Posted: 11/6/2006 12:10:14 AM EDT
| Any one know the phone number /website for the UK supplier for Cactus AR's ??? |
At least they're trying????? Cactus Arms said "you can't put a r/h cocking handle on our receivers" To which I said, "well if that's the case, how come I've managed to do it on several occasions, and I've got the rifle out in the car if you want to see it" He said "well, we tried it and didn't like it, besides all the PR boys use the left hand one" Riiiiiggggghhhhttt, Keep digging your hole Ron. My .300 Whisper with a modified VM Hytech receiver (the same ones Catshit Arms uses  I guess that handle doesn't work then  Cactus arms aren't building a 9mm AR, someone in the States id doing it for them. Cactus Arms actually admitted to a few of us, and we have witnesses...."look, I don't know the first thing about AR's. I just came into this by accident."  Rarms, I hope you're happy with your choice of AR builder |
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>Rarms, I hope you're happy with your choice of AR builder I am thanks, otherwise I would have bought one elsewhere eh! :) Lets face it, the AR has to be the easiest gun to build, perhaps why there are so many 'smiths' out there knocking them out :D I don't quite know how to set the headspace but I would feel pretty confident in doing most other things to an AR. I have noticed on this board there seems to be a certain few people who seem to piss on everyone else's products! There is the Cactus Arms guy getting slated, and the HSLD thread a few months back. I appreciate that a fair bit of it is tongue in cheek, but it is a little immature? A less scheptical person might think this a little unfair since certain gunsmiths are shall we say in competition with them(in this case Cactus) to build and sell AR-15's!! Ron's guns are left hand cocking yes. He sells them so someone must like them! Sid's machining is also good enough to win him a fair ammount of business from people wanting things done to guns that doesn't just involve allen keys ;) Like I said, not meaning to offend anyone, just an observation! And who knows, in a few months, I might be looking round for someone to add R/H cocking to my Cactus upper :D Till then though why not just let people get on with selling their products? Kyle (HSLD V22 in the cabinet, and deposit on a CactusArms Foxer) |
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It's called a D I S C U S S I O N forum for a reason. In the case of Sid, I understand his political views marred, what I am told is some excellent work. In the case of Cactus, from discussions I had face to face with them. 1) They did not know what the PR scene used, by way of a rifle, but offered a PR Rifle. 2) They didn't know what twist rate works best with an appropriate length barrel and bullet weight. Pretty basic stuff. And you wonder why, when they try to market a product that could cost newer shooters £1000+ we get twitchy...... |
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>It's called a D I S C U S S I O N forum for a reason. Wasn't saying it was bad to discuss things, that is the whole point of online forums surely? But calling their company 'shite' with no justification or provocation apart from a winking smiley is hardly a discussion is it.... |
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OK, I've read your post and now I will reply to it. Pissing on other people's products. If the said product is not up to scratch then why not piss on it?? If you are going to spend the best part of a grand+ on a rifle, or any product come to that, it had better be good. This board isn't about any one, or two individuals, but most of us on here have been around the shooting circuit for some time and there is a wealth of knowledge and experience to be gleaned from here. As I said, Ron actually admitted to us that he doesn't know the first thing about AR's, barrel twist, reloading etc and only came into the AR market by chance. Buying with confidence??? I don't rate his work. Plain and simple. Others have their own opinions which are not influenced by me in any way. I don't consider myself to be a rival as such, but the way things are going, my venture is going to take off and I'm very happy with the way things are going. I've also been building my own rifle's for some time and have been very successful with them. Others have noted this and I have a steady band of customers who seem happy with the service I give them. You can buy from whoever you like and that can include someone who says he makes his own guns and someone who will spend the best part of a couple of hours setting a barrel up in a lathe to make sure ecerything is as true as it can possibly be before turning and chambering it. As for Sid, I've seen his work and have no problem with it. If you think that the reason he's not on this board anymore is because he was competition, then you are deluded or someone's deludiing you. There are reasons, but I will not go into them in public. So don't try that one on. There's room for everyone in this business and all the other makers are more than welcome to come here and participate. I know Fat Bob and Guy Savage very well and can take the piss out of them face to face, as they do to me, but if their service is not up to scratch, they should be told. Everyone always assumes that AR's can be thrown together, but a rifle is only as good as the barrel on it and the care that is taken in making that barrel. I only have control of what I do and I wouldn't make for anyone, anything that i wouldn't want for myself. |
