(pictures to follow when I have time)
Shot a "new" $60 Mosin-Nagant this weekend (probably a 1917 Remington production which was re-barreled and re-stocked by Tikka in 1943). Last owners were real effing slobs but the slight rust cleaned up with oil and a paper towel. Balance on that rifle was so good that I could fire it accurately off-hand, a feat which I can't do with any other rifle quite so well. Recoil and muzzle blast were downright mild, certainly milder than any Enfield I've ever shot, probably because of the long barrel. Sights were surprisingly clear, though I have no illustions about the 3200 pace setting being useful. At 25m, I could hit a pop can, at 50, white rocks about 6" in diameter. Not precision performance but better than a stock Yugo Mauser and with little effort on my part. Fired five rounds of 204gr steel case soft points and about sixty rounds of 140-something gr brass-cased ball. No failures to extract (unlike every other Mosin I've shot) but it did have three instances in which it didn't want to close on a fresh round. I had to hit the bot handle on the nearest tree to make it close because {gripe #1} Mosins don't provide good leverage on the bolt. Also, the rifle gets hot FAST and careless handling can get the user burned...ten rounds over five minutes is all it takes to warm up the barrel significantly.
I have not been able to undo the barrel band screws (which might turn in the direction opposite of normal)...is there a trick to getting them loose without stripping the screw heads?
Shot some 60-grain Aguila SSS .22 ammo in a Mossberg 144LSA. The bullets stabilized just fine and seemed as accurate as 40-grain ammo with much less noise...and a 3" higher point of impact at 25m. Since the report was no louder than 22CB, it stands that 60-grain bullet is better for varmints than a 20-grain bullet.
Tried a red dot on an AR15. In spite of my apprehensions, it performed very well and enabled much faster reactive shooting up close and accurate shooting at 150m. A real win over irons which I will retain for backup only. Found that it takes more than one .223 M855 round to stop a squirrel with a center mass shot. The critter ran a dozen yard after than before being hit again and stopping for good. Range, about 15m for the first shot and 10m for the second. So much for .223 being adequate for large animals, like poodles!
The rifle was new and had a tight chamber. Although I had no failures to feed or extract, I had much trouble ejecting unfired rounds. {gripe #2} AR15 doesn't give much leverage on the charging handle. What's the trick for unloading a stuck catridge? I saw an upper with left side cocking a la FAL but don't know if that would improve matters. Toward the end of the day, unfired rounds extracted more easily but I can forsee a day when I would have a stick round in the chamber and need to clear it. Or is this one of the main problems with AR15?
Also, how does one take the ejector out of the AR15 bolt?
Shot 7.62x54 SP at a steel plate (8mm Mauser of any make penetrates, 303 doesn't). Left a deep dent but failed to penetrate. Ball left a deeper dent and the core penetrated, the jacket stayed in the hole. .223 Wolf 55gr left an unimpressive cavity with no trace on the reverse side. I shot Wolf to torture-test the gun, it worked fine.
Other thoughts: shadows are good...keeps one cool, harder to see, keeps sights more visible. Wood makes poor cover (takes a lot to stop any rifle bullet, even .223 penetrated big stumps and thick trunks), rock makes poor cover (chunks make secondary projectiles for about two feet around) but soil stops most bullets pretty well.
Double-taps in a rifle with a muzzle brake still don't work as well as slower aimed fire. Shot at a rabbit at dusk at the range of 10m with IMI ball and did three doubles trying to put it down as fast as possible. Three hits, most likely first shots in each pair. Two hits in the torso and one in the shoulder and it still took the rabbit about two minutes to expire. That doesn't bode well for stopping determines humans from staying hostile, no matter what "energy dump" happens. I think this validates Shawn Dodson's view that nothing short of a CNS hit puts 'em down fast enough for comfort. Maybe soft points would have worked better but I am not sure it would have mattered enough...the damage was severe, just that mammals are tough. In general, I am not eager to do combat even if I get to shoot from an ambush with a rifle. Small arms are just too small to do in the enemy reliably. That said, sometimes fighting better than the alternative.
I am happy to note that I ran several miles with a sling-less AR15, several magazines and a back-up pistol in 85-95 degree humid heat, up and down wooded hills and wasn't out of breath. That may be a bigger accomplishment for this summer than improvements in riflery. Shooting got better, too -- more trigger time, better firing positions (prone, sitting, squatting, kneeling and standing...but I can't figure out how to use side support such as a tree trunk) and better sights. Shorter barrel (16" over 20") turned out a real win in the field though I didn't expect it: not because of weight (the red dot added what little shorter barrel took away) but for the handier length in the brush.
