Category Archives: Weapon Maintenance

Springs and Cycles and Wear…Oh Crap!

Posted on by

Simple to find, easy to replace yet so often overlooked, magazine springs for shotguns are very often the cause of feeding issues in shotguns.

Operating on the assumption that modern shooters who care for their equipment keep track of their round counts, most of us track the lifespan of our wear and tear parts.  In this case springs will be the main focal point.  Have you ever counted how many springs are in your gun?  Ever consider how important each one is to the proper operation of your pistol, rifle or shotgun?  I know quite a few people who have never given it a single thought.  They just figure that if it still works, it must be good to go.  Scary thought process huh? Continue reading →

Review: Geissele Super Dynamic 3-Gun (S3G) trigger

Posted on by

To most people, a “match trigger” in a AR15 platform belongs on a rifle with a 16 to 22 inch  precision barrel. During the course of my career I have shot the normal GI trigger that I was given. During sniper school the precision platform opened up to me, but the desire of a nicer trigger didn’t really bleed down to my other carbines until I shot a friend’s Geissele trigger a few years ago. I have since tried many “match” triggers of all types and from numerous companies, never really finding something I liked enough to warrant the additional funds.

I shoot a lot of 1911 like most of the other contributors on this site and personally use primarily a flat blade trigger. This preference of a flat trigger has bled down to my bolt guns as well. I learned that Geissele was producing a flat blade trigger and I had to try it, so I ordered 1 of every model ( Super Dynamic 3 gun, Super Dynamic Enhanced, and Super Dynamic Combat). Continue reading →

Heavy Training With A Weapon Mounted Light

Posted on by

 

Cleaning handguns after heavy training can be tedious. Cleaning a weapon mounted light can be even worse.  The above pistol had nearly 3,000 rounds through it in a foolish stunt to see if we could make it break.  The gun got so hot at times that I had to rack the slide on my holster during reloads because I could not touch it with Oakley gloves on.  I do not advocate abusing a modern service weapon in the way we did above at any time.  But, sometimes during product development it is necessary. Continue reading →

Glock Armorers Course – A Review

Posted on by

Recently, I traveled down to Smyrna, Georgia this week to the home of all things Glock for their eight hour armorers course. I had originally taken the course in 1996.  It was an eight hour course then, and best I remember it cost $75.  It was eight hours of assembly and disassembly.  The course wasn’t much.   As simple as the guns are, I never re-certified.

Fast forward to last November.  I told my boss I wanted to go down to the factory and take the Instructor Workshop class, and he green lit me for it.  A very nice lady from Glock Training called me back and informed me that I had to be a current armorer to be eligible for the class.  So, I said what the heck, and added a day onto my trip. I drove down with a head full of questions, ranging from recoil spring weights to extraction issue questions to a whole lot of questions about the 17T (Simunitions pistol). Continue reading →

Record Keeping

Posted on by

Keeping track of the round count, function issues and modifications is a must for a beauty like this one. It is just as important for every other gun you own as well.

I have been doing a lot of traveling these last few weeks teaching mostly Armorer courses at various agencies.  One thing that comes to mind immediately when I discuss their programs is how many of them are missing a significant portion of the job.  While being able to service and maintain the weapons is a primary function of the Armorer, maintaining accurate records of each item is even more important.

Continue reading →

YOUR PATROL RIFLE (HOW TO SET IT UP)

Posted on by

Patrol rifles are steadily becoming the mainstay of the modern police arsenal.  From time to time, the conversation of chosing a police patrol rifle comes up.  And some folks have some interesting thoughts on the modern police patrol rifle, and what should hang on it.  Folks have all kinds of ideas ranging from a full auto rifle chambered in a piston driven 6.8, to hanging on a 2-16 Nightforce scope, two lights, a PEQ, weather vane, Iphone attachment (let’s face it EVERYTHING revolves around ITunes these days), gerbil ball, bipod, monopod grip in case the bipod fails, a suppressor, one of those window hanger thingies to hold a Monster Absolute Zero,  and two Surefire 60 round magazines taped end to end for good measure. Continue reading →

Geissele Reaction Rod – Review

Posted on by

The New GEISSELE Reaction Rod quickly and easily holds any AR type rifle chambered for the 5.56 x 45 cartridge.

I spend a lot of time behind my rifles, which means I spend a fair amount of time building, cleaning and maintaining my rifles.  Anything that I can find that has the potential to help make my life easier or that saves time, I am willing to give a try.  I read about the Geissele Reaction Rod and about how the AMU’s armorers were using something like it several months ago and had been waiting for it to be released ever since.  Santa was good to me and I have been working with this new tool for the past few weeks. Continue reading →

THE M4 BOLT: GAS RINGS

Posted on by

In my Three Day Patrol Carbine Course, I cover quite a few topics, specifically concentrating on end user needs.  Maintenance is always covered. I like to clean quickly while being thorough. During cleaning, it’s important to check key areas to ensure your platform will continue working for you.

Make no mistake, I like a quality carbine/rifle.  It’s my life, so I don’t take short cuts.  No matter which make/manufacturer you choose, you need to care for your weapon no matter which manufacturer you choose. Continue reading →

AR Issues? Use MEAL to solve your problem.

Posted on by

Recently, I received a call from a local department armorer that had attended a course I a taught several years ago. He needed my help. He explained his problem: During qualifications they suddenly began experiencing malfunctions with several carbines while qualifying. The armorer described that he had found a piece of the bullet inside of the lugs on the barrel extension. They tried different types of ammunition and were still experiencing the same issue.

I asked him to stop by the range and bring the carbines and ammo in question.
When he and his partner came by, I looked at the carbines and immediately disassembled the weapons. I felt we should change out the gas rings on one and the extractor springs on both. However, I wanted to shoot the carbines before making any changes so I could diagnose the specific problem. Continue reading →

Fitting a New Plunger Tube on your 1911

Posted on by

A loose plunger tube can prevent your 1911 from firing
One of the great things about the 1911 is that every part on the gun is replaceable. The downside is that stuff wears out and/or comes loose. Combine this with the proliferation of sub quality parts common with many manufacturers, and this can be a recipe for disaster. I have found that current production Kimbers are plagued with plunger tubes that give way sooner rather than later. If the stakes give way and the tube is not properly supported by the grips as originally designed, the plunger tube can work itself far enough from the frame to prevent you from being able to disengage the safety and fire the pistol. This isn’t typically regarded as a good thing.
Here I will discuss how I fit a new plunger tube. Done this way, I have yet to experience one of my stakes come loose (and I have done a few.) You will need the following (Brownells P/N’s provided for your reference):

Rotate Your Carry Ammunition

Posted on by
Winchester Ranger RA45TP with Multiple Hard Primer Strikes, but No Ignition

Just wanted to put out a quick reminder to everyone to periodically rotate carry ammunition. Recently, there was an advisory from Gwinett County (GA) PD regarding an incident where an officer found himself in a deadly force encounter only to discover that the chambered round in his duty pistol would not fire. Fortunately, the officer’s training took over and he was able to successfully clear the malfunction and end the encounter.

The round in question was examined by the manufacturer, who discovered that the primer mix had been knocked out of the primer when the round was cycled through the firearm multiple times. Two cases of the same ammunition (presumably from the same lot) were tested and functioned normally.

Continue reading →