Man, 1903 was a crazy year. The Teddy Bear was invented that year. Some guys electrocuted an elephant in New York City, the Wright brothers took flight, and it was a damn fine year for guns. I’ve gotten into old guns recently. Call me bored with M-LOK and polymer frames. I just noticed the year 1903 constantly came up and decided to look at what made 1903 such an interesting year for firearms.
Notable Firearms of 1903
Plenty of firearms wear the 1903 moniker, and I’m guessing it’s easy to guess which guns made the list. The most obvious being the Springfield M1903, which served the United States from 1903 til 1949. This rifle was very much a product of its time, and its time meant a bolt action design, heavy wooden furniture, and a long bayonet. It was a rifle, a club, and a spear in different instances.
Another of the more popular weapons produced in 1903 was the M1903 Pocket Hammerless. This John browning design produced for Colt chambered the little .32 ACP and provided a direct blowback semi-auto pistol for concealed carry. It was an instant hit, served with numerous police forces, and was a General Officer’s pistol.
There was a not-as-popular Colt Pocket Hammer 1903, which was John Browning’s first short recoil handgun and chambered the forgotten .38 ACP. This gun would go on to become the COlt M1911, which needs no introduction. The 1903 Pocket Hammer was the compact variant in a family of .38 ACP guns that included the M1900 and M1902 Sporting.
John Browning also invented the FN M1903 for the Belgians. This is a semi-auto pistol firing the 9mm Browning Long. It was similar to the Colt M1903 but larger and more capable. It became a service pistol with the Russian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, the Swedes, and many more.
Finally, Winchester produced the Model 1903, which was the first successful commercially offered semi-auto rifle. It was a .22 Winchester Automatic, which is a rimfire round, and it used a simple blowback action. The rifle used a tubular magazine and was designed by T.C. Johnson.
Why 1903?
Isn’t that the magic question? These firearms were all fairly successful and innovative and even impacted modern gun design to this day. Some answers are easy. The Springfield M1903 was a .30-06 rifle produced in the wake of the Spanish-American War. The Spanish used the Mausers, which outclassed American Krags. America needed to keep up and built the M1903. The United States would later pay a small sum for every rifle produced to Mauser. At least until World War 1 started.
What about all the semi-auto firearms? It’s worth noting that 1903 was right dead in the middle of the Technological Revolution. This period is also known as the Second Industrial Revolution. It would culminate in World War 1, where tanks and machine guns left millions of European boys dead on bloody battlefields.
The early 1900s were one of massive industrial expansion. Mass production as we know it now was just starting to arrive. While it still took talented, skilled workers to produce firearms, the time it took was being cut drastically. The first semi-auto handgun was created in 1893, and a mere decade later, they’d rule the market.
Firearm technology was quickly evolving with the rise of autoloaders. They were becoming easier to produce, and in 1900, Browning invented the first automatic pistol with a slide. Automatic loaders seemed to be the future, and plenty of companies were willing to put money behind them.
We mentioned Browning, and it’s worth noting that while he was working, he was always innovating. He was responsible for three of the famed 1903 pistols, which were all autoloaders.
The Next Revolution?
These days, every modern handgun and rifle seems to have fairly standard construction. We know what works. In 1903, they were more or less figuring that out. Guns like the Pocket Hammerless and the FN M1903 shaped the way handguns look and function to this day. The Winchester rifle wasn’t much different than any other semi-auto .22 rifle. It’s fascinating how much has changed but also how much it’s stayed the same.
The integration of accessories into firearms has always fascinated me. It tickles that cyberpunk itch I have with firearms. Certain accessories integrate better than others, and lights are seemingly one of the more popular choices for weapon integration. We typically add lights to handguards and rails, but what about building them into the rifle? True integration of light and firearm. Integrating a weapon light isn’t a new idea. In fact, it’s kind of an old idea we’ve gotten away from.
The OGs of Integrated Lights
Surefire was one of the first when they were still Laser Products Corporation. It wasn’t a light necessarily, but a laser that was integrated into the tube of a Remington 870. When Surefire became Surefire, they continued to integrate weapon lights and accessories. They built the integrated shotgun pumps that really defined weapon lights for pump shotguns.
They went on to design handguards for the MP5 that integrated a weapon light and followed up with the M4 handguard that did the same. This was before Picatinny Rails and certainly well before M-LOK became the star of the show. These systems used built-in buttons and allowed the user to control the lights in a rather ingenious way.
With the rise of M-LOK and rails, most of these faded away. Shotguns are one of the few platforms that still commonly use integrated lights. The main problem with these older lights was a lack of customization. You could change their orientation or place the button right where you want it. This poses a problem because we are a people who right like to customize and control the crap we stick on our guns.
Modern Integrated Lights
I’m using modern to describe any light system from 2010 til now or so. We’ve seen a few rail systems integrate lights. The Merklight X Series handguards integrated 8 LEDs into a handguard and apparently had 740 lumens of power, but I’m betting the candela and range were rather low. Another option was the Luma Shark, which offered 1,150 lumens of light from two integrated lights that sat on the bottom of the M-LOK handguard.
