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Water Monkey's 2017 Projects

I have both. I prefer PPU. haven't tried S&B.

.308 garands are more forgiving and you can go commercial ammo up to 175gr.
 
It is with as much sadness as it is pleasure to introduce you to the second to last build/buy of this year:

Avert your eyes if you value your soul....

NY Compliant AR-15 Rifle Build

Based on NY SAFE Act it took the old Federal AWB and downgraded the list of illegal features from 3 to 2. Therefore if it is a magazine fed semi auto rifle it can not have:
Collapsable stock
bayo lug
flash hider
vertical hand guard grip
pistol grip
thumbhole grip

So what are we left with?

a stock that is twisted so it's no longer a vertical pistol grip or making the entire rifle a fixed magazine. Being function over form I chose to keep my rifle a magazine fed option and used the crappy thordsden stock (function wise isn't super terrible).

I bring you the Crusader Build:

Spikes Crusader Lower
Thorsden stock
Andersen buffer tube kit
Giessele G2S trigger
PSA upper and lower parts kit
PSA premium bolt carrier group
Andersen Upper
BCM charging handle
Magpul BAD lever bolt release
Odin Works extended magazine release button Gen III
Stag Arms NY compliant barrel 16" 5.56 NATO 1:9
ALG Defense free float MLOK hand guard
Aero Precision UL scope mount
Primary Arms ACSS 1-6x 30mm scope Gen III illuminated reticle

Just built tonight with the immense help from a friend. The good so far:
- Decent balance. Much lighter than I expected it to be with the weight a little more in the stock area.
- Don't need a cheek riser for the scope once I get my cheek weld. Got the scope lined up perfectly with my mount
- ACSS reticle is really awesome for CQB and ranging for longer shots. At 1x with illumination it's basically a red dot when doing a mock house clearing and I can keep both eyes open

Not so good:

- alignment of the pistol grip takes functionality away from:
- Magazine release - required an extended mag release to get my finger to properly settle on the button
- I can flip it from safety to fire with my firing hand thumb. Impossible to flick it back to safety I need my support hand to come back to engage the safety.

Still needs the following accessories:
- hand guard light
- BUIS (45* off set)
- thinking of adding a detachable bipod... not sure I want to add that much weight to this

Here are the pictures.... You've been warned:

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Don't worry.... my final buy for the year will be revealed tomorrow after I get in a range session. It will more than make up for this "compliance" build.... guaranteed

Water Monkey
 
I was going to do something like this myself but it has come to my attention that since I did not de-feature my AR before January 1st, and I did not build my other AR before January 1st, that to do either at this time would constitute a felony.

I think I'm going to sell off all the AR parts except the lower receivers and then just destroy them. This only puts me out about $80 plus the registration fees and tax. I could sell them out of state but the fees involved are almost as much as the lowers are worth.

My other option is to register the AR an assault weapon in California and keep the bare lower as a spare part. I can still do this before December 20, but I will have to pay a fee, and endure a host of rules which will make ordinary legal behaviors impossible while transporting the AR.

Basically California is setting people up to get screwed if they keep them & register, and get screwed if they keep them and don't.

 
I was going to do something like this myself but it has come to my attention that since I did not de-feature my AR before January 1st, and I did not build my other AR before January 1st, that to do either at this time would constitute a felony.

I think I'm going to sell off all the AR parts except the lower receivers and then just destroy them. This only puts me out about $80 plus the registration fees and tax. I could sell them out of state but the fees involved are almost as much as the lowers are worth.

My other option is to register the AR an assault weapon in California and keep the bare lower as a spare part. I can still do this before December 20, but I will have to pay a fee, and endure a host of rules which will make ordinary legal behaviors impossible while transporting the AR.

Basically California is setting people up to get screwed if they keep them & register, and get screwed if they keep them and don't.

That blows dude. NY is trying to one up Cali with SAFE Act II. The struggle is real.
 
That blows dude. NY is trying to one up Cali with SAFE Act II. The struggle is real.

I'm not endorsing anarchy here (or AM I? ;)), but when the SHTF, only "felons" will have the requisite parts to have a fully-functioning defensive piece. One man's felony is another man's misdemeanor/parking ticket... :rolleyes: Of course the ACTUAL felons will still have unregistered or stolen ARs and hi-cap mags with which they can easily out-gun law-abiding citizens such as yourselves.

And the shix will hit fans in CA first, especially when NK pops a nuke overhead and the EMP takes out the already taxed CA power grid. What happens after 3 days and the supermarkets have been looted bare? :eek: Do you think anyone is going to care if you have a pistol grip on that AR or a flash-hider? :rolleyes:

And what if Quebec nukes Ontario? :D That fallout will surely take out NY with all the "refugees" Canada has taken in who will now cross the border into NY with beards and suicide vests... o_O ;)

If I had AR lowers that were not "registered" (and I was in CA or NY, etc.) I might be burying them in the backyard or hiding them in the attic for future use. Same with the shixload of "ghost" receivers that I might have and paid cash for... I know that is easy for me to say here in purple FL but we have Governor and Senate races in 2018 and a lot can change and the wienies are being loud! :eek: I still think compliance is weakness, and you may as well just kneel down and put your head on the block... You all need to live on the edge a little. ;) A law that isn't obeyed by the majority is NOT a just law.

