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BUYERS

GUIDE
LOCKBACK
KNIVES PG.56

GUN LIFESTYLE: GEAR TECHNOLOGY SPORT OUTDOOR HOME & PERSONAL DEFENSE
EXCLUSIVE FIRST LOOK!

WE GET HANDS-ON
WITH A GEN 3
PROTOTYPE
CARBINE PG. 64

7.62X39
BOLT GUN
RUGER
AMERICAN
RANCH
PG. 88

Dickies
Skeli
Trijicon
O.S.T.
Buck
PG. 14

TIKKA
T3X
NEXGEN2
ARCTIC
A GIFT FROM
DEFENSE THE NORTH
PG. 112
MAXFLO 3D
SUPPRESSOR PG. 150

SMALL-ARMS INNOVATIONS
IN THE U.S. MILITARY
FAUX FULL AUTO: BUYERS GUIDE
ZEROED IN: SEBASTIAN GORKA
PT: MAINTAIN BALANCE

RECOILWEB.COM
VISIT: WEST POINT MUSEUM
ASSAULTERS GUIDE
TO PROCESSING ROOMS
ISSUE 34
GLOCK GEN5

THE RUGER AMERICAN PISTOL IS DESIGNED WITH THE TOUGHEST STANDARDS IN MIND.

Short Takeup Trigger
with Positive Reset

Anything Else Would Be Un-American.

Designed with the latest U.S. Military standards in mind, the Ruger American Pistol is built to perform

in the harshest conditions. A true American innovation, this pistol was developed through a rigorous Voice
Recoil-Reducing Barrel Cam, Low Mass Slide,
Low Center of Gravity and Low Bore Axis
of the Customer process where numerous law enforcement and military trainers, rearms experts,
distributors and retailers provided input, feedback and testing in the determination of the form, function and
features of this rearm. The resultant new pistol is a revolutionary platform for Ruger, one that utilizes the
combination of a recoil-reducing barrel cam (which is designed to better spread recoil energy over time) with
a low mass slide, low center of gravity and a low bore axis to provide an unparalleled shooting experience.
Genuine Novak LoMount Carry
Three-Dot Sights

Modular Wrap-Around Grip System for


Adjusting Palm Swell and Trigger Reach

Safe, Easy Takedown with No Tools


or Trigger Pull Required

Ambidextrous Slide Stop, Manual Safety and


Magazine Release Allow Actuation with Either
Hand (Pro Models Come without External Safety)

Complete Your Ruger American Pistol with the


Ofcially Licensed Blade-Tech Total Eclipse
Holster at Your Local Retailer or
Online at ShopRuger.com

RUGER.COM/AMERICANPISTOL
BUILT TO PERFORM IN THE HARSHEST CONDITIONS. 2017 Sturm, Ruger & Co., Inc. 010317
34.340633, -84.372703

GRABBER APT GRABBER AT 2 GRABBER X 3

All-Weather Aggressive Mud, Dirt & Rock


All-Purpose-Terrain All-Terrain Extreme Terrain

#ANYWHEREISPOSSIBLE // LIKE US ON FACEBOOK.COM/GENERALTIRE


WWW.GENERALTIRE.COM
RECOIL (USPS 013-320), Janu-
FIREARM SAFETY ary/February 2018; Number 34,
IS TOP PRIORITY is published bimonthly by TEN:
IS S U E 34 RECOIL reminds you to be safe and always obey The Enthusiast Network, LLC,
firearms safety rules: 261 Madison Avenue, 6th floor,
1. Treat every gun as if it were loaded. New York, NY 10016. Copyright
DEPARTMENTS 2. Always keep the gun pointed in a safe direction. 2017 by TEN: The Enthusiast
3. Keep your finger off the trigger until ready to fire. Network Magazines, LLC. All Rights
14 ON THE COVER 60 BUILD SHEET 4. Be aware of your targets foreground and Reserved. Periodicals Postage Paid
background. at New York, NY and at additional
All contents in RECOIL Magazine are professionally mail offices. Subscriptions U.S. and
20 DOWNRANGE 170 ZEROED IN photographed in a closed studio or range. Do not
Editors Letter Sebastian Gorka U.S. Possessions: $49.97 per year (6
attempt to re-create any photographs depicted in issues); Canadian, $55.97, Foreign,
this magazine. $61.97 (including surface mail
28 INCOMING 184 PT postage). Payment in advance. U.S.
New Gear Balancing Act PRODUCT DISCLAIMER funds only. POSTMASTER: Send all
Prices and details for items featured in RECOIL are UAA to CFS. (See DMM 707.4.12.5):
36 VISIT 192 SHOW US YOUR set by the manufacturers and retailers, and are NON-POSTAL AND MILITARY
Saint-tienne Museum of TATS subject to change without notice. FACILITIES: send address changes
Science and Industry to RECOIL, P.O. Box 420235, Palm
Throughout this issue you will see Coast, FL 32142-0235. Please
194 GOING HOT allow 8-10 weeks for delivery of
46 TRANSPORT certain images are labeled as being
1:1 Actual Size. This designation first issue. No part of this book
F-1 Firearms Baja Truck
is for the print edition of this issue. Because of may be reproduced without written
the various screen sizes on different tablets and permission. This book is purchased
56 UNUSUAL computers, we cannot always provide actual life with the understanding that the
SUSPECTS size images in digital versions. We apologize if information presented herein is from
Lockback Knives this causes any confusion and thank you for your many varied sources for which there
understanding. can be no warranty or responsibility
by the publisher as to accuracy or
completeness.

46
64
IS S U E 34

FEATURES
64 STRAIGHT OFF THE
WORKBENCH
We Get Hands-On With a Gen 76 88
3 Prototype Carbine From Skeli

76 SPACE INVADERS
An Assaulters Guide to
Room Processing

88 AS AMERICAN AS
AN AK
Apple Pie and Vodka Are
an Interesting and Tasty 100 112
Combination

100 FULL-AUTO
SIMULATORS
Even Better Than the
Real Thing?

112 A GIFT FROM THE


NORTH
Tikkas T3x Arctic is a Beefed-
Up, Scaled-Down, All-Arounder

126 RENAISSANCE RESET 126


Its the New Age of Small
Arms Development in the
U.S. Military

136 LONG RANGE GOALS


Want to Build a Gun Range?
Youve Got Your Work Cut Out
for You

146 NG2 DEFENSE


MAXFLO 3D
Backpressure, Noise
Reduction, First-Round Pop. 136
You No Longer Have to Pick
146 150 154
Just Two

150 QUICK COITUS WITH


THE GEN5

154 MAKE GUNS GREATER


The Second Firearms Industry
Choice Awards Bigger and
Better
Calling all California AR owners! Act now and avoid registration by quickly and easily
converting your semi-auto AR into a single-shot rifle with the new BSD (Bolt Stop Device) from
TrackingPoint. The three simple steps of PRESS FIRE REPEAT, has you compliant with
the new AR rifle legislation (AB 1135 & SB 880), and at the range enjoying the rifle you love.

GET THE TRACKINGPOINT BSD BEFORE JULY 31, 2018 W W W.T R A C K I N G - P O I N T.C O M / B S D
MORE TIME
SHOOTING. LESS
SS
TIME LOADING.
G
THE EASIEST AND FASTEST MAGAZINE
LOADERS FOR PISTOLS, RIFLES, AND
SUBMACHINE GUNS. THERES NO SHAME
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ETS C.A.M. RIFLE MAGAZINE LOADER


LIGHTNING FAST LOADING
LOADER EASILY PICKS UP ROUNDS DIRECTLY FROM THE
AMMO TRAY OR CAN ALSO BE USED TO LOAD LOOSE AMMO


LOADS THE FOLLOWING MAGS:
AR15, AR10, AK47, AK74, FN SCAR-16/17, G36,
STEYR AUG, MP5, SCORPION EVO, COLT SMG,
UZI AND MORE...


:
LOADS FOLLOWING CALIBERS:
5.56X45 / .223, .308, 7.62 X 39, 300BLK,
5.45 X 39, 9MM AND MORE...
RIFLE

1. Use rail to lift up to 10 rounds from tray.

SEE HOW IT ALL WORKS AT:


WWW.ETSGROUP.US/LOADERS

2. Compress the plunger.

3. Remove loaded magazine.

1. MUST seat magazine all the way


into the loader.

ETS C.A.M. PISTOL MAGAZINE LOADER


EASY TO USE


DOES NOT DAMAGE FEED LIPS

LIFETIME WARRANTY
2. Use rail to lift up to 10 rounds

LOADS THE FOLLOWING MAGS from tray.
GLOCK, SPRINGFIELD XD, S&W M&P, SIG, BERETTA, H&K
AND MANY MORE...


LOADS FOLLOWING CALIBERS
9MM AND 40 CAL.

3. Compress the plunger.


ON THE COVER

COVER PHOTO BY KENDA LENSEIGNE


3

1 RIFLE
MAKE:
Skeli
MODEL:
X11
MSRP:
$1,449
URL:
3 4

www.skelico.com
IS SU E

2 OPTIC
MAKE:
Trijicon
MODEL:
14 MRO
MSRP:
REC O ILW E B .C O M

$493
URL:
www.trijicon.com

3 AR TOOL
MAKE:
O.S.T.
MODEL:
O.S.T. Wrench
MSRP:
$20
URL:
www.operatorsurvivaltool.com

2
ON THE COVER
1 KNIFE
MAKE:
Buck
MODEL:
Vantage Force
MSRP:
2
$70
URL:
www.buckknives.com

2 OVERALLS
MAKE:
Dickies
MODEL:
Indigo Bib Overall
MSRP:
$42
URL:
www.dickies.com
3 4
IS SU E

16
REC O ILW E B .C O M

1
If its too good to be true, theres usually a catch. Not here.
The TCM Rock Standard FS Combo delivers a lot of value in
addition to its penetrating impact and remarkably light recoil.
So while the price may shock you, the rest of its features will
leave you invigorated.
ALWAYS
BE READY

WITH DEFENDER-FLEX PANTS

BUILT WITH TACTICAL DNA, DEFENDER-FLEX


GIVES YOU THE COMFORT OF YOUR FAVORITE
PANTS WITH 7 HIGH-CAPACITY POCKETS SO
YOU ARE ALWAYS READY.

TIM KENNEDY - ARMY QUALIFIED RANGER, SPECIAL FORCES SNIPER


GET READY AT 511TACTICAL.COM
Im cramming in this note between morning and afternoon There are also a lot of practical reasons to hunt with
hunts, sneaking out of the backcountry to grab a little Wi-Fi whatever your favorite semi-auto might be. Theyre rugged,
time while I attempt to catch up with the hectic pace of life in accurate, impervious to a little rough handling or inclement
the real world. After a long time of promising myself Id take weather, and available in just about any caliber that tickles
advantage of the incredible wilderness this nation offers its your fancy. Theyre also usually the first rifle pulled out of
citizens, it seems that, even when youre nine miles from the the safe for a little range time, so theres a very good case
nearest paved road, work still intrudes. And I wouldnt trade it for using the platform youre most familiar with.
for anything. And then theres the opportunity to publicly demonstrate
I am, however, taking the opportunity to disprove a that, for the most part, politicians dont know crap about
common myth perpetuated by various and sundry anti-gun firearms and shouldnt be trusted to legislate on the subject.
politicians. An oft-repeated trope is that you cant hunt with So go ahead, take your AR hunting. You may not always be
an AR, as if that made their possession less legitimate. able to put meat on the table, but youll be standing up for
Leaving aside the fact the Second Amendment has abso- freedom if you do.
lutely nothing to do with hunting, using a version of this
nations service rifle in pursuit of game is a well-established
tradition. Generations of Americans have headed to the
woods each fall, equipped with Krags, 03s, and 1917s, not
to mention the Model 700s that have served as the base for
issued sniper rifles since 1966.
3 4
IS SU E

20
REC O ILW E B .C O M
The all-new Yamaha Wolverine X4 offers four times the proven off-road capability,
comfort and condenceto deliver four times the fun and excitement on your
next outdoor adventure. Boasting room for four, the ultra-versatile Wolverine
X4 includes adjustable rear seating to provide additional cargo capacity, a new,
supremely quiet and smooth 850-class twin engine, and a compact, nimble
chassis with self-leveling rear shocks for a plush ride even in tight, rugged terrain.
The all-new Wolverine X4: designed and engineered in the Real World to help you
REALize your Adventure.
FOUR TIMES THE ADVENTURE.
FOUR TIMES THE fun.

REALize your Adventure: visit YamahaOutdoors.com


Always protect the environment and wear your seat belt, helmet, eye protection and protective clothing. Read the owners manual and product warning labels before operation. Professional riders depicted on a closed course. Models shown with optional
Genuine Yamaha Accessories. 2017 Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A. All rights reserved.
Editorial. Advertising.
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ARE YOU READY?

GripSense
TM

ACTIVATION

FIRST SHOT CONFIDENCE


BAD THINGS HAPPEN FAST


Get a grip on your rearm and GripSense technology reacts as
fast as you do to illuminate and guide your sight to threats.

CENTERFIRE LIGHT AND LASER SIGHTS with GripSenseActivation


Available for Ruger LC9, Glock 42/43, and S&W M&P Shield

1-800-LASER-03 | lasermax.com
Shield 9mm
LC9 | S | 380 42 & 43 .40 | .45
2017 Crosman Corporation. All rights reserved. LaserMax and the LaserMax logo are registered trademarks of Crosman Corporation.
1 2 3 4
Look at it. The new CompM5 While the US Optics SR-8S Most of the time when you Instant on and instant off is
is the product of one crazy isnt brand new, the reticle read about a new cheekrest, a major selling point for this
consensual evening involving inside this particular model is. the manufacturer will go on bipod from Spartan Precision
the older, proven CompM4 sight The Plumb reticle is tailored about the pure utility. In this Equipment. They utilize a
and the newer, sexier Micro T-2 reflex to allow a sniper or marksman to engage case, the very thing mentioned is how magnetic locking system to attach this
sight. Aimpoint took the ruggedness people at unknown distances at a rapid great it looks. Presumably if youre in aluminum and carbon-fiber bipod. Its not
of the U.S. Armys well regarded M68 pace without any additional special the market for a $100-plus cheekrest, just legs either, the Spartan 300 has cant,
close combat optic, shrunk it down equipment or calculations. To range with youre already aware of the benefits, rotation, tungsten carbide tips, and lock-
and fed it a single, easy-to-source the Plumb reticle, simply nest a target and perhaps that cut up iso-mat and ing abilities just like other high-end rifle
AAA battery that powers the optic head or torso inside the funnel, and 100 mph your rifle currently rocks just bipods. The magnetic system means the
for years. Its got a 2 MOA dot, and squeeze the trigger. For more precise isnt doing it for you anymore. When bipod can be stowed when its not needed,
10 intensity settings, the first four of ranging, there are 1/10th mil scales on ordering you specify your stock type so or can easily be swapped from rifle to rifle.
which are designed to work with night either side in both horizontal and vertical they can ensure you get straps of the Despite the Thermopylae theme, we doubt
vision equipment. While its a little orientations. Currently, the reticle is correct length, and they also toss an- they can guarantee your survival against
longer than the Micro T line, it uses the intended for 175-grain 7.62N fired from a other set in for you in case you change an army of over 100,000 Persians. But it
same mounts, so theres no shortage 1/10 twist barrel, the same used by many your mind down the line. probably cant hurt.
of great ways to mount the CompM5 designated marksmen weird. MAKE: MAKE:
if you pass on Aimpoints factory MAKE: Bradley Cheekrest Spartan Precision Equipment
mounting system. Its a solid upgrade Plumb Reticle/U.S. Optics MODEL: MODEL:
to the CompM4 that reduces size while MODEL: Elite Series Cordura 500d Bradley Spartan 300 Bipod
increasing ease-of-use without giving SR-8S Adjustable COLORS:
up a bit of performance. MAGNIFICATION: COLORS: Black
MAKE: 1-8x OD, Multicam, Kryptek, Coyote, and FDE MSRP:
Aimpoint COLORS: MSRP: $395
MODEL: Matte Black $125 URL:
CompM5 MSRP: URL: javelinbipod.com
SETTINGS: $1,595 bradleycheekrest.com
3 4

4 night vision URL:


IS SU E

6 daylight handldefense.com
BATTERY:
1 AAA 4
28 ESTIMATED BATTERY LIFE:
10 years night vision
REC O ILW E B .C O M

5 years medium daylight


1 year maximum daylight
MSRP:
$1,068 with AR mount
URL: 2
Aimpoint.com

3 1
Fit most AK-47s, AK-74s and variants, stamped and milled!
Installs in minutes, with no permanent modifications, easy to follow instructions and tools included Lightweight rugged construction of 6061 alu-
minum, hard coat anodized for a lifetime of service Battle proven patented clamping system: US Patent D625,765S Optic specific models include US
patented design features The highest quality, most affordable AK handguards on the market! 100% Made in the U.S.A. - MI Lifetime warranty

KeyMod COMPATIBLE! M-LOK COMPATIBLE!


MI Gen2 Universal MI Gen2 Universal
AK Handguard AK Handguard
KeyMod compatible M-LOK compatible
design includes one design includes one
five slot picatinny rail five slot picatinny rail
section section
Weighs only 8 ounces! Weighs only 7.5 ounces!
Two anti-rotation QD sockets for QD sling swivels Two anti-rotation QD sockets for QD sling swivels
Requirements for fit: Barrel diameter of .700 under lower handguard; Lower Requirements for fit: Barrel diameter of .700 under lower handguard; Lower
furniture length of 6 inches, not counting mounting surface; Upper gas tube furniture length of 6 inches, not counting mounting surface; Upper gas tube
furniture length of 4 inches, not counting mounting surface. furniture length of 4 inches, not counting mounting surface.
With Rail Topcover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .#MI-AKG2-UK Retail $179.95 With Rail Topcover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .#MI-AKG2-UM Retail $169.95
With T1 Optic Specific Topcover . . . . . . .#MI-AKG2-UKT1 Retail $179.95 With T1 Optic Specific Topcover . . . . . .#MI-AKG2-UMT1 Retail $169.95
With MRO Optic Specific Topcover . .#MI-AKG2-UKMRO Retail $179.95 With MRO Optic Specific Topcover . .#MI-AKG2-UMMRO Retail $169.95

KeyMod M-LOK
COMPATIBLE! COMPATIBLE!
MI Gen2 Extended Universal AK Handguard MI Gen2 Extended Universal AK Handguard
KeyMod compatible design includes one five slot picatinny rail section M-LOK compatible design includes one five slot picatinny rail section
Four anti-rotation QD sockets for QD sling swivels Four anti-rotation QD sockets for QD sling swivels
Supplied MI gas tube with proper internal geometry Supplied MI gas tube with proper internal geometry
11.5 inches in length, weighs only 16 ounces! 11.5 inches in length, weighs only 16 ounces!
Requirements for fit: Barrel diameter of .700 under lower handguard; Lower fur- Requirements for fit: Barrel diameter of .700 under lower handguard; Lower fur-
niture length of 6, not counting mounting surface; Will not fit Yugo pattern rifles. niture length of 6, not counting mounting surface; Will not fit Yugo pattern rifles.
With Rail Topcover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .#MI-AKXG2-UK Retail $254.95 With Rail Topcover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .#MI-AKXG2-UM Retail $244.95
With T1 Optic Specific Topcover . . . . .#MI-AKXG2-UKT1 Retail $254.95 With T1 Optic Specific Topcover . . . . .#MI-AKXG2-UMT1 Retail $244.95
With MRO Optic Specific Topcover .#MI-AKXG2-UKMRO Retail $254.95 With MRO Optic Specific Topcover #MI-AKXG2-UMMRO Retail $244.95

MI AK Railed Gas Tube Provides lower 1/3 co-wit-


ness sight picture with Aim-
With mil-spec top rail
Easy installation with no permanent modifications to the firearm
point micro red dot sights Rock solid mounting with MI patent pending mounting feature
Internal profile made to the
same profile as the standard Standard AK with approx 6.75 gas tube .#MI-AKRGT Retail $109.95
AK gas tube Yugo M70 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .#MI-AKRGT-Y Retail $109.95
Constructed of 6061 alu- Yugo M92 PAP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .#MI-AKRGT-M92 Retail $109.95
minum and 4140 steel Yugo M85 PAP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .#MI-AKRGT-M85 Retail $109.95

W292S4498 Hillside Rd, Waukesha, WI 53189 Tel: 262-896-6780, Fax: 262-896-6756 www.midwestindustriesinc.com
5 6 7 8
We love short guns, and This one turned our heads, mostly For the downhill skier, Been drooling over
apparently so does Pantheon because we couldnt figure out snowboarder, or other winter the Magpul Mossberg
Arms. Theyve developed a exactly what the hell was going on. sportsman, Giro dropped a shotgun stock options,
buffer system for AR pistols The short story is that the M-Zero new frameless goggle design but you happen to own
thats incredibly short just 3.5 inches Scope Mount is a Picatinny rail that can be for your perusal. Like many new items a Beretta 1301? This is for you.
beyond your receiver; about half that zeroed. Follow us here, because it might seem released the last several years, its also Aridus Industries took something
of a normal buffer system. Shaving off a bit weird at first. There are many quality QD available in Kryptek. The Axis features a that used to be in the realm
that kind of length without touching the optic-mounts that retain their zeros decently new quick-change lens system that uti- relegated to Dremel and Bondo
barrel and retaining a functional rifle when removed and reattached. ModZero lizes magnets to aid fast location; espe- enthusiasts mainstream. That is,
isnt an easy job. Remarkably, Pantheon took it a step further and made a rail that cially handy when youre wearing gloves. putting a stock on a gun where
Arms achieved this level of shortness can be zeroed. If you have an optic zeroed to Speaking of lenses, no cheap stuff here it wasnt originally intended. The
without the use of a proprietary BCG but one rifle, the M-Zero allows that optic to be with ZEISS and VIVID producing the ASA-1301 adapter is a CNCd 6061
only with a special buffer and spring placed on a second rifle and also be zeroed, optics. Of course being made by Giro, anodized aluminum adapter thats
configuration. Currently, the Kentri since you adjust the M-Zero itself. We havent theyre a seamless fit with Giro helmets, placed between the Beretta and
Buffer System is available for both SB had time to do any sort of extensive testing, though were sure youll be able to use it the Magpul Mossberg SGA stock
Tactical and Shockwave brace systems, but if it works its kinda neat. on any number of head protectors. for a solid fit and seamless look.
but not for short-barreled rifles. As to MAKE: MAKE: MAKE:
whether youre small enough to get a ModZero Defense Giro Aridus Industries
proper position with a stock more than 3 MODEL: MODEL: MODEL:
inches shorter? That part is up to you. M-Zero Scope Mount Axis Goggle Kryptek Highlander ASA- 1301 Stock Adapter
MAKE: COLORS: COLORS: COLORS:
Pantheon Arms Black Various, to included White, Black, Green, Black
MODEL: MSRP: Bronze, Blue, Gray, Yellow, and more MSRP:
Kentri Buffer System $350 MSRP: $75
COLORS: URL: $180 URL:
Black modzerodefense.com URL: aridusindustries.com
MSRP: giro.com
4
30

$55
IS SU E

URL:
pantheonarms.com
6
30 7
REC O ILW E B .C O M

5
FIRST ROUND POP?

5.25" STANDARD CONFIGRUATION


3.25" SHORT CONFIGURATION

NO THANKS
INTRODUCING THE
17 WSM
17 HMR
22 WMR

5.7X28
22 LR

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IS SU E

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REC O ILW E B .C O M

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RIGHT TO
THE POINT
THE WEST POINT MUSEUM
BY PETER SUCIU
PHOTOS BY PETER SUCIU
AND COURTESY WEST POINT MUSEUM COLLECTION,
UNITED STATES MILITARY ACADEMY

West Point, or more formally the United States Military Academy (USMA),
is known today as being one of the oldest military service academies in the
world. The four-year coeducational federal service academy is also home to
the oldest military museum in the country.
The West Point Museum, which officially opened to the public in 1854, ac-
3 4

tually evolved from a collection of military items that were used to train candi-
IS SU E

dates. Unlike many other military museums around the country, the primary
THE WEST POINT MUSEUM

1. A collection of
World War I small
arms, including
bolt-action rifles
from the combatant
nations above a
French Chauchat
light machine gun
the first such
weapon that could
be truly carried by
a single soldier. The
weapon earned a
terrible reputation,
but despite this fact
it influenced later
firearm designs.