One of the more impressive examples of integration comes from the Taurus Curve. I know what you’re thinking, but I’ll give credit when it’s due. The Curve was the first time I ever saw a handgun with a light built into the frame. Sure, it was dimmer than the light on my keychain, but it was a step forward.
The only successful integrated weapon lights still come from shotguns. This includes the TL Racker, the Surefire DSF series, and the oft-forgotten Steiner Mk7. Due to the specific needs of a pump shotgun, these lights excel at their role and are widely fielded.
What the Future Could Hold
I don’t think weapon lights integrated into rifles will gain any real acceptance anytime soon. People like being able to place their lights in a way that better interacts with the other gear on their rifle rails. Shotguns are covered, and I really think the future of integrated weapon lights comes in the form of handguns.
The Curve had it right. With handguns, we have one place to stick the light, and it’s under the barrel. With handguns like the P320 and the Echelon using these removable fire control groups and chassis, the advent of a grip with a built-in light can’t be too far off. The smart idea would be to use interchangeable switches and replaceable heads that match something like the Surefire X300 series.
It could save bulk and weight from a fairly bulky combination. SIG has done a laser grip module for the P320, so someone is thinking about it. It would be interesting to see the integration and how big or small lights could be with integration, and potentially other avenues or battery integration. As long as the current standard for power can be met, I’d love to see light integration become an option with particular frames and designs. Hopefully, we don’t have to wait too long on the future.
Holosun has been absolutely nailing it on optics for the last couple years. So much so that they’ve crowded their catalog and are unfortunately competing with their own backdated list of products.
This is inevitable as technology and the market progresses, just look at how many variants of Geissele AR handguard that are out there or the fact that BCM is still trying to liquidate Keymod rails on uppers as their MCMR and quads continue to dominate sales.
One of the newer offerings is the AEMS, it is joining a strong performing field of “micro” long gun dots which offer sealed and purged emitters with fairly small footprints. This sight was so well received Reptilia made a mount for it.
This MRO, T2, CompM5, and AEMS suite of options offers us a strong feature set list from all in a variety of prices.
Personally I feel the AEMS brings most of Holosun’s strengths with it. Super clean LED emitter, simple and robust control suite. It also brings some features people, like and some do not, in the battery compartment. You need the little tool to swap batteries, it isn’t ‘field expedient’ in the way other caps are. But largely this is fine as battery life is long, the tools are inexpensive and plentiful and easy to keep in small tool kits.
So yeah, AEMS for carbines and shotguns. Full send.
Everyone needs a good .22 rifle. For tactical training, small game hunting, and target shooting a good quality .22 is a must. Many press the .22 into defense use. More often than not the .22 rifle will serve well in that niche. I don’t recommend a rimfire for defense use and I hope you have something more powerful you have mastered. But you aren’t naked before the enemy either. Another role is pure relaxation. All of us can afford a good .22 and a bunch of ammunition to burn off without a clear purpose. I have been an instructor at several levels and there is nothing wrong with making brass for the hell of it as long as you know the difference in making brass and training.
This take down rifle is fitted with a Bushnell red dot. Adaptive Tactical magazine pouch holds Ruger X magazines.
When the subject of the Ruger 10/22 comes up it seems everyone in the group owns one. I find the Ruger 10/22 among the most reliable .22 Long Rifle firearms ever designed and built. It is a great plinker, trainer, small game and pest gun, and one of most versatile firearms any of us will ever own. The ten round rotary magazine is among the most reliable magazines ever designed. The Ruger X magazine in 15, 20 and 25 round versions provides an even greater edge. A drawback to reliable function in any .22 Long Rifle is the cartridge design- which is about 150 yards old. The .22 rimfire features a heel based bullet. This is a bullet that tapers into a heel at the base. This base is press fitted into the cartridge case. Centerfire cartridges and the .22 Magnum use a crimp to hold the bullet in place. Fairly often the bullet is dislodged and twisted during the feed cycle. The .22’s rimfire ignition is more prone to misfire than centerfire ammunition. I have gone as much as 2,000 cartridges in the 10/22 without a tie up quite a record. I have gone through a 500 round brick and experienced a half dozen failures to fire. Modern production seems more reliable.
Ruger’s X magazine is a reliable feed device.Fiocchi ammunition has given excellent results in the 10/22 rifle.These are expanded .22 caliber hollow points.Small game hunting is a great sport.
