Saturday, January 26, 2013

Primary Weapon Systems - .30 Compensator Review

I was expecting big things from this product, especially considering the price point. It ended up being a replacement for a linear comp that was not all that I was hoping it would be, at least not for my 300BLK loads (might be more effective on a .308 due to the higher gas pressure).

Good Stuff: First off this is a very well made item. The finish is impeccable and it ships with a shim kit to tune it to your specific rifle. At the range, it took almost all of the muzzle rise out of my 16" light contour 300; to the point that my double taps are just as fast as with a .223.

Bad Stuff: Obviously, the price is a little prohibitive for the average shooter. Unless you really need to reduce some serious muzzle rise and recoil, this may not be the product for you. Also, make sure you loktite the shit out of it. I used blue loktite initially and whether it was the heat or the recoil or what, it came loose after about 100 rounds. Replaced it with red, and no problems since.

Overall: Very effective comp that just happens to be very attractive on the end of an AR. Given my experience, I would not hesitate to buy another.

Monday, January 21, 2013

Winchester Fiber Optic Shotgun Sight

I was originally going to dish out a bunch of cash for Trijicons offering in this category until I happened to be in Walmart and noticed the little Winchester sight. It cost me about 10 bucks.

The good stuff: So far the sight holds tight to the rib of my 11-87 very well. It appears to be some average stamped steel, so I don't know whether that will change over time, but for low price I can stomach buying a couple of spares. Plenty bright for range and competition, particularly in sunny conditions.

 The bad stuff: you get what you pay for. Considering the price point, I imagine I will be replacing it at some point.

Overall a good little gizmo. I haven't been able to find it online, so it might be a Walmart only kinda thing, but thats not really the end of the world. A widely available, low cost fiber optic sight?! Oh no, the horror lol.

Nordic Components Sotgun Barrel Clamp

I used this to replace the stock Choate barrel clamp that just felt weak and flimsy in my hand. I didn't get the model with the rail section on it because, quite frankly,  I just don't need it.

Good stuff: The fit is very good. The screws are a little stiff going in, but that's not an issue since I dont really want them coming out under recoil. After 500 rounds fired, the things still holding like a rock.

Bad stuff: a little expensive, but not the end of the world. If you want rock solid performance, you are going to have to pay more than you would for a cheepo clamp.

Overall a great product.

Nordic Components Low Drag 12ga Follower

This is the Nordic Components low drag 12 gauge follower. This will be another short post because its a pretty simple part.

The good stuff: I originally was using the stock Remington follower, but after seeing how thin the plastic was and dealing with a few tricky reloads, I ended up popping in the follower that came with my Choate extension tube. Talk about a major downgrade! The little polymer sucker jammed up even more than the stock Remington follower! I started looking around for something that would be more robust, yet move easier inside the tube. Long story short, this was the answer and it works like a charm!

The bad stuff: I got nothing. Sorry.

Overall, this didnt speed up my reloads at all, but it definitely make for a more fluid push into the tube. No jamming, no hesitating, the sucker just works. Good product.

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Daves Metal Works Oversized Safety

This will be short and sweet because frankly its pretty simple and I'm really only writing this because I'm bored out of my skull. Once again, this is relevant to the Remington 11-87, so bear that in mind if you have a different brand of shotgun.

This is a pretty straight forward mod. Knock the stock safety out from the left side of the frame. There is a spring inside the trigger frame that will fall out, and as far as i can tell there is not much need for it with this part. The only issue I had is that the fit is extremely tight, so you have the option to either reduce the diameter or bore out the trigger frame to fit. I chose to take some steel wool and polish down the surfaces, and that seem to help immensely (its not perfect yet, but its functional enough for what I need it to do; further polishing will be in order as I have time and/or get annoyed at this particular part).

Overall: A nice addition, but not strictly necessary. Makes it easier to pop the safety off without disturbing your shooting grip, but its not all that tough to pop the stock safety off before assuming that grip either. Call it a luxury upgrade. lol

Daves Metal Works EZ Loader

Ok, I know this is nothing particularly new in the firearms world, but Ill throw my thoughts in there as well (in typical cynical, sarcastic, profane fashion). Basically what this little gizmo does is make it easier to quickly load shotgun shells into your magazine tube. I have the one that fits my Remington 11-87, so that is what my experience and observations are geared towards.

Good Stuff: Once I got this little sucker installed, I saw an immediate decrease in reloading times. The stock Remington loading gate is a hell of a lot smaller and harder to hit on the run, to the point I was having to drop the gun off my shoulder and load with my strong hand (something I wasn't thrilled about). Also, the stock button makes it nearly impossible to execute a TWins or Quad load, a serious disadvantage in this day and age where most people can drop 8 rounds into the tube in under 6 seconds.

 I have read about many people trimming the front end down to avoid sticking shells or fingers in the action, but I have yet to encounter that problem. I am in the process of transitioning to TWins style loading, so the extra length doesnt really phase me that much and actually provides a smoother transition of the shells into the tube. But thats just my experience.

Bad Stuff: This fucker is a serious pain in the ass to install if you don't know what you are doing or don't have the patience to do a careful job. The diss-assembly is straight forward, but the factory roll pin is flattened to keep it in place and must be filed/dremeled on one end to allow removal. Installation of the EZ loader requires you to file down portions of the shell carrier and takes a good deal of time to do correctly (the spaces in question do not lend themselves to a dremel, so a good jewelers file was my tool of choice).

If you are in any way unsure of your ability to complete this operation, you would be better served by sending it off to DMW for installation instead. It beats the absolute shit out of me why they wouldn't offer a fully assembled trigger assembly with it already installed, but I guess that is their privilege. Still, would be a hell of a lot easier if they would offer a slicked up plug&play assembly and you could save your stock trigger group for the spare parts box in case of a malfunction.

 Overall: Great mod if you need to load quickly. Pain in the ass to install. If you have some common sense about you and are good with hand tools, then by all means give it a try. Otherwise, just send the fucker in and let the pros do it.