In 2008, as a “proof-of-concept”, AccurateShooter.com created a 20 Practical AR15 “Ultimate Varminter” with a custom 20-caliber upper from Robert Whitley. That project rifle was ultra-accurate — every 5-shot group out of the gun was less than the size of a dime. That gun was auctioned off, but Robert Whitley (AR-X Enterprises, LLC) continues to produce custom 20 Practical AR15 uppers. (The 20 Practical cartridge is simply the .223 Rem necked down to 20 caliber — you can use standard .223 brass and load with standard.223 Rem dies. Just swap in a smaller expander and use smaller neck bushings.)
Robert reports that the accuracy of the first 20 Practical AR15 was no fluke. After buildign six (6) more 20 Practical uppers, he tested them for accuracy and they all shot great. These uppers feature DPMS low-pro receivers with side charging handles. They are fitted with PacNor 1:11″ twist, three-groove stainless barrels.
Robert reports: “We have been making more 20 Practical AR15 uppers and I have to say I am astounded by the accuracy of these things. For shooting little tiny groups out of an AR15 with bullets going 3500+ fps, it’s hard to beat the 20 Practical. Today I test-fired six more uppers, all with 11-twist barrels. Three of the uppers had 24″ barrels, two had 20″ barrels, and one had an 18″ barrel (we call it ‘Stubby’).
In four of these uppers I shot re-sized Winchester brass using 25.3 grains of WC844 powder with Berger 40gr BTHP bullets loaded at 2.225″ OAL (about .015″ off the lands). WC844 is inexpensive military surplus powder that is nearly identical to H335. I tried three different primers and the choice did not seem to matter (CCI BR4, Rem 7 1/2s and Win Small Rifle — the old silver ones). All these four uppers shot great. Here is an overlay with targets from uppers #6, 10, and 11. All groups are mag-fed, 5-shot groups shot at 100 yards using a front rest and rear bag.”
Neck Tension is Important
With four of the uppers, Robert used Winchester brass which had good neck tension, and accuracy was excellent, as shown above. However, for two of the uppers (uppers #3 and #5) Robert used some old 20 Practical ammo that he pulled down and reloaded without re-sizing the case neck. Robert says: “With this old ammo, the neck tension was way too light and the accuracy was so-so, i.e. between .75″-1.0″ at 100 yards — which for a lot of ARs is still considered ‘very good’.” Lesson learned — accuracy may suffer with the 20 Practical if your neck tension is inadequate.
For more information visit www.6mmAR.com, or contact Robert Whitley via email: rcw3 [at] erols.com.
GunVault has unveiled a new, affordable security system for AR-platform rifles. The patent-pending AR MagVault ($24.95 MSRP) is a key-lock-controlled bright orange nylon block that fits in AR magwells. When engaged, the AR MagVault blocks magazine access, and more importantly, prevents the bolt from cycling. Once the AR MagVault is locked into place, a round cannot be inserted or chambered.
According to the manufacturer, the AR MagVault fits virtually all .223/5.56 AR-platform rifles. We like this well-designed product. The fiberglass-reinforced nylon block seems sturdy. It can supplement the use of a chamber safety flag at the range (the hi-viz orange color makes it easy to see the block is in place). In addition the AR MagVault can provide added security when an AR is transported or stored in a gun safe. Our only concern is the key system — we’d rather see a combination lock. As blogger Robert Farago cautions: “Don’t lose that key!” For additional info, visit GunVault.com.
On “Black Friday”, the big sale day following Thanksgiving, Brownells will commence a 10% off promotion. Starting at 12:01 AM, Friday, November 26, you can get 10% off any Brownells order. Log on to Brownells’ Black Rifle Friday Page on Friday to get the Promo Code, or visit Brownells’ Facebook page (Facebook “friends” get early access to Promo Code).
Black Rifle Friday Promo Runs Until Midnight on Cyber-Monday
The Brownells Black Rifle Friday Promo runs through midnight, on “Cyber-Monday”, November 29. Selected items will also have special, reduced prices all weekend. For more information, call 800-741-0015 or visit brownells.com.
