20″ with a rifle gas system was how the rifle was what was originally designed by Eugene Stoner. So why not see how it does? Also, not getting in and out of a Humvee all day means I don’t really care about handiness. Or, again, I could take a different gun.

Why a collapsible stock? Because I can. Also, because I Escaped from New York, and it’s stupid, stupid bans that mandated fixed stocks. Screw that. Adjustable all the way!

Now, the Canadians have had plenty of good experiences operating an A2/A3-style1 upper with a standard M4-type collapsible stock and a heavy carbine buffer. But I wanted something else. Again, because I can. I went with the Vltor A5 Stock Kit, which was designed at the request of the USMC to replicate the feel and spring performance of the regular fixed-stock buffer system with a collapsible stock. The buffer weights 3.8 oz., and is a different length than either a standard carbine buffer or a normal rifle buffer. The spring is the same one as used with the fixed rifle stock (again, longer than the carbine spring), and the A5 system uses a longer2, seven-position buffer tube instead of the usual six-position tube. It also came with the Vltor Emod stock. This stock is a little longer than most collapsible stocks, which looks right on the longer A5 tube. Note that the A5 tube will work with any other collapsible stock that you like. The Emod comes with two longitudinal storage tubes and a storage compartment in the stock “toe”. All storage compartments have rubber gaskets to seal out water. The stock is also one of the heavier collapsible stocks on the market, weighing in at 14 oz, but that’s fine. I’m using a long barrel here, remember?

Handguard choices are dictated somewhat by our gas system. All the moreso because I bought a handguardless prebuilt upper from BCM. BCM makes good stuff. This gave me a 20″ A2-profile (aka. ‘government profile’, aka ‘M4-profile’) barrel, a standard front sight block that’s properly pinned, and a forged upper receiver, all nicely assembled. I also had a regular barrel nut, for use with standard A2-type handguards. Unless I chopped the front sight block, I was stuck with the standard gas system length. But, seeing as this is a 20″ barrel, that’s a 12″ long rifle gas system, which is plenty of handguard space. This isn’t the 7″ Carbine system, which is long enough for your hands or accessories but not both. I wanted something a little nicer than the regular A2 handguards, and I would prefer free float, because that’s better, and I would like the ability to mount accessories. Ideally, I wouldn’t have to remove the front sight block, so I’d need a two piece setup. I settled on the Centurion Arms C4 12″ Quadrail. This is a two-piece, free float quadrail that clamps around a standard barrel nut. It also has two sockets for quick detach sling swivels. Perfect! I covered those cheese-grater feeling picatinny rails with Magpul XTM rail covers. As a bonus, this system is great at dealing with heat. I may change rail covers in the future–I’d like to give the LaRue index clips a try.

Other than the A5 stock system, the lower is pretty standard. I gave the Stark pistol grip a try, and found that I was reasonably fond of it. Though, pistol grips are fun and easy to swap. Trigger is the excellent Geissele SSA. The rest of the lower parts kit is pretty boringly stock. The lower receiver is made by Mega Arms. Standard forged unit.

In terms of optics, I originally went with my Elcan SpecterDR 1.5x/6x. Which is awesome but heavy. I’ll probably go Marine-approved ACOG (specifically the TA31RCO-A4CP) on Madeline, especially since she’s already on the heavier side of AR-15 builds, and I’ve moved the Elcan to Bridget, my lighter competition rifle. Marine-approved ACOG, with the Marine-approved 20″ barrel and Marine-approved A5 recoil system. Semper Fi!

