Gear / Tools
Posted: March 01, 2010
While I have access to a lathe which would make the process fast and clean on a normal barrel, I find that ribbed barrels are easier done the old fashion way with a hacksaw, files and patience. What follows is the procedure I used to shorten a 28" Remington 870 barrel to 18.5" for a co-worker who wanted something shorter to use as a home defense gun.
Posted: February 01, 2010
Posted: November 06, 2009
After finishing my AR15 build with a MagPul MOE stock I discovered that I really prefer a shorter Length of Pull (LOP) than either the H&K A2 stock or my Choate side folder would give me. My Ar15 stock rides on the second notch of the six position stock and gives a LOP of 12.5 inches, allowing for a squared-up stance. This is pretty close to the 12" LOP I have on my Remington 870 shotgun which has a Hogue Youth Stock on it, but nowhere near the 14" LOP (standard BTW) that most fixed stocks tend to run on shotguns and carbines.
Until this modification I was going from 12.5" LOP on my AR15 & 12.0" on the Remy 870 to the standard 14" LOP on the H&K A2 stock. While I can't feel the difference between the 12.0"-12.5" LOP, I can definitely feel the shift in position that the 14" LOP that the A2 stock creates. I also notice the tendency to not get up close to the rear sight when using the side folder due to the lack of cheek-weld. By shortening the side-folder I was able to cure that problem also, as the shorter LOP puts your nose right on the back of the receiver as though you were in a "Nose-2-Charging Handle" position on the AR platform.
Choate does have a Tactical Folding Stock out that allows for a shorter LOP and is probably the best bank for buck on a side folder, but I had an old Choate already and didn't want to spend another $150.00+ that and try to unload my current stock at a loss for their "stubby" stock so the following is my solution for a "stubby" stock on my MP5 clone.
Until this modification I was going from 12.5" LOP on my AR15 & 12.0" on the Remy 870 to the standard 14" LOP on the H&K A2 stock. While I can't feel the difference between the 12.0"-12.5" LOP, I can definitely feel the shift in position that the 14" LOP that the A2 stock creates. I also notice the tendency to not get up close to the rear sight when using the side folder due to the lack of cheek-weld. By shortening the side-folder I was able to cure that problem also, as the shorter LOP puts your nose right on the back of the receiver as though you were in a "Nose-2-Charging Handle" position on the AR platform.
Choate does have a Tactical Folding Stock out that allows for a shorter LOP and is probably the best bank for buck on a side folder, but I had an old Choate already and didn't want to spend another $150.00+ that and try to unload my current stock at a loss for their "stubby" stock so the following is my solution for a "stubby" stock on my MP5 clone.
Posted: October 11, 2009
I've had this SKD Universial chest harness for sometime now and still think they are the best bang for the buck when it comes to factory made chest rigs, but as with all things it can be improved with minor modification. My view of "better" is embodied in the changes you see here.
None of the mods are hard and can be done on your wife's sewing machine (thanks Honey!) as the material is very easy to sew. For thread and how to sew the basic "box-stitch" see my article on the 1/2 point sling.
For reference the image below is how the chest rig came from www.skdtac.com
and how it ended up after my mods...
The rig weighs 10lbs with the following:
None of the mods are hard and can be done on your wife's sewing machine (thanks Honey!) as the material is very easy to sew. For thread and how to sew the basic "box-stitch" see my article on the 1/2 point sling.
For reference the image below is how the chest rig came from www.skdtac.com
and how it ended up after my mods...
Load Out
The rig weighs 10lbs with the following:
- (4) Pmags w/ 30 rounds each
- (2) Glock 17 mags w/16 rounds each
- (1) Surefire 6P with Malkoff M60W insert
- (1) SOG multi-tool
- (1) EOD Breacher bar
- (1) SWAT-T / EMT shears
Posted: September 11, 2009
My sling use on carbines went through the following progression.
Each sling has its strong and weak points but of those three designs I found the VTAC to be the best compromise. Still, there is nothing like a dedicated single point sling for easy weapons manipulations so my solution was to...
- Specter 3pt sling
- Bungee single point sling
- Adjustable 2pt VTAC sling
Each sling has its strong and weak points but of those three designs I found the VTAC to be the best compromise. Still, there is nothing like a dedicated single point sling for easy weapons manipulations so my solution was to...