The Competitive AR-15 Builders Guide, a new book by Glen Zedicker, is now available. Following Zedicker’s New AR-15 Competitive Rifle (2008), the new Builders Guide provides step-by-step instructions that will help non-professional, “home builders” assemble a competitive match or varmint rifle. This book isn’t for everyone — you need some basic gun assembly experience and an aptitude for tools. But the new Zedicker Builders’ Guide. provides a complete list of the tools you’ll need for the job, and Zedicker outline all the procedures to build a AR15 from start to finish.
Along with assembly methods, this book covers parts selection and preparation, not just hammers and pins. Creedmoor Sports, which sells the book for $31.00, explains: “Knowing how to get what you want, and be happy with the result, is truly the focus of this book. Doing it yourself gives you a huge advantage. The build will honestly have been done right, and you’ll know it! Little problems will have been fixed, function and performance enhancements will have been made, and the result is you’ll have a custom-grade rifle without paying custom-builder prices.”
The Competitive AR-15 Builders Guide is not yet available from Amazon.com or most large book vendors. However, Creedmoor Sports has plenty of copies in stock (item BK Builder, $31.00 on sale). To order, visit www.creedmoorsports.com or call 1-800-CREEDMOOR.
Earlier this month Wilson Combat launched its new gun blog, which is worth a visit. Though focused primarily on handguns, the Wilson Combat Blog also features tactical rifles and shotguns. While there are match reports and gun maintenance articles, the Wilson Blog is mainly a showcase for products, which are illustrated with really superb photography (some of the best “gun glamour” images on the web). Here are some examples of the “eye candy” Wilson combat offers on its site…
Case Colored 1911 for Trey of Jackson Armory in Texas
Trey calls this unique, Case-Colored custom the “Patriot Elite”. The slide is hand polished and then sent to Doug Turnbull for his exceptional bluing and color case hardened finish on the frame. The frontstrap was left bare to show off case colors.
Custom Professional with Flush-Crowned Barrel
Another interesting gun is this 4″ Commander-style 1911 K-5 with beautiful, fan-pattern Cocobolo grips. Notice that the muzzle is flush crowned. A new option for Wilson, the flush crown is made possible by the use of a flat wire, Glock-style recoil spring. This new feature is only available for compact/professional length slides at this time.
Wilson Arms AR Trigger — Long-Term Test
The Wilson Arms Blog also links to a Military Times long-term test of the Wilson Tactical Trigger Unit (TTU) for AR-type lowers. The Times tested the TTU over six months with 10,000 drops of the hammer. Click Here to read the full review, published on Sept. 29, 2010.
Here’s a product that should interest varminters and Service Rifle shooters. Mossberg has just introduced its new Tactical .22 auto-loading rimfire rifle. With a $276 MSRP, the Mossberg Tactical .22 provides the look and feel of an AR-style rifle with an affordable price. This gun, officially sold by Mossberg Int’l, promises to be a fun plinker that can also work for very close-range varmint hunting on small prey.
Service Rifle shooters looking for an inexpensive trainer will find that the Mossberg Tactical .22 shares most of the ergonomics of their centerfire AR-15 match rifles. With the rising costs of centerfire ammunition, Mossberg’s new Tactical .22 rimfire can provide a cost-effective training platform.
Model 702 Action in AR-Style Chassis
The lightweight Mossberg Tactical .22 is based on Mossberg’s proven model 702 rimfire autoloader. Mossberg adapted the Model 702 action to an AR-style chassis with an 18″ barrel and a quad-rail fore-end. (We would rather see standard AR-style handguards, but this does allow a varminter to mount lights or other accessories on the forearm.) The Mossberg Tactical .22 will be offered with two stock configurations — a fixed stock with 13″ LOP, or a 6-position stock that can adjust length of pull from 10-3/4″ – 14.5″. The adjustable stock may be good for young kids, but otherwise we recommend the fixed stock. The Tactical .22 comes with an A2-style carry handle and an adjustable rear peep/front blade iron sights. On top of the carry handle is a Picatinny rail for mounting optics. Groan — that’s the wrong position for a scope, because you can’t maintain a cheek weld, but the rail is better than nothing if you need to mount a red dot or other sighting system. A 10-rd magazine is standard.
Here’s an item that should interest 3-Gun and Multi-Gun competitors using AR rifles. Magpul Industries has filed for a patent on a new “quad-stack” magazine that may hold as many as 60 rounds, yet feed through a normal AR15 mag well. (In Multi-Gun matches, ultra-high-capacity magazines can provide a competitive edge in high-round-count stages.) While Magpul is renowned for its innovative engineering, we wonder if this new mag design was inspired, at least in part, by the Russians. Earlier this year, the Izhmash OJSC factory in Russia revealed a quad-stack 60-round magazine for the new AK-200 rifle, successor to the AK-47.
