I’m a huge fan of the American Revolution and the Boston Massacre is one of the most pivotal of events that led to that conflict. Sons of Liberty commemorates that day with their Boston Massacre Men’s T-Shirt.
Available in Small – 3XLarge.
www.monkeyedge.com/Sons_of_Liberty_Boston_Massacre_Mens_T_Shirt_p
CTOMS just announced that they have been granted a US patent for their M-Harnes. The M-Harness is a class 2 harness built to ASTM Standards. The uniqueness of the system is that it allows the ‘riggers’ style belt to be worn in a pair of pants, or a padded MOLLE belt, to maintain the convenience of a quick release (Cobra) buckle, yet convert quickly into a sit harness without having the leg loops hard sewn to the belt and without compromising the integrity of the main belt in harness mode by capturing the quick release buckle. Even with the main buckle completely undone, in harness mode, it is still completely safe.
Multiple accessories are available for the M-Harness including armor inserts for the padding system as well as the Turtle’s Harness, which is a chest harness that incorporates into a MOLLE based armor/plate carrier without interfering with the attached pouches, and creates a second main tie in point, for vertical operations where packs or working dogs are worn on the back raising the center of gravity. CTOMS is also working on a number of other accessories and products to support their new Tactical Assault Climbing Programs and TRACE Micro Rope Systems.
The M-Harness is currently manufactured under license by CMC Rescue and sold worldwide by CTOMS and under license in the US by North American Rescue and The Peak Inc as well as other international distributors.
To learn more about the M-Harness and accessories at www.ctoms.ca.
In early August we casually mentioned a new proprietary 6.8 magazine coming from Magpul for an LWRC International Six8 project. Called the Ultra Compact Individual Weapon or UCIW, we can now show you a little bit about that gun.
Currently, they have contracts for 6,000 of the new guns and LWRC’s Darren Mellors shared some background of the project on their forums, “All forgings (upper and lower) are coined. Meaning they are struck once (as all AR’s are) to make the forging, then heat treated, then coined which is to take the cold (unheated but heat treated and aged forging) and strike it again in the forging die. This costs more than twice as much to do, but it dimensionally corrects any wandering that may have occurred in heat treating, and creates such a beautiful exterior, they look like they were created by the gods. The argument for billet or forging is over. The best strength characteristics of a forging, with dimensional accuracy of a billet receiver, and beauty that surpasses either.”
Here you can see the ambi controls of the UCIW.
And the reverse of a test gun.
As we understand it, they are also working with a new cartridge in 6.8 (SPCII) manufactured by ATK. Here, you can see an early test gun and ammo boxes.
Based on this ballistics demonstration, looks like this new cartridge and carbine combo is going to do quite well. 0.5 inch AR 550 Brinell Armor plate. Shot an 8.5″ 6.8mm UCIW and SSA Armor Piercing ammunition at 100m. Full penetration.
And finally, here is that Magpul magazine we alluded to. As you can see it incorporates much of the M3 technology we discussed.
Notice that we’ve mentioned that this magazine is proprietary to LWRCI. The reason is that the magwell for this Six8 lower is a little different than a standard 5.56 lower. They aren’t ready to release these new dimensions to industry just yet.
Unfortunately, it looks like you won’t be able to just go out and purchase a new upper and slap it on your existing gun. Not only is the lower dimensionally different in a couple of ways but the upper and lower interface differently than standard ARs.
According to LWRCI’s Jesse Gomez some standard AR parts will fit the UCIW.
Parts which will interchange between the AR15/M4 platform and the Six8 architecture:
Upper:
Barrel Extensions and barrel assemblies, Barrel Nut, Forward Assist, E-Port Door Assembly, Charging Handle, Cam Pin, Firing Pin and the Bore C.L. to Gas-Tube/Op Rod C.L. dimension remain unmodified. Most free float hand-guards can be used with no mods.
Please note: A standard Bolt and Carrier will work without modification, but due to tolerances and tolerance stacking rubbing between the outside of the mag feed lips and carrier may occur. Hand cycling of the weapon a few times with the mag insert will easily correct this. We opted to enhance our carrier for additional clearance of the feed lips. In regards to the bolt we included the very same up-grades we developed for the M4 Product Improvement Program (PIP) into our 6.8 ACB (Now the Mk II ACB) for greater extractor to shell interaction for increased performance. Imagine an AK74 extractor in an AR. All other features of the ACB carry over.