Posted: June 04, 2009
Below is an example of a Failure To Eject (FTE) which shows the spent casing (top) jammed back into the chamber area with the newly stripped round from the magazine (bottom) trying to chamber.
This results when the spent casing is pulled out of the chamber by the bolt face & extractor, but not ejected completely out of the ejection port or because it fell off the bolt face (loose tension) before the ejector could do its job.
This results when the spent casing is pulled out of the chamber by the bolt face & extractor, but not ejected completely out of the ejection port or because it fell off the bolt face (loose tension) before the ejector could do its job.
My suggestions for eliminating this issue are as follows:
Posted: May 29, 2009
Well so did I. Problem was I had no idea what I was getting into when I decided to jump at a clone that happened to come up for sale on AR15.com one day.
It looked like a good deal and in hind sight was actually not that bad of one, but the gun was a lemon for sure. The previous owner said that it ran "fine" with good ammo. I soon found out that "fine" is a very subjective term so remember that if you purchase a clone.
The only maker of clones right now is Coharie Arms which is the latest of several incarnations of companies run by a guy named Todd Bailey. Todd has a bit of a reputation as a cheat and a scoundrel which I'm sure he got the old fashion way... "he earned it!" Unfortunately he is the only major game in town for a complete 922r compliant clone at this time, and with H&K bringing litigation against everyone that makes anything resembling their series 94 arms, there will likely not be anyone else entering this cornered market soon.
The quality control at Coharie Arms (CA from here on out) is pretty much hit and miss. I get the impression from reading new owner posts at www.hkpro.com, AR15.com, and even his own forum www.hk-54.com that Todd's primary focus is to sell as many of these things as he can while he can and does not bother to test the guns properly to ensure that they will run from the factory, which many (if not a good many) do not.
My sample had several issues that took a bit of diagnosing with the help of members at www.hkpro.com, which Todd Bailey seems to monitor for the purpose of gathering information to make fun of and call names (on his forum www.hk-54.com) those who have been unfortunate to get a non-working sample of his guns. I guess it's easier than helping his customers which might require admitting his guns are crap from the factory more often than not, taking responsibility for such, and not trying to weasel out of his "lifetime warranty" at every chance he can. If everyone who got a bad apple sent them back, they would not have time to throw more crap out the factory door, but I digress.
There are other options to getting a clone though...
It looked like a good deal and in hind sight was actually not that bad of one, but the gun was a lemon for sure. The previous owner said that it ran "fine" with good ammo. I soon found out that "fine" is a very subjective term so remember that if you purchase a clone.
The only maker of clones right now is Coharie Arms which is the latest of several incarnations of companies run by a guy named Todd Bailey. Todd has a bit of a reputation as a cheat and a scoundrel which I'm sure he got the old fashion way... "he earned it!" Unfortunately he is the only major game in town for a complete 922r compliant clone at this time, and with H&K bringing litigation against everyone that makes anything resembling their series 94 arms, there will likely not be anyone else entering this cornered market soon.
The quality control at Coharie Arms (CA from here on out) is pretty much hit and miss. I get the impression from reading new owner posts at www.hkpro.com, AR15.com, and even his own forum www.hk-54.com that Todd's primary focus is to sell as many of these things as he can while he can and does not bother to test the guns properly to ensure that they will run from the factory, which many (if not a good many) do not.
My sample had several issues that took a bit of diagnosing with the help of members at www.hkpro.com, which Todd Bailey seems to monitor for the purpose of gathering information to make fun of and call names (on his forum www.hk-54.com) those who have been unfortunate to get a non-working sample of his guns. I guess it's easier than helping his customers which might require admitting his guns are crap from the factory more often than not, taking responsibility for such, and not trying to weasel out of his "lifetime warranty" at every chance he can. If everyone who got a bad apple sent them back, they would not have time to throw more crap out the factory door, but I digress.
There are other options to getting a clone though...
Posted: January 26, 2009
I’ve found the AK grip to be more than annoying ergonomics wise. The standard grip is solid and designed to fit any hand, but is not exactly comfortable for larger hands like my own.
Looking for something a little more “filling”, I first replaced my stock grip with the popular TAPCO “SAW” grip,
Posted: December 04, 2008
Cost about $10.00 a piece, folds for easy storage and can be weighted for shooting in wind. No glue needed and you can make 3 complete stands with no waste using the cut plan at bottom of page. Uses 1"x1/2" slats or 1"x1" sticks that slip into the uprights.