Shot a "new" $60 Mosin-Nagant this weekend (probably a 1917 Remington production which was re-barreled and re-stocked by Tikka in 1943). Last owners were real effing slobs but the slight rust cleaned up with oil and a paper towel. Balance on that rifle was so good that I could fire it accurately off-hand, a feat which I can't do with any other rifle quite so well. Recoil and muzzle blast were downright mild, certainly milder than any Enfield I've ever shot, probably because of the long barrel. Sights were surprisingly clear, though I have no illustions about the 3200 pace setting being useful. At 25m, I could hit a pop can, at 50, white rocks about 6" in diameter. Not precision performance but better than a stock Yugo Mauser and with little effort on my part. Fired five rounds of 204gr steel case soft points and about sixty rounds of 140-something gr brass-cased ball. No failures to extract (unlike every other Mosin I've shot) but it did have three instances in which it didn't want to close on a fresh round. I had to hit the bot handle on the nearest tree to make it close because {gripe #1} Mosins don't provide good leverage on the bolt. Also, the rifle gets hot FAST and careless handling can get the user burned...ten rounds over five minutes is all it takes to warm up the barrel significantly.
I have not been able to undo the barrel band screws (which might turn in the direction opposite of normal)...is there a trick to getting them loose without stripping the screw heads?
Shot some 60-grain Aguila SSS .22 ammo in a Mossberg 144LSA. The bullets stabilized just fine and seemed as accurate as 40-grain ammo with much less noise...and a 3" higher point of impact at 25m. Since the report was no louder than 22CB, it stands that 60-grain bullet is better for varmints than a 20-grain bullet.
Tried a red dot on an AR15. In spite of my apprehensions, it performed very well and enabled much faster reactive shooting up close and accurate shooting at 150m. A real win over irons which I will retain for backup only. Found that it takes more than one .223 M855 round to stop a squirrel with a center mass shot. The critter ran a dozen yard after than before being hit again and stopping for good. Range, about 15m for the first shot and 10m for the second. So much for .223 being adequate for large animals, like poodles!
The rifle was new and had a tight chamber. Although I had no failures to feed or extract, I had much trouble ejecting unfired rounds. {gripe #2} AR15 doesn't give much leverage on the charging handle. What's the trick for unloading a stuck catridge? I saw an upper with left side cocking a la FAL but don't know if that would improve matters. Toward the end of the day, unfired rounds extracted more easily but I can forsee a day when I would have a stick round in the chamber and need to clear it. Or is this one of the main problems with AR15?
Also, how does one take the ejector out of the AR15 bolt?
Shot 7.62x54 SP at a steel plate (8mm Mauser of any make penetrates, 303 doesn't). Left a deep dent but failed to penetrate. Ball left a deeper dent and the core penetrated, the jacket stayed in the hole. .223 Wolf 55gr left an unimpressive cavity with no trace on the reverse side. I shot Wolf to torture-test the gun, it worked fine.
Other thoughts: shadows are good...keeps one cool, harder to see, keeps sights more visible. Wood makes poor cover (takes a lot to stop any rifle bullet, even .223 penetrated big stumps and thick trunks), rock makes poor cover (chunks make secondary projectiles for about two feet around) but soil stops most bullets pretty well.
Double-taps in a rifle with a muzzle brake still don't work as well as slower aimed fire. Shot at a rabbit at dusk at the range of 10m with IMI ball and did three doubles trying to put it down as fast as possible. Three hits, most likely first shots in each pair. Two hits in the torso and one in the shoulder and it still took the rabbit about two minutes to expire. That doesn't bode well for stopping determines humans from staying hostile, no matter what "energy dump" happens. I think this validates Shawn Dodson's view that nothing short of a CNS hit puts 'em down fast enough for comfort. Maybe soft points would have worked better but I am not sure it would have mattered enough...the damage was severe, just that mammals are tough. In general, I am not eager to do combat even if I get to shoot from an ambush with a rifle. Small arms are just too small to do in the enemy reliably. That said, sometimes fighting better than the alternative.
I am happy to note that I ran several miles with a sling-less AR15, several magazines and a back-up pistol in 85-95 degree humid heat, up and down wooded hills and wasn't out of breath. That may be a bigger accomplishment for this summer than improvements in riflery. Shooting got better, too -- more trigger time, better firing positions (prone, sitting, squatting, kneeling and standing...but I can't figure out how to use side support such as a tree trunk) and better sights. Shorter barrel (16" over 20") turned out a real win in the field though I didn't expect it: not because of weight (the red dot added what little shorter barrel took away) but for the handier length in the brush.
, Art