Gun stuff and my wallet

The 102 needs some fine tuning, but it has potential

I had the chance to take the 102 out for a spin, but there were some hiccups.  Mostly failure to eject issues, brass just dribbling out of the ejection port.  I couldn't figure it out because I had virtually the exact same set up as my buddy Alex's rifle, except the BCG.  He's using the factory BCL one, and I'm using my NiB one from Midway USA.  Alex did have some hiccups when he first got his rifle together though.  He was running a carbon barrel for .308, and he was running his rifle dry.  We swapped it to the Ballistic Advantage 6.5cm barrel and oiled the hell out of his BCG and his rifle ran perfectly.  So, basically, we don't know if it was the dry BCG or his carbon barrel, lol!

My pal Hermes had a look at the Midway USA NiB BCG and said it was fine - springs were good in the extractor, and the gas rings looked good.  He suggested the rifle might be under-gassed.  

When the rifle did shoot, it seemed to shoot well.  I didn't have the time to shoot groups on paper, but was stacking hits once I got shots on steel.  We had a 6x6 steel plate set up at 100ish and I was able to hit it repeatedly, but I didn't bother trying any further because the FTE issues were haunting me.

Oh yeah, there was also an issue with the ejection port cover.

The rifle looked good out there, but it was pissing me off, lol!

I got home and a few days later, decided to strip the thing down and sort it out (I'll post pictures later).  Off came the muzzle brake, hand guard, gas block and gas tube.  I inspected the gas block and it didn't look like gas was escaping it and it looked like it was capturing any gas that was coming out of the has port from the barrel.  

Then my pal Hermes suggested that I enlarge the gas port on the barrel.  Since it was not chrome lined, drilling it out should be fine.  Being the expert gun smith that I am, I decided to google it and found this thread:

https://www.ar15.com/forums/ar-15/drilling-gas-port-in-barrel-bigger/4-716923/

I didn't have a mill or a proper drill press, but I had a vice and a drill, lol!  I dug around my drill bits and found 1/16th fit perfectly into the hole, then the next size up was 5/64th.  I checked the 5/64th up against the gas block and it was still a bit smaller than the hole in the has block, so I figured it should be safe to go with it.

I threw the 102 upper into my AR15 upper vice block, slid a .30 cal cleaning rod into the bore of the barrel (to make sure I didn't drill all the way through and into the other side of the barrel) and gave the hole a squirt of G96.  I got the drill out and went to town on the gas port.  

I went with slow RPMs, taking my time watching material being removed, giving it a spray of G96 once in a while, and praying to Crom that I would figure out the Riddle of Steel and not fuck up my barrel.  Once I punched through, I cleaned off the rough edges with the brass cleaning brush and ran a few wet patches through the bore, then a few clean patches.  Let's see if the enlarged gas port resolves the FTE issues.

The ejection port cover spring came undone and the ejection port cover just flops open rather than springs open.  The way the receiver is designed, the factory hand guard would capture the ejection port cover pin, however I am using an Armalite hand guard so the pin is not captured and can shift loose.  The end of the spring that rests against the receiver also was a bit on the short side.  I'm not sure if the location of the assembly was too far away from the receiver, or maybe the DPMS spring just had a really short leg.

Anyway, I think I've resolved this issue by straightening one coil from the spring and made it longer so there was more meat to grab onto the receiver, and I also dropped a dab of glue over the pin to capture it.  Let's see what happens.

Continued here:

http://93zj.blogspot.com/2018/07/aervoe-field-drab-30118-and-kac-taupe.html

Aimpoint Comp M2 with Wilcox mount

I really didn't need one of these, but it was a good deal so I grabbed it.  The bonus was it came with a pretty rare item that's not commonly found in Canada - the Wilcox mount.  It's rare, but then again, the demand for it is also pretty rare.  If you were building a Mk18 mod 0 clone, you might be looking for one of these, but other than that, there's probably not a lot of demand for one of these.

The Comp M2 is a 4 MOA dot with a 10,000 hour batter life (1 year of continuous use).

The PRO on top, and the Comp M2 below.  They look virtually identical.

Compared to the Aimpoint PRO, I'm not really sure why anyone would buy a brand new Comp M2 for full retail (though I think it's discontinued).  The PRO's MSRP is generally less than the Comp M2.  The PRO has a 2MOA dot versus the Comp M2's 4MOA dot.  The PRO comes with flip caps, as well as a QD mount that's adjustable for height with a removable spacer.  The battery life on the PRO is longer by two years of continuous use.  

I guess the only reason I picked this up was because it was pretty cheap. 

The Comp M2 on the left. the PRO on the right.

Some specs from the manufacturer:

Aimpoint PRO - $437 USD (Midwayusa)

·         Always ready - always on. Turn it on for up to 3 years using one single battery. No need to fumble with switches prior to use.

·         2 minute of angle red dot for accurate target engagement at all distances.

·         In service date and battery change date reminders makes inventory tracking and maintenance easy.

·         Enhanced speed on target and increased first shot hit probability when compared to iron sights and magnified scopes.

·         Compatible with all generations of night vision devices and may be used with Aimpoint 3X Magnifier and Concealed Engagement unit.

·         Hard anodized aluminum alloy housing. Rugged enough for real world conditions and waterproof to 150 feet.

·         Threaded front lens opening allows use of screw-in anti-reflection device (ARD).

·         Front and rear flip covers keep lenses clean.

·         Transparent rear flip cover allows use of the sight (with both eyes open) even with both covers closed in an emergency.

·         Battery and adjustment cap retainer straps means you will never lose your pieces.

·         Modular mount set up for use on flat-top AR15, M4 Carbine and M16 rifles. (Adapter available for carry handle mounting)

·         Removable spacer. Remove for use on weapons such as shotguns and sub-guns, AK47, Type 81, BD08 and weapons with a low line of sight.