How does she shoot? Great. Subjectively, the felt recoil is softer, with the longer buffer system and gas system. The A5 does slow the bolt carrier down a little, and replicates the cyclic rate of fire and “feel” of the original rifle system. That’s awesome. I haven’t done a ton of transitions, but they haven’t been a big deal for me. The extra weight isn’t a big deal either, but I’m not a whiny REMF. I get some other cool things with a 20″ barrel and the rifle gas system. I can finally properly mount a bayonet on my rifle! Yay! Alas, I’m a civilian, so I’m not likely to need that. But it’s cool. And if I ever wanted to set up some dummies for skewering out back, now I can. I also get more velocity with a 20″ barrel. This gives me a longer point blank range, longer fragmentation range for M193/M8553, and more penetration at any given range for M855. Not that those last two matter while shooting paper targets, but they’re still cool. Interestingly, the Marines haven’t had the kind of inconsistent terminal performance complaints that the US Army has. And M855A1 has a higher chamber pressure. Maybe that longer barrel does give you something worthwhile…

I really like Madeline. Even if she’s a goofy mix of parts that the cool kids eschew. Maybe I understand a little of Fishbreath’s hipsterism. Or maybe I just enjoy soft shooting rifles. It would be lots of fun to take her to a carbine class.

1.) A3 style is just an A2 with a flattop receiver. They still use the A2 style plastic handguards, not the KAC RAS M5 like the Marines have on their M-16A4s.
2.) 3/4″ longer, to be precise.
3.) M193 and M855 are both significantly more lethal if they fragment. Fragmentation is significantly more likely to happen (read: nearly guaranteed) if the velocity of the bullet is more than 2,700 feet per second when it strikes its target. More muzzle velocity from a longer barrel

Things I Don’t Care About: What You Carry

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Hello, dear reader. Today I would like to comment on all those out there who would like to give you advice on what you should carry, as a sequel to my post about being ok with what guns you buy. Name pretty much any kind of gun, or at least anything even close to reasonable for concealed carry, and I guarantee you that you will find two things:

(1) At least one article by some yahoo telling you why he carries this thing, and why you should carry it too. Likely condescending to people who disagree with said yahoo, but not always.

(2) At least one article by some other joker telling you how carrying this thing will Get You Killed on Da Streetz, dawg. Or something like that. I was never a cool kid. I don’t know how they talk. Again, likely condescending, but not always.

Again, whatever it is. Gun, method of carry, *whatever*. Striker-fired pistol, J-frame, 1911, double-action pistol, bigger-than-J-frame-revolver, appendix carry, condition one carry, condition three carry, etc.

Fear not, dear reader. I am here to tell you that I do not give a hot shit if you carry, what you carry, or how you carry it.

To be honest, there’s an awful lot of ‘butthurt’1 about these things. If you’ve picked something that isn’t popular, you’re probably thinking “Gosh, I wish this was popular, so I could pick up chicks or something”, so you’ve gotta try to change the world and convince everyone you’re right. If you have the popular choice, you have to defend it from all of those annoying attackers, so you can be the one to get the chicks or whatever. Seriously, this is about the tone and nonsense out there that you see.

Well, yinz2 can fuck off. You ain’t going to see that here.

You might be wondering what I carry. I carry a striker fired pistol. Usually it is made by Glock. Occasionally, it isn’t made by Glock. And sometimes, I carry a very nice 1911, barbecue gun style. I carry on the strong-side hip. I’ve grown accustomed to the trigger characteristics of striker fired pistols (especially the ones made by Glock). This works for me. You are not me. You might make different choices. You might have different priorities.

Maybe you prefer double action pistols, like Fishbreath. When he carries, it’s a Beretta PX4 compact. Yes, with the stock safety/decocker. He likes that pistol. There are days when I envy his commitment, because it took me a lot of experimentation to come right back to the same damn (Glock) triggers I started with, but whatever. We’re different. That’s okay.

You see, we’re adults. Also, we’re friends. We understand that we’re different people. We understand that there’s no such thing as a free lunch. And that’s okay. You make your bed, and you sleeps in it. Everything has trade-offs.

Okay, great! If you choose to carry, carry whatever you damn well please. Fishbreath and I do. We don’t evangelize about pistols to each other.

But wait! There’s more! So much of this is based on preference and working with your chosen pistol. Don’t believe me?