I don't know what you mean by "fees" selling out of state Cadd, but maybe you could sell to a local FFL and they could transfer to an FFL out of state. Myself, I would certainly not sell/destroy any "pre-ban" stuff nor would I tell anybody about it, either.

Enough politics--or not... Monk, how much was that "compliant" stock and buffer tube cover? It is just a mil-spec size tube, correct? Does NY have bullet buttons? Do I note correctly that the barrel is not threaded? It is absolutely asinine how the wienies think these "features" create a more dangerous gun. These cretins are on my list of POS politicians and "celebrities". POS can mean "Piece Of Shix" and/or "Punch On Sight". ;)
 
WM, I have a hard time manipulating an AR safety, do to limited range of motion in my thumb. My solution was a B.A.D. Ambi safety, with the right side lever rotated 180 degrees. I can go safe to fire with my thumb, then trigger finger comes back and rotates fire to safe.

Sent from my SM-G360V using Tapatalk
 
Enough politics--or not... Monk, how much was that "compliant" stock and buffer tube cover? It is just a mil-spec size tube, correct? Does NY have bullet buttons? Do I note correctly that the barrel is not threaded? It is absolutely asinine how the wienies think these "features" create a more dangerous gun. These cretins are on my list of POS politicians and "celebrities". POS can mean "Piece Of Shix" and/or "Punch On Sight". ;)

I believe it was $150 for the stock. No bullet buttons, yes non-threaded barrel aka "target crowned".

WM, I have a hard time manipulating an AR safety, do to limited range of motion in my thumb. My solution was a B.A.D. Ambi safety, with the right side lever rotated 180 degrees. I can go safe to fire with my thumb, then trigger finger comes back and rotates fire to safe.

Sent from my SM-G360V using Tapatalk

Yes... that was something I am considering the ambi safety
 
OK here's the last buy of the year:

Wilson Combat X-Tac 9mm 1911

Added features:
Cocobolo starburst grips with gold medallion
No slide markings (keep it clean)
Armor Tuff black coating
Flush cut/reverse crown barrel
Black barrel bushing
End ball and carry cuts
one piece bulletproof magwell (round butt)
Extended Magazine Release

12 week waiting period....

Enjoy:

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Range Time!!!

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Took her out with 450 rounds - 400 rounds 124gr round nose to break her in... re-lube every 100 rounds. 50 rounds of 115gr round nose. All fed, ejected, and punched holes on paper.

Shooting low with the combat sights. Happened when I used the heine straight eight sights from Dan Wesson. Front sight is just a wee bit high so I have to grip the gun a bit firmer and lock my wrists out better. Been a few months since I shot pistol. So that could have an effect as well.

Also, the gun was moving a bit in my hand as the grips aren't as aggressive. I like the grip as it allow extended shooting sessions without tearing up my hands. But I suppose running the gun fast and hard and re-lubing every 100 rounds had my hands pretty oily and sweaty.

Smooth shooter! And looks as good as she shoots!

First 100 rounds 4-7 yards varied

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1:3:1 Drill trying to get better at target transition and faster shooting. Not bad... 4-6 yards. Just have to get used to the sights.

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Had POV video by for some reason my head gear wasn't riding right and all video was showing angled high and you couldn't see any shots. Kinda bummed. Next time I'll get action video.

This baby needs a good cleaning... she ran like a boss.

Water Monkey
 
Water monkey, it's an awesome defensive weapon but at my age I'd be better off with a shotgun.

The AR and the bare lower are both registered to me. All that data was entered in the state's computer system when I bought them. If somebody runs me right now it's going to come up that I have unregistered AWs. That's only possible because they're already registered as rifles & it tells on the registration exactly what kind of rifle it is, how long it is, what the magazine is blah blah blah.

There is an Amnesty period on registration until the end of this year, but according to the law it is only an amnesty on prosecuting owners.

By delaying the release of the complete new regulations, and also by issuing regulations with many gaping holes, they've ensured that all the stuff will be misunderstood tied up in court and adjudicated according to their wishes by the California DOJ.

Really the only thing that this new second registration will do is cost me another $19, keep me from being automatically listed as a felon, and make it easier to find me as an AR owner in the Statewide database.

It's that last part that's a little bit difficult right now. In California those records are kept by the local gun salesman and only show up to the state if they're subpoenaed. In my case the guy that sold me that gun had all his records subpoenaed so the state had every opportunity to examine the records.

Because they know a lot of people won't submit to the second registration, they're going around to all the little dealers right now and they're getting their records subpoenaed, by finding them in violation of any tiny little ordinance that they can scrape up.