·         QRP2 rail grabber mount. Snap knob three times for a perfect mount. Will not deform your rail like many other mounts.

·         Recessed lens openings helps prevent against impact damage, fingerprints and scratches.

Aimpoint Comp M2 - $517.99 USD (Discontinued - Midwayusa)

•        Compatible with every generation of NVD

•        CET technology allows up to 10,000 hours of daytime operation on one battery

•        100,000 hours of use on NVD setting

•        Unequalled light transmission

•        Submersible to 80 feet (25 meters)

•        Standard CQB sight for Special Forces worldwide

•        CompM2 – M68/CCO is the standard sight for the U.S. Army and the U.S. Air Force

Bushmaster side sling swivel for M4

It's the little details, lol!  My first AR actually didn't have one of these, but I remember my first Airsoft M4 did, so I had to have one.

This one isn't an original Colt unit, the seller said it came off a Bushmaster, but I didn't care, this isn't a faithful clone anyway so I grabbed it.

My three year old wanted to help, so here he is trying to hammer in the taper pins that keep the sling swivel on.  Relax soccer moms, I cleared the rifle and made sure there were no live rounds in it or laying around anywhere in the room before he started.

Of course, in the mad rush to get the thing on, I installed it backwards and it had to come off again.

Rearward facing is how I see them mostly in pics.

Something you barely notice looking at it, but I'll sleep better knowing I have one, lol!

Another part showed up for my CANSOFCOM clone build - ARMS 40L rear BUIS

I think the original CANSOFCOM rifle uses a Canadian edition A.R.M.S. 40L, but this will be close enough.  Now I just need the front one.  Damn these things are expensive.  The Canadian version is $184.95 

Rear:

http://www.nordicmarksman.com/ARMS-40L-C-Flip-Up-Rear-Sight.html

Front for $174.99:

https://www.wolverinesupplies.com/ProductDetail/ARM40LF_ARMS--40-Rail-Mounted-Folding-Front-Sight

I settled for a used one.

A sum of the parts so far.

Some of the harder to get items

The fake can from my Mk12 clone should spin right on as well.  Will have to measure it and see if it's too long for this clone.

Mk12 Mod 1 rebuild and an M16A4 clone as a byproduct

So, I gutted my Mk12 Mod 1 a few weeks ago, but in the process, I barely took any pics because it was such a frustrating process.  For the longest time, I've been running a 20" Colt HBAR which is not only the incorrect brand (should be an 18" Douglas), but also the incorrect length.

It was an eyesore to the clone Gods from AR15.com so I finally compromised.  I didn't want to spend $450 USD to get the right barrel, nor did I want to chop that precious original Colt HBAR (precious because it shot tight groups.  Instead, I remembered that I had another 20" HBAR that shot quite well, and it wasn't a Colt.  So then began the process.

First I gutted my Mk12 build and stripped the Colt 20" barrel off.  I was left with parts all over the place.  Next I gutted my M16A4 clone build, where I had used what was probably an 20" Olympic Arms HBAR

See:

http://93zj.blogspot.com/2017/10/2017-10-21-c7-fixed-carry-handle-build.html

http://93zj.blogspot.com/2017/11/fix-carry-handle-rebuild.html

I planned to take the Olympic Arms HBAR to Reliable Gun and have it cut down and threaded into an 18" barrel, however reassembling my M16A4 clone proved to be a lot harder than I thought.  First of all, I didn't have the original FSB that came with the HBAR, and I wasn't about to try and fit the one from the Olympic Arms one.  Second, the rifle length gas tube from the Olympic Arms FBS refused to come out.  I dug through my spare parts box and found an FSB from a 16" Colt LE6920 barrel, but I still needed a rifle length gas tube.  Reassembly of my M16A4 clone would not be done this day.

Anyway, here are the two HBARs side by side.  The Olympic Arms one is the barrel with the shiny bits where the FSB used to be.  I'll have to remember to dig out the old Cold Blue and treat those bare spots.

Anyway, off to Reliable to drop off the Olympic Arms barrel for chopping, and to also pick up a rifle length gas tube.  Once I had the gas tube, I came back and fitted it to the LE690 FSB.

The channels in the barrel for the retainer pins in the Colt HBAR were almost dead on to the holes in the Colt LE6920 FSB, and by the Hammer of Thor, I got those Goddamn pins in.

And that was my M16A4 clone reassembled, this time with a Colt barrel, Colt FSB, Colt upper and well, pretty much Colt everything.  I have to admit, even though at a quick glance it was hard to tell the barrel and FSB were not colt, I'm glad my M16A4 clone is now all-Colt parts.  Now I just need a Colt AR15A4 lower for it.

My Mk12 clone is now a real mutt-gun, with a Norinco A1 lower, Stag Arms keyhole forged upper and Olympic Arms chopped HBAR.

I got the barrel back from Reliable Gun and whoever they sent it do did a great job of cutting the barrel down to the clone correct 18".

The problem with the Olympic Arms barrel is it was not parkerized under the FSB.  I took care of that with a spritz of Tamiya flat black.

On went the barrel nut and the hand guard retaining cap.

Torque on the barrel nut.

Making sure the holes lined up for the gas tube.

The pins that line up the hand guard,

The length already looks light years ahead of the 20" length.

With the crush washer, the break lined up perfectly with the tip of the barrel.

My Mk12 done.....for now.  I may still try to source a Leupold Mark 4 2.5-8x36mm.

Another shot of the A1 profile lower.  

The paint covering up the bare steel is still sort of noticeable.

With a few goodies added (just for photos).

Looks a lot better with the shorter barrel.