Several years ago, I stumbled upon an article on the versatility of the.300 AAC Blackout round. Among my pastimes is hand loading ammo. The versatility of the cartridge was fascinating. In the summer my spouse and I live near Yellowstone on the Wyoming-Montana border. We often delight in camping and fishing in the area I matured in. We do not have a RV, simply a tent and cots. Absolutely nothing fancy simply as my father and I camped in the sixties. Most of our preferred areas are remote and I had been searching for a gun that was more than a heavy revolver, but less cumbersome than a rifle or shotgun efficient in fast follow up shots.
Some sources listed the speeds out of a ten-inch.300 Blackout barrel of a 110-grain projectile at 2,200 feet per second. A 150-grain bullet with the proper propellants might be increased to 1,700 FPS out of the very same barrel. A hot.357 magnum out of an eight-inch barrel can release a 158-grain tough cast bullet as much as 1,500 FPS. There are several individuals I know who bring either.357 magnum revolvers, however with four-to-six-inch barrels, or.44 magnum revolvers. Numerous of my good friends now load a 10mm in the backcountry. Unless you have nerves of steel and best shot positioning none of these will stop a charging grizzly. Maturing, I keep in mind hearing stories of the huge bears failing to stop their charge after a number of hits from a.30-06. So, I realized the limitations of the.300 Blackout cartridge also in stopping such a hard animal. Unfortunately, I do not have nerves of steel nor am I capable of perfect shot placement under stress.
However, in all my time in the woods, and seeing lots of bears, I’ve never been attacked by a wild animal. Still, it seemed sensible to have a firearm with some punch that would be easy to make hits with and compact. A gun able to rapidly induce target. A. 300 AAC Blackout pistol with a red dot and Picatinny rail mounting a light would be just the ticket, I reasoned.
Like many people I can shoot more accurately with a rifle. An AR handgun with a brace is not a rifle however it does give at least three points of contact when used as planned. I bought a removed lower receiver from my local gun shop and ordered a lower build set from Palmetto State Armory. Online an upper receiver with a ten-inch barrel was bought. Besides a red dot optic and flashlight, a removable sling was preferred. An SBA3 handgun brace was chosen due to the fact that of the good reviews and the ambidextrous QD sling socket. After whatever was assembled it turned into one of my favorite guns. Precise, low profile, in a quality that had dozens of projectiles in weight and setup with numerous ideal propellants that could be explore. But then came January of 2023.
The ATF rule 2021R-08F, nearly 300 pages of ambiguous phrasing of what classifies as a short-barreled rifle (SBR) consists of overall length, weight, and eye relief of an optic. What it comes down to is if you have a barrel less than sixteen inches and a handgun brace the ATF now considers it an SBR.
Our choices, assuming that this modified ruling will really end up being “law” on June 1st, 2023 will be any of the following:
- Get rid of the brace.
- Give up the firearm to an ATF office.
- Ruin it.
- Amnesty register it, as an SBR.
- Set up a barrel of at least 16 inches. (Or, weld on a barrel extension of some sort, making it 16 ″ or longer)
The latter which I ultimately chose to do. Bear in mind that once your lower receiver has a rifle upper on it or you choose to install a rifle barrel it is permanently a rifle in the eyes of the ATF. There is no going back.
I chose not to make the most of the handgun brace amnesty duration from January 31st up until May 31st. The two-hundred-dollar charge will be waived for the tax stamp, and you will wind up with an NFA weapon. There were a number of factors I was encouraged not to do this. For me, the most important consideration was not having the ability to cross the state line without needing to get previous authorization from the federal government, a requirement when taking a trip with an NFA product. This would not only be bothersome living near a state line, however I wondered for how long would it take to obtain approval once the documentation was sent. We seldom plan that far ahead in the summer.
As I write this in early May of 2023 not only are lawsuits opposing the pistol brace restriction in play however, if I comprehend correctly, a U.S. House committee voted to nullify the pistol brace guideline. Now it goes to your home of Representatives, there is a good chance that it will pass there likewise. From there it goes to the Senate, it is skeptical that the Senate will vote to nullify the handgun brace guideline, but if they do and it ends up in Joe Biden’s hands. We all understand what he will choose.
Initially, I chose to get rid of the brace. A short handgun buffer tube was installed. This appeared uncomfortable, with the handgun brace the firearm could rapidly be raised and a cheek weld acquired in between upper bicep and cheek without touching the shoulder, offering 4 points of contact. It was my thinking that it may be possible to make some light-plinking loads with pistol and shotgun powders and still get a cheek weld on the foam-covered buffer tube without putting your eye out. 5 110-grain rounds were packed with the max allowable grains of each for 115 grain 9mm. These were loaded with little handgun primers due to the fact that of the low pressure anticipated in the Blackouts far more abundant case.
