The Blaser F16 - an under- recognized gem
In the world of high performance shotguns, Blaser may not be the first name that comes to most people’s minds…but their new F-16 O/U should change all that. Not only is it a beautiful shotgun, it is an absolute technical masterpiece.
Over the past couple of months, we have been testing (and abusing) Okay Industries’ SureFeed AR magazines, and I must say, we are very pleased with them and their performance. SureFeed magazines have been used by our Armed Forces for quite some time. In fact, Okay helped co-develop the original 30-round M16 magazine with the U.S. Military in 1973, and they have only recently become available to the public. These mags have been battle-tested and perfected like no other, and it shows.
SureFeed mags are 100% made in USA, with all US components, including lightweight aluminum bodies and floor-plates, heat-treated for strength and durability. They are hard-coat anodized and finished in Mil-spec grey or Tactical Black PTFE (we even used a new, as yet unreleased prototype in desert tan). A four-way, anti-tilt, self-lubricating resin follower and stainless steel spring complete the package, delivering near flawless performance.
And these babies are tough. There is something inherently comforting about a solid, metallic magazine that no polymer mag can provide, and SureFeed mags live up to this expectation in spades. Every single magazine is put through a thorough inspection and testing process, and it shows (SureFeed mags have slight scuff marks even when new, so you know they were actually tested individually) and they are available in 30, 20, and 10 round versions. As an aside, I like the “shorty” 20 round mags quite a bit, since you don’t have to guess the capacity, and they fit perfectly when shooting from a bench-rest.
We shot well over 500 rounds of several types of common 5.56 and .223 ammo through these, primarily in a Colt Competition CRX-16 rifle, and they performed extremely well, and they stood up to being dropped, muddied, and thrown, without any magazine-related failures. We did have a couple of jams, but these cannot be attributed to the mags themselves, but rather to our handling and abuse.
We tested them with 55 and 62 grain ammo in both 5.56 and .223, and even mixed ammo mags, and they performed perfectly, whether they were full or only had a few rounds in them. The magazines’ finish, while not coarse, does give you a good grip, and they load and eject without any issues, empty or full.
Everything from their feel to the perfect welds and the perfect feed lips tells you you have a quality product in your hands, and they have a very long history of performance under the most demanding battlefield conditions, which is just a bonus for us.
If you are in the market for a tough, reliable and dependable AR mags, we enthusiastically endorse these very well built SureFeed magazines from Okay industries. You will not be disappointed.
Check them out at www.surefeedmagazines.com
The Hexmag History
Two guys, a lot of work a good idea equals a great product and sales
Hexmag is the maker of the innovative Hexmag line of AR-15/M-16 platform magazines. Although fairly new to the industry, they have created a unique, patented, tough, reliable with some distinctive features and industry first-designs at a low-tech price. So how did a couple of guys build Hexmag into a multi-million-dollar business in such a short time?
In 2013 in Loveland, Colorado, Aaron Schefter looked over the various AR magazines on the market and thought he could do better. He joined forces with George Brown (now President) and began experimenting with various mold configurations and polymer compounds.
Modifying various designs for some time they eventually arrived at a design that delivered form and function with a unique set of features needed for a state of the art magazine. Designing a magazine that feeds reliably is extremely difficult since most stoppages are due to defective magazines regardless of firearm type.
To get a magazine to correctly lock up tightly in the firearm, feed reliably and add additional desired features such as a sturdy and functional slots for reliably charging the magazine from 10-round strippers is a real trick. The Hexmag duo worked through countless hours of design iterations and composite parings to get it to do all of this and operate correctly.
The guys knew there are problems in desert conditions when it comes to cleaning the magazines from dust, dirt and sand. They had to find an easier way to release the base plate for easy cleaning and quick and easy reassembly--they did and it is a quick and easy tool-less design. They also added a bright colored anti-tipping follower so it is easy to see if the magazine is empty or not in low light conditions.
Let's address anti-tipping - how do tipped rounds in an AR magazine even happen? The condition that creates this problem came about originally with military metal magazines and then progressed to synthetic magazines. When a trooper had a partially loaded magazine and had to hit the dirt hard and if his rifle hit hard with him (they generally do) the rounds in the magazine would compress down for a split second due to inertia momentum, and they would not always come up correctly, generally with the round tipping down at the bullet or primer end and hanging things up causing a bolt override when the chambered round in the chamber was fired; not a good thing to happen when people are trying to kill you (bang, click click!). By adding longer anti-tilt "legs" Hexmag magazines have solved this problem for both tactical and sport shooting environments.
They then figured another advantage for their magazine was to make the base plate locking button the same color as the follower. Moreover, why not have a selection of accessory follower and magazine floorplate colors to indicate type of ammunition such as tracer, ball, incendiary, hunting and even bullet weight and caliber.