An explanation of how Magpul’s new quad-stack AR magazine works is found on The Firearm Blog, which reports: “The design is quite straight forward. A central partition separates two dual staggered round stacks. Two springs are used, a lower stronger spring and a weaker top spring[.]”
In the frame below, click-drag on the right-side scroll bar to view numerous technical illustrations included in Magpul’s 12-page patent application. You can also navigate by clicking the page arrows (at bottom of frame) or by clicking “tile mode”. Use the plus/minus controls to zoom in or out.
The 2010 LaRue Tactical Multi-Gun Match has wrapped up and two new champions have been crowned. The match was held at the Cawthon Cartridge Club in Cawthon, Texas. Taran Butler won the Tactical Division and Benny Hill won the Tactical Heavy Division. Butler is a 5-Time USPSA Multi-Gun National Tactical Champion and 10-Time California State 3-Gun Champion. Those who’ve seen Taran Butler in action understand why he’s one of the top multi-gun shooters in the county. He can compete head-to-head with the best handgunners, and he’s blazing fast with his carbine, even on the move.
If you use an AR-platform rifle for varminting, multi-gun matches, or Service Rifle competition, one simple upgrade you can make to enhance reliability is to replace the mil-spec gas rings with a one-piece McFarland™ bolt gas ring. The McFarland ring is a single spiral of spring steel that loops around the bolt three times and leaves no path for gas leakage. With conventional gas rings, you need to correctly rotate each ring so the “gap” does not line up, thereby allowing gas blow-by that can cause cycling problems. The one-piece ring is an inexpensive, “set and forget” solution that eliminates the need to monitor your ring position on the bolt body.
The one-piece McFarland gas ring is recommended by Fulton Armory and other AR experts. Installation is simple and the one-piece rings last a very long time. One AR user comments: “Ever since I tried single rings I would never change back to mil-spec rings. I’ve experienced more consistent recoils and cyclic rates of fire. And, as to wear — I haven’t worn one out yet.” On Brownells.com, two gunsmiths offered these reviews:
“Easy install, zero chance of a gap, one less thing to worry about in the bolt carrier group. This item should greatly improve gas pressure consistency. This is a ‘must have’ item.” — Jake, SC
“The concept is simple and sound. The one-piece gas ring removes the possibility of gaps lining up. It installs easily, holds great tension, and is cheap. Doesn’t get much better.” — Lane, TN
The McFarland™ one-piece bolt gas ring can be purchased from Brownells for $3.99 (item 100-001-257) or from Fulton Armory for $2.99 (item FA-AR-300-109). Purchase three or four at once to save on shipping costs — that should be enough for a decade of AR shooting.
Creedmoor Sports notified us that they have Geissele Triggers (for AR platform rifles), and Lapua Brass in stock. These triggers are often back-ordered for months, so if you need one, you should give Creedmoor a call at 800-273-3366. Chose the Geissele GT-SR trigger for $279.00, or the new SSA model for $170.00.
If you have been looking for Lapua Brass, Creedmoor has ample quantities for most of the popular cartridges: .223 Rem, .220 Russian, 6mmBR, .243 Win, 6.5×47 Lapua, 6.5-284 Norma, .308 Win, 30-06, .338 Lapua Magnum.
Neck Tension is Important
On “Black Friday”, the big sale day following Thanksgiving, Brownells will commence a 10% off promotion. Starting at 12:01 AM, Friday, November 26, you can get 10% off any Brownells order. Log on to Brownells’ 
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Here’s a product that should interest varminters and Service Rifle shooters. 
Model 702 Action in AR-Style Chassis
Here’s an item that should interest 3-Gun and Multi-Gun competitors using AR rifles. Magpul Industries has filed for a patent on a new “quad-stack” magazine that may hold as many as 60 rounds, yet feed through a normal AR15 mag well. (In Multi-Gun matches, ultra-high-capacity magazines can provide a competitive edge in high-round-count stages.) While Magpul is renowned for its innovative engineering, we wonder if this new mag design was inspired, at least in part, by the Russians. Earlier this year, the 
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