The Ruger 10/22 is a simple blowback operated rifle. Maintenance is simple enough and there are ton of aftermarket accessories available including stocks, custom triggers, sights, optics, and barrels. A .22 is very effective on small game up to racoon and even bobcat size given good shot placement. In my time as a peace officer there were a number of incidents I was familiar with involving .22 caliber firearm. I don’t recall a single one shot stop with any .22 handgun. A single shot seemed the norm with the rifle, although in once case a burglar was peppered with 16 shots before he went down. None were good hits. I recall an incident in which a female defender peppered a fellow who had shot her husband during a break in, severely wounding him, and she also wounded another robber with her Ruger Standard Model .22. Both crooks were able to flee the scene. The secret is shot placement. While the .22 caliber rifle has greater velocity and penetration than a handgun it is also much easier to get hits with. The three points of contact with both arms and the cheek add up to easy accuracy and good handling. The .22 caliber rifle is a reasonable choice for personal defense for those on a strict budget. Quite a few of us own a rifle for small game hunting. It isn’t unreasonable to press this rifle into service for personal defense. After all we will have a great deal of familiarity with the rifle. And that may prove superior to the larger caliber rifle we have hardly fired.
A rare rifle= Ruger 10/22 left hand target version.
All firearms have tradeoffs in handling, accuracy, and reliability. The 10 22 rifle has virtually no drawbacks save the caliber- and then the rifle wasn’t designed for home defense but small game and target shooting. The 10 22 is a semi automatic firing a shot with each pull of the trigger. It offers an instant second shot. Ten rounds is a lot of shots in a home defense situation but the rifle may also be deployed with a 25 round magazine. After years of dealing with poor quality aftermarket magazines the Ruger X magazine is reliable. The Ruger 10/22 is light and handy but its 16 inch barrel provides plenty of velocity. Like all long guns kept at home ready loaded for emergency the rifle should never be chamber loaded. Keep the chamber empty over a loaded magazine. It only takes a second to rack the bolt and make the rifle ready. Practice safely unloading the rifle as well. Remove the magazine and work the bolt to unload the rifle. The rifle is semi automatic, remarkably easy to handle well, reliable, and not very powerful. I keep repeating the not very powerful comment but it is something to remember. Fire as accurately as possible in practice and be prepared to fire multiple shots. Hopefully hunting and recreation will be the only chore the rifle is put to. We have taken time to run ballistic testing on the 9mm, .223, .357, .45 ACP and other calibers. Few consider the ballistics of the .22 rifle. Lets examine a few tests in water.
.22 Long Rifle load testing
Load Velocity from Ruger 10/22
Penetration
Expansion
Fiocchi 38 grain HP
1199 fps
16.5 in. .30
CCI Mini Mag 40 gr.
1208 fps
18 in. .32
CCI Velocitor 40 gr.
1355 fps
20 in. .35
CCI Stinger 32 grain
1478 fps
13 in. .30
Accuracy is important. Most 10/22 rifles in stock form will group three shots into two inches at 50 yards with a mid grade optic and good ammunition. Adding a heavy barrel helps. The Ruger target grade 10/22 with middle weight barrel is even more accurate. I own several 10/22 rifles and a Gator edition is my wife’s only rifle. You must have one of these rifles!
There has been a lot of talk about male loneliness as of late. As men become more atomized, it becomes an interesting subject of discussion. Men are less likely to have a group of friends to rely on, are more likely to work longer hours, and generally have less success in their love lives than ever before. One in five men admits to having no close friends, and this conversation society is having culminated with an article from the New York Times called, “Is the Cure to Male Loneliness Out On the Pickleball Court?” Maybe its shooting competitively.
Alongside the awkward title was a hilarious illustration of a man crying while watching another group of men play pickleball. It’s launched a sea of memes, with my favorite being “Is the Cure to Male Loneliness Hunting Cryptids with the Boys?” You might be wondering why a gun website is talking about male loneliness, but if you read the title, my premise is pretty obvious.
Is the Cure to Male Loneliness Shooting Competitively?
Shooting sports is a fantastic way to get out there, make new friends, and have fun. The shooting community as a whole is very accepting of new shooters, and it’s an open community in most cases. It’s easy to come in as a complete newb and find people willing to teach you how things are done.
It might seem odd to suggest shooting sports as a way to combat male loneliness. Isn’t it loud and difficult to make friends? Not really. Most people use a set of electric ear protection, and when you aren’t shooting, you are typically a little ways off the line. There is plenty of time to chat and ask questions and generally get to know the squad you’re assigned to.
While physical fitness is an important aspect of anything, it’s not necessarily required for shooting sports. You’ll shoot better with a lower resting heart rate, but you can compete in most shooting sports as an out-of-shape slob. Getting involved in bush league sports can be difficult for someone out of shape. It’s certainly tough to feel adequate and to have fun if you are dragging your team down.
With shooting sports, that’s not really a problem. Sure, some are team-based, but those are fairly uncommon. You’ll be working for yourself, and you can’t drag a team down.
Addressing the Core Causes Of Male Loneliness
Men aren’t making friends, and the cure isn’t just to make more friends. We have to address the root cause of male loneliness and why they aren’t making friends. While competitive shooting sports can’t address every aspect of why men can’t make friends, they can address some.
When people smarter than I dug into why men feel lonely and why they can’t make friends easily, there were a few common causes. One was feelings of inferiority. Not being good at something and getting better at that thing is a great way to build confidence. You might suck at first when shooting competitively, but you’ll now know what you need to practice, and you’ll see your skills improve.
