Boom stick questions. Point me in the right direction.

In reply to Vracer111 :

Had I been around, I would have steered you towards Fulton or Bula on the m14 pattern front. The SA company uses cast receivers versus the real SA and my two recommendations are both forged receivers. 
 

Granted, I have a ptr91, cetme pattern, Bula, & FAL's. The FAL is superior in handling to the others, but the m14 is more accurate. I'm not entirely sure what your crux was on the 91 though with reliability and reload-ability. You can take the extractor out of them and they'll still eject spent cases and even though the cases get fluted, the brass will resize to standard. 

In reply to dean1484 :

I should have a CTR stock with a mag that I don't need, if you buy wood and want to switch back and forth. I could give you a good deal on it. Or I could just make a good deal on the mag. Let me know.

In reply to matthewmcl :

I will definitely keep that in mind. I need to find a CTR to put my hands on to see if it is as good as I think it is.  

In reply to WOW Really Paul? :

I understand what going with a Springfield M1A means and am more than fine with it given the track record they have shown. Rather would get a decent enough M1A for under $1500 and mod it to fit the role I want for it than get a premium $3000+ Fulton or $2500+ Bula M1A to just tear it down and redo it differently. Not looking to make a precision type rifle out of the M1A, but a accurate enough close-mid range defense weapon tailored more to rapid fire on-target acquisition capability. Have a SIG Cross for any kind of .308 precision shooting needed.

As to the PTR-91, was not fond of the more than few accounts of operational feeding/ejecting hiccups I kept coming across and the quite too lengthy break-in period to get them mostly reliable. Springfield M1A by contrast is extremely rare to find any operational issues with. The PTR-91 trigger is also something that would absolutely have to be changed out to a match unit at least... my biggest turnoff for any weapon is when it comes with a bad trigger, and the stock PTR-91 trigger is pretty much universally hated. Adding up the cost to get a PTR-91 where I'd want it from a reliable and shootable standpoint (Match trigger housing/group, rear stock upgrade, different foregrip, buffer system upgrade) it would be nearly double the price of a Springfield M1A. The M1A just made much more financial & functional sense to go with. The National Match trigger on it is acceptable, even fine, but still wish it was better - the WWG trigger setup on my Marlin 30AS lever gun is much better and more what I was expecting the M1A trigger to be like.

In reply to Vracer111 :

Fair enough, the one really nice thing Bula does is having optic rail part of the receiver so you don't have to deal with shifting of the side mount. 
 

While I haven't had any real issues from my ptr outside of slow feeding magazines(they're surplus, so about normal), but agree the trigger isn't great by any means and you have to know what you're doing to customize it to be better as there aren't off the shelf options. The only issue I'be encountered on my PTR is that it beats optics to death. The Vortex strike eagle 1-8x has been doing better than the 1-6 before it, but the zero will slowly shift from the recoil(and the 1-8 hasn't broken yet, so that's a plus) 

I do love my m14, but at the same time I love my garand more. In 308 land, my FAL's typically get the bulk of use as well, although I do build G3 pattern rifles from receiver flats & parts kits. 

So this weekend was a fortuitous weekend for sure. Wife's friend's father in law is going into assisted living and they are clearing out his house. He had close to 40k rounds of ammo in 9mm and .223 along with hundreds of other odd calibers like .303 and 30-06 etc. They offered me 1000 rds of 55gr .223 for 300 new in the cases. I wish Id gotten 2 for that price now but I already had about 1500 rds. A dealer was coming in to write a check for the remaining. 

So this weekend I was in the right place at the right time. I picked up a new un fired all original 1973 colt sportster. Yes it was $$$ but it is just so cool. I stripped off all the original parts and put them in the safe and re built it using the sterilized lower with a 20 inch stainless steel competition grade barrel.  I put 150 rounds through it last night and dam does the hand guard get hot. I will be replacing that with CF or at least get some plastic or even wood hand grips. I also hate the trigger. How did they hit anything with this thing back in 1973. That will be the next thing to go. 
 

This was not a planed build. This is an investment. I am keeping all the original parts stored away so later I can put it back to original and it will still be an un fired rifle. And yes this is the rifle version not the carbene version as this was originally made for the hunting market. 

