AR-15; the progeny of genius.

[xl_target]

Baljit,
Can you give us some idea why you picked this Flash Hider over the standard A2?

[Baljit]

Baljit,
Can you give us some idea why you picked this Flash Hider over the standard A2?

XL...... These Flash Hider work way batter then standard A2 one. You can see the different when you shoot the gun .Good friend of mine and 4 time IPSC Canadian Champ. also use this Flash Hider and his wife have standard A2 Flash Hider.I shoot both AR's few times and I notice the different.
My gun smith also give a really good feedback as well.Now I am waiting to shoot my AR.

Baljit

[xl_target]

Thanks Baljit,
So apparently it works as a compensator too?

[Baljit]

So apparently it works as a compensator too?

Yes it is,and I have the same idea as well, but before that I have to develop few different load to see which one works the way I want.



Baljit

[xl_target]

Thanks xl
Couldn't log on , past couple of days.
Realised what I had missed.
Congratulatons on fabricating such a beautiful rifle.

Prashant,
Somehow I missed your post.
Thanks.



So I finally loaded up 100 rounds of ammo.
25.5 grains of IMR 4320 behind a 62 grain Speer boat tailed full metal jacket bullet. Ignited by Federal 205 primers
The brass is mixed commercial .223 and Lake City 5.56


Here is a box of 50. The stuff in the mags is commercial ammo.
I did start at 23.5 grains and worked up in half grain increments.
No pressure signs all the way to the max at 25.5 grains
COAL is 2.255" and they just fit the magazine without snagging, so I crimped them all with a Lee Factory Crimp die.

I'll be heading out to the range on Sunday to try it out.
I'll take the chrono with me and record some velocities.

[TC]

O O O O O....... I am floored

XL that's a blazing HOT package



TC

[xl_target]

Baljit,
Have you received your barrel yet? We are all waiting for you to continue your build.

TC,
I've been working up loads for the rifle and have not had the best of luck so far. I feel that I should be able to load ammo more consistently than commercial ammo. So far I have not been able to find a load that I am really happy with but that's half the fun; trying to find an optimal load. Load a bunch, shoot them for accuracy and consistency at different distances over the chrono and select the best one.

Loading military cases is a real pain mainly due to the crimp that they put on the primer. After depriming and resizing, I trim each cartridge to length. After that I have to chamfer the outside and inside of the case mouth. Once that is done the primer pocket crimp has to be removed before a new primer can be inserted. I also use a flash hole uniforming tool at this time. I bought a hand priming tool as I was smashing primers when loading them in with the press. This was due to incomplete removal of the crimp.


Crimped military primers and uncrimped civilian ammo .
Image from HERE

Crimp removal: This can be done with a reamer or a swager. I tried to speed up the process by chucking the reamer in an electric drill but this ended up making the process hard to control and many times, I ended up taking too much material off the primer pocket. I actually got blisters on my fingers from the reaming process to so went out and bought a Dillon Super Swager. This made things so much easier and faster.


Dillon Super Swage 600.


After priming, I use my powder dispenser to throw various charges, working from the recommended starting load to the max in small increments.Having an automatic powder dispenser makes thing a lot quicker. I've also been advised that I should sort my casings by batch as different casings will have different case capacities which will cause varying pressure readings.


Hornady Accucharge Powder Dispenser


Shooting the different charges at the range.
As you can see, summer if finally here and everything is greening up.


Here you can see the 50, 100 and 200 yard ranges. If a load shoots well at 100 yds, I might try it at 200 yds.
Unfortunately, I have to go elsewhere if I want to shoot further than this.


Here are some of the bullets that I have tried so far:

55 grain .223 cal Hornady Full Meta Jacket Boat Tail.



69 grain Sierra Match King


The best groups I have had so far is from a small packet of 100 bullets that I purchased at a gun show. They were 62 grain, FMJ boat tailed bullets (seen here).
Now I have to try and track that vendor down to see what they were or if he will sell me some more.


I still have not had a single problem with this rifle (after about 500 rounds). No Failures to feed, fire or eject even with ultra-cheap Russian steel cased ammo.

[ckkalyan]

Thanks xl_target for the lovely images (professional quality images) and 'AR porn'

Some of that brass is sure crimping your style!

Never realized before that there was a difference in casing with de-priming and priming. I wonder why this crimping is employed only in Military Ammo; maybe a security feature?

