For The Poors

 

They're proving something I've advocated with my Behind Every Blade of Grass concept.

You don't have to spend mega dollars to get a perfectly acceptable rifle for social purposes! 

It's not as good as the higher end gun, but you cannot justify those long shots socially.  I don't have a handy range to go past 200 yards.

I've experienced a similar loss of zero with a Del Ton barrel, but it only did it the first time I got the gun hot.  Rezeroing fixed it and it stayed zeroed thereafter.  That was Kaylee's first barrel. 

With One Eye Open

 Shadow has taken over the recliner and claimed Brenda.

Both Sided

Do you have a KE Arms KP-15 and are frustrated that the QD socket they sell can only be mounted on one side?

Are we no better than rutting cavemen?

Worry no more!

What you're going to need:

1x Magpul MAG-333 Sling Mount Kit Type 1

1x Magpul MAG-332 Sling Mount Kit Type 2

6x #8 Washers.

Use the 5/8" long screw from the Type 1 kit.

It's the second shortest one in the pack.

Burn off the locking compound or you're never going to be able to get the screw all the way in with the tiny amount of QD socket you'll have to grab onto!  Use good old Loctite Blue instead.

Put the screw through the QD socket from the Type 1 kit and then place three washer on the screw.

Shove it into the hole in the stock, it doesn't matter which side.  I used the 1/8" allen key to guide the screw to make it easier to hit the hole.

Place the other three washers on the screw from the other side.

Now screw on the QD socket from the Type 2 kit.

Et viola!

The hole in the stock is too deep for a Magpul QD socket, so you need the washers for two reasons.  First to get the mouth of the socket out far enough that the sling swivel will lock in.  Second to eat up the length of the screw so it doesn't keep the swivel from locking in.

Faves

Most of us have many guns.

Even in the larger collections, we have favorites.

Brenda surprised me.

She's an experiment and a response to how appallingly expensive the WWSD and KE Arms Civil Defense rifles were.

I said to myself, "Self, you can make just as serviceable a rifle without breaking the bank on boutique widgets."

And I did!

Seems to shoot well and has been unfailingly reliable.  The performance I'm getting matches what James Reeves, of TFBTV, says he got from his Civil Defense rifle on his YouTube channel.

She gets shot a lot, because something surprising happened.

I really like this gun!

She's plastic and fantastic and the most comfortable AR I own.

What are some of your favorites?

WWSD A Critique

It really shows that Jim Sullivan was onto something when he figured the AR-15 out from the AR-10 with Mr Stoner.

It's important to recall Mr Sullivan when talking about what would Mr Stoner have done if he'd started today.

The number one goal was a weapon that would be adopted by the military.

Everything about the AR-10 and AR-15 were in support of that goal. With the deck stacked deeply against them because the M14 wasn't that long in the tooth when they started pitching their concept.

Abandoning steel and wood for aluminum and synthetics because technology had advanced thanks to WW2 wasn't taken as the reason for the development.

When they were up against the M14's prototype and the FAL contender with the AR-10 they even showed the problems with "lighter weight at all cost." They burst a barrel and were forced to withdraw from the competition.

Some of the ideas in AR's tend to ignore what would Stoner did?

The modular Cadillac Gage 63 system and the AR-18 say a great deal about where his mind was.

He abandoned advanced materials for designs which could be built with a lower level of technology.

WWSD is an exercise in making an AR light for lightness sake using the latest and greatest materials.

Bully for them!

But it comes with a terrible cost.

Costs that Stoner and Sullivan realized would keep their rifle from mainstream acceptance even if the customers accepted the space-age materials.

The two things remaining on the AR-15 from the advanced materials list were the aluminum receivers and the non-wood furniture. With specific materials chosen from a list of proven materials. Proven in aviation, not firearms, but well within a division of Fairchild Aviations ability to make.

The WWSD rifle uses a lot of new materials which are proven in aviation use too. But the prices have yet to come down.

A WWSD upper receiver on overstock clearance is still near a grand.

More than a complete rifle from PSA and a crate of ammo. And the PSA gun will come with a way to aim it!

So far, I'm just not seeing what the premium price gets you besides the lower mass.

And embracing the KE Arms KP-15 lower has the mass with a PSA upper well below the "good enough" line.

Perfect has long been the mortal foe of good enough.

That applies to accuracy as well. Especially since it's a rare AR, from any maker, that will not far outshoot the shooter. Most of us will be better served by using the difference in price between my Behind Every Blade of Grass idea and What Would Stoner Do? on ammunition and range time.

Or, dare I say it, taking a class on how to employ their new toy to its fullest!

But that's just me.

Vague

 

I was curious as to why the selector on Brenda was soft and vague, but the one on Olive was crisp and precise.

My first thought it was something about the selectors, but swapping them showed it was something else.

It's the detent.

The one on the left is from Olive and is the KE-Arms sourced one.  The one on the right is a standard detent from a Palmetto State Armory kit.

It's long been known that the spring pocket in the KP-15 is deeper than a normal AR lower and pistol grip.  The KE-Arms version makes up for that extra depth.