I dialed in the optics and it is a fun rifle. Good balance and easy to shoot. 
 

I shot a fun semi-auto shotgun this weekend. I for the life of me cant remember the exact model, I think it was a Mossy 930. Now I want one!

In reply to yupididit :

I have never shot a semi-auto shotgun.  My friend is trying to get me into Skeet / Trap shooting but DAM are those shotguns expensive!!!!  It does look like fun.

Speaking of shotguns...

Muzzle loader 12 gauge.  I have no use for one, but I want one!  

In reply to dean1484 :

I've got dads old Remington model 11. Built in 1908. With an 1/8" spacer 870 mag extenders work. That thing is a beast. Super fast and light trigger and absolutely brutal to your shoulder. 

my two favorite JMB creations. Still looking for a browning hipower

dean1484 said:

In reply to yupididit :

I have never shot a semi-auto shotgun.  My friend is trying to get me into Skeet / Trap shooting but DAM are those shotguns expensive!!!!  It does look like fun.

Try pricing decent over/unders that the sporting clay people love.  $2000 and that is entry level for a decent over/under.

In reply to dean1484 :

CZ makes some really good basic but quality over/unders from just under $1k to a bit over $1.6k. A Redhead Premier Project Upland in 20 gauge would be my choice if was to get an over/under.

Got call today the Montana Vintage Arms Soule/diopter sight set was just finished for the Winchester/Miroku 1885 and will be shipping out this week, right on time (6 week stated lead time for production when ordered them). I do have a scope currently mounted to it but probably still won't have a chance to shoot it or anything besides my airguns anytime soon... so might as well put the Soule/diopter sight on when it gets in. Here's what it looks like with the scope currently mounted:

I suppose I can post this here too in addition to the BP thread:

hard to see the steel I was aiming at, but it wasn't my worst miss ever. Traditions kit with my home made propellant. It's a giggle, but hardly practical. Once I get the load tuned and some more practice, I'm betting a well placed shot will be pretty rewarding. If y'all find yourselves in southern UT, reach out and we'll see who flinches less. Loser buys lunch. 

In reply to barefootcyborg5000 :

Just an FYI, I'm in the Arizona strip/southern Utah border area.

My issue these days is time - busy with converting a cargo trailer into a camper home, tending gardens, and taking care of animals. Just got the bed/storage/battery bank compartment structure finished this evening... all the storms/flooding we've been having the past two weeks has delayed things a bit. I've got 4 new rifles haven't had a chance to even properly sight in yet... 3 of which I've never even shot yet.

In reply to Vracer111 :

Oh dang. Yeah, the storms have been a bit unusual. That range I was at was not my first or second choice, but the usual spots were inaccessible for my accord because the roads washed out. I'm in st George. 

The MVA front & rear sights came in for the 1885.... got them installed without much difficulty (though I did stone the front diopter sight dovetail ever so slightly too much when fitting... ordered it way oversized and took forever to stone it down to get it to start to fit. Not loose, but no driving in really needed, able to center it by fingers. So not as tight fit as should be but does have set screw to lock it in place and it's absolutely solid.) Do need to adjust the staff to get it perpendicular longitudinally to the barrel, but it's perfect laterally. Selected insert of crosshair with smallest center open circle off the insert card it came with for front diopter sight, may go to just the plain crosshair later. Need to take all the inserts off the tree and find a small container to securely store them in.

In reply to Vracer111 :

That is So cool!!!!!

Back to "Boom Twigs" for a moment.  I scored a new-in-box from dealer stock H&K USP Expert.   I have put about 200 rounds through it and it is just fantastic.   You can definitely feel the difference in the build quality compared to my Canik Meta.  My Meta is set up for competition with a red dot and stuff.  Out of the box, I shot better with the H&K and the stock Iron sites at 20 yards than I did with the Canik using the red dot.  The short of it is the H&K is a keeper!!!

Obligatory Photo of the new H&K

Oh, missed the M1A/M14 stuff. I have a Bula receiver on mine, and have no complaints about it.