Then they immediately call for an audit and pull all the records in.

This is going on all over California right now. They're sending undercover people in to make "sting" buys at every ordinary gun dealer where they find the slightest excuse.

The DROS system is wonky already. If it wasn't it would already have all this information and they wouldn't need the new registration. For some reason it was all entered into the system when we bought these guns and yet for some inexplicable reason they're going to spend millions of dollars to get all this data again.

It really is a fear-mongering tactic & perhaps that's mostly why they're spending the money.
 
God, I'm so thankful that I live in a free country and state.
Amen.

That wasn't directed toward you at all WM. More towards caddmans last post.

You did a fine job making those guns. You should be proud of them.

I only have one project pending for the rest of the year. In 4 days, will make exactly one year to the day that I submitted my last Form 1. In no way should it take a year to receive an approval that I am not a prohibited person.
 
. . . I don't know what you mean by "fees" selling out of state Cadd, but maybe you could sell to a local FFL and they could transfer to an FFL out of state . . . Myself, I would certainly not sell/destroy any "pre-ban" stuff nor would I tell anybody about it, either. . .

Well they already know about it, because I filled out paperwork when I bought the stuff. That data was entered into the DROS system.

Anyhow in order to sell that stuff out of California I have to take it to an FFL and pay him $35 to transfer a lower that only cost $40 brand new. I can actually do both of them for $35 if they're going to the same out of state buyer.

But I think now that the 1/1/17 has passed it's illegal to do that as well.
 
WM and Caddq yall are welcome anytime and you can own and build pretty much what you want. Not to mention the land is as diverse as you want from beaches to mountains. If you stop at first rest area this is the welcome sign. For real.
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My thanks for the invitation, but I'm afraid that moving east of the Rocky Mountains is out of the question for me.

I am a Westerner and I will always be a Westerner, and as long as my wife survives I will not leave California for more than a vacation. Everything that she knows is right here where she was born.

My only quandary is whether California will return to the Wild West?
 
On line at the range. Got the AR build and my 308 Garand build.

Hoping both are working up to par today.

308 Garand was short cycling last 2 outings. Narrowed it down to a small gas port on the barrel and drilled it wider within spec. Hoping this gets her running as she should.
 
OK Range Report with the AR build and .308 Garand Build

New School with Old School

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AR Build Review:

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AR cycled all ammo - Freedom Munitions 55gr Vmax, Prvi Parizan 5.56 Nato 55gr FMJ, PMC XTAC 5.56 Nato 55gr FMJ

Got her zeroed in with 4 shots. I never bore sight my scopes and always zero at 100 yards. Use a large white board to see the first shot. Then dial her in from there.

As expected 55gr Vmax shot the best groups. Surprised that the PMC ammo shoots better than the Prvi. I've had the opposite results in the past. This Stag Arms barrel loves that PMC. Which actually is a good thing since I have a lot of that stuff laying around.

Stock is tough to use a sand bag on. You have to put the bag on the actual stock end. putting it by the pistol grip interferes with the trigger pull.

Scope sights are gonna take some getting used to. It uses a Chevron tip as the main focal point to aim. You have to use the tip at 100 yards and it was tough to focus on the chevron with the targets. at 6x I was still having some time getting it steady and centered.

Illumination is washed out in the sunlight in all settings but the final one. Didn't see any benefit to the illumination for daytime shooting.

Final 10 shot board per the 3 ammo choices (in prone 100 yards - no sling just bipod):

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Garand:

Had some issues with the Garand. Never cycled, just a bolt action. Thought it was the op rod used so I had a few refurbished by columbus machine works. Still didn't do the trick. I was assured my gas cylinders were NOS. I was leery they weren't. And all springs are all new from Orion 7. My final move was to open up the gas port on the barrel. The one installed was at .084 which is usually under spec for .094.

I was leery to do the work myself. I called Orion 7 and they said I had to put the whole rifle in for a spec review and it would take 2 weeks. I asked for a bench fee and I could come in when they are ready for me... they laughed at me. Turned me off from them after that. Peace love and hand grease. I wasn't tossing $100 to look at my rifle when all I want is to review my gas system.

So Tim Shufflin from Shuff's Parkerizing made a video to show me how easy it was to open it up with a hand drill. 3/32 bit and that's it.... well the first bit broke in the barrel.... and we got it out with pliers. Second bit did the job. Port was now sitting at .095 based on my caliper. Well within specs.

Shot the first clip... yes clip.... and all cycled well with the PING. YESSSSSSSS!!!!

Didn't shoot much but I did get her zeroed in at 100 yards with Aguila 7.62 150gr FMJ ammo. I want to get her zeroed in with some Federal Match 168gr ammo by the end of the year to get her ready for some High Power matches next year.

Here's the 8 round clip board..... I pulled ONE low left and I felt it. All shooting in prone with leather match sling by Ron Brown (awesome people to deal with btw).

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