1 2

mission of the West Point Museum


remains to support cadet academic,
2. An M4 Sherman 3
guards the entrance
military, and cultural instruction. Until to the West Point
the decade before the Civil War there Museum.
3 4

was no museum, but the collection did


IS SU E

exist, and it was spread out over several


buildings.
It was only formally created as a
38 museum in the middle of the 19th
3. A short sword
century as a way to showcase the role
REC O ILW E B .C O M

carried by the
that the military had already played in Emperor Napoleon.
building the country. As expected, the It was a gift from
French General
West Point Museums collection now
and later President
covers nearly all aspects of military Charles de Gaulle
history, thus encompassing the history to General and later
President Dwight
of the academy as well as the evolu- D. Eisenhower for
tion of warfare and the development of American efforts
American Armed Forces. to liberate France
during World War II.
Currently, the West Point Museum It had been Napoleon
is open to the public daily, except for Bonapartes sword
Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New when he was First 4
Consul of France
Years Day, but only a portion of the before he crowned
collection is on display. For cadets, himself Emperor.
all artifacts are made available for
instruction, special exhibition, and
research. Regular visitors will note that
the museum rotates items on a regular
basis, both as a way of helping preserve
items and to ensure that the collection 4. An American World
War II-era bazooka
can be seen. is above a German
The collection is notable in that it version called a
isnt displayed by era or conflict, said panzerschreck.
These were among
Leslie D. Jensen, curator of arms and the earliest true anti-
armor at the West Point Museum. The tank rockets.
THE WEST POINT MUSEUM

1. The German MP-


museum has evolved since it was first The museum also has a gold-plated
18 submachine gun 1
used to train cadets even before the pistol that belonged to Hitler, but de-
(left) was one of the
official founding of the school. The col- spite rumors it isnt the pistol that the first true portable
lection includes objects that date from German dictator used to commit suicide small arms. It was
introduced at the
even before the American Revolution in April of 1945. end of World War
and continue to the current global war Another high-profile item is one of I. This display also
on terror. Napoleons swords, which had been includes an Italian
Beretta Model 1918,
Today, the West Point Museum is on display with many of the French another attempt
housed in the renovated Olmsted Hall Emperors items in Paris. After the at developing a
on the grounds of the former Ladycliff liberation of the City of Lights in submachine gun.
College, which was founded in 1933 1944, it was presented by General
but closed its doors after the 79-80 Charles de Gaulle to American Gen-
school year. This houses the collection eral Dwight D. Eisenhower as a show
on display on three floors, containing of thanks and respect.
more than 2,000 small arms. It was a way for de Gaulle to say
This includes a pair of pistols that Eisenhower was the new Napo-
carried by George Washington and leon, explained Jensen.
a Thompson submachine gun that The museum has more than 10,000
was by General George S. Pattons pieces of art, along with numerous
side during World War II. Other war models, including several that predate
trophies include a field marshals the founding of the museum and were
3 4

baton that belonged to Reichs used for training purposes. But what
IS SU E

Marshal Hermann Goering. It was really might turn heads is the collection
surrendered to the 7th Army on May of arms.
9, 1945, and is noted for having an Housed in the lower level are numer-
40 ivory shaft thats embossed with 20 ous cannons and could only be called
gold eagles and 20 platinum crosses. serious firepower. These include the
REC O ILW E B .C O M

It was presented to Goering by Adolf French 75mm field gun that American
Hitler in August 1940 during the crews used to fire the U.S. Armys first 2. Part of the West
Battle of Britain apparently before shots of World War I 100 years ago. Point Museums
collection of medium
the German leader knew how that Other pieces include captured British, and heavy machine
campaign would play out. Spanish, and even Chinese cannons. guns

2
THE WEST POINT MUSEUM

1. An American
Renault FT tank is
part of the West
Point Museums
vehicle collection.
It was the first tank
used by the American
military.

2. The Thompson
submachine gun
that was carried by
General George S.
Patton during World
War II. Officers
didnt typically carry
shoulder weapons,
but Patton was
certainly no typical
general.

1
3. This gold-plated
.32-caliber pistol
was a gift from
2 3
3 4

early Nazi Party


member Max Kehl to
IS SU E

Adolf Hitler. It was


inscribed on the
reverse, In defiance
42 of the Red Front
and the Reaction,
for the protection of
REC O ILW E B .C O M

our leader. Despite


some reports, this
wasnt the pistol
the German dictator
used to kill himself.
Photo courtesy of
West Point Museum
Collection, United
States Military
Academy

The lower level of the West Point Mu- Another display is focused on anti- been owned by Apache leader Geronimo
seum also houses a few vehicles, most tank weapons, including such iconic which when seen side-by-side with THE WEST
POINT
notably a World War I American-used pieces as the American bazooka, Ger- the Springfield Trapdoor rifles of the era MUSEUM
Renault FT tank, while a larger World man panzerfaust, and Soviet RPG-7, quickly shows how the Apache and ADDRESS
War II-era M4 Sherman E8 stands as well as various anti-tank mines. The other Native American tribes had superior 2110 New South
Post Road
guard outside. museum even houses an example of firepower to the U.S. Cavalry. West Point, NY 10996
An entire balcony level in the base- the Mk 3 series atomic bomb, the same The collection also includes examples HOURS
ment is devoted to small arms from size and configuration as the Fat Man of military sniper rifles from both World Daily 10:30 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Closed Thanksgiving,
the earliest days of firearms to modern atomic bomb carried by the Boeing B-29 Wars and a very rare German FG-42
Christmas, and New
assault weapons. The collection includes Superfortress Bockscar and dropped on paratrooper rifle. Years Day
various long guns, including wall Nagasaki, Japan, on August 9, 1945. Like many of the weapons that ADMISSION
guns from Europe as well as a Chinese That is truly something few museums are on loan from the U.S. Army, said Free
jingal that was used in the Boxer Re- have on display. Jensen. We are very happy to be able PHONE
845-938-3590
bellion to various light and submachine In addition, throughout the museum to build our collection with the help
URL
guns from World Wars I and II, and the are other notable small arms, such as a of the U.S. military. It has allowed the www.westpoint.army.
Cold War. Winchester rifle that was reported to have collection to grow and evolve. mil/museumhome.html
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OF MONE Y TO RISK YOUR LIFE?
LIKE SPENDING LOTASRMS WHY YOU SHOULD TRY
JUST ASK F-1 FIRE
YOUR LUCK AT BAJA RACING
TZE
BY JOHN SCHWAR
HARRISON
PHOTOS BY IAIN
3 4
IS SU E

46
REC O ILW E B .C O M

2016
BAOJPALITEUCXKRSPEC
TR HY TR
CHEVY 6.2L LS3
TH400 ENTURES.COM
WWW.BAJARACINGADV
W.F-1FIREA RMS.COM
WW
just glori-
say that Baja racing is
If you ever hear anyone beat them
no reason you shouldnt
fied off-roading, theres t. Theyve
n sh*
stuffed full of their ow
senseless with a sock nearby para-
olved in it. There are no
obviously never been inv hours away.
crew may be minutes or
medics and your chase
to be airlifted
y have to wait till dawn
If you get hur t, you ma have a
each year, meaning you
out. The courses change away from
miles
lost and being 100
good chance of getting plete a race
time. Plus if you do com
civilization at any given
y will feel like
serious injury, your bod
and manage to escape
ht.
wood for 24 hours straig
youve been chopping ts it, Youre
ner of F-1 Firearms, pu
As Dion Podgurny, ow
one. We
ja race, never mind win
lucky just to finish a Ba er Hurri-
a phone call shortly aft
caught up with Dion on
of Texas. He
down in his home state
cane Harvey touched lter some
ned up his house to she
relayed to us that he ope cks that
a few of the military tru
displaced neighbors and orts, which
d during the rescue eff
he owns were being use to go. But
wa y
ting, still have a long
at the time of this wri
intere st in
eavors, Dion puts his
much like his racing end
More on that later.
others before himself. ognition
and quickly gaining rec
After opening up shop
Tommy Lee of
became introduced to
for his firearms, Dion
an invitation
ntual friendship led to
Motley Cre. Their eve
Trophy Truck
Felipe 250 in a rented
to compete in the San
ja Racing
te Sohren, owner of Ba
provided by Pistol Pe ustry for
been a fixture in the ind
Adventures. Sohren has
and owns a
for several champions,
decade s, built trucks America on
to host Truck Night in
race team. Look for him
this year.
Histor y Channel later
GO POUND SAND

After that initial introduction to the maximum of 525 hp. The powerplant text, phone, and radio. In other words, 1 BODY
MAKE:
sport, Dion was hooked. Its the pure in this one happens to be a 6.2L Chevy you can dial a phone number and talk
FiberwerX
raw, barbaric nature of it that appealed LS3, which no modifications can be directly to the driver. The truck tips the MODEL:
to me, he says. The next logical step, made to. scales at roughly 4,000 pounds. Ford Raptor TT Body
URL:
of course, was for him to commis- Because entrants are so limited in A set of Rigid lightbars and a
www.fiberwerx.com
sion the build of his own vehicle. That what performance modifications are al- camera system with eyes on whats
project became the F-1 Firearms truck lowed, the biggest way of making your in front of, in back of, and inside the
2 WHEELS
seen here. The truck itself is a custom vehicle go faster is by saving weight. vehicle also helps keep the occupants MAKE:
Bajalite XR, also built by Pistol Pete This is where Dion and Pete had their whereabouts and condition transmit- Cummins American Racing
MODEL:
and is part of the Trophy Truckspec differences. Dion was adamant about ted to the rest of the crew. Nothing AR172
class. For the layman, that means the safety and wanted a pretty sophisti- ever works the way its supposed to, URL:
vehicles in this category are basi- cated communications and GPS system says Pete. Its like the Wild West out www.americanracing.com

cally bound by a few rules, set forth powered by four lithium-ion batteries. A there. This extra insurance, while
by Score International, the sanction- Lowrance guidance package for driver adding pounds, provides an additional
3 TIRES
MAKE:
ing body for the big Baja races and navigator, PCI SatComm G2 Race peace of mind for those braving the BFGoodrich
no underdrive or V-drive, must use a Radio Kit, VHF Kenwood TK7360HK dunes. The stories you may have heard MODEL:
Baja T/A KR3
TH400 transmission, and engines can radio, and Baja Tracking ROMTraX about bandits robbing stranded drivers
URL:
only be sealed crate motors with a system allow for communications via are based on fact. www.bfgoodrichtires.com
3 4
IS SU E

48
REC O ILW E B .C O M

1 2 3
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GO POUND SAND

1
IS SU E

2
50
Aside from the thrill of being able to 1 MOTOR 2 SHOCKS 3 NAVIGATION 4 SEATS
REC O ILW E B .C O M

MAKE: MAKE: MAKE: MAKE:


race in some of the toughest competi-
GM King Lowrance SPARCO
tions on four wheels, Dion was enter- MODEL: MODEL: MODEL: MODEL:
ing into this sport for other reasons. I LS3 2.5-inch coilover; 3.5-inch HDS-12 (navigator) EVO III
URL: bypass HDS-7 (driver) URL:
enjoy taking new people and introduc-
www.gmperformancemotor.com URL: URL: www.sparcousa.com
ing them to the sport. I want them to www.kingshocks.com www.lowrance.com/en-US
have the thrill of a lifetime, he says.
We go out there to compete, but for 3 4
us its about the experience. We race
on passion and stay out of the way of
the guys who are doing it as a career.
Much like shooting an AR for the first
time, racing Baja tends to have that
same effect on people. They quickly
get over their initial fear and want to
immerse themselves in it further.
So, think you got the suds to par-
ticipate in the world of Baja? Many
well-known drivers from IndyCar to
NASCAR thought itd be easy too.
Most of them got their asses handed
to them and humbly returned to their
world of clean tracks and ceremo-
nial milk bottles. The F-1 truck cost
roughly $225,000 to build and averag-
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GO POUND SAND

es around $30K in repairs after each


race plus theres the cost of getting
everyone there and back. Be that as it
may, Dion will be gearing up for this
years Baja 1000 around the time this
issue of RECOIL hits newsstands.
Be prepared to take at least two
weeks out of your life each year to
prepare your vehicle, prerun the race,
qualify, and become familiar with the
dos and donts of racing in such a
harsh, unpredictable environment. If
youre serious about it though, Dion
calls it the most fun you can have
with your pants on. Aside from that
quotes connection to a certain scene
in Basic Instinct, it makes us wonder
if Sharon Stone has ever raced in
the Baja series. After all, she likened
kissing Dwight Yoakam to eating a dirt
sandwich. Coincidence? We think not.
3 4

Want to see more of our experi-


IS SU E

ence with the F-1 Firearms truck


at the 2017 San Felipe 250 race?
Check out the full RECOILtv video at
52 www.recoilweb.com.
REC O ILW E B .C O M
UNUSUAL SUSPECTS LOCKBACK KNIVES
BY PATRICK VUONG

MAKE: MAKE:
Some folks focus so much 1 Spyderco 5 Cold Steel
on how cool a blade looks MODEL: MODEL:
that they fail to consider the Native 5 Steve Austins Working Man
OAL: OAL:
locking mechanism. After all, 6.88 inches 8 inches
a sharp but faulty folder wont BLADE LENGTH: BLADE LENGTH:
3 inches 3.5 inches
seem so attractive after its BLADE MATERIAL: BLADE MATERIAL:
accidentally lopped off one of S35VN stainless steel 4116 stainless steel
WEIGHT: WEIGHT:
your fingers or three. 4.5 ounces 3.1 ounces
Thats why were examining MSRP: MSRP:
$225 $60
the classic lockback knife. URL: URL:
Barring any manufacturing www.spyderco.com www.coldsteel.com

defects, its unlikely to close MAKE: MAKE:


2 Coast Products 6 Outdoor Edge
accidentally. It has a spring- MODEL: MODEL:
loaded metal rocker bar that BX300 Razor-Lite EDC
OAL: OAL:
hooks into a notch on the 7.1 inches 8 inches
bottom of the blades spine, BLADE LENGTH: BLADE LENGTH:
3 inches 3.5 inches
3 4

preventing it from pivoting. To BLADE MATERIAL: BLADE MATERIAL:


9Cr18MoV 420J2 stainless steel
IS SU E

unlock it, press down on the


WEIGHT: WEIGHT:
rocker bar at the back of the 1.6 ounces 2.8 ounces
handle, which lifts the bar out MSRP: MSRP:
56 of said notch.
$15 $35
URL: URL:
This knife type is one of the www.coastportland.com www.outdooredge.com
REC O ILW E B .C O M

strongest locking mechanisms MAKE:


3 Gerber Gear
available. And unlike a frame-
MODEL:
lock or a liner-lock, a lockback SharkBelly
OAL:
keeps your fingers clear of the 7.75 inches
blade as it closes. The only BLADE LENGTH:
3.25 inches
con is that most lockbacks BLADE MATERIAL:
require two hands to close 420HC stainless steel
WEIGHT:
safely. This design reportedly 2.3 ounces
originated in 1400s Spain. It MSRP:
$39
become popular in the United URL:
States in 1964 when Buck www.gerbergear.com
Knives released the Model MAKE:
4 Columbia River Knife & Tool
110 Folding Hunter, which is
MODEL:
still in production today. Offbeat
Here we look at newer OAL:
8 inches
models available today. Maybe BLADE LENGTH:
youll find a lockback folder 3.52 inches
BLADE MATERIAL:
that will make the cut for you 8Cr14MoV stainless steel
WEIGHT:
(and not your fingers).
2.9 ounces

1 2
MSRP:
$40
URL:
www.crkt.com
FLIP THE PAGE FOR MORE DETAILS ON EACH KNIFE.

3 4 5 6
INTERROGATING THE UNUSUAL SUSPECTS
COLD STEEL
SPYDERCO COAST PRODUCTS GERBER CRKT STEVE AUSTINS OUTDOOR EDGE
NATIVE 5 BX300 SHARKBELLY OFFBEAT WORKING MAN RAZOR-LITE EDC

411: 411: 411: 411: 411: 411:


Spyderco is known for The BX300 is ideal for As the name implies, this This folder is aptly titled. Its apropos that Cold Dont judge a book by its
making high-quality those looking for a low- folders aesthetics was Rather than a spring-loaded Steel has teamed up with cover. This ho-hum-looking
lockback knives, and the budget lockback that can inspired by one of Earths rocker bar, the handle has Stone Cold Steve Austin. folder offers surprisingly
Native 5 is no exception. be a workhorse in the field, most feared predators. The a long cutout along the The former is a knife good value for its $35 price
Its incredibly strong, but wont be missed if you glass-filled nylon handle spine with thumbstuds at company with over-the-top tag. The blade made of
durable, and sharp. And lose it in snow-covered features SharkSkin Grip its terminus. The notch on marketing and tough-as- Japanese 420J2 stainless
though its the shortest forest. Though made of that has unidirectional the butt-end of the blade nails tools. The latter is a is replaceable while
model in our buyers guide, synthetic rubber, the scales to provide additional hooks into the terminus pro wrestler and actor with the double-molded Grivory
what it lacks in length handle is ergonomic. The grippyness and a scratch- and locks open. To close, an in-your-face persona handle features rubberized
it makes up for in girth. blade lacks a thumbstud resistant pocket clip. The push on the thumbstuds to and the muscles to back TPR inserts for a non-
3 4

(Thats what he said.) for quick deployment, but SharkBelly is an example lift the terminus out of the it up. The bottom line: The slip grip. The handle is
IS SU E

The leaf-shaped blade its belly provides good of Gerbers recent wave notch. Despite its futuristic Working Man is a tough available in Blaze Orange,
provides more cutting slicing ability. Its slim of everyday-carry (EDC) appearance, it was actually SOB and quite colorful, Blue, and Gray.
surface without extending and lightweight ideal knives priced at affordable first designed by knifemaker as its available in Blaze
the overall length. Made in for everyday carry, yet it prices. Made in the USA. Pat Crawford in 1979. The Orange, Neon Green, and
58 the USA. doesnt have a pocket clip. Offbeat will be available OD Green (as shown).
come January 2018.
REC O ILW E B .C O M

PROS: PROS: PROS: PROS: PROS: PROS:


Outstanding lockup Costs about as little as a Solid lockup once open Outside-the-box 4116 blade steel is razor Grivory handle is comfy
Smooth action thanks to venti latte and breakfast and smooth action when lockback design sharp and strong Lockback mechanism is
Spydercos Bushing Pivot wrap closing Handle, made of 2Cr13 Reversible pocket clip solid and smooth
System Despite being Chinese An inexpensive EDC option with brush finish, looks Living up to its name, the Affordable
G-10 scales offer traction 9Cr18MoV steel, the blade Lightweight, slim, and slick enough for the Working Mans price tag
without being too rough offers decent cutting and attractive looking boardroom is within reach for most
on our paws. piercing performance Surprisingly decent blue-collar folks.
Blades premium S35VN Compact and comfortable cutting performance
is sharp, tough, and to use from the Chinese
corrosion-resistant. 8Cr14MoV steel

CONS: CONS: CONS: CONS: CONS: CONS:


When closed, the wider No pocket clip or Tip-down-only clip Unique design? Yes! Cold Steels Tri-Ad lock- While its cool to be able
leaf-shaped blade takes thumbstud makes for a slower blade Easy to unlock? Not ing mechanism is strong, to replace the blades,
up more pocket real Budget model means deployment quite. While a traditional safe, and shock resistant 420J2 is a poor excuse for
estate than we expected. budget parts (aka The low-end 420HC is a lockback works on a sort but also amazingly a blade steel.
cheaper materials) you-get-what-you-pay- of seesaw thats aided by stiff. Were not sure if its The plastic pocket clip
for steel; the blade dulled a spring, the Offbeats a super tight lock spring is just begging to be
after our brief testing lock bar is a single piece or a gritty pivot pin, but snapped off.
cutting. of metal that you must this knife was difficult to
bend back by pushing on unlock and close. After
the thumbstuds. adding a bit of lube, we
were able to improve it
a tad.
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RADIAN DRACOS
CUSTOM
3 4
IS SU E

60
REC O ILW E B .C O M

BY ROB CURTIS

Build Concept: A defensive build based on the newly available Radian Weapons receiver that serves as a
testbed for the Dracos Straightjacket barrel and Cerakotes new Elite coatings.

Radian Weapons recently got back to board convos about them. And, when it company if something went wrong. But
producing its AX556, featuring the comes to cost, lets just say we always when Falkor Defense bought in and
ambidextrous A-DAC control system. knew an AX556 build wasnt gonna be made its line of Dracos barrels using
We were fans of the setup back when a budget build. the Straightjacket tech (and guarantee-
Radian was known as AXTS, having Wed also heard about a little com- ing the barrel for life), we figured itd be
shot a few AX556-based builds years pany called Teludyne and its Straight- the perfect way to offset the AX556s
ago. We added it to our wish list, but as jacket process. Theyd take your barrel, beefy barrel nut/handguard interface.
the company rebranded and focused on turn it down to its barest outer diameter And was it.
building complete rifles, our chances shove it in a tube and fill the gap with With our setup, the rifles balance
to get one evaporated, only intensifying goo. The result, according to Teludyne, point is exactly at the base of the
our desire to own one. is a longer-lasting, lighter barrel with handguard/upper junction. We acces-
Fast-forward a year and imagine our reduced harmonics and an immunity sorized the rifle with Aimpoints new
excitement as Radian catches up with to thermal loading that increases its CompM5 so wed never have to worry
rifle demand and releases full receiver accuracy. As neat as the concept was, about breaking our optic or changing
sets. Sure, theyre spendy, but our lust we didnt have the patience to wait on the battery. Well skip the BUIS with
was fully fueled by all those discussions a barrel conversion, or deal with the an optic as tough as the CompM5, but
IS SU E
wed never run a non-competition car- ridiculously tight machining toler- Note, we tested the AR Gold in our
bine without a light. We got our hands ances, so tight that they account for trigger guide and noted similar findings.

3 4
on a prototype SureFire M600DF the thickness of the standard Cerakote The companys claims about short reset
light that puts out 1,500 lumens for used on all their parts. They dont are true. This trigger is incredibly fast,
more than an hour using an 18650 normally do patterns on their guns clean, and reliable, but the trade-off is
61
rechargeable lithium-ion battery. because the added layers of Cerakote the absence of tactile reset.