WHY the pocket is deeper... dunno why.

Socket Two Me

I have a Magpul MS3 Sling that often resided on Dottie, but normally sat in the closet.

At one time I had three of my guns configured for it, and Dottie was the only for a while.

Now Olive is configured for it with the addition of QD sockets in the provided holes of the KP-15 lower.

I have a socket on both side by combining a Magpul Type 1 (passenger) and Type 3 (driver) QD socket with a washer to give more stand-off on the Type 1 side.

KE Arms makes their own version of this socket, but only allows for single side mounting.  Which is fine for 95% of the time, but occasionally it's handy to hang it from the passenger side socket because it hangs just a little different.

To me, the whole point of this QD thing is to be able to rapidly reconfigure it.  And idea that the MS series of slings supports.

Also KE Arms charges too much for shipping!

PS the Type 3 was a deeper version of the Type 2 socket that has threads in it.  The Type 1 and Type 2 are the same depth with the 2 being threaded and the 1 having just a hole.  The Type 3 has been discontinued.  To make this work with parts you can still get, use a Type 1 and 2 as shown in the instructions with a washer under both sockets and using the appropriate screw as needed.

They Said It Couldn't Be Done

I installed the LaRue MBT-2S trigger from Dottie into Brenda.

It works with both versions of the KE Arms "optimized" safeties, despite KE Arms saying that they don't.

BULLY!

I am still not completely happy with a match trigger because it feels so alien compared to a bog standard AR trigger.

I cannot deny how it tightens up the groups.

Angles And Dangles

Olive's KP-15 lower was the first complete lower I've purchased...  Um...  Ever.

That meant that someone else picked the parts for me.

So far the only thing I've actually changed is to use the standard buffer and spring I got from Brownell's from the slightly heavier buffer that KE Arms included.  The Brownell's one feels smoother in an ineffable way.

The safety is messing with me a bit because it's two things I've never had before.

First is it's mirrored ambidextrous.

Second is it's 45° throw.

Driver's side shooty:

Driver's side no-shooty:

Passenger side shooty:

Passenger side no-shooty:

I admit, it's quick, but it's unfamiliar.

It can be changed to a 90° throw, but that puts the passenger side lever into my hand in a distracting way when shooting dextrous.

I learned to work an AR safety with the edge of my hand when shooting sinistrous, so I am not sold on the passenger side lever yet because I don't tend to send my thumb to look for the switch.

I'm not sure this is a solution to a problem or a solution looking for a problem.

Weight Reduction

Dottie was a tubby girl.

8.6 lb. plus 1.2 lb. for the optic.

Changing to an A1 stock and round handguards drops it some.

8.3 lb. plus the 1.2 lb optic.

Hiding her behind every blade of grass, really drops the mass!

7.6 lb. plus the 1.2 lb. optic.  Almost the same as just the rifle was before!

I don't tend to count the sling but they run about 0.4 lb.

I think she's no longer Dottie.  Too much has changed.  Brenda simply gets a new caliber!

Grind And Grit

Olive didn't have a smooth feel when racking the charging handle doing dry fire.

Since the upper was the same as Brenda, I tried swapping the buffer and spring.

Smoothed right out.

Then I put the buffers back where they came from and left the springs swapped.

Still smooth.

 

The KE Arms spring is shorter than the Brownell's (10-5/8" vs 11-3/16") and wound clockwise instead of counter like all the other buffer springs.

Both are compressed some by installation, so I don't think length was a big issue.

The Brownell's spring has 37 coils, the KE Arms 38.

Both use approximately the same 0.074" thick wire.

The KE Arms spring seems to be more progressive than the Brownell's one.

KE Arms buffer is 3.2 oz.  Brownell's is 3.0 oz.

The hole the buffer goes into was ground down on Olive.

 Both my KP-15 lowers are blems, this could be the reason on Olive.

Brenda doesn't show any sign of such work.

After Hours Approval

The OD green KP-15 lower was approved about an hour and a half after the place closed.

So I picked it up this morning.

Brenda is now just a complete lower.

Please welcome Olive!

The sharp eyed will note that's Dottie's old handguard.

That's because Dottie has gone some what retro

I'm not sure what I'm going to build Brenda into, but there's a couple of projects ahead of her in the queue.

Trolling At Max Level

Apparently Karl Karsada of InRange on YouTube and Brownell's relationship is a bit strained over a thread at Arfcom.

The marketing director of KE Arms, Russel Phagen has weighed in on Karl's side in this thread.

It appears that Brownell's is liquidating their KE Arms stock, in particular the What Would Stoner Do guns.

In addition to deep cuts in the price, there's an additional 10% discount code.

"TRIGGERED"

I have to admit, I laughed.

If you were considering a KP-15 lower, money wise, this would be a great time to get one.

Well Dangit

This might be a good day vs bad day deal but:

Brenda at 100 yards with a 1x scope:

Valentine at 100 yards with a 5x scope:

Considering that Brenda was made with severe budget constraints to prove out the "Behind Every Blade of Grass" idea and Valentine was top shelf, I am disappointed.