Another big factor is a feeling of inadequate masculinity. Shooting competitively is not a strict male hobby, although men do outnumber women by a fair bit in the sport. I also don’t want to alienate female competitive shooters of women in the firearm industry by any means. However, shooting sports are often tied to your ability to shoot, which is tied to your ability to protect.
Protecting one’s family is a masculine trait and a man’s ability to protect himself, his loved ones, his community, and beyond. Being good at shooting can certainly help a man feel he is masculine.
To the Range
Shooting competitively will make you want to shoot more, train more, and spend time outdoors and with people. It’s fun, engaging, and provides a thrill we don’t get when we are connected to a screen. While shooting competitively can help aid in relieving male loneliness, it’s not the only thing to consider. You might need therapy or, a support group, and other forms of help. Boys, don’t be afraid to open up. Also, hydrate and moisturize!
1911 Syndicate has a fun video with my buddy James Williamson featuring the Marines breakout infantry toy, the M27 IAR.
If you don’t want to watch the video, well… sad. It’s fun and informative and has neat guns.
But if you don’t, here is a Marine’s perspective in text on how the M27 snuck in. I’ve said it before in parts but it was really clever and the Marine command will never admit to it.
As you know if yo’ve watched the NGSW process, getting a new service weapon is a ginormous (technical term) task. The monumentally laborious and detailed process is designed to ensure fairness in the request and a detailed list of requirements.
The Marines didn’t have time for that. We aren’t patient.
So the USMC went to the procurement folks and asked for a “supplemental” weapon for the M249 because the M249 was problematic in many ways. This was and is true. The SAWs are heavy cumbersome light machine guns that haven’t benefitted from the glow ups that the AR-15 has had in the last couple decades. They do not have a open market presence, there are far fewer units in circulation in total, and so it was kinda left alone after they put an optic rail on the top cover.
It remained heavy, cumbersome, and difficult to manage. So all of these very real problems with using the SAW made it into the request for a lighter magazine fed weapon to “supplement” the SAW. *wink*
So a request went out. Colt, LWRCi, FN, and H&K sent in some pretty cool rifles. My personal favorite was the LWRCi M6A3 which would switch to open bolt as it got hot. That was really cool.
When you look at the data the FN SCAR variant was probably the functionally objective winner, however logistically the USMC picked the H&K 416 variant.
Thus came out the M27, which filled a size gap between the M16A4 and M4/M4A1 and improved on many of the complaints those weapons received during the timeframe. Weird that it did that when it was supposed to improve on the SAW.
Then after a bit the M27 was purchased in a much larger contracted amount by the Marines and declared to be the standard ground forces fighting rifle. It brought a super robust operating system, a floated and accurate barrel, a better sling, and improved controls and interface. All, again, improvements on the M16A4 and M4, not really the SAW.
There continues to be significant and well supported dissent over the decision to remove light machine guns from the infantry squads and rely on medium machine guns for sustained firepower. There are arguments either way, and the procurement of the XM250 by the US Army may influence that in the next few years (there is a 5.56 variant of that machine gun from SIG, so).
So the path chosen was not to upgrade the M16A4 to the A5. The M4 was a quick interchanged solution but the not spoken aloud was the clear intent to put the M27 with a Trijicon LPVO VCOG into place as a nicely modernized rifle.
The question now is where does the modernizing force go next? Their rifle works well, the M4’s do too. They’re pretty well set there for a minute. But if the Army goes hard on 6.8×51 and it is working out the Marines will likely be compelled to follow suit, as they were on M855A1 instead of Mk318.
The other option that I haven’t seen explored is a simple PIP to use higher pressure 5.56 NATO using the same case technology SIG has for the 6.8. Being able to add 30-50% pressure and up the muzzle velocities on heavier projectiles could provide excellent results too.
We shall see.
The USMC has been upgrading a great deal of their gear independent of the US Army since then and it is good to see the force being equipped as their mission set dictates. I’ll probably enjoy the projects until I’m senile.
Anyway, thanks reading. Enjoy the video. Give it a like.
Welcome back to part 2 of Melody Lauer’s interview with former Green Beret and professional home invader Chris Cypert. In this episode Chris and Melody continue their discussion on self defense and home defense topics
A social media friend of mine made a post on said social medias that went something like:
The Absolute Minimum You Need
Rifle
Handgun
Supporting Gear
The list, in detail, would serve anyone pretty well as a solid rig for a rifle and handgun class, a 2-gun competition, or any sustained shooting activity involving a rifle and a pistol.
However, the context (though not given in the post directly) was that of a violent and sudden emergency on a large scale. Hamas invades Israel. Russia invades Ukraine. A riot sweeps your neighborhood. The cartels get bold on the border.
Situation: You very quickly need a lot of gun and the ability to keep that gun shooting.
Two of those scenarios above, I hope, remain entirely hypothetical for US readers. Riots have not, certainly, but I can hope moving forward. But two of them are ongoing real world events within the borders of developed nations.
Shelve the politics of both wars for now, the ‘why’ doesn’t matter when its outside your window.