REC O ILW E B .C O M
Were stoked to see SureFire get off its can make things too tight. But we As shown, the rifle shot five five-
watchlight kick and build exactly what worked with Radian and Blown Dead- round groups using Federal Premium
weve been begging for! line Custom Cerakote to measure the 223 Rem 77-grain GMM that all printed
The coating is Cerakotes new Elite difference and found the new coating better than 0.65 MOA. The best was
series. Weve used it on a few compo- had no effect on fit, even built up in 0.52 MOA. Recoil was negligible, and
nents, but wed yet to see applied in layers needed for the MultiCam Black we havent had any stoppages. Though,
multiple layers. We know Radian holds effect, above. were still shy of 1,000 rounds.

COMPONENTS ACCESSORIES
BARREL: RECEIVER ENDPLATE: COATING:
Dracos StraightJacket Barrel, 16-inch 223 Wylde, Radian Weapons Ultralight QD Endplate, $26 Blown Deadline, Cerakote Elite MultiCam Black,
$850 RECEIVER EXTENSION: $440
BOLT CARRIER GROUP: Brownells AR Receiver Extension, $26 LIGHT MOUNT:
Radian Weapons Enhanced BCG, $150 RECEIVER, LOWER: Magpul M-LOK Offset Light/Optic Mount, $35
BUFFER SPRING: Radian Weapons AX556, $370 OPTIC:
JP Custom Operating Spring OSC, $20 RECEIVER, UPPER AND HANDGUARD: Aimpoint CompM5 and AR Mount, $1068
BUFFER WEIGHT: Radian Weapons 15.5-inch, $600 WEAPON LIGHT:
Brownells H2 Carbine Buffer, $30 SAFETY: SureFire M600DF Scout Light, $299
CHARGING HANDLE: Radian Weapons Talon Ambidextrous Safety, $50
WEAPON LIGHT BATTERY:
Radian Weapons Raptor SD, $99 STOCK: SureFire 18650 Li-Ion Battery, $50
GRIP: Magpul MOE SL-S, $80
HANDGUARD
Magpul MOE Grip, $20 TAKEDOWN PINS: COVERS:
HANDGUARD Radian Weapons, $26 Magpul M-LOK Rail Cover, Type 1, $16
COVERS: TRIGGER: RAIL SECTIONS:
Magpul M-LOK Rail Cover Type 1, $16 American Trigger Corporation AR Gold, $279 Magpul M-LOK Aluminum Rail, 5 Slots, $20
MAGAZINE:
TOTAL: TOTAL:
Magpul PMAG 30 GEN M3, $15
$2,790 $1,928
MUZZLE DEVICE:
Surefire WarComp-556, 1/2-28, $149
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STRAIGHT
OFF THE
WORKBENCH

IS SU E
WE GET HANDS-ON Its perhaps a measure of this great spirit that involves someone deciding

3 4
country that despite our troubles and that, since nobody said it cant be done,

WITH A GEN 3 differences, theres still room for the he might as well just do it.
65
PROTOTYPE
garage inventor. Oh sure, most new To be clear, a number of areas on the
products are the result of collaborative X11 still need work to refine them. Its

REC O ILW E B .C O M
CARBINE teams of worker bees toiling away in
a cube farm, but even in the firearms
the nature of the beast when youre deal-
ing with a prototype in the latter stages of

FROM SKELI industry, the culture of innovation is still


alive and well on an individual level. One
its development, and we have confidence
that the bugs will be ironed out by the
BY IAIN HARRISON such entrepreneur is Tyler Skellington, time this hits the shelves of your local
PHOTOS BY
the creator of the eponymous carbine you gun store later this year. Or early next
KENDA LENSEIGNE
see here. While we usually dont report on you all know how this works In the
new guns until our readers can lay hands meantime, lets run through the salient
on them, this one piqued our interest, as features of the X11, and you can decide
its story embodies the spirit of individual- whether its worthy of consideration for
ism that defines us as a nation the your collection.
3 4
IS SU E
STRAIGHT OFF THE WORKBENCH

66
OVERVIEW The Skeli X11 be produced in countries with a less folding stock. And its gas piston made
REC O ILW E B .C O M

Prototype is simple,
The X11 design incorporates ele- well-developed manufacturing base. for a cooler-running and cleaner bolt
easy to break down,
ments from Americas favorite rifle, and promises a high Had the AR-18 been introduced first, carrier group.
while seeking to address some of its degree of modularity. its likely that it wouldve been a com- The Skeli X11 is the latest rifle to
drawbacks. Housed inside an extruded mercial success. Instead, it languished make use of Armalites work on the AR-
aluminum upper receiver lies a short- in the shadow of its sibling, doomed to 18, while bringing the concept into the
stroke piston acting on a bolt carrier, compete with the first-born M16 and 21st century. It starts out with a one-
which rides on twin guide rods. In order the attention lavished on it by a doting piece extrusion, rather than a stamping,
to allow the user the greatest degree of defense family. Like a second child, the incorporating a full-length Picatinny
flexibility when it comes to aftermarket AR-18 had to compete for resources rail up top. Unlike the AR-15, its this
options, great use is made of AR-15 that had already been spent on its pre- component, instead of the lower, which
components, while weight is reduced by decessor, and by that time, the novelty forms the serialized part of the gun and
employing polymer wherever possible. of a 5.56 combat rifle had worn off. is regarded as the actual firearm.
Nonetheless, the AR-18s archi- In addition to its rail, there are suf-
UPPER RECEIVER tecture played an important role in ficient M-LOK slots cut into the sides to
In 1963, Eugene Stoners design influencing the design of other, more give mounting points for every occa-
team at Armalite in California came up successful weapons. Britains SA80 sion, and itll ship with a reasonably
with an alternative to the just-adopted bullpup was once described in the slim polymer handguard to address the
M16 that made great use of stamped press as, An AR-18 shoved up the arse usual complaints of heating, endemic
steel, rather than machined aluminum. of an EM2, a reference to that coun- when placing an aluminum rail system
Requiring simplified manufacturing trys pioneering, yet ill-fated service close to the barrel. That barrel, by the
techniques as compared to the space- rifle of 1951. Its use of twin guide rods way, can be swapped out in under a
age M16, the AR-18 skirted patent and recoil springs allowed the entire minute by undoing the conspicuous nut,
restrictions (Armalite had already sold assembly to fit inside the receiver located just forward of the chamber.
the M16 design to Colt) and could unlike the AR-15 permitting use of a While its not a toolless system, it does
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STRAIGHT OFF THE WORKBENCH

mean the oft-quoted advantage of 300 wallet. Theres one significant change The 3D printed proto-
Blackout requiring just a barrel change to the combo, however, caused by the type we got to mess
with utilized a hinged
can be fully realized. bolt carrier group being lighter than that
folding stock and a
Rather than design every single found in the donor system. As it has healthy number of
component from scratch, the X11 less mass, theres a bit more velocity currently available
AR-15 control parts.
stands on the shoulders of giants. involved as it cycles, necessitating the
Using a standard AR-15 barrel brings use of a titanium firing pin to forestall
several advantages. First, development the possibility of slam fires when shoot-
cost and time are drastically reduced. ing soft primers, such as those found in
Second, the end user isnt dependent some commercial ammo.
on a single, proprietary source should The piston acting on this BCG
they wish to change lengths or profiles runs through a trunion in the upper
(yes, were looking at you, Bushmaster) receiver, which ties both the barrel
so long as it has a 0.75-inch- and it together. A return spring over
diameter journal to accommodate the the barrel drives the piston forward
Skelis gas block, any aftermarket barrel after it delivers a blow to the carrier,
with a midlength gas system will work but its not a critical component in the
on the X11. operating system. Meaning, the gun
Likewise with an AR-15 bolt. While will still run if it eventually loses its
Below: Skeli uses a
were all aware of its shortcomings, its temper due to prolonged and sustained
titanium firing pin
a simple matter to swap it out, and so firing, given its proximity to the barrel. to mitigate the pos-
long as you treat it as a service item Its gas system proved almost too sibility of slam fire
and replacement occurs when its eaten efficient during the brief period we due to the increased
velocity of the bolt
up 6,000 rounds, there shouldnt be spent with the X11. The development
carrier group.
an issue. The X11 makes use of both team is still playing around with various
of these components, which should combinations of vent locations and
lessen any impact on the purchasers gas plug diameters, but, suffice to say,

The nimble X11


leverages a number
of existing technolo-
gies, improved with
the founders own
design input.
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STRAIGHT OFF THE WORKBENCH

the X11 runs on a gas port measuring evaluate ergonomics and functionality, The left-side-folding firearms patent law). Depending on the
around half the diameter as found on an both of which were very good. The stock is adjustable route chosen, this may involve design-
for length of pull. It
AR-15. And its still overgassed. Making stock is adjustable for length and will ing around existing patents or licensing
also allows for firing
efficient use of propellant is no bad accommodate a wide range of body while folded. designs from other manufacturers.
thing, however, as the less gas admitted types, both with and without armor. So much for the engineering
to the system, the cooler it runs and It folds to the left side, while still spiel. How does it shoot? Most Gen
the less carbon buildup occurs, which permitting the user to fire the weapon 3 carbines employing a gas piston
should make for greater time between in both open and folded conditions. It operating system tend to suffer from
mandatory cleaning. In the meantime, locks solidly in the open position by muzzle heaviness, a condition the X11
we experienced stoppages due to means of a B&T-style hinge and catch, manages to mostly avoid. The example
overfunctioning the BCG flung empty and theres a less secure detent that we played with had a SOCOM-ish barrel
cases hard enough to bounce them comes into play when folded and stops profile but was still reasonably fast on
back into the ejection port, giving the the assembly from flopping around. target transitions; if it were to shed a
illusion of a failure to extract. Controls are based around the AR- few ounces from the tubes exterior,
A polymer lower mates to the 15s architecture, which given it uses forward of the gas block, itd feel like a
upper and secures with a very familiar an AR hammer, trigger, safety, mag lightweight AR-15 build.
pushpin, though in this instance, catch, and disconnector should come The carbines recoil impulse was
theres only one of them the lowers as no surprise. Drop-in triggers work noticeably sharper than its peers,
front portion is mechanically locked without modification, though theres probably due to the aforementioned
to its counterpart. At the time of some development work still needed on lighter weight BCG. Its not a bad thing,
our range session, the lower was 3D the bolt hold open. Due to the use of a just different from the guns we used to
3 4

printed and therefore nowhere near as polymer lower receiver, and the desire While many piston benchmark 180 degrees away from
guns can feel overly
IS SU E

strong as a production version made to make it fully ambi, certain patents the freight-train-in-a-marshalling-yard,
front-heavy, Skelis
from glass-reinforced nylon, though it need to be negotiated. (See CONCEAL- design seems to miti- kerchunk of a SCAR 16, and more
was still robust enough to be able to MENT Issue 8 for background on gate much of this. akin to that of a CZ BREN 805. We
70
REC O ILW E B .C O M
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Hornady BLACK ammunition is designed to t, feed and function in a variety of
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STRAIGHT OFF THE WORKBENCH

didnt engage in any kind of accuracy Where does the Skeli X11 fit in the budget backing it up. But then again,
testing, but the heart of the system pantheon of 5.56 carbines? In both its expected to be considerably less
is a known quantity; if the production function and design, its close to the expensive, and if it takes off, we can
gun ships with a decent-quality AR SIG MCX in that it takes over where expect the aftermarket to fill in the
barrel and bolt, then wed expect it to the AR-15 leaves off and adds the gaps. Because Murica.
be capable of 1.5 MOA with 77-grain functionality of a folding stock, quick- Given the market conditions prevail-
OTM ammunition. change barrels, and caliber conversions. ing at the moment in the black rifle
Its more limited in terms of options world, it takes a lot of guts to launch a
when compared to the SIG product, new carbine that the gun in question
as its both brand new and doesnt is the product of one guys imagination
have an entire engineering department and drive is both laudable and unusual.
and multimillion dollar development We look forward to getting a produc-
tion version of the X11 and putting it
through the wringer, but in the mean-
time, should you want to dig a little
deeper, check out the video we shot of
this prototype on RECOILtv.
3 4
IS SU E

72
REC O ILW E B .C O M

The ability to run


multiple calibers
and barrel lengths
allows the Skeli X11
to run in a multitude
of setups, including
this handy SBR.
SPEC BOX

SKELI
X11

CALIBER MSRP
5.56 NATO, 300 Blackout $ $1,449
BARREL LENGTH
16 inches
OVERALL LENGTH PRICE AS FEATURED
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76
REC O ILW E B .C O M IS SU E 3 4
ASSAULTERS GUIDE TO ROOM PROCESSING
BY JOHN CHAPMAN

Over the last few issues, weve outlined First, if you only take one thing from
the procedures needed to work inside a this missive, make it this: slow down
structure in one- or two-person teams. and think things through. Working by
While door, hallway, and stairway pro- yourself is so much more dangerous
cedures are important, they all, at their than working in a team because there
core, serve as a way to get you safely are more angles of exposure (the an-
to where the real work is done: in a gles from which you can be attacked)
room. Once again well focus on these than you have angles of coverage (the
procedures from the perspective of one angles which you can cover with your
person working alone, because thats eyes or weapon). Slowing down and
the circumstance most of you will find maximizing your advantage at every
yourself in, should it become necessary step is the difference between success
to get your fight on inside a building. and failure.
SPACE INVADERS

WHAT AM I LOOKING FOR?


Before searching a room, its impor-
tant to understand what youre looking
for and how to prioritize what you
find. This seems like an obvious thing,
while sitting there reading this article;
however, if you dont train to process
information properly now, theres little
chance youll do it right the first time
under stress. Some of our natural in-
stincts and behaviors work against our
best interest in these situations and
some thinking, war-gaming, and train-
ing are required to help avoid these
traps during the real deal.
First, learn to recognize things
as threats that our everyday life has
trained us to see as benign. Body parts
like feet, elbows, and shoulders stick-
ing out from behind a piece of furniture
are easy to miss in the best of times,
3 4

much less when youre more amped


IS SU E

up on adrenalin than a weed dealer at


a Dave Matthews concert. War-gaming
and training to see the small things
78 associated with a persons presence
Processing and The risks involved in working by in that room. Make good decisions and behind an obstruction, especially in
REC O ILW E B .C O M

prioritizing threats yourself inside a structure should make do not take doing solo CQB lightly. low-light conditions, is absolutely vital
is important, but
first you have to you think hard before deciding to go into Having said that, if you find your- to processing threats in a fight. Notic-
see them. If youre a room at all. When working by yourself, self in a situation where entering a ing shadows, noises, smells, and body
expecting to see avoid entry into rooms unless you simply room alone during a life-threatening parts early will give you an advantage
whole people, youll
have no other choice if, for instance, scenario is necessary, there are some when it counts.
likely miss the small
things that give your child or spouse is trapped in the techniques and procedures you can But people arent the only thing to
people away. room and you need to either get them train on ahead of time to give you a identify in a fight. Other doors in a
out or get inside and then bunker down fighting chance. room and places inside the room you
cannot see behind are also important;
correctly identifying angles of exposure
inside a room is an essential skill, as
well. For instance, recognizing the
open door of a closet will change how
and when you clear behind a bed,
because if you ignore the closet and go
to the danger area behind the bed, you
expose yourself to the closets angle;
and sure as God made little green
Prioritization
apples, thatll be where the pantless
of threat areas
is important guy in the clown mask with a 14-inch
because the open knife will be waiting.
door affects
As we identify threats or threat ar-
how you handle
the danger zone eas, we also have to prioritize them. If
inside the room. we just focus on the thing closest to us
SPACE INVADERS

If you need to are areas you cannot see behind from


breach a door, do
the door where you entered. We call
it from the striker
side, and beware these places danger areas. Anyplace
of sweeping your you cannot see where a person may be
own hand with your
hiding is a danger area. People will fit
muzzle. The basic
skills here (coming in kitchen cabinets, behind and above
on target from the refrigerators, and underneath couches.
low carry, etc.) can Do not underestimate how small a dirt-
be practiced on the
bag can get when properly motivated
square range.
by fear, anger, or pharmaceuticals.
Identifying danger areas allows you to
come up with a plan to search them as
safely as possible, one at a time.

WORK FROM THE DOOR


Processing a room by yourself is
best done from the door. You know
whats on your side of the door, and
running into the room with your hair on
fire, screaming your name, isnt exactly
a recipe for success in this environ-
3 4

ment. Fighting from the battlespace


IS SU E

you already own is almost always the


right answer.
Working alone, you have the dubious
80 honor of being both the breacher and
assaulter on any door you decide to
REC O ILW E B .C O M

enter. If the door is closed, and you


all the time, we leave ourselves open greatly deserving of your attention, lest have to search that room, get to the
to some pretty unpleasant surprises. all of your ninja work up to now be ru- side of the door where the knob is.
This reality teaches us to prioritize ined by an unseen crackheads tire iron The narrow angle Take a deep breath and open the door.
is the first place to
things in three categories, presented to the back of your head. If the doors already open, the good
look in a room. Try to
in order of importance: people, doors, The least of the dangers in a room, see as deep into that news is the breaching has been done
and danger areas. though by no means are they minor, corner as possible. for you; the bad news is the angle of
The first priority, people, is a no-
brainer, right? People are what will
end our day badly. People, whether
armed or not, need to be dealt with
first. Whether youre interacting with
them by giving them orders, moving
them to safety, or communicating with
them ballistically, if you find a person
during a search they need to be fully
controlled before you go any further.
The greatest danger after people is
doors. Doors inside of rooms are a prob-
lem because their angles have to be ac-
counted for before you can safely move
on to the next problem. How the angles
of that door interact with the angles
of any uncleared areas in the room is
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SPACE INVADERS

exposure from the door means you Give that threshold the rest of the room you can see from as you have to in order to both see and
have to start searching as soon as you some air as you outside. Beginning in the narrow angle, process what youre seeing as you go.
search. Being all up
can see the inside edge of the door in it limits your view smoothly work your way around the Quickly cutting this angle faster than
frame opposite of you. Do not cross, and reduces your opening, focusing the majority of your you can process information practically
or rabbit, past an open door if reaction time. attention on the new parts of the room guarantees youll miss vital clues. You
3 4

you plan on turning around and you see with each step. Make this have the rest of your life to finish every
IS SU E

entering from the other direction. movement smooth, and move as slowly scan, so take your time.
Movement is the easiest thing for
Smooth movement
the eye to see, and rabbiting to gain
82 some imaginary advantage is dumb.
across the angle of
the door will allow
Work an open door from the direction you to process what
REC O ILW E B .C O M

youre seeing.
youre already moving.
If you stand on the wall about 3
or 4 feet from a door, on the same
side, youll notice you can see the
narrow angle close to the corner of
the room opposite you. This area is
called the narrow. I like to look at
this area first because that corner is
a dangerous place; its impossible to
see all the way to that corner from
outside the door, and dirtbags know
this. Searching the narrow first allows
you to search all but the last 10 to 24
inches (depending on the depth of the
doorframe) of that deep corner. Work-
ing the narrow angle first on an open
door also allows you to gather other
information about the room. If you see
a wall in front of you through the door,
for instance, you know the room is
corner fed and you only have one deep
corner to deal with.
Starting in the narrow allows you a
good starting point for the search of
SPACE INVADERS

corner for corner-fed rooms and two


for center-fed rooms). This can only be
done by breaking the threshold with
your eye and muzzle and physically
dominating that angle. If you have
one deep corner to take (in a corner-
fed room), take a deep breath, step
only far enough into the room to clear
your eye and muzzle, and attack that
corner. Dont step fully into the room
until youve cleared that corner. If you
drew the short straw and have to clear
both corners of a center-fed room,
youll have to pick a side.
Much like clearing a T intersec-
tion, theres no great answer here;
whichever side you pick will expose
the back of your head to the other
side. If the door opens into the room,
you can gain some concealment by
The value of good Having said that, try to avoid tak- target to shoot at through the wall. clearing the side opposite where the
old-fashioned
3 4

ing a step and stopping every few Smooth, efficient movement is the door is standing open, then turn on
stealth is sometimes
IS SU E

missed in modern- inches. Remember, youre not nearly name of the game in CQB. the side behind the door, but this is a
day training. as ninja as you think, and you give off Once youve seen as much of the sketchy advantage at best. Whichever
Smooth, quiet target indicators as you move. Your room as you can from outside, includ- side you choose, clear that corner,
84 movement can give
shadow, a part of your body, or even ing the narrow angle on the other side, duck out of the room, and attack the
you the advantage
your breathing can let an enemy know its time to put on the big boy pants other corner from another elevation
REC O ILW E B .C O M

on occasion, and
doesnt cost you youre coming. Stopping during this and do the really dangerous thing: You (like kneeling). It sucks, but its the
much. sweep merely gives them a stationary have to see in the deep corners (one best option you have.