I have a few extra M14 stocks- one is likely birch, one is surplus fiberglass, and I may have a walnut one. I don't need three extra stocks, and have been thinking about letting a couple go, but I'd also probably trade the walnut one for a Springfield synthetic stock.

I acquired a book through Interlibrary Loan titled "Rock In A Hard Place" (James Ballou) about the Browning BAR development and history.  It's excellent and worth the effort to acquire if you have interest in that rifle. 

I also made another acquisition.  A 1973 Colt Sporter.  What makes this unusual is it was/is new and unfired.  I tore it down to just the lower and then replaced everything putting all the original parts away in my safe.  I built it back up as a long-distance precision rifle.  Some highlights are a 20"ss intermediate weight comp barrel, 3 1/2 lb Geissele 2 stage trigger.  There are some other little things for comfort I added but not really important.  I was shooting .25 moa at 100 yards.  I was able to hit the side of my 8" plate target that had partially come unhooked after hitting it so many times in a row.   This is probably one of the most accurate rifles I have ever shot.

As purchased 1973 Sporter with the exception of the rear site that I added but then decided not to use.

Partially complete:  There are a couple of little things I have changed since this photo was taken.  The old trigger is in this photo as well as the old grip.  I also added some thermal protection to the hand guard that is not in the photo.  We put 150 rounds through it and we could not touch the hand guard.  I needed a guard for the hand guard.  LOL.

I will post up a completed build photo later.  The problem is these things are never "finished" but this one is so accurate that I don't think that there will be any substantive changes.

I have a carbon fiber hand guard on the order that is due in next week.  When I change that I may also replace the front vertical grip with a short CF one.  With the 24-inch comp barrel, this thing is a bit heavy.  It is not something you want to carry with you hunting.  This is a range/bench build.    

In reply to Brett_Murphy (Agent of Chaos) :

I don't need a Walnut stock but do have the Springfield composite stock in 'FDE' (it's darker/browner than real FDE) mine originally came with along with a new Bradley adjustable cheek rest (in Afgazacam coloration)...

Ended up going with the Vltor M1-SS stock in FDE... being carbon composite its MUCH more rigid/solid than the flexy stock Springfield one, just about as light, and has AR compatible pistol grip and buttstock. Changed to a more vertical and larger Tango Down grip than what it comes with and a Magpul MOE SL buttstock.

In reply to dean1484 :

HK USP Expert is indeed a finely made piece... I really liked how everything has proper amount of force, no excessive force to operate anything on it. Sigs and most others are more stiffly sprunged and sometimes a bit tough to easily operate the controls.... engineering, fit, & finish on the USP Expert is most excellent for a stock factory mass produced pistol. I changed the front sight on mine to a tritium USP Tactical one... which is correct height for it since uses a very tall sight.

Really liked the match trigger on it, so smooth and light release in SA... very easy to pull the trigger and have zero movement... first 3-4 shots I ever took with mine were in a single not much larger than .40cal sized hole @ 7 yards...

Vracer111 said:

In reply to dean1484 :

HK USP Expert is indeed a finely made piece... I really liked how everything has proper amount of force, no excessive force to operate anything on it. Sigs and most others are more stiffly sprunged and sometimes a bit tough to easily operate the controls.... engineering, fit, & finish on the USP Expert is most excellent for a stock factory mass produced pistol. I changed the front sight on mine to a tritium USP Tactical one... which is correct height for it since uses a very tall sight.

Really liked the match trigger on it, so smooth and light release in SA... very easy to pull the trigger and have zero movement... first 3-4 shots I ever took with mine were in a single not much larger than .40cal sized hole @ 7 yards...

I took the FBI qualification test today and passed with ease with the H&K.  I know my Canik would have been a problem.  The thing that amazed me was distance shooting with this thing is easy with iron sites.  The final 4 standing and 4 kneeling at 25 yards in 20 seconds was simple.  For S&G's after the test I went back to 50 yards and did not have a problem.

The trigger is a big improvement over the Canik.  The Canik is almost to light. I was having double tap problems with it.  This however is absolutely perfect.  And the brake is exceptionally crisp.  The whole thing just inspires confidence.

The funny part about today at the test was that everyone that failed was using a red dot.