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> If the said product is not up to scratch then why not piss on it?? In what way is his product not upto scratch? Aside from the fact that you keep saying he chanced into the AR market, makes the left handed for 'PR' shooters etc.., doesn't know twist rates etc... As far as I can see the actual product is a very nice looking rifle... Albeit one which perhaps only appeals to a small market due to the left hand cocking (although I cannot see a prob with this, especially if you can add right at a later date like you have done). What are the actual faults with his product? >I only have control of what I do and I wouldn't make for anyone, anything that i wouldn't want for myself This was not a personal dig, I can see you have standards from the whole 9mm thread ;) My post was merely an observation in general :) |
It's not well thought out. Heavy barrel, skeleton stock= overbalance. The charging handle on the left is in the wrong place and is not designed for constant use. First time you get a hard extraction, you'll be stuffed as you can't get enough purchase. The spirally fluting is a gimmick on the models I have seen. I know of one rifle he did get modified to r/h cocking but it failed. On another note, there is a board member on here that has dealt with him going back a few years who has never been impressed with his service. Look, I'm a shooter first. I've never been afraid to spend whetever is required to get what i want and I've never been afraid to try new stuff. I've also shot a lot of competition and won a lot of trophy's and more than a few championships, so I believe that I know what goes into building a good rifle. I've built successful rifle's for others too. Fat Bob won't supply me with parts because he considers me a rival but I don't worry about it because I have return customers that keep coming back. I've also rectified more than a few AR's that have been built by others. When I'm not building rifles or going to work, I'm shooting the rifles I build, and I stand by them, or organising and running shooting events. All these others in the firearms business spend a lot of time taking from the sport, but how many put anything back. I am only telling you to be aware of what you are buying and make sure it's 100% when you get it |
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To me that still seems to be opinion/views rather than the rifle being 'not up to scratch' You cannot tell me that a Cactus Arms heavy barrelled fluted jobby is any more front heavy than an SGC Speedmaster thingy with the same style stock and fluted stainless barrel. If it is a problem the solution is bung another stock on it? PRS maybe? With the Left hand cocking I think it will be ideal to shoot from a bipod anyway so the weight is not really an issue. (Although the one I am getting has a shorter thinner barrel anyway!) Still, come the end of Jan I will have mine and intend to get into the competetive side of things so maybe I will get a chance to compare it to one of your rifles in the future. |
Heavy barrelled AR's for PR/Service or similar competitive shooting are pointless. If rifles with left hand cocking worked well for right handed people, why isn't anybody using them? How many right handed people use a left handed remy 700 from a bipod in PR because it works well? Most people I know that bought SGC rifles with heavy barrels have had them machined down to 'normal' size after realising the extra weight wasn't good for anything except making their arms tired. Nobody I know on the PR/Service rifle scene has (yet) bought a rifle from Cactus...contrary to Ron Flint saying to a group of PR shooters (me included) that 'all the PR boys are using them'. If you buy a rifle and have to think ahead about changing the stock to improve the balance or having the receiver milled to add right hand cocking doesn't that mean there's something wrong in the first place? Does Cactus Arms make anything in the UK? If you have a problem do they have anyone in the UK that can fix it? I dealt with Ron Flint back in the pistol days when he was editor of Handguns UK magazine. At the time all he seemed to be doing was fronting for companies in the US - looks to me like he is still doing the same. (I have to say that my hybrid ported 10mm Glock by Alchemy Arms, that Cactus were promoting, was fabulous though even if it did take several times longer than promised.) Basically, while a Cactus rifle may be well made, it's still not up to scratch because it's fundamentally flawed for the UK shooter in the first place... |
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I'll put my 2p worth in here as someone who has handled and shot a Cactus AR. Yes it does look good and it shot OK. But I shoot from the left anyway so LH cocking wasn't a problem. As I said I shoot from the left and having shot right hand only cocking rifles I know it's a real pain having the handle on the "wrong" side. Just think, if you're using a sling how do you operate the cocking handle? No T-handle so you couldn't add a Tac-latch and use that. And for the record my AR has got cocking handles both sides and a Tac-latch plus had the heavy 20 inch barrel cut down to a more handy 16 inch for PR/SR. |
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Matt - Makes AR's, shoots his AR's, is an excellent shot… his product walks the walk not just talk the talk… Mark - Makes AR's, shoots his AR's, is an excellent shot… his product walks the walk not just talk the talk… I want a rifle that shoots well, not one that looks good… If you're shooting competively at the highest level using your own product, you get my vote… period. ANdy |
Well, as I am unbiased and not tainted they can each send me one for a year with suitable ammunition and I will carry out common evaluations on each, reporting back directly to this forum 
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So we're back on this again I've used the Cactus AR's and like them. The 'foxer' model weighs about the same as my scoped competitior pistol which makes for a handy package. I've also used a Cactus Delise carbine. it was modern copy, more of a variation of a theme. It was .45acp, 12" barrel and runs on glock mags, great fun and a very accurate gallery rifle  Plus- .45 cal holes are easier to see than .22's through the scope so I didn't strain my eyes
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