Digging the deep


corner should be done
after the center of
the room is checked
from outside, and
care should be taken
to only expose the
absolute minimum
amount of yourself
necessary to see/
shoot into that corner.
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step down the wall. Search the entire take the hallway back exactly like you
room methodically again. Prioritize any took the room in the first place. But
doors and the danger areas in the room, Chappy you say, isnt it going to take
make a plan for assaulting them, and forever to clear my house this way?
get the work done. Dont linger inside a Yes, it takes a long time to manage the
room any longer than necessary. risks involved in one-person CQB. The
When its time to exit, guess what good news is you have the rest of your
you need to do? Yep, you have to life to do it.
3 4IS SU E

86
GOING INTO THE ROOM If you have two
REC O ILW E B .C O M

Once youve searched the room from deep corners to


clear, check the
the outside, you have a decision to second one from a
make. Do you need to physically occupy different height.
that room? Perhaps youre searching it
because you need a place to strong-
point during an active shooter; or maybe Your initial point of
domination inside the
youre looking for your kids to get them
room should be one
out of the building, and you need to step inside the door,
make sure they arent hiding inside. close to the wall.
Whatever it is, going in that room bet-
ter be worth your life, because those
are the stakes you laid on the table by
searching it in the first place.
If you need to go in the room, step

ABOUT THE AUTHOR


in as soon as youve searched the last
deep corner. Dont duck back out of the
room then re-enter. A lot can change John Chappy Chapman is a police officer with over 25 years of full-time and reserve police
in two or three seconds, and giving up service in patrol, training, and SWAT positions. Hes currently a SWAT team leader, and has
your domination of that space before completed thousands of hours of firearms and CQB training with some of the worlds best
you physically enter it can result in instructors. Chappy has taught in the private sector since 1999, serving armed citizens,
some particularly nasty surprises. police officers, and military units, most recently as an instructor for EAG Tactical. Chappy,
When you step into the room, do so along with John Spears, recently founded Forge Tactical (forgetactical.com), an advanced
only far enough to get the rest of your tactics focused training firm, to carry on the legacy of EAG.
body past the threshold, and take one
APPLE PIE AND VODKA ARE
AN INTERESTING AND
TASTY COMBINATION
BY IAIN HARRISON
PHOTOS BY KENDA LENSEIGNE
If you were to flick through back issues of RECOIL, youd Whoever came up with the idea of taking Rugers exist-
probably notice a dearth of articles concerning budget- ing, short-action American bolt rifle and making it accept
priced hunting rifles. Theres a good reason for that, as both 7.62x39 ammo and the companys proven Mini 30
achieving a ballistic boner over a category thats about as magazines deserves a bonus, as theyre going to sell a metric
interesting as canned vegetables is difficult to say the least. ass-ton of them. Anyone with an AK or AR in this caliber
This new offering from Ruger tempted us to slum it, will be immediately interested, as they already know the
however. Heres an accurate, suppressor-ready bolt gun that benefits that x39 brings to the table. Those looking for a
can take 20-round mags and can be had for around four lightweight, compact deer gun for the upcoming season have
bills. Best of all, its chambered in a round that allows for already pricked up their ears, and parents with kids whove
lots and lots of cheap practice, while delivering terminal expressed a readiness to step up to a centerfire rifle will no
ballistics thatll dump most North American game animals doubt be taking note. No, its not a laser-flat ultramag, but
inside of 200 yards. thats entirely the point.
3 4
IS SU E
AMERICAN AS AN AK

90
REC O ILW E B .C O M

OVERVIEW Streamlined engi- process effect of work hardening the Whats less traditional is a three-lug
In the five years since Ruger intro- neering and modern surface of the bore, we expect it to bolt, as found on its upmarket sibling,
manufacturing
duced the American rifle, its carved processes make hold up to many, many cases of steel- the Ruger Precision Rifle. And instead
out a name for itself as a very com- the Ruger American jacketed Combloc ammo. At 16 inches of a controlled round feed, modified
petent budget blaster. Designed from both nimble and in length, its a perfect match to x39 Mauser action found on the companys
affordable.
the outset to make maximum use of internal ballistics, as theres almost legacy M77 rifles, the use of a three-
modern manufacturing procedures such no velocity increase worth having from lug design offers some advantages
as metal injection molding, wed be sur- saddling it with a longer pipe. Shorter from both the shooters and the engi-
prised if a pair of human hands touch it barrels are inherently stiffer a good neers perspective.
more than a couple of times from when thing if youre planning on adding a First is the removal of a machining
raw materials arrive, to when it lands on suppressor, and as the Americans step necessary to broach raceways in
the loading dock for shipping. If youre muzzle is already threaded 5/8-24, it the action that serve to guide the bolt.
looking for a finely crafted heirloom, would be a shame not to. Instead, bolt lugs are the same diameter
carved from wood and steel by a long- The barrel is mated to its action as the bolt body, rather than sticking
tenured craftsman whos worn out a by means of a Savage-style barrel out on either side of it, meaning the
spot in the floor in front of his vise, nut, while foregoing the latters ease corresponding hole in the action can
then this assuredly aint it. It would be of swappage (yes, we just made that simply be bored through. One side effect
a mistake though to equate this with up) in favor of aesthetics we dont is smoother bolt travel, as we now have
low quality. After all, your iPhone isnt expect too many folks will lament the two simple tubes sliding one inside the
a product of generations of silicon arti- omission, as its a very low profile, other. Another is reduced bolt throw (in
sans, and it works just fine. slick system. this case, 70 degrees, rather than 90),
The heart of any rifle is its barrel, That action, by the way, starts out giving more clearance between bolt knob
and this one is made in-house on a life as a chunk of 4140 CrMo bar and scope, as well as theoretically faster
hammer-forging machine. Due to the stock, about as traditional as it gets. operation. A downside to a shorter bolt
AMERICAN AS AN AK

throw is that theres more effort needed and cheesy no getting around it.
to cock the striker when the bolt is lifted But on a rifle thats likely to be banged
you still need to do the same amount around in a truck and scratched to
of work, but in a shorter amount of time. hell and back as the user bushwhacks
So, to address this, Ruger doubled the through brambles and thornbushes,
number of cocking cams under the plas- were prepared to make allowances,
tic, snap-on bolt shroud. It works well. even so far as the bottom metal. Or
Once that striker is cocked, its rather plastic. Thankfully, it does have
released by means of what Rugers a steel catch that should allay concerns
marketing department has christened about wear and tear caused by insert-
their Marksman trigger. A secondary ing and removing a steel mag.
safety blade locks the primary and
persuaded the companys lawyers to ROUNDS DOWNRANGE
endow it with a decent pull its way Before heading to the range, we out-
better than the one found on our M77, fitted our T&E gun with a Leupold VX3
and can be user-adjusted down to a 2.5-8x36 scope and a Liberty Mystic
claimed 3 pounds X suppressor, before throwing an as-
Up front, a spring-loaded plunger- sortment of godless heathen commie
style ejector, familiar to anyone whos ammo into a range bag. Apologizing to
ever stripped an AR-15, kicks empty the wholesome examples of upstand-
cases out of the right side of the action. ing, patriotic, American rounds that
3 4

A MIMd sliding extractor grabs about shared space with them, we sallied
IS SU E

half of the amount of case rim that a forth to Cowtown.


Mauser claw would cover, but seemed One aspect of the little rifles design
to be quite adequate for the task. thatll be commented on whenever
92 As far as the steel components go, anyone picks it up is just how lively
the American delivers workmanlike and pointable it feels, despite the
REC O ILW E B .C O M

performance. The interface between plastic stock or maybe because


its superstructure and its stock is han- of it. Contours in all the right places
dled by a pair of steel-bedding blocks, means it feels petite in the hands, and
which are cast into the injection-mold- the just-legal barrel isnt in the least
ing process and eliminate the need for bit ponderous.
a recoil lug. So far, so good. Rounds fed and ejected with the
We wanted to hate on the stock. minimum of fuss, whether steel or
Maybe it was due to just completing brass cased. We found it was possible
a hand-rubbed, glass-bedded walnut to bind the bolt as it approached going
Never destined to resurrection project for a future issue into battery, so long as we deliberately
be a family heirloom of CARNIVORE, but we really wanted maintained upward pressure on the bolt
or auctioneers
to pour scorn on this petrochemical handle. Evidently, the leading edges of
dream, the American
exhibits some key upstart and rant about how it cheap- the bolts locking lugs are sharp enough
characteristics of ens the whole experience of firearms to catch on the corresponding receiver
its namesake: its ownership. Then, we compared it to recesses a little chamfer here would
rugged, hard-
others on the market. go a long way to solving the problem,
working, and amply
skilled in its chosen Once our critical outlook had been though just how much of an issue this is
profession. recalibrated from the 1960s to 2017, might be open to debate. Run the bolt
it became tougher to badmouth the like you mean it, and it solves itself.
Americans furniture. Yes, after getting RECOIL Contributing Editor Steven
used to hand-cut checkering and taking Kuo compiled a magisterial buyers
three weeks to get the finish just right guide to 7.62x39 ammo in Issue 26
on a piece of wood that took two cen- if you havent availed yourself of it,
turies to grow, plastic just feels cheap then youre missing out. Fortunately,
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IS SU E
AMERICAN AS AN AK

94
REC O ILW E B .C O M

its available online at RECOILweb, so The bottom metal ... lore would have us believe is slightly tent, running around 3 inches. Not
well ... isnt. But a
theres no excuse for not brushing up less accurate than buckshot through a exactly stellar, but OK for plinking. It
steel catch seemed
on the myriad offerings in this caliber. at least during 12-gauge? should be noted that the oft-encoun-
We used considerably fewer examples our T&E to stave Of the bargain-priced eastern op- tered problem of short, western firing
than he did, but came away with similar off any potential tions, our rifle preferred Wolf 123-gr pins meeting deeply recessed eastern
damage from
results Federals 123-gr soft point Polyformance, which in previous test- primers never reared its head. The
repeated magazine
remains the most accurate factory load changes some- ing was rather ho-hum in the accuracy American lit them all reliably.
weve tested and in this case, turned in what inevitable, as department, but here could be counted Wed be remiss if we steered clear of
shooting this rifle is
several 0.6 MOA groups. Whoa. Did he on to produce 1.5 MOA groups in the the question of just why Ruger might
both cost-effective
just say that? Consistent sub-MOA per- and downright Ruger. Other brands, such as Centurys introduce an x39 rifle when they al-
formance from a cartridge that Internet pleasant. Red Army Standard were less consis- ready have the same model chambered
AMERICAN AS AN AK

in 300BLK. Certainly, theres a lot Accuracy from Fed-


erals factory loads
fewer (i.e. almost zero) commercially
was wholly adequate
available subsonic ammo offerings in for all but the most
the Soviet caliber, which is somewhat accuracy-intensive
applications. While
ironic given that the Russians made
pre-loaded subsonics
extensive use of PBS suppressors on are disappoint-
AKMs in Afghanistan during the 80s, ingly difficult to find,
and were the first to realize the utility handload options
exist and, if executed
of switching between subsonic and
properly, are quiet
supersonic ammo by simply swapping enough to cause
magazines. If you want to shoot subs giggles.
through a can, then youre pretty much
forced to reload for it. So we did.
Its here that we think Ruger slipped
up. The American ships with a 1-10
twist barrel, which means the really
heavyweight projectiles we all love
wont stabilize at subsonic velocities
trust us, we tried. A 9 twist tube would
give the user more options regarding and the gas volume need to kick out a ball to figure out that a 6.5 Grendel
bullet weights wile being closer to the bullet goes way down, making the sup- variant is just a barrel swap away, add-
3 4

1 turn in 24cm Russian spec. We had pressors job that much easier. And if ing another 100 yards to its effective
IS SU E

the most luck with Sierras 174-grain youre going to handload for subs, then range while keeping the cheap steel-
Matchking, but according to our bullet its not too difficult to wring an extra cased ammo option open. In the mean-
stability calculator, even thats mar- hundred feet per second out of the time, we like this one just fine, and will
96 ginal in dense air at 1,050 fps. case when capped with a 125-grain be using it to train for activities suited
The good news is that, freed from class projectile. to bolt guns, such as PRS competi-
REC O ILW E B .C O M

the constraints of a gas system, if you While were pleased Ruger intro- tions and hunting when you can get
decide to handload for the American, duced the 7.62 version of its American a complete rifle for the same cost as a
then it can be made Hollywood quiet. rifle, were more excited by whats on new barrel on a precision rig, its appeal
Stick to fast-burning pistol powders, the horizon. It doesnt take a crystal becomes even more apparent.
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16 inches
OVERALL LENGTH
36 inches MSRP
WEIGHT (UNLOADED) $ $600
6 pounds
URL MAGAZINE CAPACITY PRICE AS FEATURED
5 rounds standard
www.ruger-firearms.com (20-round mags available) $ $1,100
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3 4

BY MIKE SEARSON
IS SU E

100
REC O ILW E B .C O M

PHOTO BY KENDA LENSEIGNE


Production for civilian-transferable sibly in an effort to preempt Congress even shooting techniques that can get
machine guns ended in May 1986. from taking up the matter. you there.
The law of supply and demand drove Were not going to tell you if a full- Prices range from $100 to $800.
up prices of transferable machine auto simulator is right for you, if nows Are the pricier ones worth it? Do you
guns through the roof. When the cost the time to hurry up and buy, or even get what you pay for regarding the
of an entry-level, full-auto-converted comment on the worthiness of such inexpensive mods? Are these legal in
AR-15 was equal to a classic muscle an investment. But because there are all 50 states?
car, the market responded by produc- numerous options in this niche corner After the Hughes Amendment
ing full-auto simulators. These of the aftermarket that may be given passed, the only thing shooters could
devices allow shooters to fire rapidly an expiration date based on recent do to simulate full-auto fire was bump-
while staying within the confines of events, we do want to educate you on fire their rifle. There were a couple of
federal law. the products that are out there, what ways to do it. The shooter either held
Such devices have come to the benefits they offer, and what trade- the rifle in a loose manner and let it
forefront of public attention in light of offs might be required of the shooters move back and forth against their trig-
the Las Vegas shooting that occurred who use them. ger finger, or they picked up a Hellfire
as we wrote this article. While we There are a number of options for trigger that shortened the triggers re-
refuse to fearmonger or steer business the AR-15 shooter; from bump-fire turn. Both required a certain technique,
to price gouging panic-sellers, the stocks such as the Slide Fire SSAR- and, as the company producing the
possibility of these items facing addi- 15 MOD and Texas Bump Fire to Hellfire went out of business, we were
tional regulation isnt unrealistic. Even triggers such as the Fostech Echo, left with just the bump-fire method. In
the NRA came out in support of a Franklin Armory BFS III, Geissele many ways, that act alone was superior
regulatory re-look at the devices, pos- BGRF, and Digitrigger 1.2. There are than installing a trigger gimmick.
FULL-AUTO SIMULATORS

It took us some time (and a lot of


ammo) to be able to get the hang of it.
We kept trying to work the trigger like
we normally do and at one point almost
gave up in frustration as our own ability
to rapid fire seemed better than trying
to bump fire the rifle.
A friend pointed us in the right direc-
tion, by demonstrating how the shooter
needs to hold his finger straight and
rigid against the rest and let the trigger
hit it under recoil.
The Texas Bump Fire stock installs
in a similar way and works just as well,
a locked position where you fire it like a once you know what you are doing.
regular rifle, or unlocked where you keep Its not as refined looking as the Slide
your finger against a rest and let the rifle Fire, but it comes in at less than half
move back and forth under recoil. the price.
3 4
IS SU E

102
REC O ILW E B .C O M

Slide Fire
stock installed Texas Bump
Fire stock
BUMP FIRE AND SLIDE FIRE
Two companies manufacture stocks
that can be installed on an AR-15
pattern rifle with minimal fuss: Texas
Bump Fire and Slide Fire.
Installation is simple and requires PROS: CONS: WHERE TO GET ONE: LEGALITY:
replacing your existing rifles pistol The price is a major factor Theres a bit of a learning www.slidefire.com Neither companys websites
grip with an Interface Block. This here as the Bump Fire can curve, particularly if youre www.bumpfiresystems.com states that the product is
resembles the top inch of your exist- be found for less than $100 an experienced rifle shooter, banned anywhere; however,
ing grip and retains the selector detent and the Slide Fire for about and results for us were the State of California has
and spring. $200. very mixed. Theres also the declared it to be a multi-
We advise measuring before instal- look and feel aspect that burst trigger activator and
lation; we ended up having to shorten some shooters wont be therefore illegal.
our selector detent spring by two coils able to get past. If you have
in order to get our selector to work with an extra stripped lower
both stocks. receiver and want to build it
The Slide Fire stock simply slides into something that lets you
over your buffer tube and is secured by waste ammunition and have
a locking pin attached to the stock. a little fun thats the route
Once installed its a rather good- we suggest, just move an
looking arrangement and can be used in upper onto it and have at it.
FULL-AUTO SIMULATORS

Geisseles BGRF installed


3 4
IS SU E

104 GEISSELES BGRF (BROWNELLS Geisseles BGRF (Brownells


Geissele Rapid Fire)
GEISSELE RAPID FIRE)
REC O ILW E B .C O M

If the stocks, binary triggers, and


digi-trigger arent your thing, we rec-
ommend the Geissele BGRF.
The BGRF Trigger may not the best
choice for bench rest shooting, preci-
sion shooting, hunting or three-gun,
because its a little too fast for most
shooters. This is most evident when
the 3.5-pound spring is installed. It
may sound like a slight difference
than the 4.5-pound spring, but trust
us, its not.
Its not as fast as full auto, but of all
the full-auto simulators we tested, this
one will probably keep you the most
accurate. Its advertised as a two-stage PROS: CONS: WHERE TO GET ONE: LEGALITY:
trigger, but it really feels like a single- Even without true simulated It really lacks the speed of www.geissele.com The BGRF is legal in every
stage, it works well in conjunction with full-auto fire, this is an even a Bump Fire stock if state.
a bump-firetype stock, but we like it incredibly fast shooting youre looking for simulated
best for well-aimed rapid fire. trigger. We have one in our full-auto fire, first. Instal-
Installation is extremely easy and SBR and can work it pretty lation is a pain in that the
unlike some of the other devices, its fast when we want to just wire EDM cutting used to
50-state legal (although whether or not have fun. The price is often make this trigger makes for
your rifle is may be another story). a hair under $200. some very sharp edges.
FULL-AUTO SIMULATORS

Franklin Armorys BFS installed


3 4
IS SU E

BINARY TRIGGERS: FOSTECH If you decide to buy one, read the


ECHO AND FRANKLIN ARMORY instructions over several times and
A binary trigger works as its name ensure you understand how the unit
106 suggests, by two separate actions of is installed. We also advise giving the
the trigger. The rifle fires normally with company CEOs YouTube installation
REC O ILW E B .C O M

the first squeeze and then fires a sec- video a onceover before and during
ond shot upon its release and return installation and do it on a laptop, PC,
forward. This action is accomplished or stream it to your flat screen as reso-
by moving the selector to the third po- lution may not be the best. Franklin
sition so that the rifle has three modes: Armory advises attaching the included
safe, semiautomatic, and binary. Both Franklin Armory fit. We had no problems whatsoever sticker to the lower on which youre
triggers ship with an ambidextrous advises attaching in this regard, but have heard of other using, or you can have the third posi-
the included sticker
safety that allows rotation to the third to the lower on which shooters having this issue. tions marking engraved.
trigger position. youre using, or you
The concept isnt new. Trap shooters can have the third
positions marking
have been using triggers that fire on
engraved.
release for decades, and back in the
1980s there were a few binary triggers
floating around the gun show scene.
However, Franklin Armory and Fostech
have taken these to a new level.
While they provide the same function,
each one works a little bit differently.
Franklin Armorys BFS (Binary Firing
System) trigger requires a more de-
tailed installation and, depending upon
your lower receiver, it may just drop in
or you may have to file metal from the Franklin Armorys BFS
lower or add shims to ensure a proper (Binary Firing System)
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FULL-AUTO SIMULATORS

Fostech Echo 2 installed

The Fostech Echo dropped in with If youre a trigger snob, you may
little fuss a good thing as its a not like that aspect, but there may be
more complex-looking design, even something else in this realm for a bit
though the Franklin sports three sears. more money.
3 4

At one time Fostech required the use


IS SU E

of a bolt carrier they supplied, which


added cost to the build. However, the
latest version can be used with an
108 M16 full-auto bolt carrier in order to
prevent hammer follow in Binary mode.
REC O ILW E B .C O M

Fostechs Echo incorporates a trigger


lock for additional safety.
Performance is similar on both
triggers, and at first will take a little
getting used to. Franklin Armorys BFS
unit runs a bit faster than the Fostech
and some shooters have reported stop- Fostech Echo 2
pages by outrunning the bolt. We suf-
fered no such failures and are running
a standard M16 carrier with a standard PROS: CONS: WHERE TO GET ONE:
rifle buffer in an M16-A2 clone, a rifle Both triggers perform as The price point can be a www.franklinarmory.com
built from parts we imported from Gua- advertised. This is about as stickler, and if you like www.fostechoutdoors.com
temala back in our Century Arms days. close to three-round burst a real crisp trigger in
The lower is a DPMS standard lower as you can get without buy- your rifle as opposed to a LEGALITY:
from the late 1990s; all other parts ing a real M16-A2. polished military-grade ver- Fostech will not ship Echo Franklin Armory doesnt sell
were from decommissioned Colt M16- sion, theres that aspect. All triggers to: or ship to civilians in the fol-
A2s that we imported as parts kits. things considered the MSRP North Dakota lowing states and/or cities:
As far as regular operation, the on either of these is still Oregon California
Franklin Armory BFS has a release much less than a full-auto Washington Washington, D.C.
of about 4.5 pounds on semi-auto machine gun: $387 for the New Jersey Iowa
and feels like a cleaned-up military Franklin Armory BFS, $479 North Dakota
trigger. The Fostech Echo breaks at 4 for the Fostech Echo 2. New Jersey
pounds, but seems like a longer pull New York
than normal. Washington
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FULL-AUTO SIMULATORS

Activating the Digitrigger gave us The Digitrigger 1.2 works well


an amazing 1-pound pull in the semi with the proper battery installed, but
position that did allow us to dump a removal isnt the easiest thing in the
mag pretty quickly. When we flipped to world. We arent concerned about the
the third position we heard numerous government sending out EMF blasts
clicks like a dying airsoft gun but no to disable these triggers like some tin-
rounds fired. foilers might speculate, but see relying
A quick call to Digital Trigger Tech- on battery power as its weak point.
nologies confirmed it was the battery Maybe 1.3 can use better circuitry or
not supplying enough current so we an improved power source.
switched out for a Duracell.
LEGALITIES
OVERALL All of these devices have clearance
We have had a Slide Fire for quite at the federal level regarding legal-
DIGITRIGGER 1.2 some time, but dont use it as much. ity, yet several states consider them
From Digital Trigger Tech- Some people love them, ours is more machine guns or machine gun parts
nologies there is the Digitrigger of a strong like. at the state and/or local level, as we
1.2, a trigger that fires via a Geisseles BGRF is a fine trigger noted above.
microprocessor housed in the grip that we tend to prefer in just a basic However these laws and ATF deci-
and powered by a 9-volt Duracell rifle setup. sions are always changing. When we
battery. Yes, the brand of battery is The Franklin Armory BFS makes our started this article, the Auto Glove was
3 4

important in this case for reasons that M16-A2 clone feel like the old friend one of the items we were going to re-
Digitrigger 1.2
IS SU E

well get into later. installed we had shoved into our hands 30 years view. A few weeks later it was declared
On our first trip to the range we didnt ago as a 17-year-old Marine recruit, illegal by ATF, and therefore didnt
heed the warning about using Duracell although its semi-auto setting is light- make the cut.
110 batteries. We used another brand that years ahead of anything we fired in the As we put the final keystrokes on
came brand new out of the box. military in an A1 or A2. this article, the events of the October 1
REC O ILW E B .C O M

In semiautomatic mode with the Fostechs Echo Trigger has a massacre in Las Vegas are still unfold-
grip turned off, we had a rifle with a smoother feel in semi-auto mode, but ing. Some of these devices may face
mediocre trigger pull and a pistol grip is probably tied with our love for the further scrutiny from the government
that was on the slightly bulky side. The trigger fires via Franklin Armory BFS. It works well as a feel-good measure to address the
a microprocessor
in our Business Rifle and is most concerns of freedom-hating nanny-
housed in the grip
and powered by a likely the rifle we will grab when the statists who dont understand the way
9-volt battery. zombies come. of life of the professional shooter.

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in both modes of operation. everything we reviewed, LLC doesnt sell or ship to
Without the Binary function and you need to remove the the following states and/
you get a safe 1-pound battery as it will drain down or cities:
trigger thats faster than quickly. Battery power is California
the BGRF. In Binary mode probably the weakest link Washington, D.C.
it fires as fast, but much in this device, but should Iowa
smoother than the Franklin the battery completely fail North Dakota
and Fostech triggers. you still can fire the rifle New Jersey
in non-digital mode. Prices New York
range from $699 for the Washington
base model on its own to
$1,250 built into a complete
Ruger rifle.
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IS SU E
3 4
Lets say you want a rifle for your limited military presence in the coun-
113
journey to the ass end of the world. trys remote northern, coastal, and

REC O ILW E B .C O M
Something thatll run in a desert otherwise barely civilized areas. Its
of ice, wind, and permafrost. Itll a volunteer, part-time, civil-military
provide safety and sustenance, taking force of about 5,000 people, split
on predators and game in places so among five geographical regions.
remote that youre as much a part of Were talking about them because
the food chain as the beasts you seek were looking at the Tikka T3x Arc-
to dine on. tic through the lens of the Canadian
Its here that the Canadian Rang- Rangers requirements for its recently
ers, CRs for short, do their nations adopted C19 rifle. The T3x Arctic is the
bidding. Not as soldiers or functionally, and practically identical
snipers, but as the eyes and commercial version of the issued rifle.
ears of a national defense Despite being issued rifles, The
force. Hunters, guides, trap- Canadian Rangers are not actually
pers men and women of mandated with armed defense, says

TIKKAS T3X ARCTIC IS A the north, many of them able to say,


Les Stroud? Never heard of her,
Lieutenant Colonel Russ Meades, Com-
manding Officer of the 4th Canadian
BEEFED-UP, SCALED-DOWN, likely with total honesty (even though Ranger Patrol Group. Theyre man-

ALL-AROUNDER hes Canadian ). dated with observation and reporting.