Fine. Plenty of guys win at competition with Glocks. Bob Vogel is one example. I’m going to pick Bob because his Glocks are pretty much stock, besides new sights. If they’re good enough for Bob, they’re not holding you back. Open gun excluded, of course. That one’s all fancy. But he’s won in divisions that aren’t Open as well. His first win was with the same Glock 35 that he carries on duty. So there. If they’re good enough for Bob Vogel, they’re good enough for you.

Plenty of guys win at competition with double-action pistols too. Ernest Langdon has done great and won tournaments with some Beretta 92s. Even won in IDPA CDP division with a P220 against a bunch of good 1911 shooters. If they’re good enough for Ernest, they’re good enough for you.

So much depends on your goals, the effort you want to put in, and what you’re comfortable with. Presuming you buy something decent from a reputable manufacturer (so, most handgun companies) the gun isn’t going to be the thing holding you back. Also, you probably shouldn’t listen to some random jagoff3 on the internet tell you what you should carry. What does he know about gunfighting? Because he sure as shit doesn’t know you.

As for what you should carry, and where, there are tons of variables in that too. How permissive an environment are you normally in? Do “No Guns” signs carry the force of law in your area? How worried about violent crime or armed terrorist attack are you? Does your job involve lots of sitting? Lots of standing? What’s your body type? What’s your method of dress. I know none of these things about you, dear reader, and I wouldn’t pretend to do so to suggest something to you. I don’t want those clicks.

Going back to Bob Givens’ data on actual CCW gunfights, the key thing has been Having A Gun, probably followed by Got You Some Training, since all of the data comes from Bob’s former students. Trigger type or placement of gun didn’t matter too much. Practice is important. Having something reliable is important. Which reliable thing? Probably doesn’t matter too much. Carry what you like.

Only you can determine what you like. Only you can determine what you’re comfortable shooting and carrying. If you’re taking classes, you can ask your trainer for some advice. In person, so he can get some information about you. But most good trainers will give some broad suggestions. There’s no one correct answer.

1.) I think this is a word kids use on the forums these days, so I’m gonna use it too.
2.) I live in Pittsburgh now, so I’m bound by law to use this word.
3.) I am also bound by law to use this word.

Protective Pistol I AAR and Bonus Glock 34 Mini Review

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A couple weeks ago I finally got off my butt and took my first handgun class. It was awesome. I’m going to go over some takeaways in a moment, but first, let’s look at what I brought to class.

Mini Review
I took my Glock 34 (Gen4) with me to class. At this point, there’s not a ton to say about it. It’s a Glock. You probably know if you like them or not by now. Gen 4 means interchangeable backstraps and good texturing. The Glock 34 is the “practical tactical” model. Glock built this with an eye towards competitions, which isn’t to say you can’t do other things with it. It’s size was determined by the biggest possible Glock that would fit in the standard IPSC box, which was built around (among other things) a Government model 1911. Because of the small size of the Glock striker firing mechanism, this means you get a long 5.31″ barrel for your troubles, and a correspondingly long sight radius. Awesome. The frame is the same as that of a Glock 17. It also comes with Glock’s factory extended slide stop and a “Minus” connector, which means a lighter and generally nicer trigger pull. I think my Glock 34 trigger pull feels a lot like my VP9 trigger pull. Take that as you will, subjective evaluation, sample size of one, etc. It’s also marvelously soft shooting, even for a 9 mm.

Why did I take the Glock 34? Well, I shoot it great. Plus, I wanted something relatively unmodded for class. I also wanted iron sights, because I figured we’d be working front sight focus drills and such. Plus, I’m coming back to liking irons, specifically for sight tracking reasons (at least, when I can make that work) and acquiring them quickly when in close. And they’re not annoyingly prone to hanging up on your concealment garment like the RMR does. Anyway, I also picked the Glock 34 because I have another Glock I could use as a backup gun that could take the same mags and holsters. So I’d be set even if my gun broke.

-end mini review-

I’m not going to go into all of the details covered in the class. Mostly because I’m not going to explain those as well as my instructors did. But I’ll cover the broad strokes. Protective Pistol I is all about basic gun handling and developing a response to the most likely sort of threat that a concealed carry permit holder is likely to encounter. We covered a bit on the laws of Pennsylvania, safe handling procedures, and marksmanship fundamentals. We also talked through a number of examples from incidents on the street. My instructors were great at telling us how they got to what they were teaching us, and why they were teaching us that. Usually, they could break out cases or let us go test things to demonstrate that the things we were learning really did work.