[xl_target]

Crimping the primer is done to enhance reliability. If a primer backs out in an automatic weapon, it could cause the mechanism to jam up.
Also if a primer backs out in an automatic weapon, it could cause premature detonation, damaging the weapon or the soldier using it. The issue is that the recoil of a semi- or fully-automatic gun can cause a loose primer to back out (which can cause slamfires) or fall out. No, that kind of thing *shouldn't* happen with new ammo, but in the real world, it does and has happened, and crimping the primers prevents both possibilities. Some striker-fired MGs, such as the original Uzi (not the semi-autos) will actually begin igniting the primer before the bolt is closed completely.
Since they don't know which weapon the ammo is going to be used in, generally all military ammo have crimped primers.

Usually only military rounds are crimped. If a primer backs out, it is usually not a big deal in a bolt action rifle or even a semi-auto. At the range, you have all the time in the world to fix the problem. In the midst of a battle, not so much. You almost never see civilian ammo with a crimp on the primer.

So why am I using brass with crimped primer pockets? Civilian ammo is expensive, sometimes orders of magnitude more expensive than the mil spec. ammo. For example; Lapua .223 brass casings are about $60 per 100. This is just for unprimed, unloaded brass casings. I can buy 100 loaded Lake City XM193 cartridges for slightly less ($45-$50) and reuse the brass. Hornady's low end .223 loading that is similar is $30 for 50 rounds. Winchester Match .223 is about $30 for 20 rounds. Granted the quality and consistency of most civvy ammo is better than the run-of-the-mill military ammo. However, reloaded ammo will "usually" be of higher quality than factory ammo.

Not only that but Lake City Brass is pretty decent, consistent brass and will easily handle multiple re-loadings. Some civvy brass is softer and won't allow as many re-loadings as LC brass. LC brass (and most military brass available here in the US) is also annealed which assures more workability than non-annealed brass. Keep in mind that the crimp only has to be removed once. Still, it is a chore.

[ckkalyan]

Good information on the primer crimps and their effect on re-loading. Thank you.

[timmy]

XL, that rifle looks great and must be a real dream to shoot! When you get it dialed in, I'd be interested to hear what recipes work for you. Thanks for those pics!

[TC]

XL,

Thank you so much for the details on the loads and of course the excellent pics.

That's a lovely 100 m range you have

This thread is having an intoxicating effect on me these days...




TC

[xl_target]

Good information on the primer crimps and their effect on re-loading. Thank you.

XL, that rifle looks great and must be a real dream to shoot! When you get it dialed in, I'd be interested to hear what recipes work for you. Thanks for those pics!

XL,
Thank you so much for the details on the loads and of course the excellent pics.
That's a lovely 100 m range you have
This thread is having an intoxicating effect on me these days...

TC

CK, Tim and TC; thanks.

There are a lot of people, usually gun banners, who deride the owners of today's AR-15 with comments like "why do you need an AR-15 to hunt with?" or "their only use is to kill people".

However, over the years, sportsmen's rifles have often evolved from military rifles. For example, just think of the profusion of sporterized Mauser rifles over the years that have been used by sportsmen. Of course, a successful military rifle by the end of its career is usually a reliable and often accurate weapon and so it only stands to reason that is what a sportsman will want to use. If you look at it that way, the AR-15 is "the modern sporting rifle".


A JP Rifle optimized for the shooting sports (in .5.56 x 45)

In the USA today, that is basically what is happening. The AR15 and its variants are currently the most popular centerfire rifles being sold today.


An 18" barreled LaRue PredatAR (in 7.62 X 51)

Here are a few facts from the National Shooting Sports foundation:

The modern sporting rifle, based on the AR-15 platform, is widely misunderstood. Why? Confusion exists because while these rifles may cosmetically look like military rifles, they do not function the same way. Also, groups wanting to ban these rifles have for years purposely or through ignorance spread misinformation about them to aid their cause.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation asks you to be an informed gun owner and to use the following facts to correct misconceptions about these rifles. Remember, that if AR-15-style modern sporting rifles are banned, your favorite traditional-looking hunting or target shooting semi-automatic firearm could be banned, too.

AR-15-platform rifles are among the most popular firearms being sold. They are today's modern sporting rifle.

The AR in "AR-15" rifle stands for ArmaLite rifle, after the company that developed it in the 1950s. "AR" does NOT stand for "assault rifle" or "automatic rifle."

AR-15-style rifles are NOT "assault weapons" or "assault rifles." An assault rifle is fully automatic -- a machine gun. Automatic firearms have been severely restricted from civilian ownership since 1934.