Meades patrol group is 1,050 CRs,
BY ROB CURTIS THE CANADIAN RANGERS covering 2.7-million square kilome-
The CRs is a sub-component of ters. Thats about the area of every-
the Canadian Armed Forces Reserve thing in the continental U.S. west of
officially formed in 1947 to provide a Texas, minus New Mexico.
A GIFT FROM THE NORTH

THE MISSION The T3x Arctic is a caliber longarm is ideal for the harsh The Tikka T3x Arctic is the commer-
Aside from performing sovereignty purpose-built wilder- environment; the fact that its been in cial version of the C19 with no functional
ness rifle, made to
patrols, CRs provide a host of services stand up to use in service with the unit for 70 years alone differences. The only cosmetic differ-
3 4

within and beyond their communities. the most inhospitable is testament of its suitability for the role. ences are the CR crest laser etched on
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Search and rescue is a bread-and-but- environments found The old .303 was a great rifle in its the C19 stock, the red hue of the C19s
on earth. And, no, we
ter mission, as is hosting Canadian mili- time, Meades says, but its had its day. laminate stock (versus the T3x Arctics
dont mean Chicago.
tary units when they operate in these Sako cut no corners It could probably go on for many years to orange tones), and the contract require-
114 remote locations. The CRs act as a on this rifle; it even come, but the fact is were cannibalizing ment that dictates the C19 is manu-
community liaison and provide environ- comes with tools and .303s right now because there just arent factured by Colt Canada under license
REC O ILW E B .C O M

a well-written, well-
mental expertise, wilderness education, illustrated manual. enough parts in the system anymore. from Sako, Tikkas parent company. The
guide services, and predator overwatch This brings us back to the Tikka. commercial rifle is manufactured on the
for the units during exercises. The CRs began searching for a replace- Sako/Tikka line in Riihimki, Finland,
The CRs are issued rifles for a few ment for the Lee Enfield No. 4 nearly and exported initially in limited numbers.
reasons; the first is personal security. Tikka and Sako rifles 10 years ago. The search ended with Were spending a lot of ink talking
The Canadian wilderness is a CRs are made on the same the adoption of a Tikka rifle custom about the CRs, because understanding
office, and its as wild as it is beau- production lines, by made for the CRs, type classified as their requirements explains a lot about
the same people,
tiful. Its a place where predators, the C19. the features of the rifle they chose.
using the same
small and large, need to be scared off equipment. Heres the
or dispatched. Second, its a means barrel inspection sta-
of sustenance. Whether at home or tion in the Riihimki,
Finland, Factory.
out on patrol, CRs hunt. And, unlike
traditional military units, the Rangers
keep their rifles at home where theyre
free to train and hunt with them. The
remaining uses trail off into recruiting
efforts, the rare auxiliary law enforce-
ment, and even rarer military action.

THE RIFLE
Since the CRs stood up, the standard
issue rifle for CR patrols has been the
World War II-era Lee Enfield No. 4,
Mk1 rifle. The bolt-action, .303 British
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A GIFT FROM THE NORTH

Meades says, Our more northerly The Arctics action retains all the
patrols, say anything north of the 55th regular Tikka traits, including the
parallel, operate in -40, - 50 de- two-stage safety, talon-like Sako-style
grees C. A bolt-action is abso- extractor, constant tension ejector,
lutely essential because its broached machining. It adds the T3xs
just embarrassing when improved rail mount interface and a
a bears coming at you stainless 5-inch-long (shortened to
According to a report and your semi-automatic seizes up. accommodate the rear aperture sight
commissioned by Can- Argue if you will, but lubes freeze which well get to), 0-degree Pic rail,
adas Defense Research and condensation formed on warm and the slightly enlarged ejection port
and Development director- metal freezes. Frozen things lead to for easier single round loading. And
ate called Canadian Ranger Rifle: problems that turn semi-autos into the handier among you can modify this
Human Factors Requirements Valida- single shots if youre lucky. Running short action Tikka to run as a long ac-
tion, the CRs mainly wanted a gun that a bolt beats tapping a forward assist tion with relative ease. (Google it.)
addressed the No. 4s shortcomings over and over when things get dire. As smooth and reliable as the action
namely it was heavy, big, and outdated. Extreme cold is only one of the is, we did find one dark spot. Single
The CRs are a mobile force, mov- environments in which the rifle has round feeding is improved with the
ing about the northern expanse on to work. The coastal areas contain T3x actions enlarged ejection port on
The Canadian
all manner of locomotion. Rifles are Rangers wanted a humidity, salt water, and sand. The most models, but the rim of single-
strapped to dogsleds, lashed to snow- two-stage trigger, Tikka deals with these by way of stain- fed .308 cartridges regularly hung up
mobiles, shoved into a small aircraft, so Sakos engineers less steel just about everywhere. The on the back wall of the Arctics CTR
made this Tikka
3 4

stowed in boats, and, of course, slung barrel, bolt and action are all stain- magazine, seizing the action. A jiggle
two-stage adjustable
IS SU E

over the shoulder. Smaller and lighter trigger. Its sweet, less, including the newly designed of the rifle knocks the round forward
is easier and faster to stow and deploy. and its getting put extended stainless bolt handle thats and allows it to feed, but its an issue
in the Tikka TAC A1,
Aside from smaller and lighter, the unique to the C19/Arctic. It doesnt whenever the rifle is single-fed with the
116 Rangers wanted a rifle that met or
and will probably
stop corrosion, but it slows it way bolt all the way rear.
be offered in more
exceeded the No. 4s durability and Tikkas soon. down. A bonus is the way the stainless We reached out to Sakos Miikka
REC O ILW E B .C O M

reliability, while improving on its ac- bolt runs in the action. Tikka actions Tamminen, the product manager for this
curacy. They also wanted to move to a generally have a feel all their own, but program, and he was unaware of this is-
modern intermediate caliber that offers the Arctics full stainless action feels sue. He expressed genuine concern but
more commercial ammunition choices glassy smooth. Itll make anyone who wasnt able to get to the bottom of it by
than the dated .303 British round. spent $1,200 on a custom 700 action press time. Well update this article on
Commercially available ammo is impor- question their decision. the web when he gets back to us.
tant to the CRs because, in addition to The Arctics fully
the 200 round per year allotment, CRs stainless steel action
can run any other ammo they choose. is smoother than
Jackos moonwalk.
The C19, and the Tikka T3x Arctic,
Notice the Sako-style
checks all the boxes on the CRs wish cross bolt used to
list, but does that make it a good rifle or shore things up since
they had to take
a committee-designed jack of all trades?
more material out of
the stock to fit the
ACTION double stack mag.
Despite the many advantages mod-
ern semi-auto rifles bring to the table,
a bolt-action rifle is the most reliable
firearm in the widest array of environ-
ments. Sure, you can keep an AR-10
running in the cold, but itll take time
and energy away from whatever else is
going on. And, when we say cold, we
mean f#@king arctic cold.
A GIFT FROM THE NORTH

Being men of action, though, we sights are probably the single biggest
went ahead and fixed the issue our- contributor to the rifles key attribute:
selves. We did the unthinkable and its fun as hell to shoot.
took a Dremel to the rear wall of the The rotating drum rear sight has
$100 magazine. With a quarter moon six apertures for ranges from 100 to
ground off (see photo, left) the top and 600 meters. Adjusting for elevation is
a little cold bluing, single rounds fed straightforward turn a screw on the
without issue. We acknowledge this front sight to raise or lower the point of
calls for added attention when han- impact. The rear is a different animal.
dling loaded mags due to the exposed In order to make the sights as accurate
primer, but its no different than lots of and durable as possible, instead of
other mags. a single shaft design, the Arctic rear
Speaking of the mags, were fans of sight uses a pair of bolts tensioning the
the standard CTR mags that come with carriage from both sides for maximum
the Arctic. The 10-round, double-stack resistance to unintentional adjustment.
mags work flawlessly, single feed is- Youre not just wearing gloves,
sues not withstanding, and impart the youre wearing gloves inside beaver
handling characteristics of a rifle with or seal mitts, says Meades of the
a magazine half that size. For the price Rangers operating in the -50 degree C
of the rifle, though, we wish it came temps. You dont have a lot of sense
with more than one. of feel there. Accordingly, the six-
3 4

position aperture drum is all about the


IS SU E

BARREL glove life, presenting a large surface


The 20-inch, stainless steel, cold from the top down thats easy to turn
hammer forged, medium-heavy contour on purpose, but protected from acci-
118 barrel is tipped with a U.S.-friendly dental knocks by tall ears on the sides.
5/8x24-inch threaded muzzle thats The Arctics bottom metal is similar to
REC O ILW E B .C O M

home to half of one of the Arctics the Tikka CTR, but it houses a complete-
standout features: the aperture sights. ly new trigger developed for the C19/
The stainless barrel is just that Arctic rifle. Its an adjustable two-stage
no chrome lining, no fillers, just Sakos trigger with a break that feels smooth
specified grade of stainless steel thats and crisp with no overtravel. Set at 2.3
better suited to hammer forging than pounds, our Lyman trigger scale mea-
rack-grade stainless. It just happens sured fluctuations of about 0.2 pound
that the steel made to withstand the over and under for 10 pulls. This does
higher deformation of hammer forging not feel like a typical factory trigger.
is also a little more corrosion resistant. Tamminen describes it as an
economical version of the Sako TRG
NEW FRONTIER trigger. He said its getting used in the
While theres a lot in common with Tikka TAC A1 now and will probably
existing Tikkas, theres a whole lot find its way to other Tikkas in the
thats unique to the Arctic platform. future. He says the Tikka two-stage
These are the features that came in withstood a heavy testing cycle, and
response to the CRs requirements, has a seriously fast lock time, some-
fueling the rifles premium price tag. thing the Sakos triggers are known for.
So, the sights. Sakos Tamminen
says the company couldnt find a sight TAKE STOCK
on the market that gave them the com- The stock is another component
bination of durability, ease of use, and developed for the Arctic. Its a highly
range required for the CRs contract stable, engineered wood laminate
so Sako made its own. The steel thats as tough as a steel beam, but
G33
3X MAGNIFIER
ROTATES
INTO PLACE

Model
G33 Magnifier

2016 COMPAT IBL E W ITH A LL HWS EO Tech SIGHTS


A GIFT FROM THE NORTH

way more comfortable to rest your stocks, like that of the Fins RK 95
cheek on. Its also got that distinctive assault rifle, have been in service in
coloration that we dig. When asked the frigid Laplandian north for years
why wood instead of synthetic, the without issue.
CRs Meades said the unit was simply While wood stocks arent unique to
distrustful of plastic in the cold and, the Tikka line, this one is. Its got that
at the same time, wanted something Sako-style cross bolt and aluminum
To accommodate warmer and with more character than a spacer system. The cross bolt is
seasonal clothing synthetic stock could supply. needed to shore up the stock since the
changes, the Arctics
Tamminen says they went with the double stack CTR mag requires thinner
stock is cut shorter
than your average orange hue on the Arctic to increase walls. And the aluminum butt stock
stock and length- visibility of the rifle; remember, the spacer system was designed for easy,
ened with aluminum CRs arent military, they want to be semipermanent adjustments that ac-
spacers. The spacers
seen. He says the wooden stock might commodate seasonal clothing changes.
slide on from the
side with the screws be easier to repair in the field using The stock itself is cut shorter than
loosened, vice re- basic hand tools and adhesives, but most for use with heavy winter cloth-
moved, thus reducing
acknowledges the choice likely came ing, the spacers added for temperate
installation time and
limiting the chance down to an aesthetic consideration weather use.
of cross threading. made by the customer, as polymer
CONFIGURATION
In the stock setup, the Arctic is sim-
ply a gas to shoot. With days and days
spent head down behind a Formula
Onelevel precision rig this summer,
the open-sight Arctic feels like hopping
on a motocross bike and hitting the
trails. With the largest aperture zeroed
for 100 yards, popping clays on the
berm under the zeroing target was
doable. But the small targets really
began popping when we honed in on
the top of the 100-yard clays with the While the CRs run the fore end slick
200-meter peeper. The circle-in-a- and shoot in the prone unsupported,
circle sights proved accurate enough to we arent afraid to use a little accu-
reliably tag E silhouette steel at 300- racy crutch. We added a carbon fiber
plus yards while standing unsupported. Spartan 300 bipod. The bipod snaps
To wring a little more accuracy magnetically into a cup that replaces
from the Arctic, we took advantage of the forward sling stud. Its 6 ounces of
the 5-inch rail and added an optic, adjustable, on-call support. We like the
a Steiner T5Xi 3-15x50mm, using a adaptability, but the single attachment
34mm ZRODelta DLOC M4X mount. point means the base pivots too much
The mount set the optic about inch on the flat-bottomed stock.
above the rear sight wheel, with the
mount hanging one section over the PERFORMANCE
front edge of the rail. We started our testing with a couple
The stock is set up to run the on- hundred rounds of Remington UMC
board iron sights, so rather than chin 150s to get the round count up with-
weld, we added a Bradley Adjustable out breaking the bank. With the barrel
Cheek Rest to fill the gap. The Bradley seasoned, and one cleaning session,
rest provides a remarkably rigid plat- we broke out the Magnetospeed and
form for accuracy. match ammo. We clocked and grouped
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A GIFT FROM THE NORTH

VALUE
Looking at all the unique compo-
nents Sako made for the C19 proj-
ect, its no wonder the rifle is on the
spendy end. From the muzzle back,
theres new iron sights, reinforced
wood laminate stock to hold the CTR
bottom metal and mag, new two-stage
trigger, winter trigger guard, stain-
less extended bolt handle, and stock
spacer system.
Essentially, this is a custom produc-
tion rifle that provides both a unique
capability and an uncommon aesthetic.
Still, Tikkas known as a budget brand
though this is no budget rifle when
it comes to price or performance.
Based on the accuracy, durability, and
three types of rounds. First up, The T3x Arctics a 0.51 MOA. The Remington ammo desirability of a product endorsed by
Remington Premier Match 168-grain rotary aperture was the third wheel, but still nudged a one of the toughest user groups on the
rear sight is more
Matchking BTHP ran at 2,487 fps, durable, easier to 0.85 group from the cold-souled fin. planet, the $1,900 street price seems
3 4

with an eye-twitching S.D. of 37.2. use and faster to Our finding that the rifle likes em big reasonable. Add to that the flat-out fun
IS SU E

Next up, Hornadys Precision Hunter employ than any seems to echo the Rangers findings, factor the Arctic supplies when run au
tangent rear sight.
178-grain ELD X ran at 2,488 fps, as we hear theyll issue 180-gr Nosler natural, and its more than palatable.
The iron sights are a
with a very respectable S.D. of 12.3. big contributor to the Accubonds with the C19. Our only gripe is the lack of a sec-
122 Lastly, Federal Premium Gold Medal rifles flat-out fun to As far as reliability, we havent ond mag, and the fact we cant run a
Berger 185-grain Juggernaut OTM shoot demeanor. logged a malfunction, aside from the brake or a can on the threaded muzzle
REC O ILW E B .C O M

ran at 2,471 fps with a 13.1 S.D. The easily corrected single-feed hang-up without losing the front sight. Given all
Arctic got on famously with the Hor- issue. And 8 pounds dry isnt too bad the considerations in the Arctics pro
nady, printing the best five-shot group for moving through the northern New column, the cons arent enough to stop
of the day at 0.48 MOA. The Jugger- England woods, the 20-inch barrel car- us from admiring what Sakos made
nauts made an impression too, with rying well on a two-point sling. with the T3x Arctic.
SPEC BOX

TIKKA
T3X ARCTIC

CALIBER ACCESSORIES
308 Winchester
Steiner T5Xi 3-15x50 $2,275
BARREL LENGTH
20 inches ZRODelta DLOC M4X $279
OVERALL LENGTH Spartan 300 Bipod $395
40.25 inches (no spacers) Bradley Cheek Rest Elite Series $125
WEIGHT (UNLOADED)
8 pounds, 12 ounces (11 pounds,
12 ounces with optic and cheek rest)
URL MSRP PRICE AS FEATURED
www.tikka.fi
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RENAISSANCE
RESET
ITS THE NEW AGE OF SMALL ARMS DEVELOPMENT
IN THE U.S. MILITARY
BY ERIC GRAVES
PHOTOS BY COURTESY GENERAL DYNAMICS AND THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Were living in exciting times. Its an era of small the M14 and M16 rifles, M60 machine gun, M203
arms innovation a renaissance, if you will. Not grenade launcher. Some of this was to counteract
since the fielding of the M60 and the M16 in the perceptions of overmatch by Warsaw Pact Forces
3 4

50s and 60s have we seen the potential for such in Europe, while other efforts were to deal with the
IS SU E

fundamental change in U.S. military issue small realities of jungle warfare in Vietnam.
arms. At the time, the U.S. military introduced Our president is emphasizing defense, the
two new cartridges. First, the U.S. selected the secretary of defense is a retired Marine general,
126 7.62x51mm cartridge and then the 5.56x45mm, and our congress is actively engaged in hearings to
both of which became NATO standards. As youll determine what appropriations need to be made to
REC O ILW E B .C O M

see, new calibers are intertwined in these modern- modernize our forces.
ization efforts and just as much a part of this renais- The U.S. Army, Marine Corps, and Special
sance as the new weapons that employ them. Operations Command are all engaged in small
Theres always talk about weapon modernization, arms improvement efforts, either on their own or in
and the military seems to perpetually conduct one conjunction with one another. Additionally, the Navy
science experiment after another to find the next and Air Force are monitoring these efforts in hopes
wonder weapon. All too often, action is lacking. Now, of mirroring each of its successes.
however, everything is coming into alignment. We
not only have requirements from the services, but
also solutions already developed by industry, ready
to fit the bill. But most of all, we have the will to act,
and thats something we havent had in a long time.
In fact, we havent seen this level of effort, since
the period between the adoption of the 7.62 NATO
and 5.56 NATO cartridges that saw the replacement
of World War II-era weapons by such systems as
RENAISSANCE RESET

SURVEY OF PROGRAMS requirement for 6,069 Squad Desig- 2017. Additionally, multiple government
IN DEVELOPMENT nated Marksman Rifles based on the ammunition programs are in the works,
The U.S. Army took the lead on a same rifle. The Army has gone one step developing polymer cartridge cases to
joint service effort for a new pistol. The further and also issued a solicitation to lower both weight and cost.
9mm SIG P320 was selected earlier industry for 50,000 select-fire Interim Some of the biggest news is that the
this year as the M17/18 and has begun Combat Service Rifles in 7.62mm U.S. Marine Corps has made signifi-
fielding, initially with the 101st Airborne NATO. The Army seeks a commercial- cant moves to increase fielding of the
Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. off-the-shelf (COTS) solution, versus 5.56mm M27 infantry automatic rifle,
While an issue was recently exposed developing a weapon system from based on the Heckler & Koch HK416.
relating to a vulnerability in the design scratch, in order to get a weapon in The Marines have also issued a notice
of the pistols drop safety mechanism, service members hands that can defeat through contracting channels seeking
the problem is isolated to the commer- updated enemy body armor. Conse- sources for a full spectrum of small
cial version of the P320, and the model quently, many of the details are left arms suppressors.
selected by the Army is unaffected, open in order to cast a wider net. As U.S. SOCOM has a requirement for a
according to SIG SAUER. Interestingly, we go to press, multiple companies are .300 Blackout personal defense weap-
SOCOM had already fielded the Glock answering this requirement in hopes of on kit for its SOPMOD M4A1 carbines,
19 and has plans to add a red-dot optic supporting this program. as well as a 5.56mm suppressed upper
to its fleet of pistols. In addition to an ongoing small arms receiver group and has stated an inter-
The Army selected a variant of the ammunition study by the Army, SOCOM est in improving their existing carbines
German 7.62mm Heckler and Koch took the bull by the horns, conduct- with a mid-length gas systems, M-LOK
G28 for the M110A1 compact semi- ing a live-fire 6.5mm family cartridge handguards, and SureFire WarComp
auto sniper system and has a directed study in conjunction with the Army. Its muzzle devices.
already fired 23 different cartridges on SOCOM has been evaluating various
a 2,000-yard radar-equipped range at rounds in the 6.5mm range including
Aberdeen Test Center to determine the Creedmoor and .260 Remington as
terminal ballistics of each. A live-fire well as a new cartridge, the .264 USA,
Caption here? user evaluation is scheduled for fall of developed by the Army Marksmanship
Special Operations K-9 Harness
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Unit. They plan to take the results The introduction of Norma Magnum Lightweight Medium has been heard saying, All Marines
of this ammunition evaluation and new calibers such as Machine Gun. are riflemen, but not all Marines are
338 Norma Magnum
develop the so-called Sniper Support offer US troops the infantrymen. In fact, he says it so
Weapon/Carbine and the Lightweight best opportunity to THE RISE OF THE M27 IAR often while discussing his moderniza-
Assault Machine Gun systems in accurately engage In 2010, the USMC held a competition tion priorities, it has become a mantra
the enemy at greater
whichever caliber proves most effective to adopt a 5.56mm Infantry Automatic among Marines. Based on the current
distances.
for its needs. Rifle to replace the belt-fed M249 Squad resource-constrained environment, his
Additionally, SOCOM has a Automatic Weapons in their rifle squads, modernization priorities are the infantry.
requirement for the Advanced Sniper which the Corps felt were unwieldy for So, it seems these new automatic rifles
Rifle in .300 Norma Magnum and use in urban environments. The Marines are going to select Marines, but dont
.338 Norma Magnum, which the Army chose a variant of the Heckler & Koch be surprised if the Marines purchase
is monitoring and plans to field as its HK416, called the M27 IAR, for this role. more down the road.
Precision Sniper Rifle weapon system. Over the past couple of years, the Based on their experimentation, the
That .338NM round may also find Marine Corps conducted warfighting Marines determined the M27 has the
itself used in what may well be the experiments by replacing the M4/M16s longest range in the squad. As an in-
greatest increase in lethality to the in rifle squads with the M27. According terim measure to the planned fielding of
small unit since the introduction of the to a 2017 Armament Systems Forum 50,000 additional rifles, its outfitting a
M2 .50-caliber machine gun a century briefing given by Chris Woodburn, a select number of existing M27 rifles with
ago. SOCOM has teamed up with the senior executive in the Marine Corps an optic, fulfilling a Designated Marks-
Marine Corps and issued a sources Capabilities Development Directorate, man role at the infantry squad level.
sought notice to industry in an effort the service also conducted internal reli- Additionally, the Marine Corps plans
to develop its own Lightweight Medium ability testing of the platform and is very to transition from the M203 grenade
Machine Gun, also in .338 Norma pleased with the results. launcher, long associated with the M16,
Magnum. Conceptually, the Army is also In February 2017, the Marines to the M320 grenade launcher, coinci-
interested in something along these asked the industry to identify dentally also manufactured by H&K. Un-
lines, although they havent developed a manufacturers capable of delivering fortunately, the M320 doesnt fit on the
requirements document for it yet. 11,000 rifles. However, the Marine M4/M16, but it does fit the M27, making
Finally, with so many new weapons Corps subsequently announced a plan it the central focus of the squad-level
under consideration, numerous laser and in August to procure 50,000 rifles in a lethality modernization of the Corps.
optics programs are in the Army, Marine sole source arrangement with Heckler
Corps, and SOCOM. & Koch. This is a lot of rifles, but still OVERMATCH
While thats quite a bit of effort isnt enough to replace the M4/M16 When talking about small arms the
across the board, were going to take a across the Marine Corps. current buzzword is overmatch. The
closer look at two of these initiatives. The Marine Corps is a pragmatic concept is that American troops are
The Marine Corps plans to field an organization; one that knows it has to outgunned by foes armed with the SVD
additional 50,000 M27s and the over- do more with less. Commandant of the Dragunov sniper rifle and the PKM
match capability promised by the .338 Marine Corps, General Robert Neller machine gun, both Russian weapons,
RENAISSANCE RESET