A Magpul 7.62 × 35 publication developed for 300 Blackout had actually been purchased I was curious if it would dependably feed rounds with various weight projectiles and at 100 yards how close they would group. (Later after two times pacing off the range it was discovered that what I had actually always thought was 100 lawns was truly 84.) 7 complete power rounds ranging from 110-grain Barnes packed with 19 grains of Hodgdon LIL’weapon to factory Remington 220 grain subsonic were dug out of the ammunition locker.
A 13-inch by 10-inch paper platter was glued to our plywood backstop with a black magic marker dot in the middle.
The five handgun rounds were packed one at a time into a. 223 magazine. The purpose was to see if they would cycle the bolt far enough to lock open on an empty publication. Wearing eye and ear defense, my youngest son and I took turns shooting the five light loads. The only round that produced sufficient pressure to eject the empty case was the one packed with HP-38; it did not lock the bolt open on the empty publication though. None of these loads had any considerable recoil.
The PMAG was loaded save for the last seven planned for the target. In reverse order starting with the 220-grain subsonic were then filled. When once again, we rotated shots. Taking turns adding to the target to mark it after each round was fired. Remarkably all except for 4 and 5, tidy shot and the ancient HS-5 of unsure vintage, grouped in the lower right-hand corner. We found that if forced to utilize a grab bag of a different mix of powders and projectiles of numerous weights for self-defense against man or beast in a survival circumstance the point of impact would be nearly the exact same at practical defense ranges.
Two days prior, when the brace was still connected, we were hitting water-filled soda bottles at the same range (84 yards) and at the exact same casual shooting range. The very same red dot sight was still mounted on the rail. My only explanation of the lower right-hand grouping was the various point of view, parallax, without the large SBA3 for a comfortable brace and cheek weld. It appeared unlikely that altering the buffer tube was the cause. The 300 BLK PMAG dealt with all the different projectile weights without an issue.
My son was an active service U.S. Marine from 2005 to 2010, so he ended up being utilized to coping with an M4 or M16 throughout Iraq deployments and was easily knowledgeable about Eugene Stoner’s style. In his opinion without the brace the AR handgun was good just for casual plinking, we both found it challenging without utilizing the magazine as a monopod to hold the pistol steady on target. For me, it was plainly not useful for its intended function. My goal now was to find a method to keep shooting the BLK without investing too much money. I found a 16-inch.300 AAC Blackout barrel with a pistol gas port on ‘Right To Bear.’ An online company I had actually never heard of. For $95 consisting of shipping. A brand-new barrel got here promptly in simply a couple of days.
Prior to entering the installation, I want to discuss why you may want to purchase the.300 Blackout. Initially, it is no longer an uncommon round, it can be discovered in the majority of locations. A longer barrel life is expected with many typical loads. If you currently own an AR-15 a new barrel or much easier yet a brand-new upper is all that is needed. It is a excellent reduced round. It uses great performance out of shorter barrels, unlike the.223 or 5.56. It’s a good woods weapon for video game approximately deer size. Most typical BLK rounds feed great out of the.223 publications you already have.
MagPul makes a PMAG created specifically for the 300 BLK which handled the heavy projectiles fine. If you reload it is economical to shoot. A used single phase press can be had for just $50 on eBay, a good financial investment for a shooter. I read someplace that there is around 400 various.308, 7.62 mm and appropriate.309 caliber projectiles in various setups, HPBT, SST, Core-lokt, Power-point, Ballistic-Tip and so on. Worldwide.
I don’t believe there will ever be a time when thirty caliber rounds of some type can not be purchased, scavenged or cannibalized. The Blackout will never be a 300 Winchester magnum but the 150-grain bullet from a 300 Win Mag can be pulled and sent of a sixteen-inch barrel at 2,000 FPS or more, some loads with double base powder press the same weight projectile to nearly 2,500 fps. The expense for variety rounds can be inexpensive. I have actually bought a great deal of surplus 147 and 150 grain jacketed projectiles for modest sums. Rim Rock bullets in Polson, Montana have 115 gr. RN tough cast.308 bullets at 5 hundred for $40 as I compose this. Whatever from 110 grain surplus.30 quality carbine bullets to 240-grain thumpers have actually been fired from the Blackout. I understand of no other cartridge that gives you a larger range of propellants and projectiles that can be used. A crucial factor to consider in situations of restrictions or scarcities of ammunition. With a bullet mold appropriate lead projectiles could be made, something much more tough for the higher velocity 223 or 5.56 where unjacketed projectiles should be solidified to a Brinell firmness of more than 16.
