All posts in M4 Carbine Parts

Gunfighting stress and round counts

One thing that is stressed in firearms training is that you have to constantly be active and practice your firearm skills or you will most likely loose your edge.   Just remembering the feel of recoil, gun grip and knowing how loud your gun will be if you don’t have hearing protection on is something that is easily lost.   There have been times where I fired guns so much that I practiced training without hearing protection on open ranges and the sound of the gun really didn’t cause me to flinch, but there were times where I’ve fired guns in indoor ranges and the guy standing next to me made me flinch every time his firearm discharged because even with hearing protection, the blast was so loud in an indoor environment.

If you practice with something like an AR15 enough, you will be able know the difference in the cycling of a firearm and when the last round has gone off and the bolt has locked back, but one thing that needs to be thrown into the mix is will  you know this under stress?   The short answer is probable not.   The Magpul pmags with the windows will give you some point of a reference if you are under stress that a simple tilting of the firearm can tell you if yo have 30% or less of your ammunition left.  There’s no reason to drop a mag and have to shake it or waste a partially loaded magazine with a another fully loaded.   If you’ve got 8rds of 5.56 ammuntion you aren’t out of the game and a simple magazine window is an asset.

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Don’t think magazine capacity is the only thing that wins the race

It’s really also a contest about speed.   There seems to be an addiction to 30rd magazines with AR15 owners but all you have to do is roll the clock back 20yrs and most of the gun magazines for M14s, FALs and G3s were 20rds.   Why were they 20rd magazines…because the guns were far too clumsy and bulky with 30rd.   There is still some truth to that with 30rd 5.56 magazines.   The AK47 is a firearm that is very clumsy do to it’s contour when being fired from the ground and would also be better balanced with 20rd magazines.

If you are in the business of having to suppress targets, than higher capacity magazines are for you, but for moving with speed and agility, try the 20rd magpul pmags for sale.   There are several new Magpul accessories that are giving better balance back to the AR15, especially the M4 design which was really getting out of control with protruding fore grips ect.   The magpul angled fore grip is something that brings you closer to the tradition gun hold but gives you the ability to grip your firearm better.

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The Otis gun cleaning system

It’s kind of like being in a cult when you acquire certain firearms.   The Kalashnikov crowd is a cult and so is the AR15 crowd.   AR15’s are so common now that it’s  not really as much of a cult anymore, but the furniture  you use on  your firearm and the  optics you use may put you in a certain cool category.    When I first heard about the Otis gun cleaning systems, I was wondering how someone could have devised a system that would be so much better than a cleaning rod and a cleaning patch, so I walked around at a trade show and went right up to the guy running the Otis booth.   I was lucky enough to have asked enough questions that I was given the AR15 buttstock cleaning kit and the Pistol cleaning kit.

When I got home, broke out several of my AR15 guns and a could handguns and tried to use the system.   I found the Otis cleaning kits to be very complicated but I have enough life experience to know that that just means having patience and find out why gun cleaning supplies were designed the way they are.   I have never had to use a scraper or a brush on any of my AR15 guns because I clean them so often there is really rarely any long term build ups that I missed.  I do think that the Otis Cleaning Systems do slow down the cleaning process because of all of  the fumbling I do with the accessories, but the compact bags make

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Ranger Floor Plates and the Original Magpuls

I first found out about Magpul Industries when I was using a Mini 14 and a no name brand tactical vest.   When Woolrich Elite first came on the line, I started using their 4903 vest and this was about as tactical as I had gotten at that point.   The Mini 14 is a great gun for varmint, plinking or home defense, but not something that can handle a real gun fight.   Engaging in a shootout of more than a couple hundred rounds is going to heat the gun up and real damage is going to take place.

There are lots of gun accessories that you put on firearms that will make them look tactical but it doesn’t mean the gun is something you are going to want to be deployed with to Iraq.   Magpul Pmags have gone through several changes over the years and they pretty much got things right.   One thing that is still an accessory to the magazines are the ranger floor plates.   These are an easy swap out, but this will give you more bulk and snagging.   I recommend only doing this for magazines that are going to be put in a vest, but keep your range mags the same.

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Magpul angled fore grip response

We attended the new Zombie Shoot at the New Holland Rifle and Pistol Club and we had fun watching all of the guys  show  up with the new accessories and gear.   I recognized a few faces from years ago when it first began at a few other gun clubs but gun accessories have changed since then.   One of my new favorite accessories is the Magpul Angled Fore grip.   This was a really good idea and considering the number of people that were using them, they have caught on.   I was never a fan of the protruding fore grips that got in the way when you were firing out a window or laying on the ground.

I have tried some of the folding fore grips but they didn’t hold up too well.  I had a friend take mine off to test out a bi-pod and we ended up finding out that the grip I was using was dangerously close to breaking.   Magpul pmags are still the king when it comes to AR15 gun magazines and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.  There are still debates about the orignal mag puls vs the floor plate for quick mag changes, but I personally don’t have that problem depending on which tactical vest I have been using.  The 30rd window pmags in black are the number 1 sellers from us even though I do see a good many 20rd magazines showing up at these events.