HPBT, FMJ, or AP projectiles. That


round offers five times the energy of a
7.62mm projectile at 1,000m.
While GD chose the .338 Norma
Magnum over the .338 Lapua Magnum
because its less tapered case feeds
better in ammunition belts and prom-
ises longer barrel life, the LWMMG
is convertible to use the .338LM
cartridge.
At the 1,700-meter range, the
Originally adopted performance of the M2 machine guns
by the Marines as a
.50-caliber round relegates the Ma
replacement for some
Squad Automatic Deuce to area weapon use, while the
Weapons, the M27 is .338NM is able to hit point targets at
a variant of Heckler & that range. This capability more than
Kochs HK416 rifle.
adequately overmatches the Russian
PKM, an overwhelming concern for any
American service member facing its
receiving end.
firing the 7.52x54R cartridge. Its like range, precision machine gun much Larger calibers equal The LWMMG weighs 22 pounds,
a greater weight bur-
3 4

boxing a guy with longer arms who more actionable. First off, the devel- placing it well within the weight class
den on the infantry.
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wont let you get close enough to get opment of polymer-cased ammo has One way to deal with of the 27-pound M240 machine
any licks in. The military leadership progressed to the point that its now it is the introduction gun and rivals the weight of the new
wants to turn the tide in favor of our viable. Second, theres now a military of polymer-cased M240L machine gun. The LWMMG
132 troops. The capability the Lightweight requirement. In fact, the 75th Ranger
rounds, such as the
also features a quick-change barrel
338 NM cartridges
Medium Machine Gun provides seems Regiment conducted an evaluation of with fixed headspace and timing, as
REC O ILW E B .C O M

(left) seen here beside


to offer just that. It combines the the General Dynamics LWMMG last standard brass (right). well as integrated MIL-STD-1913 rails.
range of the M2 Heavy Machine Gun year. Based on its experience, the Additionally, theres a collapsible stock
in a package carried and employed by Regiment asked SOCOM to fast track and GD has been offering the weapon
a single service member. the program as the LWMMG offers an with a 6x optic.
Back in 2012, General Dynam- overmatch capability that promises to Fielding larger-caliber weapons
ics Ordnance and Tactical Systems change how the infantry fights. means the issue of ammunition
unveiled their belt-fed Lightweight In a rare case for crew-served weight is going to be a factor. This
Medium Machine Gun, in .338 weapons, the LWMMG was developed 2012 chart provided by the National
Norma Magnum. At the time of its outside of a published military require- Defense Industrial Association depicts
introduction, there was no money in ment. Developed via internal research the weights of the M240, LWMMG,
the Department of Defense for new and development dollars, General and M2. The loaded weapon weight
programs. The gun was thought of as Dynamics identified a capability gap be- of all systems includes the weight of
an efficient way to shoot $10 bills. tween the M240 and M2 machine guns. conventional, brass-cased ammuni-
The concept of precision long-range It designed a machine gun offering tion. In addition to weapon upgrades,
machine gun fire seemed anathema similar handling characteristics as the polymer case technology is going to
to the long-held doctrine of low-cost, M240, yet rivals the reach of the vener- further lighten that load or, better yet,
area fire employed by U.S. Forces. It able M2. Combining the .338 Norma increase the amount of ammunition a
also seemed like the timing wasnt Magnum cartridge and the companys machine gunner can carry.
right. But now, thanks to this renewed Short Recoil Impulse Averaging recoil
interest in small arms and ammuni- mitigation system, the LWMMG can KEEP IT QUIET
tion improvements, its prospects are engage targets out to 1,700 meters Each small arms program has an
looking better than ever. (some of the companys literature says associated suppressor requirement.
A few things have happened since its capable of reaching targets as far The LWMMG is no different. General Dy-
2012 to make the idea of a long- as 1,900 meters) with 300-grain Sierra namics demonstrated its candidate with
RENAISSANCE RESET

a suppressor, and the recent Sources THE M4 AINT GOING AWAY The proposed Light- with the M4A1, which will remain the
Sought Notice required the capability to Despite all of this effort, the M4A1 weight Medium Ma- core weapon of the SOF Operator.
chine Gun in 338 NM
use an integrally suppressed barrel. carbine, a close relative of the M16 first offers the weight of Aside from the selection of the M17
While General Dynamics is way fielded over five decades ago, will remain a 7.62 NATO Medium Modular Handgun System, contracts
out front of the development of this in service for the foreseeable future. Machine Gun with the for none of the other capabilities
range of the .50 Heavy
capability, the Sources Sought Notice If you disagree, consider how long its discussed have yet been awarded.
Machine Gun.
published by SOCOM opens up the taking to transition from the M16 to the However, combine these weapons with
competition to all manufacturers of M4. In its latest budget request, the advances in target acquisition and fire
weapons in this caliber and class. Now Army continues to seek the funding from control, along with more accurate and
that theres a requirement for this capa- congress to complete its full transition lighter weight ammunition even if
bility, lets see what the industry can do to the M4. Even SOCOM, which has a only a few of these key programs are
to offer the U.S. warfighter, a capability lot of small arms modernization efforts fielded, well see a fundamental shift
unparalleled anywhere else. Imagine a underway, remains committed to this in the lethality of the American mili-
weapon that has the reach of the .50 venerable platform. Instead of replac- tary. Add to that the ingenuity of the
cal, laser-like accuracy past a kilome- ing it, it seeks to increase the carbines American service member to employ
ter, and light enough to be carried by reliability by modernizing components. these capabilities, said lethality will
a single service member. Thatll surely Its strategy is to field new, additional be unparalleled. Its indeed an exciting
keep those PKMs at bay. weapon systems to be used in concert time for U.S. small arms.

SYSTEM WEIGHT COMPARISON


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134
REC O ILW E B .C O M

M240 COMBAT SYSTEM MMG COMBAT SYSTEM M2 COMBAT SYSTEM


M240: 28 lbs MMG .338 VARIANT: 25 lbs M2HB: 84 lbs
ACOG SIGHT: 2.5 lbs ACOG SIGHT: 2.5 lbs ACOG SIGHT: 2.5 lbs
M192 TRIPOD: 11 lbs M192 TRIPOD: 11 lbs M3 TRIPOD: 44 lbs
SPARE BARREL: 6.6 lbs SPARE BARREL: 6.2 lbs SPARE BARREL: 25 lbs
800 LINKED RDS: 53 lbs 500 LINKED RDS: 60 lbs 500 LINKED RDS: 145 lbs
TOTAL: 100 lbs TOTAL: 104.7 lbs TOTAL: 300 lbs

LOAD CARRIAGE: LOAD CARRIAGE: LOAD CARRIAGE:

40 LBS 41 LBS
37 LBS 37 LBS Weapon Tripod,
Sight Spare
Weapon, Tripod, Barrel, 36 LBS
Sight, Spare 100 rds.
200 rds. 300 rds.
100 rds. Barrel,
200 rds.
27 LBS
400
rds.

1 HUMMV

GUNNER ASSISTANT AMMO GUNNER ASSISTANT AMMO


GUNNER BEARER GUNNER BEARER
The proposed Lightweight Medium Machine Gun in 338 NM offers the weight of a 7.62 NATO Medium Machine Gun with the range of the .50 Heavy Machine Gun.
Source: General Dynamics
3 4
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136
REC O ILW E B .C O M

PHOTO COURTESY OF NICHOLAS IOCCO


The folks trying to keep ranges
away have the ultimate American
super weapon at the ready. They dont
have to use the typical political show-
down over gun rights, state weapons
rules, regulations, or background
checks to get their way. They have the
power of bureaucracy.
Youd be hard pressed to find
someone who has felt this force more
acutely than former Marine sniper Alex
Hartmann. He stumbled into the gun
business after leaving active duty and
found success with Ridgeline Outfit-
ters, a company that caters to marks-
men who dont mind a trek to New
Hampshire to score gear and modern
instruction.
With plans in his pocket for a state-
of-the-art shooting park, he signed a
purchase agreement for the perfect

WANT TO BUILD A GUN Its not that their neighbors hate shoot- 200-plus acre parcel in Winchester,

RANGE? YOUVE GOT YOUR


ing or guns. They all like to shoot, New Hampshire, with the sale con-
and many of them have no problem tingent upon zoning approval. He did
WORK CUT OUT FOR YOU with guns or so they say. They everything youre supposed to do when
arent those people. Its just that they youre a savvy entrepreneur trying to
BY AMY BUSHATZ dont want to live near a shooting range. open a business that might face an
That, at least, is the not-so-neighbor- uphill battle for approval. He hired
ly attitude many range owners encoun- lawyers, did his homework, and poured
ter when they try to open their outdoor thousands of dollars into noise studies
shooting complexes: opposition from and other preparations for facing the
the not in my backyard crowd. areas zoning board.
LONG RANGE GOALS

Alex Hartman of Ridgeline Training


emerged from a zoning board meeting in
Winchester, New Hampshire, to find his
truck had been keyed, presumably by a
neighbor opposing the construction of
3 4

his proposed shooting center.


IS SU E

PHOTO BY ROB CURTIS

red-tape zoning war with an asphalt that we live in by choice. We have 5


138 company thats still ongoing. acres because we personally wanted
Whatever the reason, Hartmann the beauty and quiet that came from
REC O ILW E B .C O M

couldnt have imagined what would living in a rural setting, said Lee,
happen next. Right before the zoning who personally raised over $16,000
committee was scheduled to make a for the Ridgeline project. but said he
decision in the spring of 2017, that he wasnt one of those who bought the
believed would likely be in his favor, he property. Were not anti-gun, were
received a notice in the mail from his anti-location.
land seller: The deal was off and the Hartmann thought he knew the
PHOTO BY MATT STAGLIANO
land had already been sold to a group neighbors fighting style well. He had
My vision for it was this destination of undisclosed alternate buyers. already faced them at zoning com-
shooting facility that was open to the The buyers turned out to be a few mittee hearings and through their
public, he says. Youre never going in a group of anti-range neighbors social media and online anti-Ridgeline
to make everyone happy. You could organized under the name Winchester campaign. But he was blindsided by
want to build a church somewhere and Citizens Against Ridgeline. And they the notice that the sale was off and
people are going to bitch about it. meant business. Members of that the land no longer available. That was
But Hartmann made one fatal mis- group, such as local resident Sander the end of the Ridgeline project in
take: He underestimated the enemy. Lee, had poured thousands of dollars, Winchester. With no land to build on,
Perhaps he just didnt know about much of it raised from donations, into the zoning application was dead.
the six years worth of zoning appeals their own sound studies to fight Ridge- Hartmann is far from alone in his
his would-be neighbors brought upon line. They saw Hartmanns project as zoning battle. In Vermont, PRS enthu-
one businessman before the Dunkin an encroachment on their own rights siast Nicholas Iocco has found that
Donuts was able to break ground in as landowners. death by red tape is, perhaps ironically,
early September of this year. Or maybe Lee insists that the neighbors like not even a little stealthy. His troubles
he hadnt heard about the local neigh- guns. They just didnt like Ridgeline. started in 2016 with a notice in the
borhood association that launched a We live in a very rural setting mail from his small town of Whiting
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LONG RANGE GOALS

But then his neighbors started to Up in Alaska, Chase Eckert is try-


complain about shooting noise and ing to avoid the battle Hartman and
scared animals. They said the busi- Iocco have faced. If Vermont and the
ness was unsafe, concerns that Iocco Live-Free-or-Die State are gun friendly,
said are unfounded. Alaska is paradise. Guns arent just a
Not long after the local zoning offi- way of life on the Last Frontier, theyre
cials got involved, the state of Vermont a daily safety necessity, even near the
also sent notice. If he wanted to oper- states largest city. Locals generally
ate his land as a business, they said, agreed that a teen mauled to death by
he would need commercial status, a bear during a popular trail race near
PHOTOS COURTESY OF NICHOLAS IOCCO
which would cause both his property Anchorage this year may have lived
that he was guilty of a zoning violation. Nicholas Iocco hoped taxes and the property taxes of his had he been packing.
What Iocco wanted to do on his rural to host precision neighbor to skyrocket. But bureaucracy can still kill you
shooting matches
farmland was simple enough. With on his property in The neighbors are all like Oh Im a even in Alaska, a place renowned for
over 90 acres of terrain right outside Whiting, Vermont, member of the NRA, I like the shoot- its lack of regulation. You dont need
his back door and permission from but his venture, ing, I own a bunch of guns and all this permission to open a pig farm in a res-
Green Mountain
his neighbor to shoot over a portion of stuff, Iocco said. They can complain idential neighborhood, but youll have
Rifle Challenge LLC,
their adjacent 500 acres, Iocco knows became entwined all they want, thats their right, but to cough up $1,000 for a special-use
his land is perfect for long-range in a net of red tape they make it seem like its the end of permit if you want to exceed 70 deci-
competitions. The shooting space that constructed by the the world. bels on a commercial shooting range in
local zoning board,
he calls home is also hard to come by Rather than deal with the taxman, the Matunsuska-Susitna Borough.
neighbors, and the
3 4

elsewhere in New England, making it state. Iocco abandoned the idea of making That assumes, of course, all goes
IS SU E

the perfect place to host region-wide his range a profit-turning business, well and your permit is granted. After
matches that can attract the cream of and now just wants to charge enough you apply, the Borough will put your
the PRS crop. Ioccos own 90-plus to cover his expenses. He says what plans through a battery of tests to de-
140 After registering Green Mountain Ri-
acres combined with
he wants to do is operate a hobby. He termine exactly what kind of nuisance
500 more from an
fle Challenge LLC with the state, Iocco argues that businesses make money, your new business is likely to be. As in
REC O ILW E B .C O M

agreeable neighbor
purchased 40 AR500 steel targets, a li- were to make up the they dont just break even, but hobbies other municipalities in the Lower 48,
ability insurance policy, and a bunch of Green Mountain Rifle are a different story. the public gets a chance to file their
Challenge shooting
swag with his company name and logo. Even that requires city permission, comments and speak at a public hear-
area. He envisioned a
All told he dropped about $16,000 and range that wouldve lest he face potential fines and prob- ing. After those steps, a seven-member
settled into a swing of hosting several hosted precision lems later. At the time of this writing board makes a determination.
rifle matches and
competitions a month with a $50 buy- he was still waiting on a verdict In most circles in Alaska, even a hint
given the Vermont
in, as well as renting out his land for State Police a place and still shooting and inviting friends of being anti-gun is political suicide.
Vermont state police training, he said. to train. over to do the same. But thats especially true in the
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LONG RANGE GOALS

PHOTO BY AMY BUSHATZ

reddest of the red Matanuska-Susitna Chase Eckert and against the project, although he has make his range a reality. He wont give
Valley. If neighbors in any part of the his brother, Hayden denied doing so. in easily, he said.
Leavitt, plan to
Anchorage bowl region are going to be open their shooting Were going to proceed as best we That stubbornness isnt just an
pro-shooting range, its there. range, LiveFire AK, can to be a good neighbor, Eckert Alaskan trait. In the battle against bu-
3 4

Eckert has billed his planned outdoor in Palmer, Alaska. said. Frankly, we can do whatever we reaucracy theres one thing the zoning
They recently started
IS SU E

range just off the busy Glenn Highway want on our land. people and neighbors would be wise to
construction on the
as Livefire AK, a shooting theme park property, which is Officials with the National Rifle remember: Shooters are persistent.
featuring machine gun rentals. Eckert currently home to a Association, who advise future range Iocco plans to continue to use his
142 grew up shooting rabbits on the prop- gravel pit. owners on best practices and how to land for PRS whether his neighbors
erty, and recently started renting it out navigate zoning boards and applica- like it or not, and regardless of what
REC O ILW E B .C O M

as shooting space for a local tactical tions, say walking into the neighbor- the zoning board says a right which
shop. In the summer he plans to use hood approval process without enough Vermont protects, he says.
the range for a mix of instructor and preparation is a common mistake. If nothing else, Vermont does protect
rental lanes. In the winter itll serve as Traditionally the people who are landowners and friends who shoot on
a much-needed outdoor class space. building ranges are passionate about their own property. Even if we cant have
But like Iocco and Hartmann, Eckert shooting, but they may not necessarily liability insurance, even if that has to all
made a key miscalculation. He thought be business people, said Elizabeth go away, even if I dont charge anything
his neighbors would be at least OK Bush, who manages recreational pro- and allow them to come shoot, under
with the improvements hes plan- grams and ranges for the NRA. We try Vermont law they would still be protect-
ning to the currently vacant property, to educate people so they go into the ed, he said. Right now I couldnt care
which has been in his family for over situation with as much information as less if I could make money doing it.
40 years. Its recently become host to possible, in a professional way. And Hartmann wont let getting
vandals and discarded needles. De- Eckert thinks his odds with the chased off of his original site plan keep
veloping the property will keep those zoning board are pretty good, and him down, either. After the surprise
people out, he says. hes willing to take a risk. He started sale he sued the seller for breach of
He was wrong. Even before the construction on his new range without contract, although hes barred by a
project started, his closest neighbor, his permit in hand, a gamble that he nondisclosure agreement from revealing
whose bedroom sits only a few hun- hopes will pay off in the long term. The any details of the suit or its outcome.
dred yards from the planned instructor permit is only required if he ends up He said hes got his eyes on a new loca-
lanes, began contacting the Borough going over the 70 decibel mark, and tion for the Ridgeline park, declining to
and notifying the local paper of the hes confident his planned noise abate- discuss any details.
upcoming project. A second neighbor ment techniques will keep him under. But thats probably smart. After all,
is rumored to have asked other nearby Even if it takes a war, he said he plans you cant let the opposition know what
property holders to sign a petition to continue to work with the city to youre up to.
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NG
DEFENSE
MAXFLO
2
3D
BACKPRESSURE, NOISE REDUCTION, FIRST-ROUND POP. YOU NO LONGER HAVE TO PICK JUST TWO ...
STORY BY IAIN HARRISON
PHOTOS BY KENDA LENSEIGNE
3 4
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146
REC O ILW E B .C O M
IS SU E
3 4
147

REC O ILW E B .C O M
Although silencer technology has benefited round pop. But if its simple and works, then It achieves this remarkable feat by ditching
from advances in materials science since why mess with a good thing? the traditional baffle stack, instead relying on
Hiram Maxim patented his original invention, NG2 Defense couldnt leave well enough an intricately machined core that never gets in
the basic design hasnt wavered much from alone, and while its can isnt any quieter than the way of expanding gases, but rather offers
that seen in the early 1900s. We still employ its competitors, its innovative design does them a meandering pathway to daylight, all the
the principle of high-pressure gas flow be- offer one major advantage. We should prob- while allowing them to cool and decelerate. If
ing interrupted by a series of baffles the ably state up front that if you plan to use this you appreciate slick design and even slicker
propellant simply slams into them as it leaves suppressor on a bolt gun, then there are a CNC tool paths, then youll probably want to
the muzzle with perhaps a little additional lot of better options that are both lighter and frame the photos of this cans guts, or send
turbulence coming into play from mouse holes cheaper. However, it really shines when mated them as postcards to friends.
and baffle clipping. Monolithic cores achieve to a semi- or full-auto rifle, as its the only By minimizing backpressure, the host
the same ends and are easier to manufacture, can weve ever shot that doesnt appreciably firearm operates within its design parameters,
often at the expense of incurring louder first- increase cyclic rate. leading to greater reliability and reduced wear.
3 4
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NG2 DEFENSE MAXFLO 3D

148
REC O ILW E B .C O M

Its not unheard of for conventional MAKE: up with an adjustable gas block sped up around 30 rpm with the can
NG2 Defense
suppressors to increase cyclic rates to reliably run on 77-grain OTM attached, which was so little as to
MODEL:
from 650 (unsuppressed) to 900 rpm MaxFlo 3D rounds, gently ejecting spent cases be negligible in terms of its impact
in the case of a 16-inch barreled AR- CALIBER: about four feet from the shooter on performance weve seen the
Up to .300 Win Mag
15. The shorter the barrel, the faster MATERIAL: while unsuppressed. After screwing same variation occur by switching
the cyclic rate, and the greater the Titanium, the can into place, cases landed between different lubes.
17-4 Stainless
increase when running suppressed. LENGTH: in the same pile, indicating that Bottom line the MAXFLO 3D
At rates over 1,000 rpm, theres a 7 inches no increase in bolt velocity was is pretty hefty in its current form
DIAMETER:
very real danger of the bolt running 1.8 inches noticeable. In another range session, (theres another model in the works
so fast it outstrips the magazines WEIGHT: the suppressor was then attached with more Ti components that should
ability to present rounds in front of it. 22 ounces) to one of Patriot Ordnance Factorys shave a few ounces) and its not
MSRP:
Then the wheels fall off. $1,500 full-auto carbines and a shot timer exactly cheap, but its the only one
During range testing, we used URL: used to measure cyclic rate. As best we know that keeps backpressure to
www.ng2defense.com
a dedicated three-gun rig set as could be determined, the gun an absolute minimum.
150
REC O ILW E B .C O M IS SU E 3 4

THE
WITH
QUICK COITUS

GEN
5
BY DAVE MERRILL

As the big news about the Gen5 Glock find something else to complain about. face and choking on Walmart ammo.
begins to fade into the background And we werent disappointed. Though Weve seen no such complaints regard-
scatter, we thought wed take some the grooves are gone, the front cutout ing the actual functioning of the Gen5.
time to reflect on it. If you want to see that can aid in grasping the magazine
151
a full breakdown, hit us up on RECOIL- with a particularly dirty gun is the new UP THE ACCURACY