Some low-pressure rounds have been packed with little pistol guides, as I finished with the very first 5 gently loaded rounds. Small rifle and small handgun primers are the exact same size. Little rifle guides are made from a slightly thicker material. I am not promoting you utilize little handgun primers, especially at pressures over 35,000 PSI. Constantly use little rifle primers in the.300 Blackout, specifically if in doubt regarding the pressure. Some BLK rounds surpass 62,000 PSI.
Another benefit is it appears that most handguns and shotgun powders have actually been experimented with and still are by reloaders. Typically a recipe for someone’s brand-new favorite load can be discovered online. The difference in velocity between a nine-or ten-inch barrel to a 16-inch barrel is generally only 200 to 250 fps however for a 150-grain bullet the distinction is 919 feet lbs to 1,154 feet pounds of energy which is not insignificant so there is a benefit to a longer barrel.
In addition, Blackout cases can be quickly produced from abundant 223 or 5.56 cases. Even with easy tools it is possible. I make a mark simply below the neck of a 223 case at 1.37 inches or a smidgen above. Place the case in a shell holder. Location the shell holder at the bottom of the jaws of your vise so your mark is even with the blade of your tubing cutter. Holding pressure with the finger of one hand rotate the cutter around the case with the other while slowly turning the cutting knob. The first number of rounds you will probably destroy. After that you’ll get the hang of it. Utilizing the beyond the deburring tool I trim the case to 1.368 inches. In practice I’ve found anything in between 1.36 and 1.37 is fine.
Utilize the within burring tool to smooth the within the case mouth. Now run the lubed case through the de-priming resizing die. Leave the de-priming rod in so that the inside of the case will form smoothly around the ball. When case lube can not be found coconut oil makes a great, but messy alternative.
Setting up the barrel in the upper receiver was straightforward however not as easy as anticipated. The tools needed were a torque wrench, gas tube positioning tool or piece of.18 inch tubing or rod. A barrel nut wrench and a copper-based anti-seize compound. An upper receiver action block was ordered on Amazon for $10. I planned on utilizing the very same gas block and gas tube to save on expenditures. If there is a gunsmith near you, for a few dollars he can check the headspace of your new barrel. Conserving you the expense of acquiring the Go and No-Go evaluates.
After eliminating the hand guard, the upper receiver was inserted into the action block and protected in the vise. It was essential to use a C-clamp on the upper outside of the block to keep it from spreading. A heat weapon was utilized to warm the flash suppressor, after a brief time the loc-tite softened and it was eliminated. Next, the gas block and gas tube were removed. The very first snag came when I attempted to remove the barrel nut. Utilizing the barrel nut wrench I might not get it to budge. I believed these were torqued to 35 pounds, was this thing put on with Loc-Tite or had the factory forgot to coat the threads with an anti-seize substance? I questioned. Utilizing the heat gun, the barrel nut was heated up, still it refused to budge. When my boy got home, he tried to remove it without any luck. We resorted to me holding the barrel nut wrench and him utilizing a hammer on completion of the wrench, after warming it once again it finally came loose with some cautious hammering on the end of the wrench.
The final headache was getting everything aligned and tightened up down. Anti-seize was applied and the brand-new barrel and nut went on easily. Tightening up the nut and aligning the gas tube so that it went through the barrel nut, upper receiver and got in the gas key exactly centered was harder than expected. After an hour we were at last successful. Our AR pistol had a complimentary float barrel if you have the front sight gas block and heat shield type there is an excellent tutorial at thenewrifleman.com. The NRA’s shootingillustrated.com also has an excellent post.
After everything was put back together a low-cost 3X magnifier was added to commemorate its brand-new status as a rifle. We took it out the next day and put fifty rounds through the new rifle without any problems. I went the inexpensive route utilizing all the old parts other than for the crush washer. So, the rifle looks a bit unconventional with the abbreviated heat shield/hand guard and handgun brace. Without using a winter season coat, (an usual product of clothing for much of the year in this part of the country) it would be nice if the” Brace” might extend another half inch or two. However the pistol-become-rifle is more than functional and legally, absolutely nothing stops me from installing any basic rifle stock now. All in all, for a little over a hundred dollars, we both felt it was a great choice to comply with the upcoming pistol brace guideline.