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Response from the Zombie hunters

Yesterday we had the fun experience of being at the 2nd Contagion at the New Holland Rifle and Pistol club.   Contagion 2011 was a great success although the foggy morning and threat of thunder storms was looming.  We got a safety briefing first thing in the morning and everyone said a prayer and then the shooters arrived.   There was approximately 140 shooters at the event and unfortunately there were several that signed up but could not make it out to the event due to the recent flooding that has occurred in the Pennsylvania area.   A few people had damaged homes and the fun of the event was not possible.

One of the best things about being an observer at these ranges was checking out all of the tactical gear and accessories everyone was using.  We sold a lot of the Smith Optics Elite ballistic eyewear and the Aegis Eyeshields were a big hit.   The Make Ready and Magpul Dynamics gun DVDS were also a big seller at this event as well as the Vickers tactical gloves that we were selling.   For what the price is for these gloves which is below what we normally sold them for they are a steal.   Check out our inventory of the Vickers tactical gloves while supplies last.

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Flashlights with variable power settings

The Streamlight PT 2l flashlight is now my favorite CCW flashlight and has easily replaced my Streamlight Scorpions.   I have had the Streamlight Scorpions for a long time and even had them when they were all Xenon bulbs before LED.   LED Flashlights probable took a big chunk away from the battery industry.    From what we are seeing the CR123 batteries are also out selling AA battery flashlights almost 2 to 1, but sometimes the AA batteries are popular because AA batteries are all over the place.   After the Northeast got  hit by a hurricane, it was funny to see what was left in the gun shops and Home Depots because the flashlights that were left were all the old fashion D and C flashlights.

The great thing about the Streamlight Professional Series flashlights is that they are variable powers.    Click it once for full  power, click it 3 times and hold and you’ve got your low-power setting.   Streamlight Flashlights have really put themselves in a very broad spectrum of the market.   Tactical lights, CCW lights, emergency lights, rescue lights EMS lights, Firemen lights and even key chain flashlights.  While there  are plenty of competitors out there, it’s easy to find a local dealer and show up and hold them in your hand without having to travel a 100  miles to find someone that stocks and ATN tactical light.

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Is a 6.8 SPC worth getting?

That is a question we get quite often around here and we always throw a question back to a customer.   People call or show up wanting us to give them advice but there are a lot of liabilities in telling people what to get or do.   So much of gun accessories and firearms has to do with the job at hand and a persons gun skills.   I’ve heard people claim that you can’t shoot long range with a 5.56 gun but I see it done all the time at local gun clubs.   Sure there are instances of high wind where a 5.56 bullet isn’t going to do very well, but sometimes only a 50 bmg is going to get the job done.

Even the trusty and reliable Mini 14 is an often over looked hunting Carbine, but I’ve seen white tails taken up in Vermont with 75gr expanding rounds.   The 6.8SPC would be a more powerful round than what the military is using today but it’s not really going to solve all of your problems.  Most of my friends that own them are using them for hunting rounds and not even for Carbine training ect.  The only problem you may run into when changing uppers in with the gun magazines.  The 5.56 round is better than any handgun round if you use the right kind of ammunition and the AR15 platform gives you lots of caliber options that are really best for upgrading your gun for better hunting.

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Get with the program with modern flashlights

Recent we had an earthquake and a category I hurricane hit the Northeast and it made many residents scramble for flashlights and batteries.   One issue that I have seen some of my friends run into is they did not have many local options for CR123 batteries.   CR123 are becoming very popular in the tactical community but the only downside is they are not as common as AA batteries.   Rechargeable batteries and flashlights are improving, but for long deployments, you need batteries rechargeable or not.

The Professional tactical flashlights are one of my favorites because not only are they small, but not too small, they have different power settings.   The strobe feature on many of the Streamlight flashlights can be useful in some situations, but a low power options in my book is even better.   Too bad the Streamlight Scorpion does not have this option, but it would cut battery consumption considerable.  Remember that some crisis creep up on you and  only having a few hours of battery usage when you might be out of power for a week.

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Magpul gun parts and magazines

Magpul gun parts and accessories as well as the famous Pmags are outstanding gun parts.   There are so many modifications that you can customize your M16 or AR15 variant in multiple color patters or configurations.    Everything from gun grips, rail skins or rail covers, trigger guards ect are high quality and combat worthy if you install them properly.  Because of the numerous accessories that you can put in an M4 you can’t really just buy 3 rail covers and expect them to fit in the accessory pattern that you want.   Some of the accessories might cause  you to need medium covers or full length.  Sometimes the quad rail configuration is useful, but if the job does not need all of the lasers or light attachments why carry the weight.

There are several patterns of rail covers and there are several companies out there making good stuff but just remember that you are carrying a combat weapon and the more you attach, the more things fall off.   Magpul pmags are the number 1 rifle magazine in our book and we highly recommend them to all of our fellow shooters and customers.  The 30rd magazines with the windows seem to be very popular but in my opinion I don’t think it’s that necessary to know if you have 8rds left in a magazine or not.   The answer is to carry enough mags to know a tactical reload is possible instead of looking to see you have 8 left.

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