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Standard disclaimer: I'm not a scientist and this was not a scientific test. Any conjecture on my part is purely an uneducated guess. As I've written before, POF-USA provided me with two of their upper receivers - one is of their standard P-415 design and the other is actually operated via a standard gas tube. It's called the RDIK. This gave me the opportunity to compare how each handled heat. That is, just how effective are all the design changes POF has made to the AR receiver, barrel nut, and… Read More

Some people are in the market for a new AR or AR upper. Some people don't think they're in the market until something special catches their eye. This could be a part that has special features, or a good product at a good price. Or, for that matter, something that has special features and is at a good price. The Spike's Tactical LE uppers are certainly in this last category. They're under $500, shipped, with a $50 coupon code - M4LEUP for the M4 type upper ($475 with the code),… Read More

In this helmet cam video, we see a team of Dutch Marines fastrope from a helicopter and retake a container ship that had been boarded by Somali pirates. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcqZKBJMNhI How could I not post this video, since my blog title means "Firearm" in Dutch? Beyond that, though, it's pretty neat to watch. The pirates, facing real resistance from highly trained forces, quickly surrender. The crew, having locked themselves in a "safe room", emerged after the ship was retaken, unharmed. The ship apparently had good "passive" anti-piracy countermeasures, but lacked armed… Read More

I'm going to deviate from the subject I normally cover on this blog and discuss current events. As pretty much everyone knows by now, the governor of Arizona recently signed legislation relating to illegal immigration. There has been loud and, at times, violent opposition to the law. Some of the strongest voices against the law come from Mexico - in fact, the Mexican government has condemned the law and issued a travel advisory informing its citizens about it. Perhaps misinformed would be the proper term, but that's another topic for… Read More

Recently, I've been hearing a lot of people say "You know what the AR-15 market needs right now? More M4 profile barrels." Actually, no, I haven't heard people say that. And yet, it seems that every new carbine length upper or rifle in the last year or so has the M203 cutout in the barrel. Even the Bushmaster ACR, which cannot possibly mount an M203, sports the cutout for said purpose. So why are companies offering products that no one is really asking for? I do see many people clamoring… Read More

In a recent AR15.com thread, it was claimed that Federal 9mm ammunition identified as XM9HA was a contract overrun of 147gr HST hollow point projectiles loaded to the impressive velocity of 1180 feet per second. That's 9mm Major territory - and beyond. It was also reported that this ammunition had a high rate of failures to feed or failures to fire in a variety of handguns. I was recently sent a small quantity of this ammunition for testing via a chronograph. It was requested that I use a Glock 19… Read More

Over the past few weeks, I've been putting a fair amount of match ammunition through the BCM Mk12. Most of that has been Prvi 75gr Match, but I've also shot Hornady 75gr, Black Hills Blue Box 68 and 75gr, and my own handloads. Recently, a number of 10 shot groups were fired at 100 and 200 yards using two of the above: Prvi 75gr at 100 yards, and Black Hills 68gr at 200 yards. These groups were shot from the prone, using a Harris bipod for support, a Rock River… Read More

I've been told that the following information is OK to release. It's pretty self explanatory. I removed the names of certain individuals, but the information is otherwise unedited. Land Warfare Resources Corporation Engineering Memorandum Engineering Memorandum To: IAR Team From: Date Written: 8/8/07   IAR Drop Test “ Summary   Purpose: The internal drop testing of the LWRC Infantry Automatic Rifle was undertaken to determine how robust the Rifle and its component parts and accessories are and simulates a drop from a rotary winged aircraft at the maximum height a… Read More

1% of the cost of a rifle or upper receiver assembly. Maybe that's too much to ask. I do know that margins are pretty low in this business. What am I talking about? I'm asking manufacturers to spend 1% of the money they make from the sale of a rifle or upper receiver assembly on ammunition with which to test fire the weapon in question. Maybe spend .5% on ammunition and .5% on an extra employee to just look at stuff before it goes out the door. Poke it. Prod… Read More

Assembling an AR-15 is a fairly easy task. Even if one starts with everything disassembled, and has never done it before, the process should take no more than an hour or two, and requires only a few basic tools, a few specialized tools that are readily available, and a vise. However, it's also fairly easy to mess up. One of the more common modifications to an already assembled rifle is the installation of a free float tube or free floating handguard that covers the gas block area. This is also… Read More