Even better, since their magazines also fit and feed the .300AAC Blackout, .458 SOCOM and .50 Beowulf rounds. Now it's easy to quickly know what caliber or load you have in the magazine. Hexmag features several colors in their unique HexID Color Identification System.
Furthermore, make it a 30-second job for the gun owner to change out the colors (see image) if they wish; all this, an industry first. Additionally, and this is trick, if you wish to empty a partially filled Hexmag magazine of ammunition, simply slide the no-tool floor plate off covering the compressed spring area with your hand. Then simply ease the base plate off and remove the spring assembly and the magazine can be emptied and closed back up in a couple of seconds. No more stripping rounds out with the base of a cartridge--like most of us do with other magazines.
The guys wanted to get the magazine in and out of the rifle quickly and easily in any condition, even while wearing gloves or mittens in wet, muddy, snowy or icy conditions. Since it is a Hexmag, they reasoned; why not put hexagonal patterns on the magazines to create a high-traction textured surface? Well, no duh!
Then to make it even better they created an optional rubberized tape (called Grip Tape) to put sticky rubberized hex shaped grip enhancing stickers into the magazine surfaces of the shooter's choice making the magazine even sticker (not a dust catcher--thought we should add that!).
Looking across the market they saw various plastic and metal magazines that did NOT deliver the durability advantages the guys wanted. After extensive material research and experimenting with many test samples they settled on a proprietary, lightweight, fiber-reinforced polymer. They named it PolyyHex2 Advanced Composite. They were almost ready.
However, they needed to address the magazine springs, a critical and costly component of the magazine. The best spring wire is a high tinsel strength (rust resistant) stainless steel with an expanded metal memory so it will not lose compression pressure if the magazine is kept loaded (charged) for long periods of time-like military and police firearms.
If a spring loses tension after storage while charged with ammunition, the cycle rate of the gun may override the feed rate of the magazine--not a pretty thing in a gun fight--"bang, bang, click, click, click." Their goal was to produce the best magazine, not just another magazine. It was another search to find a wire made of a composition stainless steel (all stainless is not alike) that is better than anything else--and they did. What they found was a highly corrosion-resistant, memory type tough spring that compresses easily for loading and feeds reliably.
In March of 2013 George and Aaron were ready. Presenting their magazines to some important shooters and distributors for a look-see they were met with the news --"We like it, if you make it, we will buy it!"
Great news and in the Winter of 2014 with their modifying, fine-tuning and testing all completed (for now) the orders came flying in for a product the AR/M-16 market has needed for decades. In fact, the magazine proved so good they offered an industry first, a lifetime warranty! The amount of orders was overwhelming and they quickly fell behind on production.
They searched manufacturing sources everywhere that could manufacture their advanced fiber enhanced composite magazine. That proved challenging since they wanted the production done perfectly to maintain the tight specifications and quality control levels they were demanding.
Finally, they had most of the production capabilities in place. With sales booming they labored on but being fiddlers and tinkerers and a company staffed with shooters and former military, they continued the magazine tweaking process--it's just what they do. Adding to the product line, the next array of magazines was made in 10- and 15-round capacities allowing access to states with capacity restrictions. The patented Hexmag True Riser system changes the internals of the standard 30-round magazine to 10- or 15-rounds. This allows shooters to legally practice with a full-size magazine in reduced capacity states.
By mid-2016 their next magazine evolution was completed with the Series 2 magazine. The alteration produced a sleeker, "ergonomic" interior, an improved feed lip, a tighter lock up for firmer magazine seating and enhanced stripper adapter grooves for easy ammunition charging from military 10-round stripper clips.
This is a premium magazine that one could drive a heavy vehicle over (who does that in the real world?). It works incredibly well in many ways such as functioning the likes of .300 AAC Blackout, .458 SOCOM, and .50 Beowulf rounds and yet is easy to disassemble for cleaning and utilizes their patented unique HexID color coding features.
The rest and for them the best of the story is they are selling their popular magazines NOT by the pound but by the ton. They also moved into covers for Picatinny, M-LOK and KeyMod rails and offer two unique AR pistol grips, one having 3 angle adjustments the shooter can quickly change as needed.
A couple of clear thinking guys who saw a way to make a better mouse trap, the guts to try it and the ability to get it done. It is the American way, so American in fact that every single part of their products as well as the assembly is made and done in America. Not bad for a couple of guys with a dream! Well, that is the Hexmag story...for now.
Hexmag, LLC
IWI US, Inc., a subsidiary of Israel Weapon Industries (IWI) Ltd., is pleased to announce that the new Galil ACE Rifle in 7.62 NATO (7.62x51mm/.308 Win) is now shipping to distributors everywhere.
