The New AR

I mentioned in my last post that my best friend and I snuck off to the range last weekend to sight in a recently completed AR.

Being the sole provider for my family and coming off the second lay off in 3 years, I am a bit "gun poor". I actually started building this AR a couple years ago after the first lay off when I picked up a basic Aero Precision Gen 2 stripped lower receiver. If you're not familiar with Aero Precision, they make some very good components for ARs. The Gen 2 lower in particular is nice as it has the addition of an adjustable polymer set screw in the rear of the receiver to help stabilize the upper. It takes the place of an aftermarket accu wedge. 

Accu Wedge

Aero Precision Gen 2 Lower - polymer set screw

Anydigression, the lower was finally completed earlier this year. For those interested in the specs, here is the rundown of the parts selected:

Aero Precision Gen 2 Stripped Lower
CMMG lower parts kit
Magpul MOE FDE pistol grip
Magpul CTR FDE Mil Spec adjustable stock
Aero Precision Mil Spec 6 position buffer tube, buffer, end plate and spring set
CMC 3 lb. single stage flat trigger

Total cost in parts was $383 and change including tax.

A brief word about assembling the parts. It's not hard. There are plenty of  videos out there to help you figure out the process. Anybody can do it. Having said that, it is infinitely easier to do if you have or can borrow the right tools for the job.

So, when I landed my current full time job, I was in the process of thinking it was high time to gather the parts for the upper when I get a call from my best friend. "I got something for you.", he says. Low and behold, it was a complete upper. It's good to have nice friends. He gifted me, as a "congrats on the new job" gift, a SOTA Arms (SOTA stands for State of the Art, BTW) 16 inch, .223 Wylde chambered, 1:7 twist heavy barrel upper with a mid length gas system, a KeyMod forend and a standard A2 birdcage flash hider.

Did I mention I have a really great best friend?

I had a Hawke 3-9x40 AO IR scope on hand for an optic (I may eventually replace that with a red dot...I might not) which we mounted up without too much trouble (a scope mounting level really helps a lot), and it was off to the range to sight in and see what it can do.

Another mini digression about ammo selection. I had some American Eagle 55 grain .223 Jacketed Boat Tail on hand. Best friend had the same in addition to some 68 grain Magtech .223 that he had picked up somewhere. Those familiar with twist rate and bullet weight pairing will recognize that the 55 grain/1:7 twist combo is "not ideal" for maximum accuracy according to the experts.

3 Shots - 1 inch square - 50 yards

Meh. Experts...smeckperts. Those look like they stabilized just fine to me. I didn't have calipers with me to get a precise measurement, but the Mark 1 hairy eyeball guestimates that at roughly 3/4 of an inch at the widest which maths out to 1.5ish MOA at 100 yards. That's with a mediocre shooter and non-match ammo out of a non-match barrel.

I'll take that.

Humbling

I consider myself to be a fair shot with a pistol. More often than not, my targets look like actual intentional groupings as opposed to random patterns. Having said that, I've done very little in the way of structured training or practice (shame on me). So, when my best friend and I escaped to the range on Sunday to sight in a recently completed AR, we took along the pistols as well.

My friend suggested we give the Dot Torture drill a whirl. I said sure. Why not? I'm familiar with the drill from seeing others post about their experiences, but I'd never taken a stab at it personally. I thought, "How hard could it be?"

Ha.

HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

Sure, I can hit a 2 inch target at 3 yards. No problem. You can too I bet. Until you try and get this:

That's my first try at Dot Torture with a Ruger SR1911 5 inch at 3.5 yards. Color me shocked. 

We then had the bright idea to pull out the .22 pistols and give it another try.

Better but still not great. Ruger 22/45 Target model with a fiber optic front sight. 

Well, neither of us was happy with our performance. So, we decided one more try was in order.

Almost clean. 1 dropped shot.

This is going to become a regular part of my range outings from now on. You should give it a try too. 

It's Been A While

I've been absent from The GunDivas for a while due to selling our house and the resulting move. Now that life has slowed down from warp speed to something more or less sane, I've had some time and opportunity to play again.

First, guess who has a ticket to the First Annual Texas International Firearms Festival? Yep. This guy. My best friend turned me onto it via FaceBook. He and I will both be there Sunday, November 9. Look for a report and photos to follow. Holler if you see me.

Second, Groupon appears to have quietly reinstated deals for firearms as I landed claws on a gun range outing including lane rental, unlimited use of rental guns and one box of ammo for $35. I took the free time afforded by being semi-homeless to indulge my curiosity on the shooting qualities of certain guns.

First up, the Gen 4 Glock 21.

Glock G21 Gen 4

Prior to this range outing, I have not spent any time looking closely at the Gen 4 Glocks. I have handled a few at gun stores and have come away generally ambivalent about the changes between the Gen 3s and the Gen 4s. I have read many opinions about the Gen 4 grip texture. My brief handlings at stores left me with the impression that I could see how others would hate it while not giving me passionate feelings one way or the other. I will say that my preference is still for the smoother Gen 3 texture on a purely aesthetic level; however, having handled and shot one on the range now, I can see the benefits of the Gen 4 grip texture. I had no troubles with the grip texture being too rough for my hands as has been reported by others. I see this as one of those "too each their own" issues. Try them both side by side. Pick the one that works best for you.

The recoil on the G21 shooting pretty standard 230 gr. Federal FMJ ammunition was very manageable. There is more muzzle flip than with a G19 or G17 in 9mm, but it's neither horrendous nor hazardous. Ditto for felt recoil. My biggest gripe is that my thumb likes to ride the slide release which resulted in the slide failing to lock back on the last shot unless I made a conscious effort to keep my thumb off or below it.

