All posts tagged Remington

Bans on gun stocks and accessories

I feel sorry for some of the people that are gun owners and are presently stepping into the word of AR15, AK or Mini 14 ownership for the first time and live in anti-gun States.  I have had some really bizarre conversations with friends in California and New Jersey that had to take AR15 or FAL gun magazines and have blocks welded into them so they couldn’t take more than 10rds.  To some people these sounds like a good thing, but the real problem is  you are taking something that is functional at a certain operating system and potentially messing the whole thing up.  Magazine capacity restrictions are like putting smaller gas tanks on cars to keep people from speeding.   The other problems that many in New Jersey or California and other States run into are gun accessories like flash hiders or folding stocks, these are all usually banned.

I find the whole issue about bans on gun accessories like bayonets and folding stocks to basically be about people trying to put band aids on your kids body parts where there is no bleeding expecting to stop another person from beating him or her up.    Nobody wants to talk about how most gun crime is from the drug trade which basically is a self inflicted problem due to our Federal Government getting involved.    Gun accessories like, bayonets, flash hiders, folding stocks,  collapsing rifle stocks have no bearing on reducing crime and putting people who are a threat to society in jail for long periods of time would have more impact on reducing crime than making law abiding citizens block 20rd magazines so they can only hold 10.

Top

Your AR15 is probable not the AR15 your father had

It’s funny making a statement like that because I still feel like the AR15 is a new gun, but the reality is that it is now something that many of us had in the 1980s and 1990’s and now we have kids that are shooting them.    The AR15 is now probable the most popular firearm being sold in the Country, not only can you use it for close quarters combat and house to house clearing, there are varmint versions that are extremely accurate.   The whole durability and design of the rifle has improved dramitically, even though the M16A2 has been in service for about 25yrs and is a considerable leap in reliability over the A1, other changes have been made.

Chrome barrels use to be the thing that helped keep the direct impingement guns in a better functionality, but gun magazine improvements have reduced the number of malfunctions I see by atleast 95%.   I don’t see the failures to feed or the double feeding that I use to and it’s primarily due to the Magpul P-mags.   These magazines feed better than most and you can drive a car over them and still have them work.  Swapping out the upper receivers on an AR15 involves pushing 2 pins out, and there are many configurations from CMMG, LWRCI, DPMS that will improve the durability over lower grade guns.  If you want a combat reliable AR15, you will probable have to do a few things to an AR15 that costs under $800 to get it up to par, but overall I am very impressed with the improvements I see across the board  in the AR15 community.

Top

The Mini 14’s real purpose and being realistic

I have been and always will be a Mini 14 enthusiast, I guess I won too many merit badges in gun forum arguments with the AR15 blowhards, and I’ve done plenty of 500yd shooting with my guns to know that they are still viable defensive and target shooting  guns even though there is an obvious limit to how many rounds can be accurately fired.   The M4 is an excellent firearm, but eleminating a few pounds of weight during a trek is going to matter.  I was never a fan of making an AR15 or M4 Carbine too light because in my opinion, the gun needs to handle a firefight and not melt on me and I don’t think this will happen with a Coyote sighting.   Still though, I’ve seen what a Mini 14 with 20rd and 30rd magazines is capable of doing and although it’s not a combat gun but it’s a very good SHTF weapon.

I see all kind of tactical stocks showing  up from Tapco and other companies and I’m not on that level of converting a Mini 14 into, but I still prefer the folding stock standard carbine for self defensive and the Mini 14 Ranch rifle with a 3-9×40 scope.  I’ve had Sightron and Leupolds on mine and have thousands of rounds through them and still get MOA with three shot bursts.  Another issue that I find common amongst many of the tactical shooters is sighting in and shooting off of tables, it’s not that much of a headache if you have a good rest, but it becomes easier if you have gun magazines that is 5rd or 10rds.   The standard Mini 14 magazines are extremely reliable and if you are using it as a traditional ranch gun, this is one of the most balanced semi-autos in existance.

Top

Is the gas piston a new thing?

I remember the first time I pulled the trigger on an AR15 rifle I thought it was the rich boy gun.   Back in the 1990s there was a mentality on the State Game ranges I use to dwell on where a certain level of snotty attitudes went with the expensive firearms.   Since just about everyone and there dog owns a 5.56 AR 15 now,  I don’t really look at it that way anymore.  The new trend in 5.56 calibers is to move away from the direct impingement and towards a gas piston driven gun.   There are plenty of people that can honestly claim that their AR15s don’t give them problems, but now that I know more about firearms, this is because they are maintaining their firearms properly.

Alth0ugh you can get the job done with a DI gun, I really have to say the that biggest reason I would want the United States Military to change to an H&K 416 style weapon is so our troops don’t have to break down their guns every day and do as much maintanace.    If we all drove a car that got 75 miles to the gallon, but needed an oil change every 500 miles, I think we get annoyed at how much time we are spending changing the oil filter or dropping it off to get done every month.  The beauty of market we are in is that piston conversion kits are being made for many of the DI guns and for a few hundred bucks we can convert everything over.