They are coming, you have a minute.. two at most.
What will a minuteman rig consist of when you have the proverbial minute to grab gear and get into a fight? You might be alone. You might have neighbors, cops, national guard, etc. on your side too and able to organize coordinated resistance and response.
We’re going to prioritize a durable yet fairly affordable gear set and talk about why each piece briefly. We will break it down by essential, preferred, and optional. The assumption is also that there will be, if not immediately, a short order response from authority with greater combat resources.
But you are there, one more volunteer with a rifle, a will to work, and ready to shoot back at an encroaching governmental or para-governmental organized force. Something far above dealing with your local meth zombie with your CCW piece.
What are you bringing?
Essential Items
Rifle
A rifle, a sling, a quality optic, and a durable white light with 10 functional magazines.
Nothing needs to be fancy. Nothing needs to be latest and greatest. It just needs to run.
I’d recommend using calibers that are largely logistically supported by US DoD and DoJ. So 5.56 NATO/.223 Remington, 7.62 NATO/.308 Winchester, and 9x19mm NATO.
However, use what you have. If that’s an AK in 7.62×39 then get at it and it can be sorted out later that you are a little harder to support logistically long term.
Belt and Ancillary Gear
Here is where I differ from my friend’s recommendation on social media, belt layout.
The G-Code low vis belt and adding an IFAK and TQ would serve nicely.
We agree on what’s on the belt.
Rifle magazine pouches
Pistol magazine pouches
IFAK and TQ
Pistol Holster, Duty Grade
Where we differ is on ammunition distribution.
You have a rifle. Prioritize ammunition for the rifle. I run three magazines, making for 4 total and between 80 and 120 rounds for any of the above. Two pistol magazines total, three at most. If you’re between packing something like a multi-tool on the belt and another pistol magazine, pick the multi-tool.
You do not want to have to use your pistol, it is there if you absolutely need it. Don’t give up a rifle magazine or a useful tool you wouldn’t otherwise be able to carry just to bring 17rds more pistol ammo when it is substantially less effective than the rifle.
Optional optic and light are high value additions, but not essential.
Day Pack/Assault Pack/3-Day Pack, a Backpack
By whatever name you want to call a serviceable backpack to carry some environmentally appropriate clothing, water, food, spare batteries, and the spare ammo in magazines you don’t have on your belt. Some more med stuff, a good outdoor blanket, water proof light weight tarp. Enough to get you by while being outside in the elements for two or three days. Gloves, a tough pair and maybe an insolated pair too. Eye protection, two pair with at least one clear lens. No you aren’t necessarily going to throw these on right away but you will want them for any sustained event.
You might not be grabbing this bag as you throw on the other gear, that’s fine. Having the bag ready when you have the spare minute and have made the decision to move is the goal. Being reasonably comfortable on the move for up to three days without needing the higher logistical resources that may not be ready to provide yet is the idea, without weighing you down significantly. You may not move from where you were, that is also fine, but you don’t want to be anchored by lack of readiness.
There, you are now quick-to-ready ad hoc light infantry. A Minuteman.
You can do this for under $4,000 easily, probably under $3,000. Under $2,000 for quality could be a stretch as you are probably starting to dramatically compromise the quality of soft goods you are buying in order to get the rifle, handgun, and holster which will constitute most of that $2k. I could see it being done for $2,500. If you already have parts of the kit, spend smartly to fill in the missing pieces.
Preferred Items
As budget allows for the purchase of these without disrupting your normal financials, consider adding the following.
Armor, Level III or better (NO STEEL)
Avoid steel plates, remember mobility is an advantage and the hazards of a rifle round fragging and hitting your extremities as you are 20lbs of gear slower. Use ceramic or polyethylene. This will give you better chances if you happen to catch a round since those plates actually catch rounds.
Add ammunition and ancillary management to the carrier in some manner too, you should be able to roughly double the amount of ammunition you are carrying. I wouldn’t go above two pistol magazines on your body, prioritize rifle ammo.
Helmet, Bump
Ballistic helmets are expensive, bump helmets are much less so and hitting your head on things sucks. Picking a helmet option where you can add white light, communication, or hearing protection is also good forward thinking to avoid buying twice.
Team Wendy M-216 is considered a rescue helmet, it is a very light bump helmet with cold weather inserts. Yes, it can mount night vision too.
Chest Rig, separate or detachable from your armor
I would buy a chest rig prior to buying armor. It is less expensive and upping my ability to carry ammo and more ancillary support is of greater benefit than adding the ability to possibly catch a bullet or two at the proper angles. If I can only have one, I want more ammo.
D3CRM Rig, Haley Strategic. Configured for 7.62×51 or 6.5 in a longer range role.D3CRM Configured for 9mm carbine with med and ancillary support.
I would add them in this order.
Chest rig
Fill in the magazines
Fill in with additional medical supplies
Fill in with handy tools and batteries that you want to be quicker to hand than in your backpack
Helmet
Add an independent light source that you can keep on, a red light/lens option is also good.
