One of our readers gave us a heads up on the the Springfield Armory giveaway. The program is called Springfield Duel and will be conducted from April 29, 2011 – May 28, 2011 so it’s already going and it’s fairly complicated with lots of chances to win chances to enter. Confused yet? Head on over and check out the complete rules. They are giving away loads of prizes including pistols!
To enter visit www.springfieldduel.com.
While I was living it up in San Diego attending Warrior Expo West, my buddy at Military.com’s KitUp! had the opportunity to attend an Army sponsored demonstration at Aberdeen Proving Ground of the new 5.56 mm “Green” M855A1 round now finding its way into Operation Enduring Freedom.
Make sure you read the article and slides and then weigh in on the conversation.
Actually, a very good most excellent source has it that Osama bin Ladin was brought to justice with a 7.62 5.56 weapon. In fact, I was told it was a Colt CM901. Well the whole 901 bit turned out to be a bad piece of info, but from a good source. However, UBL was gunned down using German engineering – the HK416 which was my gut feeling from the very beginning. This is confirmed to the point that I feel comfortable updating this story. Ultimately, as my readers have pointed out, it doesn’t matter what got him so long as he is dead.
Good hunting boys…
Click on the image
US Tactical Supply is now offering Alamo Four Star, LLC’s PVS14 mount which allows you to instantly transition your NODS from helmet to weapon.
The mount quickly attaches the PVS14 monocular night vision system to any MIL-1913 rail system without throw levers or any tools yet allows the 14 to be mounted close to optics due to its unobtrusive design. Additionally, the mount does not interfere with helmet mounting. It also features a simple, one-handed, pincher-type attachment. Finally, while the mount comes standard for right hand use, it can be converted for left hand use.
SureFire will be exhibiting the new HellFighter 4 (HF4) weapon light next week at Warrior Expo West. Intended as a weaponlight / searchlight / IR illuminator, the HF4 features two settings; High: 3,000 lumens and Low: 1,000 lumens and also offers a strobe setting.
The biggest improvement is the internal rechargeable lithium ion battery pack that will run the HF4 at full output for 30 minutes which is in addition to the 12v vehicle or BA-5590 power adapters. Additionally, the HF4 features a dual swing-open filter/cover system, allowing white light, filtered infrared, or an opaque protective cover. Finally, the HF4’s reflector has also been modified to improve beam reach and offer wider peripheral light for situational awareness.
SureFire has ingeniously integrated the carrying handle for dismounted use into the weapon mount. The mount itself has also been modified to include both the original heavy-duty T-rail clamp as well as an intermediary adapter mount that permits attaching the HF4 to a Picatinny rail. The HF4 kit includes mounting hardware and tools as well as power cables. For a full list of features and tech data check out this product brochure.
You, me, and probably every one you know missed out on the Magpul billet lowers released a few years back. AR15.com bought the rights to the design and after a couple of years of development hell, they have begun to roll off the line.
FEATURES
• Magazine well – aggressively flared for easier loading, and with a textured front
• Markings – Bolt Face Logo is milled rather than outlined, and other than the company name below it, all text is on the right side of the magazine well. We chose to mark these 5.56mm vs. ‘multi’ to differentiate the 5.56 platform vs. the 7.62 platform to come later. Also, FIRE selector pictograms on both sides are at 68 degrees vs. 90 degrees to support both 45 and 90 degree selectors.
• Trigger guard – integral “Magpul” style vs. the often seen ’round’ version to maintain the clean lines
• Roll Pins – there are no roll pins required in the assembly of this lower; the trigger guard is built in, and the bolt catch/release assemblies both use a threaded pin
• Takedown pin – comes with a threaded takedown pin detent spring channel so your takedown pin detent and spring remain in place when the stock is removed
• Ambi-Bolt release – receiver features a bolt release on the right hand side, and this lever includes the AR15.com name
• Trigger – Geissele Automatics Super 3 Gun trigger with a slightly heavier spring and a laser etched BFL on the hammer
• Selector – Battle Arms Development Short Throw ambi selector
• Stock – Magpul CTR, UBR, PRS
• Grip – Magpul MIAD
• Mag Release – Norgon Ambi
The lower assemblies are currently restricted to AR15.com Lifetime members but eventually, they expect to keep them in production as a general release item.
In the case of this article, PPI is not the armor company but rather something altogether different. Apparently, ERGO Falcon (Hines) who actually holds patent #7,627,925 for the “Electrified Handguard”, has licensed their design to Prototype Productions, Inc. who further assigned rights to a company with the inspiring name of PPI Ventures Two (we didn’t make this up).
Last week, PPI filed suit in US District Court of Eastern Virginia against RESET Inc for patent infringement for their RIPR. When you absolutely want to get someone into court quickly for Intellectual Property issues, file in the US District Court of Eastern Virginia.
We wrote last year about RESET’s Rifle Integrated Power Rail (RIPR). RESET is working with ATK on the design but we haven’t heard much about the project since we mentioned that it would be at the Infantry Warfighter Conference at Fort Benning.
As you can see from this extract from a marketing brochure, despite its name, the RIPR is not an actual rail but rather an adapter that attaches on top of a weapon’s Mil Std 1913 railed fore end and upper receiver. This is a little bit problematic as it will only fit a rail and upper receiver that are exactly the same height. As we know, this isn’t always the case. I’m still not sure why they call it a rail, as it isn’t. Unfortunately, that the RIPR is an actual rail seems to be central to PPI’s claims against RESET.
For full details of the suit please refer to the court filings obtained by SSD.
The real issue at hand here is that while the lawyers representing PPI have been very diligent in spelling out exactly what damages they want awarded by the court, they haven’t specified exactly what RESET is alleged to have done other than a very broad, “RESET has infringed and is infringing the Hines patent.” But how? In addition to the Hines patent, the exhibits submitted to the court by PPI seem to want to show how successful RESET has been in their endeavor. Perhaps that is the crux of the suit?
Furthermore, neither ERGO Falcon nor RESET are exactly pioneers in the powered rail market. Wilcox has had prototypes for years and we have seen European efforts as well. I haven’t seen the PPI model but I have seen the RIPR and it actually works. On the other hand, Falcon ERGO developed the initial IP and is a pretty popular brand that produces small arms accessories. PPI used the Hines (Falcon ERGO) patent to develop their powered rail under an Army tech development contract called a Small Business Innovative Research award. Based on this fact, some might make the argument that the US Government might own a stake in the IP rights for the Electrified Handguard which, by the way, is an awful name for something you want Soldiers to carry.
Generally, these things seem to work themselves out and the ensuing agreements keep both parties mum on the subject so we may never know how exactly RESET violated the Hines patent.