Accuracy was decent for a combat handgun considering I was out of practice and not used to the gun.

G21 at 7 Yards 10 rounds (I think) Left Eye Closed

G21 at 7 Yards 5 rounds Both Eyes Open

The lone round in the 6 ring on the first target was a flyer. No excuse. Probably was just not paying attention to what I was doing. I mention the left eye closed vs. both eyes open because my eyesight has turned to pure fertilizer over the last few years (I'm farsighted, and my near vision is to the point that I have to concentrate real hard on anything inside arms length with no guarantee that I can see it then) and focusing on the front sight is a challenge. I thought it might be useful to see if a second eye would help my results. Inconclusive.

G21 15 Yards 5 Rounds

G21 15 Yards 10 Rounds

Not much to say about the 15 yard targets. I think I could get that grouping a little tighter with more practice and standard three dot sights, but I'm not unhappy with that result even with the Glock "dot in a bucket" sight system.

Bottom line: I'd carry it.

Next up: Sig P226 9mm.

I didn't spend very long with the Sig. Long enough to remember why I don't like the SA/DA triggers. The Sig is well made and smooth. I just can't get the hang of the trigger on it for the life of me.

So, the Sig got swapped out for a Glock 17 Gen 4 in 9mm. I've shot a G19 several times and thought I'd see if the extra barrel length did anything for me.

G17 7 Yards 10 Rounds

Again, I may be out of practice, but I won't complain about that group even though I'm pretty sure I should be able to put all 10 inside the small, scoring chart silhouette at 7 yards (and have done so with both G22s and G19s).

In conclusion, I had a good time. 50 rounds of .45 ACP and 50 rounds of 9mm through three different guns made for an enjoyable evening after work. Groupon is cool to be offering these deals again. The P226 is a good gun...just not for me. A Glock is a Glock is a Glock.

Gettin' Better

I had the opportunity to spend some quality time at the range yesterday with close friends and family. It was not my day on the rifle range; however, the pistol range was another matter entirely.

The M&P is starting to show signs of adequacy if not actual promise.

That's roughly 30 rounds at 7 yards. The top two shots near the twelve o'clock nine are the bottom of my best friend's test drive mag aimed at the twelve o'clock eight. I own the shot near the six o'clock 9 as a called flyer. I would call tearing up the 10 and x rings more than acceptable.

While the M&P trigger is clearly workable as is, I still don't like it as much as I would like to. As a result, we are rapidly reaching the point at which time I order the Apex kit. Borrowing my cousin's girlfriend's Glock 23 (earlier Gen...probably a post AWB Gen 2 based on the plethora of 10 round mags) for 10 shots didn't help especially when I turned out even better accuracy from the Glock without even thinking about it.

The Ruger 22/45 got a work out as well. Ten shots at the x box on the scoring chart at seven yards with five in one hole measuring about a half inch. I can't be happier with that.

My cousin gave me a turn behind his Mosin-Nagant. Ten rounds of 7.62 x 54R later, and I can happily report that I can hit the broad side of center mass at 50 yards with one. That, and my kidney stones have been pulverized sufficiently while my shoulder remains intact.

In other news, BSA reflex red dots do not work in bright light even on their highest brightness setting and even cheap 1911s are freakishly accurate. Borrowed a Umarex made Regent 1911 belonging to a friend of my cousin's for one mag. Six rounds through the same hole punching out the x at seven yards is hard to argue with.

The weather was beautiful, our energy ran out before our ammo did, and any day at the range beats a day doing anything else.

Gun Powder Therapy - Pretty Much a Perfect Way to Spend a Sunday

July/August was a disaster for me; I traveled for work and then went to Julie Goodnight's place for a week to film her TV show, Horse Master with Julie Goodnight, made an appearance at RomCon and then raced up to the High Country Rendezvous.  The constant running around, even though it was only for about ten days, really cut into my range time, so it felt *fabulous* to be out on the range today.

Boss Man fixed my Para (it was the three-fingered spring - yay me for guessing that!) and I wanted to put a couple hundred rounds through it to make sure all of the ghosties are gone and that it'll be okay to take to the September match.  I'm all about challenging myself, so I decided I'm going to shoot the September match completely weak-handed.  I'm confident in my ability to shoot weak-handed, but I've never presented from a holster left-handed or changed magazines with my right hand.  I picked up a cheap Kydex paddle holster the other day and spent some time today working on presentation.  Holy cow, it was U-G-L-Y!


(Yes, Mez was nearby, just barely behind the firing line, but I was doing dry-fire practice with empty magazines.)



Throughout the day it got more smooth, but I've got just two weeks to get as comfortable as possible before I do it at the match.  That means even more dry fire practice at the silhouette on my bedroom wall.

Mez brought out his new toy, which for the life of me I can't remember the manufacturer, a .308 carbine (essentially a FN FAL, but Austrian-made).  That is a sweet shooting gun.  We had an 8" steel plate about 60 yards out and I hit it with every round I shot right-handed from an off-hand (standing) position.  My accuracy wasn't as great with my left hand; I only hit the plate about 50% of the time (but I did manage to shoot holes clean through the legs, which are much smaller than the plate, that ought to count for something, right?).

Of course, standing around plinking at paper's not a ton of fun, so we decided to add an extra degree of difficulty and set up our own carbine course.



Yep, pretty much a perfect way to spend a Sunday.