Armor
Add a way to attach your chest rig or add independent ammo and ancillary management methods.
Optional Items
These are items with useful purposes but that do not not offer enough overall benefits, often being niche, redundant, or expensive, to be considered preferred items.
Suppressor
RC2 Mini 762
Suppressors are excellent additions for hearing protection and signature reduction. However, given the cost associated with a can, it is not a priority buy. It is the first thing I would add once the preferred list is covered.
Magazines
Your 10 rifle and 6 pistol magazines, double them. Then get more. I’m not kidding when I say reaching 100 rifle and 20-30 pistol magazines as funds make themselves available is invested money. Magazines are the least durable part of these firearms, get spares.
Helmet, Ballistic
If you have the spare finances, no harm in upgrading the layer of protection on your noggin to the III/IIIA protection level.
Night Vision
Trying to add quality night vision to your setup is absurdly expensive, equipment intensive, training intensive, and could be of very limited value until the conflict becomes more protracted. There are also downsides if the aggressor force has night vision too, which limit how much IR you want to emit.
Getting a serviceable PVS-14 monocular and a laser aiming module/IR illuminator is likely a $5,000 investment. Add another ~$1,000 for training to properly use white light, NODs, and laser together. Add to this any additional costs to set up your daylight optic suite to work with your chosen night vision.
Add to this very high cost of entry the limited force multiplicative effects it has, especially without training. Night vision is mission and environmentally specific equipment.
That said, and maybe to contradict myself just a bit, it is force multiplicative. If you and perhaps a few of the local cops are the ones with it and fighting goes into the night, you can stand your watch or move more effectively with it than without.
It lets you see in the dark. Obvious, sure, but still. Where otherwise you would need light, and the inherent disadvantages emitting or being in white light has for you when people are trying to kill you, you can see and move without it. You can keep lights off, you can hide while still being able to observe. You and anyone else with NODs and gear can communicate with IR in addition to verbal and hand signals.
It is very good equipment. It is just very expensive and the odds the fight will involve its need are low. These odds go lower when we’re talking modern urban and suburban spaces with functioning power.
Probabilities
We are talking stacking orders of magnitude on the long odds of needing your gear like this in comparison with needing your concealed pistol. Real talk. Today’s “Day of Jihad” is the diluted fear mongering of a death cultist to hopefully someone crazy enough to join the ride, not a serious call to sleepers worldwide.
But we’ve seen the very real need twice now in two years in other modernized nations, and we would be fools not to take it seriously here too. To smugly claim, “Yeah, but this is the United States.” like some manner of magic warding phrase that makes everyone here think rationally at all times and keeps us immune from assaults is asinine. To claim that the massive population and socioeconomic realities here could not produce a flare up, either domestic or from a foreign aggressor, again is naïve.
We should be ready for the day without hastening it. Plan accordingly.
You can follow weapons development pretty steadily by the size of rifles and edged weapons. As technology improves and war changes, both rifles and edged weapons get much smaller. Carbines currently rule the roost of rifles, and one of the longest-serving is the M4 carbine. That carbine can trace its roots back to a rifle known as the Colt 607. The Colt 607 is one of the more important rifles ever created because of the M4
The M4 Carbine is often considered the pinnacle of the AR design. It’s the Goldilocks rifle for many military forces. Most civilian AR15s use the M4 as its footprint, more or less, with a slightly longer barrel to reach the necessary 16 inches to avoid being an SBR. The M4 armed the Marine Corps and Army for the entire GWOT and even became the main rifle of each force. While the M27 has replaced the M4 with the Marine Corps and will seemingly be replaced by the M5 with the Army, it will stick around for generations.
All that originates with the Colt 607 rifle.
What’s the Colt 607?
It all started in 1959. Vietnam was a French problem, and the M16 hadn’t been adopted just yet. The M14 was still rearing its ugly head. Colt had acquired the AR from Armalite and was producing an entire family of weapons known as the CAR-15 series. Colt was producing rifles, light machine guns, and even what they described as a submachine gun.
While we might define a submachine gun as a pistol caliber shoulder-fired selective fire weapon, they were a little loosey-goosey with the term back in the day. They called it the Colt Tanker Model. This was the first AR variant with a retractable stock, and it had an overall length of only 26 inches. This laid the groundwork for the Colt 607. The retractable stock was not what you expected. It looked like a standard fixed stock but had two rods and two positions to change the length of pull.
The barrel was only 10 inches long with a 3.5-inch moderator and lacked a bayonet lug. They classified it as an SMG. These were never standard production items, and only about 50 were ever made as the Tanker Model. Until Vietnam, the Colt SMG went nowhere.
Into Vietnam
Colt had heard from soldiers in Vietnam, namely special operations teams, regarding using the M16 in jungle warfare. The big rifle had a 20-inch barrel and, when fitted with a suppressor, was a bit long in tight jungles. Colt wanted to trim some length, and they first did this with the Colt 605. The Colt 605 cut the barrel off at the front sight base and called it a carbine. This became known as the Dissipator after Bushmaster more or less copied it.