REC O ILW E B .C O M
web or give CONCEALMENT Issue 8 a point of contention. By far this is the The Glock 43 is less a tiny Gen5
hard look. Glock made some incremen- largest complaint about the Gen5 that than the Gen5 is an enlarged Glock
tal improvements with the Gen5, such weve heard, followed by outrage that 43. Were reminded of 50s science-
as replacing flat-wire springs with their Glock didnt see fit to include forward fiction movies where a laser or potion
coiled cousins as well as switching up serrations on the slide. makes someone or something larger,
the look and feel. But same girl in a but with less misogyny and cigarettes.
different dress it aint. As youll see, its RELIABILITY All of the internal changes that were
considerably closer to its baby brothers. To that end, we bring up reliability. made with Glocks 42 and 43 are pres-
With this fifth generation, Glock set Though were told the mean rounds be- ent in the Gen5 guns safety plunger
out to do several things: tween stoppages (MRBS) is significantly redesign, a pin subtraction, and impor-
Improve handling and ergonomics higher with the Gen5 than any previous tantly, the trigger.
Increase reliability model, this isnt something that we can While bench tests pitting the new
Up the accuracy reasonably test for ourselves. Real test- purportedly more accurate Gen5 barrels
ing costs a considerable amount of time against the legacy design didnt lead us
HANDLING AND ERGONOMICS and money, not to mention its rather to any staggering conclusions, we did
The most obvious actual improve- boring and tedious. find new shooters took more quickly to
ment is the truly ambidextrous slide Plurality of the anecdote does not the Gen5. We strongly suspect its more
stop. Its also the part that means your data make, but when other generations about the trigger than anything else. We
new Gen5 may not perfectly fit into your of Glocks were released, some problems would argue that the Gen5 OEM trigger
current holster. Fear not, the Gen5 has reared their ugly heads from the outset; is the best Glock has ever produced.
proven to be a popular pistol, much to early Glocks were prone to cracking While its not ZOMG-amazing, if Glock
the chagrin of their competitors. when using rounds with a high-pressure released this one 30 years ago wed
We knew that once the finger grooves curve and Gen4 Glocks were famously have heard far fewer half-joking remarks
were eliminated, people would need to great at stuffing brass directly into your comparing it to a staple gun.
DEFENDER &
DEFENDER2
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With M.O.L.L.E. system-
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or Stone Washed version

Defender single guard

Defender DG double guard

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154
REC O ILW E B .C O M IS SU E 3 4
THE SECOND FIREARMS INDUSTRY CHOICE AWARDS BIGGER AND BETTER
STORY BY STEVEN KUO
PHOTOS BY STEVEN KUO AND DEREK LANHAM

Last year, we told you all about the and areas of expertise. Collectively, they and future products to come. One told
brand-new Industry Choice Awards, an represented 564 years of hunting, 379 us, Feedback is a gift.
ambitious new attempt to celebrate and years of competitive shooting, 148 years Later in the summer, company
honor innovation and excellence in the of retail and distribution experience, 99 representatives descended upon Rock-
firearm industry. Were pleased, once years of instructional background, and castle to shoot the Industry Team Chal-
again, to be the exclusive publishing 90 years of military service. lenge match, designed by the incom-

IS SU E
partner to report on its second year. Compared to the previous year, the parable Andy Horner, network and chat
Nathan and Nick Noble of Rockcastle cadre of evaluators increased from 20 amongst themselves, and attend the

3 4
Shooting Center and David Powers of to 30, and the number of products formal awards ceremony. Many partici-
Oneida Molded Plastics were again increased from 65 to 98. The testers pants mentioned that the time spent 155
the driving forces behind the awards. toiled for several days, filling out numeri- together with old and new friends was

REC O ILW E B .C O M
Building on the success of the inaugural cal ratings and qualitative feedback on a as valuable as anything else.
effort, they aspire to steadily grow the comprehensive range of criteria, including Below, youll see examples of the
Industry Choice Awards every year. Na- fit, finish, form, and function. This year, awards process working exactly as
than explained that they were remain- rather than give everyone a stack of paper hoped, and examples of where wed
ing true to the original vision of a truly and a head start on carpal tunnel syn- like to see more product submissions
objective product evaluation process, drome, Practiscore set up an electronic to be able to carve out additional prod-
designed to determine the product system to streamline the process for the uct categories with an array of apples
of the year in each category through digital age of tablets and smartphones. to apples comparisons.
unbiased, hands-on testing and evalu- Last year, there were six product Still, versus last year, the Indus-
ation. As a result, consumers benefit categories rifle, handgun, shotgun, try Choice Awards had 50-percent
from unbiased awards, while manufac- optic, accessory, and ammunition. This more products and 50-percent more
turers receive extensive feedback about year, there were enough products to evaluators. Thats solid growth, and we
their products. As the awards grow in add two more targets and triggers look forward to the trend continuing.
prominence, so too would the number while splitting the accessories category Furthermore, the feedback we heard
of product submissions from participat- into basic and premium accessories. from end users and companies alike
ing manufacturers, ability to create ad- Ratings were analyzed to determine this year was also extremely encourag-
ditional meaningful categories, and the the winners, and all evaluator feedback ing there was strong appreciation
resources to expand testing protocols. was provided to the manufacturers fol- for the intent and process behind the
In late spring this year, at the pictur- lowing the award ceremony. Companies ICAs. A manufacturer (who didnt win)
esque Rockcastle Shooting Center in indicated that they really value the told us that the awards mean more on
Park City, Kentucky, a group of evalua- end-user feedback, both as validation the consumer side, because its not bi-
tors assembled to inspect, review, and (or constructive criticism) of decisions ased. We agree and feel these awards
test the product submissions. They were theyve already made and as inspira- will become a great venue for recogniz-
carefully selected for their experience tion and suggestions for modifications ing excellence in the firearm industry.
MAKE GUNS GREATER

PATRIOT ORDNANCE FACTORY


REVOLUTION
3 4
IS SU E

CALIBER NOTES:
7.62 NATO The short-stroke gas piston 7.62mm POF Revolution was our in QD mounts, adjustable gas piston, crisp single-stage trigger, and
BARREL LENGTH cover gun for Issue 32, impressing us with clever engineering to triple-port muzzle brake.
16.5 inches build a 7.62 in a 5.56-sized package. In his testing, our HMFIC Evaluators raved about the Revolution, in particular giving it high
156 WEIGHT Iain Harrison found it to be handy, fast, and accurate, ripping off marks for innovation for delivering a .308 on a .223 frame. They also
7.3 pounds 0.16-second splits during drills while also printing sub-MOA groups praised its ergonomics and shootability. Effusive comments ranged
REC O ILW E B .C O M

MAGAZINE CAPACITY
with match ammo. from State of the art technology. At this time theres no other firearm
20
MSRP
Many parts in the Revolution are interchangeable with an AR-15, on the market that compares, to By far the best bang for the buck.
$2,669 and the barrel extension, bolt assembly, upper, and lower receiver Amazing features, including the cut chamber. Dead-on accurate. Well
URL are exactly the same size. Weighing in at just over 7 pounds, the rifle done, bravo! One evaluator liked it so much they wrote, Id also prob-
www.pof-usa.com features a nitride heat-treated barrel, ambidextrous controls, built- ably sleep with this gun. Not probably, definitely.

RUNNERS-UP
F-1 FIREARMS UDR-15
STURM RUGER AMERICAN
RIFLE RANCH 450 BUSHMASTER
MICRO 9 DESERT TAN
Purpose-built

Kimber Micro 9 pistols put legendary


dependability into a small 1911-style
platform. 9mm power, simple
oper ation and versatile ergonomics
make these pistols leaders in the
ultr a-compact market. Customizable carry
Each Micro 9 Desert Tan ships
with one 6-round and one
7-round magazine for added
flexibility.

Signature features
Featuring white 3-dot sights, a
matte black frame and a slide
finished in Desert Tan KimPro II
for increased resistance to
the elements.

Enhanced grips
Special Desert Tan Crimson
Trace Lasergrips provide a
positive grip and improve target
acquisition.

WHAT ALL GUNS SHOULD BE


TM
(888) 243-4522
MADE IN A MERIC A kimberamerica.com

2017, Kimber Mfg., Inc. All rights reserved. Information and specifications are for reference only and subject to change without notice.
3 4
IS SU E
MAKE GUNS GREATER

CANIK
158 TP9SFX RUNNERS-UP
CALIBER NOTES: GLOCK 43
REC O ILW E B .C O M

9mm The winner of the 2017 Handgun of the Year SIG SAUER P320 X-FIVE FULL-SIZE
BARREL LENGTH award is the poster child for what the Industry
5.2 inches Choice Awards are all about. Jason Karvois,
WEIGHT Director of Sales for Century Arms, explained,
1.8 pounds Having entered other Canik models into the
MAGAZINE CAPACITY
competition last year, we relied upon the
20
2016 feedback and constructive criticism to
MSRP
$550 develop and produce the pistol that won this
URL
year. In fact, after the awards ceremony,
www.canikusa.com several executives in the industry confided
to us that they were tickled that an underdog
won the award in such a strong field.
In Issues 18 and 32, we reported on the original Canik TP9SA and its
competition-focused descendant, the TP9SFX. We found them to be excellent
handguns offering tremendous value. The SFX model bristles with features
and enhancements that you might not expect in a gun with a $550 retail
price. The match barrel, enhanced trigger, extended controls and magazines,
and slide cuts and serrations arent a big surprise. But keep looking, and
youll notice the factory-provided iron sights are from Warren Tactical. The
slide is pre-cut for a red dot, with a cover and several interface plates for
different brands of optics. The magazine catch is reversible and comes with
extras in different sizes.
Evaluators were duly impressed. Comments like incredible value and
awesome pistol for the money showed up repeatedly, along with praise for
the TP9SFXs accuracy, ergonomics, and upgrades. They noted how well it
works out of the box This would make an awesome entry-level competi-
tion pistol. It comes off-the-shelf with many of the aftermarket add-ons that
youd need to add yourself. Some werent overly impressed with the included
holster, but its part of an overall package that allows the buyer to buy the
Canik and go straight to the range. For the price, were not complaining.
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MAKE GUNS GREATER

BENELLI
SUPER BLACK EAGLE 3
CALIBER NOTES:
12 gauge Fresh off a win last year, Benelli came back strong with the three-gunners handbook, the loading port is beveled, the trig-
BARREL LENGTH latest installment in its bread-and-butter, inertia-driven semi- ger guard is scooped out, and the carrier is extended to make
3 4

26 or 28 inches automatic shotguns. The Super Black Eagle 3, which chambers loading easier. You wont mistake it for a Taran Tactical-modified
IS SU E

WEIGHT 2-, 3-, and 3-inch shells, features the rock-solid Benelli inertia shotgun, but itll reduce the odds of inflicting Benelli thumb on
7 pounds system with a revised bolt head for increased reliability and more yourself while reloading. Its available in black and three different
MAGAZINE CAPACITY
secure lock-up. The buttstock has the latest recoil reduction camouflage finishes.
3+1
160 MSRP
system, Comfort Tech 3, along with a new comb insert. The evaluators loved everything about this gun, except for its price
$1,899 to $1,999 Its predecessors ergonomics were already excellent; theyve tag. They raved about what a pleasure it was to shoot and found the
REC O ILW E B .C O M

URL been refined even further to improve handling and pointabil- new Comfort Tech system effective at reducing recoil. Those familiar
www.benelliusa.com ity, with a recontoured pistol grip and fore-end, as well as with previous Super Black Eagle iterations were impressed with the
an extended bolt handle and safety. Taking a page from the upgrades, and many testers wanted to take one home.

RUNNERS-UP
BROWNING CITORI CXS
WINCHESTER SX4
MAKE GUNS GREATER
SIG SAUER NOTES:

KILO2400ABS Yes, a rangefinder won the optic category, stacked up against


riflescopes (some very impressive ones indeed). Well get this out
of the way first we wish there were enough entries under con-
LENS
7x25mm sideration to break out another product category. That said, even
DIMENSIONS
though it feels a bit like comparing apples and oranges, once you
4.2 by 1.3 by 3 inches spend some time behind SIG SAUERs flagship rangefinder, youll
WEIGHT understand why it was rated so highly by evaluators.
7.5 ounces The KILO2400ABS fits in the palm of your hand, yet ranges
MSRP out to 2 miles with an embedded Applied Ballistics calculator,
$1,800 environmental sensors, and Bluetooth synchronization to connect to
URL a ballistic app on your smartphone. Onboard sensors measure tem-
www.sigsauer.com perature, pressure, humidity, heading, and incline, while a useful
HyperScan mode ranges four times per second. The OLED display
is crisp and precise, automatically adjusting its brightness for changing conditions. You can load four
custom ballistic profiles, utilizing G1/G7 and Applied Ballistics custom drag curves. The rangefinder
comes with a case, gear bag, tripod mount, wind meter, lanyard, and pen.
Evaluators were very impressed with its compact size, capabilities, and performance, with
superlative comments such as ranged accurately and consistently and easily ranges small targets at
distance and some of the best glass Ive seen on a rangefinder.

RUNNERS-UP
3 4

NIGHTFORCE ATACR 7-35X56 F1


IS SU E

TRIJICON ACCUPOWER 1-8X28


162
REC O ILW E B .C O M

MAGPUL
X-22 BACKPACKER STOCK
RUGER 10/22 TAKEDOWN
COLORS NOTES:
Black, flat dark earth, The Magpul X-22 Backpacker Stock is a
olive drab green,
stealth gray
MSRP
perfect complement to the handy Ruger 10/22
takedown rimfire rifle, cleverly snapping RUNNERS-UP
$110
together into a portable package when broken
down. The buttstock is pared down, but still
DOUBLESTAR OOPS! REPLACEMENT KIT
URL
contains a storage compartment in the grip LASERLYTE MBS-1 .22-.50 CAL
www.magpul.com
and one in the stock that holds three spare LASER BORE SIGHT
magazines. The lower portion is cut out to ac-
cept the shortened handguard and barrel when detached. You can swap out
the cheek-piece for a taller version if youre using an optic. You can also
add optional quick-detach sling mounts and a forward optic mount.
Magpuls innovative design was lauded by the evaluators, who high-
lighted the slick coupling feature and its compactness, while maintaining
full function of the firearm. They felt it exhibited excellent quality, fit, and
finish. Many comments sounded like this one: This is a fantastic product.
Full use of the stock, adjustable comb, fits and functions well. Im totally
buying one of these. The only negative comment we could find was a tester
who didnt like the texture on the polymer weve used so many Magpul
products over the years that Magpul could make polymer boxers, and it
wouldnt feel odd to us.
RAPTOR
by DeSantis

CONCEALMENT
PERFECTED!
VISIT US ONLINE
LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR PATENTED LOCKING SYSTEM
MADE IN THE U.S.A. WWW.DESANTISHOLSTER.COM

Improved elevation ram eliminates Advanced Shock


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adjustment (over 27 feet at 100 yards)

Dual frame technology allows the Dual frame design works with most
length of the rest to be personalized. detachable magazine rifles (such as
the AR-15) as well as lever-action rifles.

NO RECOIL, NO FLINCH,
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CALDWELLSHOOTING.COM 573.445.9200 CALDWELL_SHOOTING_SUPPLIES CALDWELLSHOOTINGSUPPLIES
MAKE GUNS GREATER

VOODOO TACTICAL
3-GUN CASE
DIMENSIONS NOTES:
56 x 14 x 8 inches Designed with Mark Roth, the Voodoo Tactical
COLORS 3-Gun Case is intended to swallow everything you
14 pounds need for a three-gun match, including halberd-like instruments
COLORS of scattergun badassery, with their absurdly long magazine
Black, coyote tan, tubes, without breaking a sweat.
Voodoo Tactical camo

RUNNERS-UP
MSRP
Its an unapologetically huge, 56-inch-long case, designed
$250 ($296 in camo) to accommodate everything you need to channel your inner
URL Daniel Horner. Roth explained that they intentionally didnt
constrain themselves to what might fit in a typical airline- JP ENTERPRISES AR-15
www.voodootactical.com
safe hard case, and it shows. But you can still sling the bag, SILENT CAPTURED SPRING
handhold it, or hoist it on your back. Make no mistake though, SAMSON M-LOK SX SERIES 15 HANDGUARD
its no lightweight. Convenient dividers safely separate your long guns, which tuck nicely into
place. Theres so much storage in this bag that there are pockets for your pockets.
Voodoo definitely struck a chord with the evaluators, three-gunners or not. Those who
compete loved its well-thought-out design, with one saying, This is my next (and last) three-
gun bag. It will replace the three other ones I have. Another tester wrote, Item is number-one
purchase when I get home. Hate the bag I use because tube and barrel stick out of top unless
I breakdown my shotgun. One suggested adding a removable zipper pouch for a pistol, which
Voodoo has accommodated with the addition of a velcro-backed utility pouch thatll accept a
3 4

padded pistol bag (along with several removable magazine pouches). But the bag isnt just for
IS SU E

three-gunners, as many noted that it would be perfect for a multitude of uses and to carry
several guns and gear. Everyone complimented the quality materials, stitching, zippers, pad-
ding, and straps. The backpack configuration was especially well liked.
164
REC O ILW E B .C O M

RUNNERS-UP
HORNADY BLACK 450
BUSHMASTER
RIO ELITE TARGET LOAD

FEDERAL AMMUNITION
AMERICAN EAGLE SYNTECH
CALIBER NOTES:
.40 S&W Ammunition may not be the sexiest category, but we all know The testing protocol this year was similar to before, with
BULLET WEIGHT that ammo is a critically important component of any weapon sys- evaluators weighing, measuring, and chronographing all the
165 grains tem. And manufacturers continue to introduce new and interesting ammunition. They then tested the ammo at the range, but didnt
MSRP product lines aimed at various segments of the market. This years assess terminal performance or accuracy. Testers were intrigued
$27 (50-round box) winner is Federals American Eagle Syntech. and found the ammo to function reliably with manageable
URL
The Syntech line is intended for range and training use. It fea- recoil. They were generally impressed with its performance and
www.federalpremium.com
tures a bullet thats encapsulated in polymer, preventing metal-on- consistency, though a few evaluators reported some dimensional
metal contact. The primer is lead-free and propellants burn cleanly. variation and a few examples of thin application of the polymer
Federal says Syntech ammo eliminates copper and lead fouling, coating. Overall, they liked the concept and its applications at
while extending barrel life, lessening the need to clean as often, the range and for training.
and reducing felt recoil. Additionally, since theres no copper jacket If you wish to roll your own, Federals now selling Syntech compo-
and a soft lead core, theres less splash from shooting steel targets. nent bullets in 9mm, .40, and .45.

One little thing can make a big difference, like


the exacting tolerances Sierra designs and builds
into every bullet we make. This attention to detail
ensures accuracy you can count on, shot after shot.
Put the Tipping Point in your favor. Choose the
Tipped MatchKing from Sierra.
Contact your favorite dealer for the complete line
of Sierra bullets or visit www.sierrabullets.com
1400 West Henry Street | Sedalia, MO 65301 | www.SierraBullets.com #LONGLIVETHEKING
Tech support: 1-800-223-8799 | sierra@sierrabullets.com Copyright 2017 Sierra Bullets
MAKE GUNS GREATER

RUNNERS-UP
INNOVATIVE TARGETS
RINGER
MGM TARGETS TACTICAL AR500
TARGETS
EVIL ROY TARGET SYSTEM MAGNUM A-DAP SYSTEM
TARGET PLATE NOTES:
8 inch hexagon MGM Targets is synonymous with steel
HEIGHT target systems. And their new Evil Roy Steel
40.5 to 56.5 inches Target System is a perfect example, as well as
WEIGHT the winner in its category. It combines toolless
24 pounds (excluding setup and breakdown with a target head thats
target plate)
adjustable for height and angle.
MSRP
$299 The base has four legs that swing out for
URL stability, but collapse into a compact package,
www.mgmtargets.com just 36 inches long. The target post is made of
AR500 with slots at the top to accept various
different target plates (an 8-inch hexagonal
plate is included). The post has five positions to adjust the height of the tar-
get and can pivoted forward or back to place the target plate at either a 15-
or 45-degree angle. It can also be locked in place or allowed to rock backward
to further dissipate impacts. The target head and post also have no welds,
brackets, bolts, or rivets to be damaged or cause ricochets and splatter.
Evaluators commended the design, durability, and versatility of the Evil
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IS SU E

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FORMER PRESIDENTIAL ADVISOR
SEBASTIAN GORKA TALKS POLITICS,
THE MEDIA, AND 7.62X39
BY ROB CURTIS
PHOTOS BY MIKE MORONES

When Sebastian Gorka went to work on Janu- A rank outsider that nobody took seri- revolution, his parents fled Communist Hun-
ary 21, 2017, things were looking good. He ously, said Gorka, destroyed 16 establish- gary across Eastern Bloc minefields to the
scored a great parking spot for his Mustang, ment candidates and, against everybodys west and settled in the U.K., where Gorka
stepped out into Washington, D.C.s crisp expectations, beat a woman whod spent at was born.
morning air, straightened his tie, and relished least $700 million for a position she thought His dad imparted a love of freedom upon
the opportunity hed been given as he strode was owed to her. Gorka that only a political prisoner could
toward the White House. His mandate came But, by August, 2017, the elation dimmed share. Gorkas fierce love of liberty, and the
from the President of the United States, Don- as the tide turned against the MAGA Wol- hatred of those who oppose it, fueled his ca-
ald Trump, and he held it as an unequivocal verines and their efforts to reform American reer. He graduated London University, served
honor to make America great again. politics. A lot of good guys were fired from as an interrogator in the U.K.s Territorial
Gorka, the Trump administrations deputy the National Security Council, said Gorka, Army, worked for five years in the Hungarian
advisor on national security issues, knew his and Steve [Bannon] eventually decided to defense ministry helping with NATO acces-
mission wouldnt be a cakewalk. The White leave after the Afghan speech the president sion, taught counterterrorism at the George C.
House and Capitol Hill were home to en- was given had no mention of radical Islamic Marshall Center in Germany for a few years,
trenched political forces, jealously guarding terrorism. So, I decided the best way to sup- and moved to the U.S., where he naturalized
their own stations and interests. port the president was from the outside. and continued to teach national security at
It was going to be a hostile takeover, Gorka Gorka was hired by the Trump campaign defense related institutions. He eventually
said, and it was, but the Swampdwellers team to advise the candidate on national se- started his own CT training and consulting
pushed back effectively. curity issues as he prepared for the fall 2015 firm before being contacted by Corey Lewan-
Seven months later, Gorka saw his own ef- Republican presidential debates. Ever since, dowski on behalf of Trump in 2015.
forts to protect the United States from radical Gorkas colorful background and controversial Politically fueled accusations abound about
Islamic terrorism thwarted as the establish- policy recommendations have fueled political Gorkas background, his loyalties, and his
ment rallied, like a body battling an infection, rancor and personal attacks. qualifications. Its hard to see through all the
and expelled the outsiders. His parents were freedom fighters in partisan mudslinging, but we sat down with
For Gorka, a European-born counterterrorism Soviet-era Hungary. Gorka says the regime the controversial figure and got to know him
expert, November 8 was like a scene from Red gave his father a life sentence for his anti- as a man with an affinity for fine cigars and
Dawn. The MAGA team was a scrappy bunch of Communist activities, but he escaped after 7.62mm projectiles, and most importantly, a
insurgents who won despite overwhelming odds. six years of captivity. After the failed 1956 deep love of the Second Amendment.
171

IS SU E 3 4 REC O ILW E B .C O M
A CERTAIN MAN IN AN UNCERTAIN PLACE

Ever regret getting into politics?