Lower:
All lower parts interchange with the exception of the magazine catch assembly and the bolt catch. A standard both catch will work but you will need to remove the ambi bolt catch components. Everything else is a direct drop-in.
For the class III folks, the Six8 lowers are milled to low shelf configuration.
For those of you who are interested, we understand that this new gun will be available late this year, in all barrel lengths, and hopefully in an IC configuration. All photos originated in the forums section of .www.lwrci.com
Best selling author Dalton Fury will be at Ground Zero on 9/11. In addition to honoring the fallen and some introspection, he will also draw four winners of Advance Reader Copies of his latest work, “TIER ONE WILD”. DF will conduct the drawing at 0846:30. To enter, Pre-order a copy of “TIER ONE WILD” from Amazon or Barnes & Noble and then post the date and vendor to DF’s Facebook Wall, www.facebook.com/dalton.fury1.
During OR, I introduced you to the Grey Ghost Gear Stealth Operator Pack. It is a low profile, super lightweight pack. By low profile, I mean both ways. It won’t attract attention because it’s offered in a variety of camouflage; patterns for the field and solid colors for operating in human terrain. Also, the design is sleek. There isn’t a bunch of stuff on the exterior that will hang up on obstacles.
It incorporates a large, zippered main compartment as well as a center zip pocket on the outside of the main compartment. Inside the center zip pocket there are admin and organizational pockets as well as a concealed holster to covertly carry a handgun.
Manufactured from 500D Cordura, they are available in ATACS-FG, Black, Grey. Additionally, GGG is offering the Stealth Operator Pack in both MultiCam and Coyote LiteLok.
The full line of packs, including the Stealth Operator Pack are available from www.greyghostgear.com/packs.
Looking at all of the gear from patrol bags to plate carriers, SOTECH has innovated a new line of law enforcement nylon products. We are not calling it tactical or SWAT because the system incorporates elements that can be used by patrol officers to active shooter responders to MACTAC to SWAT. SOTECH designers took the position that law enforcement ideas were taken into military designs during the GWOT, and now those ideas have been refined in the military and SOTECH is applying them back into law enforcement in this line. First SOTECH developed a series of tactical products for elite units in LAPD and LASD. Then they combined them into a modular system mounted in a large backpack/trunk bag and removable as military style go bags. This is a major departure from duffel bags that officers lug out from the locker room to their squad cars. The back pack is also sized to strap to a wheel cart. Once in the trunk, modules such as the Mission Go Bag can be dropped on the passenger seat. Customers can purchase a couple applicable pieces for their mission, or they can purchase then entire set. The main pack is designed to carry standard gear like jackets and gas masks plus the packs pictured. The kit is modeled from SOTECH’s mission pack system which is the basis of the Special Forces Medic’s SOF MES set. Check it out at NTOA on Sunday and Monday in Seattle. Items will be released at www.SOTECHTactical.com over the next month.
The Tactical Java Retention System comes from Fight and Flight Tactical. The owner originally conceived the idea during a 2005 deployment to Iraq and hand stitched the prototype in order to stow his empty coffee cup on his IBA. He commercialized the concept as the MOLLE Coffee Cup Holder.
Recently he dusted off that early model and updated its features including the ability to accommodate a mug with handles. It will also now suit a wider variety of different mugs up to and including a 1 Qt Nalgene bottle. They’ve also added 2 side pouches for carrying your favorite instant blend, sweetener, creamer or drink mixes. Naturally, it’s MOLLE compatible and incorporates and insulated band that uses 1/8″ closed-cell foam to help keep the hots hot and the colds cold.
Made in USA! and available in a variety of colors and patterns. Get yours from www.fightandflight.com.
Geissele Automatics (pronounced guys-lee) is a pretty common name in the firearms community today. Well known for their excellent AR triggers, Geissele quickly became the gold standard for improved triggers for combat rifles as well as match guns. Geissele’s line spans almost two-dozen models currently advertised, from finely tuned adjustable match triggers for target shooting to enhanced select-fire duty triggers used by our nation’s most elite forces. Geissele is also expanding their trigger operations out to other platforms to include the FN SCAR series of rifles, Bushmaster ACR, and trigger components for the Benelli M4/M1014 shotgun. In order to support the overwhelming demand for their products, Geissele recently moved to a new production facility in order to boost production while maintaining their unmatched production standards.