The rifle-length gas system was great, but the gun didn’t have enough dwell time, and the rifle was never superbly reliable. Most of the Colt SMGs were sent to Vietnam with SEAL teams and Green Berets. With their success, Colt made the easy decision to standardize the design and began producing the first models of the Colt 607. Military adoption was fairly limited, and the gun received a rather odd designation as the G-5857 carbine.
These rifles followed the Colt Tanker design but came in both slab side and forward assist variations. The trigger group featured either the A or B configurations with Auto or Burst as the third setting varying. The guns were seen with 3.5 and 4-inch moderators as well as three-prong flash hiders. SEALs seemed to be the primary users of this platform. It was short-lived as criticisms of the platform came to light.
Beyond the 607
The 607 made huge gains in the world of forming a carbine-style rifle of the M16. However, the design had significant shortcomings. The stock was too complicated, and it was also unreliable. The handguards were fragile. The gun also had a ton of muzzle blast, which is why moderators had begun to be used. To rectify this, Colt developed the Commando or the XM177.
This rifle featured a 10 or 11.5-inch barrel. E1 models used the 10-inch barrel, and E2 models used the 11.5-inch barrel. The rifles used 4.25-inch moderators to control muzzle blast as well as tame sound. Moderators also increased back pressure, which helped deal with dwell time issues. They didn’t work as well as suppressors, but the ATF does consider them suppressors.
The handguards were the round design we are all used to these days. The guns also featured a simpler telescoping stock that certainly has the M4 look we are used to. The 607 walked so the Commando could jog, and the M4 could run. The 607, aka the Colt SMG, aka the Colt Tanker model, showed just how modular Stoner’s system could be and helped launch one of the most popular carbines ever.
Weapons development is rarely done in giant leaps and bounds. It’s often slow micro evolutions that slowly integrate features over time. Lots of handguns from the early days of semi-autos weren’t that revolutionary. A Colt M1903 Pocket Hammerless is that much different than a modern handgun. However, the M1903 is the reason the M1911 exists, and the M1911 gave us the Browning short recoil system. The little evolutions are often forgotten about, and if there is a weapon that defines little evolutions, it is the Maynard Carbine.
The Early Origins of the Maynard Carbine
The Maynard Carbine debuted in 1851, but the story really starts six years prior. Edward Maynard was a dentist who served the Washington D.C. area. Specifically, he was rather well known for his work and served some elite clientele and their teeth. Somehow, the man became more well-known for his mechanical engineering prowess.
His most notable invention was the Maynard tape primer. This was a laminated paper roll with dots of mercury fulminate. These generated a spark when struck and could fire weaponry of the era. The idea made it easier to carry primers and supposedly easier to use them. I imagine this being a very intense cap gun strip. The Maynard tape primer did have issues. It didn’t work well in hot or cold environments but was rather successful and novel enough to gain attention.
Six years later, he introduced the First Model Maynard Carbine. As you’d expect, the carbine used the tape primer. In fact, it had a little slot in the side to accommodate a coiled roll of it. This made it easy for the shooter to pull up primer by primer as they fired the rifle. That’s neat, but that was only the start of the little evolutions of the Maynard carbine.
What the Maynard Carbine Did Differently
First, it was a breech-loading weapon, which was fairly new for 1851. Keep in mind this was also well before the popularity of metallic cartridges. The user pressed a lever downward, and the barrel opened, and the barrel closed when the lever was pressed upwards. The rifles came in either .35 or .50 caliber and a rimmed metallic cartridge that held the projectile and powder but left a hole in the rear of the cartridge.
The metallic cartridge could be reloaded, supposedly upwards of 100 times. The stability of the metallic cartridge and the ease of loading and unloading the rifle made it fire much faster than the standard rifle of the era. It could apparently be fired up to 12 times a minute.
This hole allowed the spark from an ignited primer to light the powder and fire the cartridge. First-model guns used the tape primer, and Second-model carbines used standard primers. The First Model guns also came with a patch or butt box built into the stock for storage. Second-model rifles were a bit plainer for military use.
Users could remove the barrel and replace it with a shotgun barrel. The lever-loading barrel made this easier and made the weapon modular at a time when modular didn’t apply much to weapons.
The Civil War
The military was impressed by the Maynard carbine, especially during the Civil War. It offered a faster-firing alternative to the muzzle-loading muskets and rifles of the era. Troops could rapidly engage with the weapons, and the Northern forces issued the lightweight carbine to calvary forces. At a little over six pounds, it was quite light for the era.
The United States issued the second model, but Confederate forces had first-model carbines numbering up to 10,000 or so. Both forces appreciated the weapon’s rate of fire. It was also known for being quite accurate, and soldiers boasted some impressive, effective ranges. The weapons served rather well but were clearly upstaged by the advent of modern metallic cartridges.
During the Civil War, metallic cartridges came to be, and rifles like the Maynard Carbine faded away. It was still a fascinating weapon that was one of the little evolutions in firearms design and development that is often overlooked.
The Adcor rifle is another AR with a strong Colt connection.
