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Posted: 3/19/2006 1:46:53 PM EDT
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Optical Tribulations: After my first failed attempt, I decided to back up and punt. Rather than sort through the mount issue with the red dot, I went with a scope set up that was already proven on another AR. I have a Weaver 4X scope mounted on an A.R.M.S. #19 using Burris rings. It works quite well on my M1S 20” 7.62x39 upper and I was hoping that it would sight in close enough with the V62 that I wouldn’t have to crank the adjustments just to get it on paper. Waiting for the rain to stop and the weekend to arrive, I felt that I had a viable plan to check the rifles accuracy. Accuracy Results: I used the same set up as on my first attempt: a front rifle rest, a rear sand bag, and the 5 round Chinese magazine. Mounting the A.R.M.S. #19, I noticed the effort needed to close the levers was almost zero. While I couldn’t detect any movement, it makes me wonder if the issue I had with the red dot sight was due to an undersized rail. I fired three, five shot groups at 50 yards with three different loads. First was Wolf 122gr FMJ. Second was a handload that my M1S upper really likes: WIN brass, REM 9½ primer, 26.0gr H4198, and a WIN 123gr PP bullet. Third was another handload: WIN brass, REM 9½ primer, 25.5gr H4198, and a GWB 124gr FMJ bullet. The results are below. WOLF Group 1: 3.075 Group 2: 2.090 Group 3: 2.570 WIN PP Handload Group 1: 1.840 Group 2: 1.100 Group 3: 1.470 GWB FMJ Handload Group 1: 3.200 Group 2: 1.995 Group 3: 1.545 The light weight of the rifle combined with the heavy trigger pull made holding it steady somewhat difficult. Also, the wind was a little gusty and was coming in from the right side. All of the groups showed noticeably more horizontal dispersion than vertical. I believe this indicates a combination of wind drift and some possible slack in the scope mount. My M1S upper will consistently group the WIN PP load at around ¾” or slightly less at 50 yards. If I ignored the flyers, the groups would actually be much better. Final Notes: I feel that the installation of a ½” riser that is really clamped down tight and then using the riser to mount optics would tighten up groups. In about 200 rounds through the rifle, the only failures have been three Wolf primers not igniting. One fired on a second strike, the other two did not. Atlantic Firearms has this rifle on their website listed at $799. For this price, the fit and finish should be better. Accuracy is fair, but I feel that it could be improved. Functioning has been excellent so far. An interesting note in the owner’s manual states not to shoot steel cased ammunition or to use soft points. I think that this rifle will end up being a “fun gun”. AK magazines are cheap and plentiful. |
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