Complete upper
Since moving to Texas I have immersed myself in not only trying to learn the intricacies of Texas pronunciation of various cities and Texas terminology, but also Texas history. One of the things I have found in looking at Texas lawmen history and the gun culture here is the use of the do it all carbine. In particular, the 30/30-lever action has played a prominent role. While many legendary Texas lawmen would go to the Winchester Model 95 as the heavy problem solver, the 30/30 was sort of the day-to-day go to rifle for lawmen, ranchers, hunters, and everyday citizens for protection…a “knock around” rifle. The 30/30 has the ability to do good work on every type of game animal in the state, and also has a long history of working well on two legged vermin as well. It is a solid tool for the self sufficient Texan.
Recently, the AR-15 platform has made HUGE inroads in this state as the 30/30 for this century. It is reliable, light, handy, easy to carry and work with, and is “acceptable” in most quarters and not viewed as evil by most of the population. It is also a state that is heavy on military personnel, both active and former. It is also a state that is very NFA friendly. I have put a lot of thought into my first foray into the owning of a SBR outside of government agency employment. I am also going to purchase my first suppressor as a regular person.
The platform I settled on is a variant of the LMT MRP. I have had great luck with the MRP over the last decade. I have lots of parts and familiarity with them. I procured one of the new LM8MRP uppers that offers a very slim light profile over the normal quad railed MRP’s. It is very thin, lighter, and has a very solid feel to it. I am not putting a ton of accessories on this gun, so I didn’t need a lot of rail space. I decided to do this carbine as a 12.5” 6.8 SPC that I could also convert to 5.56mm if I felt the need or had issues finding ammunition (lately, I have actually found more 6.8 SPC training ammunition on shelves than 5.56mm). The 6.8 SPC gets me a solid split between 5.56mm that is easy to run, but not so hot a caliber if hunting of 4 leggers gets factored in, and 7.62 x 51. I have a 7.62 x 51 LaRue rifle that I love,and a Colt 901, but they are a handful to run at carbine speed. 3 days in an Advanced EAG course with my PredatOBR gave me a lot of insight into the positives and negatives. My new Colt 901 is going to be my “Winchester 1895”, the LMT will serve in the lighter carbine role while still offering some hard hitting performance capable of dealing with both bad guys and every other animal in my new home.
All of the necessary parts were procured and assembled. I went with a LMT SOPMOD stock, Tango Down BG-17 battle grip and TD Shorty VFG and PR4 sling mount. Fusion Tactical front sight assembly with a mount for a 500 Lumen Surefire Fury rounded out the front. A custom CSM Alibrando type sling is used. A 300Meter KAC rear BUIS handles the back up sighting work, and an Aimpoint 2 MOA T1 with an ADM mount and I/O cover handles the primary optics duty. While awaiting the paperwork process, a 16” LMT MRP 6.8 SPC barrel is used (another big benefit of running the MRP system).
A very special barrel is going to be the primary, and that will be the subject of the next installment.
The model 94 is a tremendous platform that has performed admirably for the last century. I just picked up my 2nd (and chopped it to 16″ a la Texas Ranger Joaquin Jackson) for my “truck gun” for coyotes and hogs (and even one unfortunate skunk) on the backroads of west texas. I’ve likewise found the AR to be less “looked down upon” by the local populace here, and surprisingly acceptable as a hunting platform. Here in a small agricultural community north of Abilene, the ’94 trapper, and my LMT AR sit side by side in between my front two seats. Both have drawn a significant amount of blood since I moved here.
Betcha still got a snubnosed .30/30 or .45/70 handy anyways, DB! I do.
Carbine looks good & 6.8mm is stone killer on game. My son took two whitetail w 12.5in. Barrett in Nov. ’05 inside 60 yards. Went straight down and looked like .270 Winchester tissue damage.
Yep, I still love my lever guns. Both “Boomer” (snub 45-70) and “Baby Boomer” (short .444 Marlin) are my go to’s for travel to ban states.
As John mentioned the Joaquin Jackson gun, it was part of my motivation. My original thought was “what would be a good way to duplicate that gun using a modern platform”. Apparently Jackson doesn’t feel regular folks need AR’s……well, I think mine will be able to do everything his will…just better, faster, more accurate, and all the while handier and easier to use under stress, especially in low light and in less than optimal conditions.
Good write-up Darryl, excellent articulation what the why and how of what you are doing. I think you’ll have a really handy and useful rifle in that package.
I’m looking to built something similar, but I’ll likely go with a 1-4 scope on mine since it will be doing double duty on deer and coyotes as well as being carried in areas where I have a decent chance of running into a dope grow.