If someone calls an AR-15-style rifle an "assault weapon," he or she either supports banning these firearms or does not understand their function and sporting use, or both. Please correct them. "Assault weapon" is a political term created by California anti-gun legislators to ban some semi-automatic rifles there in the 1980s.

AR-15-style rifles look like military rifles, such as the M-16, but function like other semi-automatic civilian sporting firearms, firing only one round with each pull of the trigger.

Versions of modern sporting rifles are legal to own in all 50 states, provided the purchaser passes the mandatory FBI background check required for all retail firearm purchasers.

Since the 19th century, civilian sporting rifles have evolved from their military predecessors. The modern sporting rifle simply follows that tradition.

These rifles' accuracy, reliability, ruggedness and versatility serve target shooters and hunters well. They are true all-weather firearms.

Chamberings include .22, .223 (5.56 x 45mm), 6.8 SPC, .308, .450 Bushmaster and about a dozen others. Upper receivers for pistol calibers such as 9 mm, .40, and .45 are available. There are even .410 shotgun versions.

These rifles are used for many different types of hunting, from varmint to big game. And they're used for target shooting in the national matches.

AR-15-style rifles are no more powerful than other hunting rifles of the same caliber and in most cases are chambered in calibers less powerful than common big-game hunting cartridges like the 30-06 Springfield and .300 Win. Mag.

The AR-15 platform is modular. Owners like being able to affix different "uppers" (the barrel and chamber) to the "lower" (the grip, stock).

And, they are a lot of fun to shoot!

Quote fromHERE


The Rock River Arms LAR-8 X-Series Rifles (in 7.62 X 51)


The Wilson Combat Super Sniper

Just some example of today's Modern Sporting Rifle.

[timmy]

There are a lot of people, usually gun banners, who deride the owners of today's AR-15 with comments like "why do you need an AR-15 to hunt with?" or "their only use is to kill people".

It is hard for me to say this after your reasoned eloquence, XL, but I don't think a stupid question like the one above deserves such a reasoned response.

Most of my guns will never be used for hunting. Realistically, I may never go hunting again. Also,I may never shoot in an organized match again.

What does this have to do with the kind of guns that I own? Many of my guns are military, but their military usefulness ended at least a couple of generations ago. So what? The only justification that I have for owning them is that I like them. What if I never even shoot them again? What kind of gun is utilitarian for that use? The answer is plainly any gun.

The only justifications I need for owning what I own is that I wanted them, they were available, and I could afford them.

Do these sanctimonious anti-gunners drive automobiles? Why don't they drive Model Ts? We know that Speed is dangerous. why aren't they satisfied with owning and driving a Model T?

I think that their Lexus and Prius looks sinister and downright evil. Both cars are used by drunken drivers, who kill tens of thousands of people a year. Their cars should be banned and they should be satisfied driving Model Ts.

This line of reasoning is absurd, but they expect gun owners to be satisfied with the technology and looks of yesteryear.

In my mind, these people get the "Not only no, but he'll, no" because that is all they deserve.

Sorry for my rant, XL. In fact, I did love your post!

[Baljit]

Hello friends.

let me apologize first for delay.I was so busy with my work and then watching FIFA World Cup.Finally it over and have some free time so I thought I should post something about my AR.
Here I like to shear with all of you few pictures and info about forend which I am going to use on my AR.It's ATI ( Advanced Technology International ) free float forend with FS8 nose cone and utility rail system.

Here is info about this system.

Military Type III Anodized 6061 T6 Aluminum 8-Sided Rifle Length Free Float Forend.
Weight 9.3 oz. (263 g.)
Insert rail at 45 degree around the circumference of the forend for ultimate versatility.
Slide rail into any position on the forend for nearly unlimited costomization.
Military type III anodized 6061 T6 aluminum picatinny rail, 12" low profile picatinny rail, 4" and 2" picatinny rail.

Slotted Barrel Nut Constructed Of Military Type III Anodized 6061 T6 Aluminum .
Three set screws lock the forend into place on the slotted barrel nut.
Provides a secure fit that cannot rotate.
Allows forend to be installed flush to the receiver.

Forward Stabilizing FS8 Nose Cone.
Constructed of Military type III anodized 6061 T6 aluminum
Anchors into any corner,door jam,fance,wood,concreate,aluminum siding,etc etc for increased stability and accuracy.
Light weight 1.07 oz.











Here is a link for more info.http://www.atigunstocks.com/rifles/ar-15

Enjoy.
Baljit