Let’s talk takeaways. They taught that a strong grip was key to shooting at speed. Treat the Glock like an old revolver (in double action), not a tuned 1911 for bullseye with the “surprise break”. They taught some movement as part of the response to the threat, in order to better regain the initiative. They even had a video of a convenience store clerk responding to an armed robber. The robber was holding the clerk at gunpoint, but the clerk’s sidestep on the draw bought her time to be able to get the first shot off, which convinced the would-be robber to flee. It was a good example of how their techniques worked without having to make us break out the simunition guns.

I also loved the student:instructor ratio. It was 7:2, which was about perfect. This is a class I’d recommend, and will probably take again to focus on the fundamentals they reviewed. I’m also keen on more classes from these guys. They were great!

How did my gear hold up? Very well. No significant problems. I had a sturdy belt and a good holster already, plus plenty of mag pouches. Our instructors reviewed some quality brands to buy from if we needed anything (I’m sure I will), plus some stuff to avoid. E.g. Dark Star Gear is awesome, serpa holsters suck.

I ended up making a few changes to my Glock 34 after the match. I want to try the Vickers extended slide stop instead of the Glock factory one. I found the factory one pretty easy to bump when going for a high, strong grip. I think the Vickers will help with this. I also would like to get some more time with an extended mag release. I found the stock one to be a little short if I didn’t want to change my strong hand grip. Some time on the range with another student’s gun told me I might like a non-serrated rear better, so I’ve got a new set of sights to poke at. I really like the fiber optic sights though, so I’ll stick with that up front. Fiber front/plain rear worked well for me.

Experience also showed that the MagLula is super effective at loading magazines. Way better than the little thumbsaver that comes with most pistols these days. I ordered one as soon as I got home from class.

Both instructors had Surefire X300U weaponlights equipped with the DG switch. I’m sold on this too, at least if you’re gonna run a weaponlight. It makes operating the light intuitive and easy by adding a grip-activated pressure switch to the light. And Surefire lights are the weaponlights to buy, again, if you want one. For carry, I’m still debating. It does add some width and some weight, and it’s probably not *needed* on your carry gun.

But for a nightstand gun, for the gun you reach for when something goes bump in the night? Hell yes put a light on it. You don’t want the first words you hear after you shoot some intruder at oh dark thirty to be “Daddy, why’d you shoot me?” And yes, this has happened. It sucks. Don’t let it happen to you.

Another lesson, this one from another student. A female classmate was using an XD Mod 2 Subcompact pistol. In 9 mm of course. She was having a lot of trouble establishing her grip in timed drills that involved a draw from the holster. The instructors suggested she try a bigger pistol, and one of them brought out his spare M&P9, complete with holster. This really improved her performance on the drills. She wasn’t a big woman, but she shot the M&P fine. I didn’t get her thoughts on how the gun felt, but it shot right, and that’s the important thing.

Clearly, we had awesome instructors, who were good at diagnosing problems and offering solutions. Good on them for being prepared. The other lesson is that even if you’re petite, it’s easier to get a good grip on a bigger gun. There’s a tendency for women to choose or be given small guns to shoot. I don’t think this is wise.

Maturity and Security in my Choices

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(Sigh. Me having a very upset stomach and not being able to go to a match means you get multiple posts from me today. Lucky you, dear reader.)

I’ve seen some posts out there about things like “Are my revolvers still cool?”, “wheelguns suck”, “I don’t like lever guns”, “No, you’re wrong, lever guns are amazing”, “wheelguns are the best or you’re wrong!”, and the like. And now I’m going to weigh in on all this nonsense.