Top

Mini 14 Magazines and hunting

I must admit, I was  lucky enough to be able to stock up on PMI magazines in the 1990s and never had to worry much about finding after market rifle magazines for the Mini 14.   While admit I have seen plenty of poor performing Mini 14 rifles on the ranges, it was always because the user was not using Ruger factory rifle magazines.  If you are fortunate enough to live in a State that allows the use of semi-auto rifles for deer season,  there is no lighter and faster Carbine for Coyote or white tails than the Mini 14.   I have personally witnessed deer being taken with 75gr HPBT with the Mini 14, so don’t tell me the .223 isn’t good for the job.
Inside of 200yds and with a 4x optic, a Mini 14 is well within the tolerances of being able to take a 150-200lb animal.   Considering the flat trajectory, hold overs are virtually none existant at these ranges.  Since you can get 20rd and 30rd factory magazines for the Mini 14 again.   There still are reasons to not want to heat up the rifle and it is well known that the Mini 14 is not a military rifle.  The accuracy will begin to decline after approximately the 3rd shot is fired which gives good reason to only stick with the factory 5rd magazines.

Top

Carbine malfunctions, what to blame?

gun magazinesI first stepped into the world of tactical carbines after years of toting around an M16A2 for close to 10yrs.   We basically had to clean and maintain our firearms daily when deployed and I often wondered what we might have been able to do during the day if we didn’t have such a high maintenance rifle.  Looking back, I realized there wasn’t much else to do and this was something that we did to just occupy time.   The M16A2 is not a very clean running firearm, but it can go for hundreds if not thousands of rounds without cleaning if it was lubed correctly from the beginning.   In all of my years of service with the M16A2, and the years standing next to operators with AR15 rifles, I’d say 90% of malfunctions were bad magazines or improperly loaded, and bad ammo.   The next was improper lubrication.   It’s been a few years since I’ve been on the range during hunting season, but It was about 5yrs ago that I ran into an AR15 owner that said the key to running an AR15 reliable is to run it dry.   Well, if you own an AR15 and you think this is true, I can’t help you.

I recently watched a DVD about advanced Carbine tactics and although I thought it was of some value to Novice Carbine Operators, they left out something that I found to be crucial to all operators.   PUSH, PULL will eliminate 99% of your magazine malfunctions and I couldn’t believe that after close to 10yrs of video, I never saw this tactical being used.   Sometimes a magazine will insert into a Carbine and load a round, but by the 2nd round and after the recoil of the first round, gun magazines will drop loose.  I actually witnessed this on a Carbine course this week and the operator didn’t even know his gun was unloaded until he moved 10ft forward.

Top

Worn out guns? Start with a new barrel

Glock barrelsThere are firearms that are going to need a lot of attention when it comes to changing parts or doing upgrades on  them.   I think it’s a good idea to drop off the gun and the parts with a gun smith unless you know for sure that the part you have is a “drop in”.    From my experience, most gun parts and accessories will need some fitting.   This is where people tend to break rifle stocks or rails because they start forcing things when they really should be filing something.   I know several gun shops that get tired of people calling them up and claiming that a firegrip or rifle stock was broken, when the gunsmith knows how it really happened.    I did several AK stock changes and every one of them was different.   I even found areas that need to be filed down where on similiar guns, it just snapped right in.

Gun barrels on Glocks are almost as easy to swap in and out as a Glock magazine.   I have seen plenty of worn out guns before, but if you realize that each part wears out different over time, be prepared to do maintenance and know that at a certain point, it’s time to replace it, before it break on you.   Sig Sauer and Glock barrels are drop ins.   If you think  you’re seeing a decline in accuracy and can’t see the grooves in the barrel.  It’s defanitely time to swap the parts out.    The Remington 870 is one of the most versatile shotguns in existance.   Just by unscrewing the barrel and replacing it with another,  you can turn a duck hunting shotgun into a home defense weapon in seconds.

Top

So many ARs so little time..

AR 15 Upper receiversEven though the short stroke and other piston designs have come on the market, and these guns all operate much cleaner, the AR15s DI guns that are being fielded these days are far more reliable than the M16A1 that was issued in Vietnam.   Designs and improvements of metalogy has been tremendous and this can be noticed just by feeling the difference between one bolt carrier and another.   Another major point about why the AR 15 guns have caught on is that they are so ergonimically superior to most of the military style guns out there that they are easy teaching tools.   I normally start people out with learning the fundamentals with a 22lr bolt action with iron sights, but when I’m dealing with an adult that is not afraid of recoil, a .223 A2 style Carbine is an excellent staring point.

It seems that every time I pick up another issue of Swat magazine, American Handgunner, Special Weapons, Guns & Ammo ect. that there is yet another advertisement for another company making another AR 15 gun.   The AR15 is now the most mass produced rifle in America and they are as common as a can of Coca-Cola.    I don’t think I can name more than 3 calibers that the AK was made in, but i’ve already lost track of the number of calibers that I have seen the AR15 being made in.   You can get them in pistol caliber carbines and from my experience, they run very well.   I have to admit that I am glad to see that the AR 15 Upper Receivers have taken a giant step away from the direct impingement design that has been so hotly debated.   I am a big believer that with todays technology and the technology that are LEO and Military are dealing with, using a firearm that is such high maintenance, is a waste of valuable time.

 

Top
Page 1 of 1