A lot depends on the circumstance when purchasing a used rifle. You must be knowledgeable and understand the specific problems that often occur with a rifle and how to inspect the rifle. Sometimes a good deal is available and other times a money pit. If you are able to find a Colt Competetion Ready rifle I would heartily recommend the purchase. Colt has made many good rifles and has been the major supplier for the armed services. There are other good rifles but Colt remains the standard by which all others are judged. While many were designed for combat a few were designed for competetion. Among the best 3Gun rifles ever built is the Colt Competetion Ready AR 15. The Colt Competition isn’t made in Hartford by Colt but licensed by Colt to Colt Competetion. It is interesting that Colt’s monolithic uppers were made by Adcor and Adcor also offered an excellent AR 15 rifle. It is all in being knowledgeable of the type and its production history. The Colt Competition Ready rifles were a product of Bold Ideas. The company produced excellent rifles but did not survive the ups and downs of the AR market.
This is a clean design with much to recommend.The forend offers good firing support and plenty of accessory room. A Vortex RDS was added to the rifle for testing.Colt’s 1911 and Colt’s AR make a good combination.
The rifles are found with 16-, 18-, or 20-inch match-grade barrels made from 416 stainless steel. Some featured .223 Wylde Match chambers for use with .223 and 5.56mm ammunition. There were various models including higher end guns with a Geissele two stage match trigger, extended tactical charging handle and both two and three port muzzle breaks. The majority feature a Magpul adjustable position stock. My example was known as the Marksman. This is an excellent rifle but is also the entry level Competetion Ready rifle. The trigger action is clean breaking at 5.5 pounds. The internal parts appear to be Teflon coated. My rifle features a four position butt stock. The rifle weighs 7.0 pounds even. Be certain to be knowledgeable concerning the exact model you encounter. The 16 inch barrel of my rifle is accurate and very useful. The longer barrel versions, and some with adjustable gas block, may be even more accurate. The different features don’t make much difference on used guns from what I have seen. Most are priced less than new Colt rifles.
Vortex offers affordable but useful RDS designs.
When the Colt Competetion Ready is examined a first impression tells you that the rifle is very nicely fitted. The receivers are tight, very tight, and care had gone into fitting the rifle. The forend is well chosen offering superior gipping ability. The muzzle break seemed effective. While the .223 doesn’t offer much recoil when you are firing rapid fire and running a combat course recovery is more rapid with a good break. I purchased the rifle without optics. I added a Vortex Strikefire II red dot sight. Here is what Vortex has to say about their RDS-
The new 2019 Strikefire II Red Dot is a rugged, reliable red dot sight that is at home in a variety of applications allowing users to operate between 11 illumination settings.
With aesthetics and functionality in mind, the power controls are at the rear of the Strikefire for easy access. The Strikefire II Red Dot runs off a CR2 battery and has been updated with improved battery life up to 80, 000 hours at setting 6.
An offset cantilever mount is provided; allowing you to move the sight forward to be used in conjunction with a magnifier and backup iron sights all on the same rail.
Fully multi-coated lenses provide a clean and bright, unobscured point of view. Unlimited eye relief allows for rapidtransitions.
The single-piece chasis is compact and lightweight but still delivers shockproof performance withstanding whatever you may throw at it. Nitrogen purged and o-ring seals ensure fogproof and waterproof performance.
The forend is well fitted and doesn’t rattle.The rifle is distinctively marked Colt Competetion.Fit and finish are excellent.Black Hills Ammunition provided stellar accuracy and reliability.
My experience with the Vortex has been good especially considering the price is less than two hundred dollars at Cheaperthandirt.com. I began sighting the rifle in in the usual manner at 25 yards, then 50, and finally 100 yards. It was a leisurely stroll as there have been no failures to feed chamber fire or eject in firing more than 600 cartridges to date. Bullet weight ranged from 36 to 77 grains. As may be expected the light bullet isn’t as accurate in my rifle while function isn’t as positive these loads never tied up. Firing off hand the rifle performed like most other very good AR rifles. Rapid engagement of man sized targets and steel gongs was a joy as the rifle has high hit probability. Most of the loads expended have been 55 grain FMJ ammunition, Black Hills, Federal American Eagle, and Winchester white box. The rifle has performed well. I also settled down for accuracy testing at 100 yards. Cranking the red dot down to its smallest setting I fired several three shot groups with two of the most accurate .223 loads available. The Black Hills Ammunition 69 grain Tipped Match King and the 77 grain Tipped Match King. I have long regarded the 69 grain loading as an excellent all around choice for .223 use. Each load was very accurate trading back and forth for accuracy with most group in the .9 to 1.3 inch range. Not long after that range session I borrowed a Tru Glo Eminus from the Adcor rifle for further testing. I was able to successfully engage man sized targets well past 200 yards with this combination. Colt’s Competetion Ready rifle gets a clean bill of health. If all are this good the type is well worth the time and effort to find a good example.
Tru Glo’s Eminus rifle scope provides superior accuracy.
