All posts tagged M4 Carbines

Spikes Tactical parts dealer

Spikes tactical uppers We have been a Spike’s tactical parts dealer for several years and in all honesty, when we first started selling them it was through a drop shipping company and never actually held them in our hands.   One of the crazy things about being in the tactical or Law Enforcement business and running and e-commerce business, you can be dealing with products and items that you never actually hold in your hand, but you sell them everyday.   I remember the days when it seemed like Bushmaster, Colt, Armalite and Olympic Arms were the only ones making the AR15, but it seems like that industry exploded about 8yrs ago and every gun making is making a direct impingement or piston driven AR15.   There are still some big feature differences, but the quality of so many of these rifles has improved so much.

After seeing that our distributor could hardly keep these in stock, and a quick search around the internet proved that these were a hot item we contacted Spikes Tactical to become a direct dealer.   Our first shipment of Spikes Tactical Uppers came in nearly 10 months after we ordered them but we are getting more from them than any of our distributors especially since the crazy rush on firearms and even gun parts.  It’s always a good idea to stock up on extra gun accessories like lower parts kits ect. because a broken gun is as bad as not having ammunition.  The cold hammer forged FN barrels are as Mil-Spec as you can get, and the quad rails are probable the lightest metal rails I’ve held in my hands.

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If you want an AR15, better talk to us soon!

AR15 Upper receivers in stock We have never seen the AR15 parts dry up like they have in the last 7 months but I’m sure we don’t need to explain why.  Last month we started to get word that some of the gun manufacturers were starting to take orders for upper receivers, so anyone doing a build party might be able to do one sometime in the Fall or if you are lucky, maybe sooner.   Some manufacturers like LWRC were only making complete guns and no parts unless you kissed somebodies ass and begged them for it.   Even the lower parts kits we sold from Spikes Tactical have been absolutely no where for almost a year, and there was already a run on those.   Windham and Bushmaster upper receivers have been at a total zero for over 8 months.   So what can you get now if nothing is in stock?

On our website we stock a lot of tactical gear and accessories and there is a email me when back in stock option for all of our items.   There are good number of Spikes tactical and Smith & Wesson AR15 Uppers Receivers in stock in the coming weeks.   There are several CMMG 9mm and 300 blackout coming in as well as a few 22 Caliber complete upper receivers.   Good luck trying to find 22LR ammunition though.  It seems like these all become available in waves based upon caliber so I’m sure it’s a production thing.  5.56 uppers are the ones people are the most concerned about, but considering the number of new gun owners and competition shooters that are out there, there is going to be high demand for AR15 firearms for a long time to come.  Gas piston uppers and direct impingement alike.

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What type of optic for a DMR 308?

There is about a 10yr record of the M14 and new 7.62 firearms showing up on the battle field because the longer shots needed to be more potent.  I’m well aware of all of the reasons why the military switched to the 5.56 round but that was due to the notion that most combat took placed under 200yrs.   Now that we know that you can’t always call in an airstrike in a fight and sometimes you can see your enemy clearly but you just can’t get through the wall he’s hiding behind and the 5.56 steel core penetrator is just  going to take too long to get through concrete.   From what we hear from the men coming back from Iraq, that was what the DMR’s job was.   To get through things that the 5.56 round couldn’t.

Now that optics are common on firearms, we have pretty much accepted that optics like Leupold, Trijicon and others are well deserving to be on a combat rifle.  One problem we see on non AR10 style weapons is finding good mounts, but LWRC uppers have pretty much taken the top tier of piston driven guns and the LWRC Repr is probable the most comfortable 7.62 gun i’ve fired.   I have to admit that many of the arguments against direct impingement guns are moot, but the ergonomics and quality of LWRC guns, parts and uppers is top notch.

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Gas Piston Systems what’s the difference?

I’ll write this blog as the biggest non-expert on the topic,  I know what POF and AR18s are like in comparison to LWRC guns but after that, I have no idea what all of these new piston guns from Ruger, Adams and other are like internally.  It’ll take awhile to have to go through the specifications on them or a tall coffee and a couple hours of watching Youtube video clips.  Some of the reviews are really well done, but takes almost as long to find a good review about a product as it does to comprehend all of the minor differences.  I;ll never forget the time it took me to realize that the terms “hook and loop” closure meant velcro on shirts.

The Metallurgy in making bolt carriers, and barrels has changed so dramatically in the last 7yrs, that I seriously need a refresher course before I can even talk about firearm differences. We have a huge number of backorders for the Adams Upper receivers but I have not had the time to actually take one out and compare it to my LWRC stuff.   I think the only thing I can say about the less expensive piston guns is that the designs may be similar, but I would have to say if saving $300 on an  upper for a proven design means saving anything.

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Do you want a plinking gun or a combat durable firearm?

I am still a big fan of SWAT magazine even though print magazines seem to get written off as gun rags, but I find this to be utter bull shit.   Not all gun magazines the are the same and I for one mostly follow about a dozen gun writers because I want to hear their opinions on some of the products out there.  Yes, the gun industry is full of materialism and novelties, but there is a real world out there and I want to hear from real world individuals about hardware that can cut it.   Much of the firearm industry is about preference, whether it’s tactical pants or firearms.