Right now, on my hip, is a Glock 34 with Surefire X300U-A. 17+1 capacity, loaded to bear with 124 grain 9 mm +P Gold Dots from Speer. I love this thing. It shoots great, conceals well with my normal mode of dress (read: loose fitting t-shirts and cargo pants). Hardcore, serious firepower. Also a total gamer gun. I picked this because I can conceal it (it’s about as big as a government model 1911) and I shoot it well. I have some other buddies who conceal a Glock 34 too, and some others who don’t. I don’t care, because it works for me, and that’s what matters. It is nice to be able to compare notes with some other guys though.

Glocks have a lot of advantages. They’re simple, reliable pistols. You can completely detail strip them with a 3/8″ punch. Magazines are cheap and plentiful, and hold lots of bullets. Everybody makes things for Glock. You can get whatever sights you want for your Glock. It’s pretty easy to get drop in trigger improvements, if that’s your thing. Modern 9 mm hollow points work about as well as any standard pistol caliber in terms of stopping power. And its soft shooting and cheap.

On my desk in front of me is something old school. My S&W Model 29, with the 6″ barrel, in .44 Magnum. It’s currently unloaded. I could conceal it if I want to (yes I have a holster for it), but I don’t. I think my Glocks, even my big 34, work better for carry. The Glock is lighter, narrower, holds three times as many bullets, and is easier to get good follow up shots with.

Now, if I lived in Alaska, or spent a lot of time outdoors, I might value being able to shoot big .44 magnum rounds at bears. I can stop a bear with 9 mm, but it’s easier to do it with .44 Magnum. That said, I’m in Western Pennsylvania, and I don’t hang out in bear country much. It’s not normally a big concern for me.

I bought the Model 29 back when I lived in upstate New York. I didn’t buy it for carry. That’s ok. Not all of my handguns are carry guns. I bought the Model 29 because it’s cool, and pretty, and it’s fun to shoot. Nothing brings a smile to my face faster than shooting a big bore revolver that I am confident I can control, and that’s my Model 29. I don’t care that I have better choices for carry. It’s ok. I like it anyway. I like all of my guns.

Revolvers aren’t the best choice from a military perspective, it’s true. Or if you’re in the bad-guy engaging part of cop work. Semiautos carry more bullets, reload faster, and are easier to repair when parts break. The inside of a revolver looks a lot like an old wind-up watch. Complicated. Not easy to figure out. A Glock is the kind of thing that you can repair really easily.

But, what about for the concealed carrier? It probably doesn’t matter. The most common gun fights (statistically), for a civilian with a concealed carry permit or an off-duty cop are over in about three gunshots. Three shots. My Model 29 holds twice that. Even a j-frame has a decent two-shot margin on that. Rule One of a gunfight is HAVE A GUN. Pick one that suits you. How you tend to dress. Where you tend to go. Carry something you feel comfortable with. Carry something you practice with. And hell, carry something you like. Emotional attachment will help make sure you keep that gun with you. Whatever works.

CARRY YOUR FUCKING GUN.

Tom Givens, firearm instructor, has a wonderful body of shooting statistics from former students. All of his students who had guns on them in their altercations won. The only students who ended up in a bad way were those who didn’t have their guns on them when they were accosted.

So, while less effective than a semiauto, revolvers can still work for you. If you do your part. I’m not the biggest fan of revolvers, but I’m not you. If it works for you, rock on with your bad self. I’m gonna keep carrying my Glock 34, because I like it. Even if it’s a Gamer Gun, it’s probably not going to get me killed on Da StreetzTM.

I’m gonna say the same thing about lever action guns and bolt action guns if anybody asks. Know what’s great about capitalism? You can buy whatever the fuck you want. So can I. I’m gonna buy guns I like, for whatever reason. I don’t care if you don’t like them. They’re not your guns. I think people really ought to harden up a bit about this nonsense. Doesn’t matter if everybody in the 14th Chairborne Ranger Regiment does or doesn’t like your choices. They can pick their things. Be an adult. Go pick yours.

I don’t know what your preference is, but I know two things. One, there’s somebody out there who thinks it’s dumb and that it will get you killed or some nonsense like that. Two, there are others out there who think like you do.