Or impressed at the deal that the Freedom barrel from PSA, bought at a complete upper, is compared to the genuine milspec from Brownell's.

Shaken Faith

My little "Behind Every Blade of Grass" carbine, Brenda really tested me with this optics and irons thing.

I really like her and she'd become my favorite AR.

The right weight and balance and...

Because I didn't completely think through how the optics work I got worried she had a major wandering zero problem.

My Mini-14 days came back to haunt me.

Chasing that wandering zero ruined many days of shooting and kept us at the 50 yard line when we should have been stretching our legs and shooting at the 100 or 200 yard lines at the Ames, Ike's range.

I didn't want to do that again, and I know that Palmetto State Armory has a bit of a reputation for getting it wrong then making it right once you complain.

Doing the re-zero of the irons today and discovering that something about the light-path means you can't use the irons through the scope restored faith in my little Brenda.

I didn't want to be unhappy with my favorite.

No-Witness Sight

Took Brenda to the range to see what the fuck.

Removed the MicroPrism 1x and zeroed the BUIS.

Yes, I am still blind, but the 25m group is OK.

Once it was zeroed, a miracle seems to have occurred!  The rear sight is no longer all the way over to the left!

Huzzah!

About here I got busted for using ADI F1A1 ball, which has a steel core like M855.

Then I found out my S&B 55gr M193 is bimetallic jacketed and, thus, also forbidden from the range.

So I got a couple of boxes of PMC X-TAC 55gr FMJ.

It shot the same size group to the same point of aim as the ADI, so I moved on to zeroing the SLx MicroPrism (again).

Piece of cake.

Now the fun part.

Flip up the Magpul BUIS and line the sights up through the scope.

WAY high and right from the point of aim.  Parallax, maybe?  Dunno.

What I now know is that I cannot use the irons through the scope.

American Defense AD-B2 STD QD mount is in my future!

I also forced myself to remember all those basic rifle marksmanship lessons and get an OK group at 100 yards.  I used to be better, but I'm knocking the rust off!

All in all, a productive day!

Hypothesis

The Primary Arms SLx 1x MicroPrism arrived today!

Using the medium height cantilever mount mounted backwards allows the LaRue Po-Boy to continue to have a useful function.  It also makes it an ersatz first focal plane 2.5x LPVO!

I like the Cyclops Gen II reticule a great deal.

 

Though I don't have it cranked near bright enough to see the red illumination here, you can see that you don't need it to use the scope when it's bright out.

That's a feature of etched glass reticules I really like in addition to it being crisp and clear for my astigmatismatic eye balls.

You can also see that it's not a true 1x with the ocular cranked for focus with my eyes.

The 1x MicroPrism is lighter than the StrikeFire II it's replacing.  0.5 lb. vs 0.7 lb.

Something else interesting is this, in GURPS terms, a collumating sight in terms of benefits even though it's real behavior matches a telescopic sight better.

The reticule works like a red-dot, but the optics and illumination are more like a telescopic sight.

So it should give a +1 to Guns/TL8 (Rifle), like a collumator.

But the glass nullifies a -1 for darkness penalties and the illumination another -2.

A collumating scope gives a -3, so same effect at the end of the day.

I think I need a new kind of scope rule...

Damn technology not holding still for game rules.  Again.

Brenda Parts List

 

Behind Every Blade of Grass (Brenda)
Part	P/N	Source	Price	Shipping
Stripped KP-15		Brownell's	$99.00	$25.00		FDE blem
FDE Magpul MOE handguard		Midway USA	$26.22	$11.09		Middy
Partial LPK		Palmetto State Armory	$39.99	$8.50		CMMG No HTS
Hammer, trigger, sear		Marv	$0.00	$0.00
Buffer Assembly and Selector		Brownell's	$34.97	$4.95
16” Midlength Upper Assy	5165457990	Palmetto State Armory	$309.99	$17.00		Middy, nitride, 1:7, w/BCG and CH
Black Rear MBUS	100-006-787WB	Brownell's	$55.99	$4.95
			$637.65	Total

Trending?

My posts on the Behind Every Blade of Grass carbine build are getting a lot of hits.

Is it because I replied on a forum that my sub-$700 carbine is doing just as well as the KE-Arms Civil Defense Carbine and nearly as good as the almost three times as expensive "What Would Stoner Do?" gun?

I did not set out to steal the thunder of the more expensive guns.

I set out to make an affordable version that was "good enough" for SHTF.

The Joy Of The M16A1

This photo is a placekeeper.  I'll take a better one.

I've said more than once that Eugene nailed the ergonomics on the M16 and Tabitha is no exception.

She just feels right compared to other AR's in the collection.

The only AR that I like shooting better is Brenda, the plastic fantastic AR found behind every blade of grass.

They're just comfortable!  Comfort matters!

The stocks are the right length, they don't grab my beard, they're balanced well.

Winning all around!