There is cheap crap out there, although I’d say it’s not so bad anymore because gun acceessories like Magpul have pretty much buried the competition.   Everyone and their dog is putting out a gun or AR15 upper receivers with the Magpul acessories on them.   They are not that expensive and they hold up.  Proper mounting is always a big deal with gun accessories but I’ve already cracked quite a few gun parts and none of them were Magpul accessories.

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Going form one AR15 to another configuration

The thing that I love about the AR15 is that there are so many choices out there and the guns are just getting better and better.  I personally prefer LWRC guns because they are easy to maintain and the machining and quality is so good.  Many of the gas piston driven AR15’s out there are kind of pricey but in the long run they should cut your gun cleaning time by 75%.   Although that whole argument about gun reliability doesn’t real  hold any water anymore because AR15 reliability has more to do with the type of gun magazines you use than how much cleaning you do.

Several firearms instructors I have spoken to have told me that they’ve seen more firearms damaged by over cleaning than guns ruined by not being cleaned.   It’s seems that many AR15 upper receivers for sale at Rogue Elite can be found on Youtube with some type of malfunction drill where dirt and water tests were done and the guns passed.   All firearm machining has improved in the last decade and the differences between the manufacturers has more to do with the mission or preferences than about durability and reliability.

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Lighter Carbines and short magazine capacity?

At first thought many might think that to be a stupid thing to do, but for anyone that has taken a carbine course, lighter firearms don’t wear down an operator the way a heavy one does.   For all of the people that are bench rest shooters, a heavy AR15 barrel is something they want, but in a real fight, the difference between sub-moa and 4 MOA is pretty much a none issue.   I have never shot an AR15 that did worse than 2 MOA and most of them were about 1.5 MOA or better.  Rifle slings can make a bigger difference in comfort also so research that before you alter your firearm too much.

Once you have to get down in the dirt and fire from behind cover, you can really feel how well your firearms balance is.   If the stock doesn’t fit you right it can royally suck to shoot proficiently.  Magpul pmags are the best gun magazines I have ever used for my AR15’s but I have been using 20rd magazines more and more because of the balance it gives me with my firearms.   Sure I’ll use the 30rd magazines if I really need to, but for urban environments gun magazine capacity over 15rds is good enough for anything but a zombie attack.

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Fall Special on LWRC Upper Recievers

The news coming from LWRC this Fall is that the new Lightweight Stretch upper has replaced the older M6 LWRC rifle.   There is very little different about this upper than the M6.   The LWRC Lightweight upper comes standard with the Magpul MOE Handguard.   It took me awhile to figure out what the big deal was when all of the MOE stuff started showing up.   Sometimes it’s a royal pain to have to research all of the new products that come out around this time of the year because we know that people are going to call about them and we try to look as smart as we can.   If you haven’t know it by now, gun accessories, primarily for the AR15 fill the void for the guys that grew up and stopped playing with LEGOS.

Some of this stuff really does improve the fit and feel of a firearm and lightening your Carbine without weakening it a great thing.   As anyone in the military if they could change something on their M16 to take off 8 oz and they will tell you it’s a good thing.   We recently got in the new LWRC uppers for sale that is the lightweight stretch upper.  This gun comes with the New Magpul MOE stock which is all stock with rail attachments.   There is an aweful lot of un-used weight on many M4 Carbines and the Quad rail thing is great if you are using it, but most people don’t.

 

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Streamlight Polytac 90 flashlights

The Streamlight Sidewinder has an obvious purpose other than what a regular handheld flashlight is used for and if you need a flashlight like that, there aren’t a lot of options.   Finding a flashlight that gives you the lighting you need is going to get easier and easier these days and they are making them lighter and more powerful every day.   The Streamlight Polytac 90 is slightly shorter in length than the standard Polytac flashlight but it has a unique clip on the back to keep it in place, or  hand it on a belt or vest.   This smaller flashlight runs on 2 CR123 batteries.

Streamlight has an edge over other flashlight companies for firemen and emergency response primarily because Streamlight put the time into developing rechargeable flashlights that held up.   The Streamlight flashlights that we sell the most are the rechargeable and followed closely by the Streamlight Poltac 90.   I wish Streamlight would put a little more thought into the M4 Carbine world because although their flashlights are nice, they are not on par with what Surefire flashlights has out.    Surefire has a solid edge over weapons lights.

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MPro-7 does what it claims

I guess I’m going to have to say that I am well on on board with the MPro-7 gun cleaning supplies.  I still haven’t personally used all of their products myself, but I will continue to post after trying them out.   I attend a great many gun shops and trade shows and have plenty of sample gun oils and lubricants from various manufacturers but that’s not something I would jump on board with because quality control with liquid products is something that I have learned to be aware of.   Even something like a bottle of Coca-Cola can change from lot to lot and don’t forget all of those variances with rifle ammunition and accuracy.

When it comes to gun cleaning supplies, the biggest criticism that I would have to make that is from my expereince, valid, is that CLP is not consistent unless you shake it properly, CLP will stay in my gun cleaning supplies box, but I have given up on depending on it for firearms that I consider might be a defensive firearm.   I’ve seen gun stocks melt and barrels glow red and for anyone taking serious training or wanting to replace something that the military has issued, it’s time to move on to the MPro-7 gun  oil.

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