At SHOT 2012, Geissele announced their hand guard system for the HK416 and M4 series rifles to the public. The stock HK 416 hand guard is a great system but the industry has seen a number of advances since it was first fielded in 2004. The stock HK416 hand guard was designed to allow for removal to clean the piston systems and the retain zero on optics when it is re-installed. It also allows for the mounting of an underbarrel grenade launcher, which US users of the rifle never warmed up to. Recently, end users of the HK416 sought out new options to lengthen, lighten, and improve the modularity of their hand guard. A number of excellent manufacturers developed hand guards to support this, including Remington and Daniel Defense. Both Geissele and Remington were awarded contracts to produce them for various government clients, with the Remington contract being published on FedBizOpps as being purchased for an NSW unit. All of these rails feature the ability to run them slick, or bolt on rails as needed for accessory attachment.
The Geissele hand guard for a 10.5 variant of the 416 weighs in at almost exactly the same as the stock rail. However, the Geissele rail is extended as far forward as possible while still allowing for the attachment of end-mount suppressors. It completely covers the gas block, and requires the removal of the side sling mounting loops with a dremel or hacksaw. They’re fairly useless anyway so it’s no loss. The Geissele hand guard offers an integral QD socket at the 10 and 2 position. As opposed to being machined from the aluminum hand guard itself, the sockets are steel inset into a thick, raised portion of the hand guard, allowing it to bear the weight of the user without breaking free under the load. Another unique feature of the Geissele hand guards are the threaded inserts for rail attachment. The included accessory rails attach without the need for a steel backer like most other modular hand guard systems. That little feature right there is a real bonus for anyone who has gone through the frustration of trying to line up the retaining plate on a JP rail. Moving back further, Geissele retains the stock HK416 barrel nut, as well as the cross bolt attachment method. The stock HK screws needed to be removed with a large screwdriver or bolt lug, and were kind of a pain to torque properly. Geissele uses an improved bolt that still offers the ability to be serviced in the field using the bolt lug as a driver, but also allows the use of a socket to tighten it town to specific torque values by an armorer.
The hand guard is anodized and has a slight texture from the machining allowing for a more positive grip. Due to the smaller dimensions of the Geissele hand guard, it is much easier to maintain a strong grip on. The factory hand guard is raised in comparison to standard AR hand guards, and can be hard for people with smaller hands to hold firmly and comfortably. The Geissele version pretty much solves that problem. They are available in tan, black, and possibly OD in the future. Unless you’re on the HK factory shooting team, then you get one in red. In addition, a version for the 14.5 HK416 is available as well.
Geissele saw the opportunity to bring the merits of their system over to standard AR15 style rifles as well after developing the HK416 hand guard. The SMR series hand guards use the same barrel nut style as the HK416, which allows for installation to a true torque spec without worrying about gas port alignment. Two versions are available, the MK1 sharing most of the features of the HK416 variant, while the less expensive MKII does not use the threaded inserts and has a more squared profile. These excellent hand guards come in 13” and 15” lengths with more to follow shortly and are available now from Geissele.
Geissele is known for their devotion to manufacturing perfection, a level of QC that is unmatched, and a philosophy to build the best products of their kind in the industry. With their hand guards, they succeeded once again. It’s highly recommended that you check them out next time you need a set of hand guards. If you’re not already using their triggers, make sure you pick one of them up as well. Contact Geissele directly or visit G&R Tactical to check out their products.
www.geissele.com
www.hk-usa.com
www.grtactical.com
Jon Canipe served on Active Duty with the US Army as a Special Forces Weapons Sergeant at 5th SFG(A) and was a Senior Instructor at the JFKSWCS, training SFQC students in planning, unconventional warfare, small unit tactics, CQB, and advanced marksmanship. He is a veteran of multiple combat tours, and still serves in the Army National Guard’s 20th SFG(A) in addition to working as an industry consultant and small arms instructor.