"The 7.62 NATO (7.62x51mm/.308 Win) is an extremely accurate cartridge with a lot of knock-down power and penetration. It's a fantastic round for everything from big game hunting to long-distance shooting. It's a cartridge that is worthy of the Galil ACE and we know gun enthusiasts everywhere are going to be excited to get their hands on this just in time for hunting season," said Michael Kassnar, vice president of sales and marketing for IWI US.
Many improvements have been made since the original Galil was first developed. Weight has been reduced due to the use of high-impact polymers. Reliability has been improved by sealing the internal mechanism with a reciprocating charging handle cover, adding additional protection from sand and dirt. A full-length 2-piece Picatinny top rail has been added and a tri-rail has found its way under the plastic foregrip. Plus, slide on/slide off rail covers with pressure switch access have been incorporated. The Galil now has a folding adjustable stock with a 2-position removable cheek comb. The charging handle was moved to the left side of the receiver and the magazine release was made ambidextrous so that a shooter could change magazines without having to take the gun off target. The Galil ACE geometry was modified so that it could accept standard SR25 style PMAGs. It features a trigger borrowed from the Galil sniper rifle and an improved gas tube that decreases barrel vibration and increases accuracy. The barrel is chrome lined and cold hammer forged.
Galil ACE Rifle in .308 Specifications:
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Caliber: |
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7.62 NATO (7.62x51mm/.308 Win) |
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Operating System: |
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Closed rotating bolt, long stroke gas piston |
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Magazine Type: |
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MAGPUL LR/SR25 GEN M3 PMAG |
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Magazine Capacity: |
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20 rounds |
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Barrel Material: |
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Cold hammer forged, CrMoV, chrome lined |
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Barrel Length: |
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16" |
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Overall Length: |
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36" (Buttstock Unfolded and Collapsed) |
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Weight: |
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8.7 lbs. w/o magazine |
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Rifling: |
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Right Hand, 1:12 inch twist |
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Sights: |
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Adjustable with Tritium front post and 2-dot Tritium rear aperture. |
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MSRP: |
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$2,099.00
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A quick shoutout to Winchester Ammunition for the ammo they very kindly provided to us, from our photo shoot last week.
#Winchester #WinchesterAmmunition
Combine the CRZ-16 Marksman's performance with Slide Fire's SSAR-15 MOD stock and what you get is rapid-fire and outstanding accuracy
Slide Fire Solutions, a veteran-owned, US designer and manufacturer of patented bump fire technology, is expanding their product portfolio to include some of the hottest brands in the firearms industry. One of the newest offerings is the Colt Competition CRZ-16 Marksman which has been integrated with the Slide Fire SSAR-15 MOD Adjustable Stock for the remarkable suggested retail price of just $1,199.95.
The Colt Competition series of tactical quality rifles all have a guaranteed Sub-MOA match-grade accuracy. The precision fitted upper and lower receivers offer superior reliability, even under the most stressful of shooting competitions. The Slide Fire SSAR-15 MOD combined with the CRZ-16 is one of the most exciting shooting combinations with an AR platform on the market today. The SSAR-15 MOD, with its dual locking mechanisms in place, allows the user to experience the ultimate in bump fire performance on an extremely stable foundation. The SSAR-15 MOD stock equipped Colt Competition CRZ-16 allows the user to rapidly pull the trigger and achieve simulated full-auto fire without compromising safety or accuracy. The SSAR-15 MOD is easily adjustable with a press of a button allowing the user to modify the length-of-pull for any scenario.
Additionally, the Colt Competition CRZ-16 Bump Fire Rifle features a blackened 16-inch HBAR-contour, mid-weight 4150 chromoly steel 5.56 barrel. The barrel comes with a twin chamber steel muzzle brake and a low-profile fixed gas block. The rifle also features a crisp 6-lb. target trigger with an enlarged Magpul trigger guard and a Magpul 30-round PMAG.
Stay up-to-the-minute with Slide Fire on Facebook, Google+, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube and Vimeo. For more information, visit www.slidefire.com.
Out of the box, ready to go competition rifle; just add your favorite sights.
My S&W 686 Deluxe 7-round 357 Magnum...one of my favorite handguns!
GunsAddict wishes to thank Winchester Ammunition for the ammo they are very kindly providing to us, to be used for our evaluations and reviews.
Make sure to pick up a couple of boxes of their 150th Anniversary Commemorative ammo. They are available in 270 Winchester, 30-30 Winchester, 44-40 Winchester, and 12 Gauge Steel #2.
The new Cabot Guns 1911 pistol set, made from a meteor. Find out more at http://meteorite.cabotgun.com/ - Simply Amazing!