SG: Not at all. Serving as Strategist
to President Trump was the highest
honor, especially as I am a legal im-
migrant to this great nation. In fact,
it wasnt just an honor; once I was
asked, it was a duty. The last few
months have been a true odyssey,
with the fake news industrial complex
publishing literally hundreds of hit
pieces not just on me, but attacking
my wife, my dead mother, and even
my teenage son. One reporter wrote
45 attack pieces alone! But with my
family background, I was ready.
My father was betrayed as a Hungar-
ian anti-Communist by Kim Philby,
Gorka served from sake of knowledge is useless. I want to arrested, tortured by the secret police,
1990-1993 in the know how that knowledge changes what and given a life sentence at the age of
U.K.s Territorial
we do, especially when it comes to pros- 20. He was liberated by freedom fight-
Army Intelligence
Corps. Above, in ecuting war and protecting the republic. ers in the 1956 Revolution and made
3 4

basic training in it out to the West. So the verbal at-


IS SU E

Ashford, Kent during What do you do for fun? tacks of the media are just that: words.
fall, 1990, and, left, SG: Once a month, I join my FFL for
in a foreign weap-
a night of full-auto shooting (Tommy Whats your dream job?
172 ons familiarization
guns, HK MP-5, HK-53, etc.). Rum- SG: After teaching thousands of Ma-
course.
mage through the local comic book/ rines, FBI agents, and tier-one opera-
REC O ILW E B .C O M

used sci-fi bookstore. I grew up on tors, and then being Deputy Assistant
Doctor Who, 2000AD, and Judge to the president? Maybe owning a
Dredd, and you never get that out of rural log cabin store that sells tactical
your bloodstream. firearms and fine cigars.

Gorkas father, Paul


Gorka, with a FN
FAL (G1) 7.62mm.
He taught his son to
shoot as soon as he
What made you decide to immigrate to was old enough to
the U.S.? respect a gun.
SG: My American wife and I woke up
one morning and realized America was
the future. Europe has lost its way cul-
turally and politically. And if you work
in National Security, America and
D.C. is the center of the universe.

Looking at your Wikipedia page, you


might be thought of as a career student?
SG: Maybe. But when people call me
an academic, or a professor, I bristle. In
all my studies and teaching I have one
question, So what? Knowledge for the
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A CERTAIN MAN IN AN UNCERTAIN PLACE

About how many guns do you own, and have guests and are trying to teach
how do you describe your collection? them too.
SG: Many. And not enough. Ill call it
eclectic. Many, many modern hand- With Eastern Bloc family ties, serv-
guns, but also the odd SW 1917, ing in the British Territorial Army, and
Webley 38, PPK, etc. Modern military now living in the U.S., you must have
rifles, more AKs than ARs, but my love some perspective on the AK versus AR
is the FAL. I have a particular soft spot debate, as well as the European versus
for snubbies in .44 and .41 magnum. U.S. firearm design debate?
And, .22 rifles I love plinking all day SG: No. For me its always about cali-
with a .22. I never grew up. ber. I have numerous AR-type rifles,
but I still detest the .223. I mean, just
Any favorites? take a round in your hand and look
SG: Anything I salivated over as a kid in at it! Its so small. For me, if I had
the 80s as I thumbed through Combat to choose one rifle it would have to
Handguns magazine, and the late great launch a .30 projectile. Also, the direct
British publication Handgunner and impingement system is so weird. I
which I can now actually afford. Num- mean, releasing gases into the mecha-
ber one: my Bren Ten with extra .45 nism without a piston? Come on!
slide. My SPAS-12. My Astra Termina- Im a proud American now, and I
tor. My original .44 Auto Mag. And, my love my U.S. wheelguns, but do like
3 4

Pardini GT-45. It isnt from the 80s, European aesthetics. Just put a Par-
IS SU E

but its sublime. Also, love my AKs from dini GT45 in your hand, and tell me
Krebs, especially my Krink. it isnt an ergonomic and mechanical
masterpiece.
174 What about silencers?
SG: My favorite shooting is walking Choose one: side folder, underfolder,
REC O ILW E B .C O M

off the porch of our summerhouse up or fixed? Explain your reasoning.


north, surrounded by 300 acres of SG: Side! I cut my teeth in the Territo-
GUNS At Beretta, USA, private forest, and going freestyle on rial Army on the FAL, and I think the
learning about the
What discipline do you enjoy steel plates. Its a lot more fun without Para-style (Galil) stock is the best. No
M9A3 pistol.
shooting most? hearing protection. Also a much easier question. And the only workable under-
SG: As a kid I loved long-range prone and social activity with cans when you folder is the Sterling. I love the Sterling.
position rifle shooting at Bisley in the
U.K. Once a month, my dad and I Gorka is unenthusiastic
about the AR-15 and its
would make the trip and shoot 7.62
puny .223, but gets
bolt actions with iron aperture sights excited about the AR
at 1,000 yards. I loved the delay platform when they step
between the ignition and the bullet up in caliber. Here hes
hitting the butts. shooting the Nemo Arms
Omen in .300 Win Mag.

Ever shot a competition? Howd you do?


SG: Nowadays not so much. My
shooting is recreational and training
courses. Back in the day, though, I
shot in my local club in West London.
I held my own more with pistol than
rifle. Today, my favorite discipline is
competing with my son with any fire-
arm at the range. I think hes got the
edge now, as it should be.
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A CERTAIN MAN IN AN UNCERTAIN PLACE

Whats the first gun you bought? massacre. Imagine if just one of the Is there a disconnect between the way
SG: The first gun my father bought for state employees at the Christmas party rural and urban Americans view the
me in the U.K. was a beautiful target in San Bernardino had been armed. Second Amendment? What shapes gun
Anschutz .22 with all the parapherna- Many of those killed by the husband policy, rural or urban issues?
lia. I think it was a Model 54. And the and wife Jihadist team would likely be SG: Undoubtedly. In rural areas, a gun is
first full-bore gun my dad bought for alive today. most often correctly understood as a tool.
us to shoot was a factory nickel-plated My former colleague AWR Hawkins To the majority of those living in urban
S&W Mod 39. I miss it. at Breibart.com does an amazing job areas today, a gun is an object mystically
of chronicling how private citizens and irrationally endowed with evil intent.
Latest gun acquisition? save lives every day by practicing their
SG: Steyr GB. Im reliving the 80s! Second Amendment rights. Is national reciprocity a priority for the
I had one that I regretted selling to a Administration?
friend. Its a real hog leg, but just iconic. Aside from issues of crime, is there SG: Its early to say. But I know it is
a danger in taking guns away from a priority for Wayne LaPierre and the
SECOND AMENDMENT Americans? NRA, which was the first national orga-
How does the Second Amendment SG: Yes. The Second Amendment isnt nization to endorse candidate Trump.
contribute to National Security? ultimately about stopping rapists or Wayne has done incredible things for
SG: Thats easy to answer. Just look at bank robbers. Its about the peoples all Americans, and I was very happy to
the Sudanese Church attack yester- last line of defense against a strategic bump into him in the White House very
day in Tennessee. A private citizen level threat. Its not about hunting early on after the Make America Great
stopped that one fatality becoming a whitetails. Again Team moved in.
3 4
IS SU E

SEBASTIAN
176
GORKAS
EVERYDAY
REC O ILW E B .C O M

CARRY
Pistol: Glock 29, customized
by Robar Guns with a
SharkTac trigger guard cover
Pistol: Smith & Wesson M&P
9mm full-size with RDS and
compact frame customized
by Robar Guns carried in a
holster by DH Custom Leather
Flashlight: Surefire 6P and a
thin penlight (for fine work)
Fire: Commemorative MFO
Zippo lighter bought while
visiting the Sinai in 1991
and retrofitted with a jet
insert to light cigars
Medical: C-A-T Tourniquet. I
can deploy it with one hand.
Blade: CRKT Hissatsu
Power: USB battery charger
for mobile phone
Reference: I never go
anywhere without my copy of
the Constitution, the owners
manual to the greatest nation
on Gods earth.
Be the Best.
Buy the Best.

streichers.com | 800 -36


-367-3763
A CERTAIN MAN IN AN UNCERTAIN PLACE

a delight. I would see him almost


every day. He would always stop to
talk. And, not chitchat. Real stuff.
Hes a true gentleman in the original
sense. I look forward to eight years of
President Pence after eight years of
President Trump.
But, best of all were my interactions
with the officers and agents of the
U.S. Secret Service. They were always
engaging and professional. [Leans in]
Officer Mark! If youre reading this,
keep on truckin!

Did the controversy around the presi-


dents response to the Charlottesville
violence have something to do with
your departure?
SG: Zero. I was on vacation when that
happened. My resignation was trig-
gered by the speech the NSC wrote for
3 4

What about getting rid of the NFA, and SG: I dont drink coffee. (At least not the president on Afghanistan, which
GORKAS
IS SU E

making silencers an over-the-counter rubbish like Starbucks). Im into Turk- had no mention of the key phrase:
CAREER commodity? ish coffee, with the grounds in it. But I radical Islamic terrorism. Thats
HIGHLIGHTS SG: Again, early days. However, if we regularly drink British tea. Typhoo. The when I knew I could do more for the
178 Regular instructor look at how the presidents son, Don Empire was built on it. Commander-in-Chief on the outside.
for the J. F. Kennedy
Jr., has tirelessly advocated for bring- Theres no such thing as an average
REC O ILW E B .C O M

Special Warfare
Center and School, ing reason and common sense back day in the White House, or standard Depending on the news source, you
USASOC, Fort Bragg into this issue, I think we should all work hours. My work rotated between resigned or were fired?
Former Strategist be optimistic. Just think how a scant classified NSC meetings on a current SG: Resigned. Its all there in my
and Deputy Assistant
five years ago suppressors were rarely issue (ISIS, Qatar Crisis, China, etc.), letter to the president that you can
to President Donald
J. Trump discussed and even more unusual on meeting our foreign national security read at Breitbart.com. The MAGA
Former Major the range. That has all changed. counterparts visiting the White House, movement has simply moved outside
General Horner Chair Both Eric and Don keep a scrupu- doing media hits for the president the building, and we will continue
of Military Theory,
lous firewall between themselves and (CNN, MSNBC, and BBC were the to support the president against the
Marine Corps
University, Quantico their father. So theyre doing what most fun they always brought a swamp dwellers surrounding him and
Former Associate theyre doing as private citizens. But knife to a gunfight), or being in the obstructing him on The Hill. Its about
Dean for we havent had somebody with that Oval to consult with the president on the long game eight years, not
Congressional kind of name recognition embrace the most urgent issue, such as whether eight months.
Affairs and
these issues in recent years. to recertify the Iran deal or not. It was
Relations to the
Special Operations a dream. I pinched myself every day. What do you say to people who insist
Community, National Which are we more likely to see, national you were fired?
Defense University, reciprocity or over-the-counter silencers? Whos the most interesting figure you SG: I couldnt care less about this fake
Fort McNair
How long till we see one or both? met at the White House? news. I know exactly what I said to
Expert for the U.S.
Department of SG: Hmm, thats a tough one. My SG: There are too many to choose General [John] Kelly the day I resigned
Justice on the Boston gut tells me suppressors first then Youd walk into the West Lobby and and what I wrote in my resignation let-
Bombing Trial reciprocity. bump into Dr. Kissinger, for example, ter to the president.
Currently, Chief or a fascinating rabbi visiting from
Strategist, Make
America Great Again WORK Israel with a group of high school- What do you have to say to those who
(www.magacoalition. Whats a typical day in the White House, ers visiting the White House. But two attacked you and your credibility during
com) and how much coffee do you drink? stand out. Vice President Pence was and after your time in the White House?
A CERTAIN MAN IN AN UNCERTAIN PLACE

SG: They start under a false assump- ist. The problem today is the fake for corporate owners. Not too long
tion. I never craved, nor will I ever news industrial complex. When CNN, ago media concerns lost money by
want, the recognition of the establish- MSNBC, Politico, Huffington Post, design because they were performing a
ment. The establishment experts are New York Times, and Washington Post service. Now its your job to keep them
the people who promoted dumb wars are so politically demented that they straight, dear reader.
and saddled us with $20 trillion in actually stated on election night that
debt. The only recognition I need is Hillary Clinton had a 90- to 96-percent What about Russian interference in the
from the thousands of Special Forces, chance of winning, you know some- U.S. election and the special counsel?
Special Operations, U.S. Marine thing is rotten in the state of Denmark. Is this an important topic?
Corps, and law enforcement opera- Too much of what we call main- SG: Only for the Loony Left thats
tors Ive had the honor of working with stream today is all about a political been, ironically, in bed with Moscow
since moving to America. The swamp agenda, sensationalism, and profits since 1917. The Kremlin has been
dwellers and talking heads are utterly
irrelevant to me.

What about the accusation that you


are an anti-Semite and a member of a
Hungarian Neo-Nazi organization?
SG: My father, as a teenage boy, pro-
tected his fellow Jewish schoolmates
Gorka on the
from the German occupation forces on
campaign trail with
3 4

the way to school every day. I have al- then-candidate


IS SU E

ways been a loyal friend to the country Trump in August,


of Israel and the Jewish community in 2016 during an
America. Why do people say this about appearance on the
180 me? When you cant argue your side
Sean Hannity Show
in Milwaukee.
logically you race bait; they did it with
REC O ILW E B .C O M

the president, with Steve Bannon, and


they did it with me. Ive been alive for
47 years, and Ive challenged these
people to find one thing thats racist or
anti-Semitic and they never could.
What does that tell you?

What are you most proud of accom-


plishing as part of the administration?
SG: Keeping the Travel Moratorium
alive despite all those who wish to en-
danger our nation in the name of mul-
ticulturalism. And, I know for Steve,
getting us out of the insanity that was
the Paris Climate Change Accord was a
massive accomplishment.
Gorka first met
with Donald Trump
THE MEDIA in July, 2015 in
Whom do you trust for news these days? New York to coach
SG: The media has changed. Read the candidate on
Andrew Breitbarts seminal book national security
issues prior to the
Righteous Indignation; we are all
fall 2015 GOP
producers of copy today. If you have a presidential debate
mobile phone youre a citizen journal- on foreign policy.
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A CERTAIN MAN IN AN UNCERTAIN PLACE

SEBASTIAN mucking around in democratic elec- Whats caused the erosion of trust in Where on the political spectrum do
GORKA tions around the world since its incep- the media? conspiracy theorists such as Alex
BORN: tion. Thats not news. But the idea SG: Their transparently partisan behav- Jones reside?
1970, London
that the Trump campaign was in bed ior. When you accuse the president of SG: I love conspiracy theories as
CITIZENSHIP: with Vlad is pure fantasy. Its just yet being an anti-Semite when the mans diverting entertainment. But theres a
USA
another way for the losing candidate grandchildren are Orthodox Jews, the reason theyre called conspiracies and
FAMILY: to ignore her own culpability for her American people just switch off and not facts. Professional conspiracy theo-
Happily married with
a grown son and abysmal performance. rightly so. rists are a menace. Propagating dark
daughter theories about the world without actual
PETS: proof kills the mind and can lead to
Belgian Tervuren very dangerous consequences. Its not
Shepherd named
Killian an accident that outrageous forgeries
and smears such as the Protocols of
DOGS OR CATS:
I like all dogs. the Elders of Zion are still printed and
Only some cats. widely available in the Middle East,
TEACHER for example. Conspiracy theories are
COMMENTS ON dangerous. Those who propagate them
YOUR 5TH GRADE
REPORT CARD: should be shunned.
Could try harder.
Skates.
POLITICS
LAST READ: How deep and dangerous is
The Hundred-Year
3 4

Marathon The Swamp? Can it be drained?


by Michael Pillsbury
IS SU E

SG: Heard of the Mariana Trench? DC


FAVORITE FILM: is deeper. With Trump as president and
Blade Runner us on his side, though, it can be done.
182
FAVORITE TV
SHOW: As an immigrant, you must have strong
REC O ILW E B .C O M

Longmire
feelings on President Trumps plan to
FAVORITE erect a wall along our southern border?
RESTAURANT:
La Diplomat in D.C. SG: Yes. Its vital. Do you lock your
doors at night? America is a home.
FAVORITE
FIREARM: We need to secure it, especially in
Short-barreled the interests of our most vulnerable
Krebbs Customs AK
chambered in 7.62x39 minority communities and recent legal
immigrants, who suffer the greatest
FAVORITE AK
MAGAZINE: when illegal immigrants flood in and
Original Bulgarian steal their jobs.
10-ring or
US Palm AK30
Why do we place so much more weight
DREAM CAR:
Aston Martin V-8 on national politics when local politics
Vantage Volante directly affect us? Is this a uniquely
FAVORITE American thing?
CHEESEBURGER: SG: Wow, great question. I wish we
Cheeseburgers from
the Navy Mess, under didnt. Read de Tocqueville. Americas
the West Wing true identity and strength comes from
its local sense of community and local
volunteerism. Why are we where we are
today? The media.
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Like us on:
Unlike other magazines that produce subscription versions with thinner paper and dull covers, the RECOIL issues sent to
your door will retain all the same features that set us apart on the newsstands: thick cover with gritty texture, high-quality
paper stock throughout, and in-depth coverage of the gun lifestyle. Plus, all issues will ship in a protective covering.

SUBSCRIBE NOW: http://bit.ly/YFvTLF


WHY BALANCE TRAINING?
PRACTICAL APPLICATION TO BALANCE Depending on your shooting posi-

TRAINING FOR SHOOTERS tion, there are varying amounts of


balance and stability needed to keep
BY RYNE GIOVIANO
your shots on target. There is more
balance required in a standing position
as your center of gravity is higher, and
there are more joints to control when
compared to prone where your center
of gravity is in line with your base of
3 4

WARNING! support (your body).


IS SU E

The exercises and Not only that, there is a direct link


content expressed in between postural balance and shooting
this column are for
accuracy. In one study, the better the
184 illustrative purposes
only. Consult your balance of the shooter, the more accu-
physician before
rate their shots were (Mononen, Kont-
REC O ILW E B .C O M

trying any physical


activity or nutritional tinen, Viitasalo, & Era, 2007). This
plan. RECOIL and
its contributors are was also shown in top-level and novice
not responsible for shooters, where the top-level shooters
any harm or injuries
sustained while displayed better control and stability
attempting these of their center of mass as compared
techniques.
to novice shooters (Era, Konttinen,
Mehto, Saarela, & Lyytinen, 1996).
When you think about balance, images Depending on your shooting situation
of yoga poses, balance beams, or (the range, a day of hunting, military,
maybe some old-fashioned physical etc.) fatigue also becomes an issue
therapy comes to mind. It goes with- with regard to shooting accuracy. It has
out saying that shooting is probably been shown that fatigue can degrade
not on that list. When shooting, youre shooting performance (Bermejo,
on two feet, typically in a standing Garca-Mass, Paillard, & No, 2017),
or kneeling position, putting several which shouldnt come as a surprise
groupings down range. If movement to anyone. In conjunction with just
occurs, either by choice or necessity, accuracy, balance and control are also
things tend to break down if youre degraded to a degree. Through training,
not trained properly. Balance is one you can increase your ability to balance
of those qualities that doesnt take a and stabilize both your body and the
whole lot of time or energy to improve, firearm. While fatigue will still be a
but is critical to performance. Well factor, the better our ability to balance
put a different spin on it to give you and stabilize, the better youll be able
some practical ways of training. to perform under stress and fatigue.

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RUN AND GUN

LETS MAKE SOME TWEAKS TO We want to use exercises we know something we all want.
BALANCE TRAINING will result in better performance for By looking at the whole body, were
Balance training typically focuses on the specific task of firearms training. taking into account much more than
the lower body and involves equipment So, well look at the whole body, and just the legs. Sure, some balance
like balance pads and cones. While how it functions as a unit. That means work on the lower body is great, and
these are great to use in rehabilitation well use exercises for the lower body, we definitely incorporate that. But
settings or for general balance training, but well also incorporate balance (or we have to look at the body as an
well go in a slightly different direction stability) training for the upper body integrated system. This means we aim
with this to make it much more appli- and the core as well. The result will to create balance in the upper body
cable to shooters like you. be a rock-solid shooting platform, as well.

THE
EXERCISES
HALF-KNEELING KETTLEBELL HALO
Begin in a kneeling position with one
knee down.
Your down knee should be nearly in-line
with your front foot
3 4

Hold a kettlebell at your chest.


IS SU E

While bracing your abs and getting tight


in the lower body, bring the kettlebell
around your head in a circular motion
186 ending back at your chest.
Complete eight rotations on one side,
REC O ILW E B .C O M

then switch knees and complete halos in


the other direction.

SINGLE-LEG ROMANIAN DEADLIFT


Start in a standing position with a dumb-
bell in front of your left leg.
Let the dumbbell hang as you sit your
hips back and reach your left leg back
behind you.
Keep your lower back flat.
Once you feel a stretch in the hamstring
of your right leg, push your foot into the
floor and return to the starting position.
Complete eight repetitions on each side.
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THE
EXERCISES RUN AND GUN

SUPINE KETTLEBELL SCREWDRIVER


Begin by lying on your back with a kettlebell
in your left hand with your wrist straight.
Bring your right knee up and push your right
hand into the floor.
While crushing the handle of the kettlebell,
perform rotations of the entire arm. For an
added challenge, flip the kettlebell upside
down for a bottoms-up variation.
After completing 10 to 12 rotations, switch
to the other hand.

ONE-ARM BOTTOMS-UP KETTLEBELL SPLIT SQUAT


Start with one knee down and the other foot on the floor in
front of you. There should be roughly a 90-degree angle at
both knees.
Hold a kettlebell in the same side hand as the bottom knee.
3 4

The kettlebell will be in the bottoms-up position, with the


IS SU E

ball part of the kettlebell above your fist. Crush the handle.
Bring the arm up so your elbow is about the same height as
your shoulder, but slightly outside.
188 While holding the kettlebell, drive your front foot into the
floor and stand up so both knees are roughly straight.
REC O ILW E B .C O M

Slowly return to the starting position.


Complete 8 to 10 repetitions on each side.

BOTTOMS-UP KETTLEBELL WAITERS WALK


Begin by holding a kettlebell in bottoms-up fashion. Grip the
handle with the ball part of it above your fist.
Crush the handle to ensure the kettlebell stays upside down.
Bring the arm straight overhead.
Brace your abs to ensure your lower back isnt overly ex-
tended. Placing your free hand on your ribs can help you feel
to make sure your ribs are down and your abs are tight.
Walk slowly for 30 yards and switch hands.
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THE
EXERCISES RUN AND GUN

SINGLE-LEG MEDICINE BALL ANTI-ROTATION TAPS


Begin by standing paral-
lel to a wall, about 2 feet
away in a single-leg stance.
The leg closest to the wall
should be down.
From this position, toss a
medicine ball against the
wall, being sure to only
move your chest area while
keeping the rest of your
body tight.
Complete 10 throws on
each side.
3 4
IS SU E

CONCLUSION
Balance training certainly has proven
190 its worth both in the real world and
numerous studies. If its not a compo-
REC O ILW E B .C O M

nent of your shooting preparation, this


article is the perfect kick-start to your
training. Start by adding a few exercis-
es described above, and youll be well
on your way to better performance and
control both on and off the range.

ABOUT THE
AUTHOR
Ryne Gioviano is the owner of Achieve
Personal Training & Lifestyle Design
located in Aurora, IL. He earned his
masters degree in exercise physiology
and is a certified personal trainer
through the National Strength
and Conditioning Association.
You can find more information at
www.Achieve-PersonalTraining.com
or reach him on Facebook or on Twitter
and Instagram at @rgioviano.

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HONORING
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FALLEN
Artist: Scott
Rising Sparrow Tattoo
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Asheville, NC
IS SU E

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192 2004 and considered
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ones. I decided on the
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