Very early and very rare World War I era shoulder patch for the 31st “Dixie” Division consisting of a triangle bisected with red and blue denoting a machine gun battalion with two “D”s back-to-back. This patch was very quickly changed to a white disk on which is a red circle within which are two red “D”s back-to-back. The 31st infantry Division was a unit of the Army National Guard originally established in early 1917 as the 10th Division with Alabama, Florida and Georgia national guardsmen. Later that same year, the 10th became the 31st. Trained at Camp Gordon, Georgia, the Division arrived in France in September 1918 and was designated as a replacement Division. The Division returned to the U.S. in July 1919 where the men were mustered out of service. The 31st Division was mobilized in 1940 with National Guard Divisions from Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi.

Russian Medallion

A Russian, large, bronze-clad metal table medallion commemorating Vasily Alekseyevich Degtyarev (1880-1949). The obverse has a raised relief image of Degtyarev with the inscription, in Russian, “In Honor of the 100th Anniversary of the Birth of Vasily Alekseyevich Degtyarev 1880-1980.” The reverse inscription reads, “Russian Gunsmiths USSR,” with a central image of a DP-28 light machine gun that Degtyarev created and which was the main light machine gun of the Russian army in World War II. The medallion measures 75 mm in diameter and also has the original red plastic box/stand.

WWI Brodie Helmet

U.S. World War I Brodie helmet for a machine gun company of the 27th Infantry Regiment of the American Expeditionary Force Siberia (A.E.F. Siberia). Painted in white winter camouflage with the A.E.F. Siberia insignia painted on the front of an “S” (for Siberia) superimposed upon a standing bear within an artillery shell. On the right side of the helmet is painted “27th” over “MG.” The machine gun companies were issued Browning Model of 1917 water-cooled machine guns and Browning Automatic Rifles (BAR) Model of 1918. Nearly 8,000 men, mostly from the 27th and then the 31st Infantry Regiments, were sent to Russia during World War I after the October Revolution from 1918 to 1920 and suffered severely from the brutal Siberian winter.

They were sent to Russia to help rescue the 40,000 men of the Czechoslovak Legions being held up by Bolshevik forces as they attempted to make their way along the Trans-Siberian Railroad to Vladivostok and, hopefully, to the Western Front. Additionally, they were sent to protect the large quantities of military supplies and railroad rolling stock that the U.S. had sent to Russia in support of the war effort against Germany before the Bolshevik Revolution. They failed in their mission.

Cap and Collar Badge

South Waziristan Scouts officer’s cap and collar badge circa 1920s. The cap badge has the British king’s crown over crossed Vickers with “South Waziristan Scouts” banner below with four lugs to the rear. The collar badge has the king’s crown over a mountain goat head and two lugs to the rear. South Waziristan is the southern part of Waziristan, a mountainous region of northwest Pakistan. The region was an independent tribal territory from 1893, remaining outside of the British-ruled Empire and Afghanistan. Tribal raiding into British-ruled territory was a constant problem for the British, requiring frequent punitive expeditions between 1860 and 1945. The region became part of Pakistan in 1947.

Sweetheart Pin

A sweetheart pin for the 3rd Machine Gun Company, 1st Canadian Division has red, white and blue enamel on a brass badge, with the king’s crown to the top and a Vickers machine gun on tripod to the center. The top banner reads, “3rd M.G. Co.” and below is “1st Canadian Division.” Pin back.

Swedish Machine Gunner Badge

A Swedish 1950s-era army machine gunner’s silver metal shooting breast badge that has three Swedish crowns to the top with two crossed M45 submachine guns to the center. Pin back.

Ernest Vaux, grandson of the Brewery’s founder, Cuthbert Vaux, was a Major in the Durham Voluntary Artillery when he volunteered for service with the Imperial Yeomanry (a British volunteer cavalry regiment) during the Second Boer War. He was appointed Machine Gun Commander with the temporary rank of Lieutenant in the British Army serving in the Imperial Yeomanry, 15th Company of the 5th Battalion, a part of the Northumberland Hussars, from July 1900 to June 1901 in South Africa. He commanded a Maxim machine gun detachment that operated in the Transvall, Orange River and Cape Colony areas of South Africa (though mostly in the Transvall) and took part in over 80 operations there. Major Vaux was “Mentioned in Dispatches” no less than 7 times for his service in South Africa and was awarded the Queens’ South Africa medal with four clasps. In November, 1901 he was awarded the prestigious DSO (Distinguished Service Order).

Upon his safe return to Sunderland the brewery, in late 1901, created a new brand of ale, Maxim Ale, with a very distinguished looking label featuring the Maxim machine gun in recognition of Ernest Vaux’s exploits. The initial recipe for the ale (said to be created by Ernest Vaux himself) was so strong that pub landlords complained that it put their patrons to sleep so the strength was reduced. But in 1938 the brewery increased the strength and renamed the brand Double Maxim.

Founded in 1837 by Cuthbert Vaux, and run by family members for generation, the Vaux brewery was purchased by Wards Brewing Company in 1972. Nevertheless, after over 150 years of brewing history, it closed, along with Wards, in 1999. In 2000, two former directors of Vaux and the head brew master resurrected the brand and established the Double Maxim Beer Company purchasing the rights to both the beer recipes and brand names.

Alas, the historic and renowned North East England brewery name of Vaux, and the iconic image of the Maxim machine gun on a British ale label, are long gone and now exists in name only.

The Dirty Dozen & The Wild Geese

“The Dirty Dozen” hit theaters in 1967 and was a big success. It was well liked by audiences, though there was some criticism for the violence, which was pretty rough for the time. It stars Lee Marvin, a World War II Veteran who was once awarded the Purple Heart. In fact, the film is full of WWII veteran actors, including Robert Ryan, Clint Walker, Telly Savalas, and Charles Bronson of the “Death Wish” series. It is the story of a group of criminals in the US Army being recruited to take out a group of top German Officers, hoping to make the D-Day Landings easier in the process. It is actually based on the novel of the same name, written by E. M. Nathanson, who took inspiration from the Filthy Thirteen, a real fighting unit from WWII. Unlike “The Dirty Dozen” from the film and book, Filthy Thirteen got their name because they wouldn’t shave or bath for weeks, and were not a collection of criminals who were promised a better sentence.

“The Dirty Dozen” is a classic guy movie. In the movie “Sleepless in Seattle,” after a woman has stopped crying over a movie she had just watched, the two men in the room suddenly recall the death of a character in “The Dirty Dozen” and start tearing up, much to the woman’s enjoyment. In 1985, a made for TV movie aired staring some of the original cast, called “The Dirty Dozen: Next Mission.” It was soon followed by “Dirty Dozen: The Deadly Mission” and “Dirty Dozen: The Fatal Mission.” The movies aren’t great and are obviously made for TV, with parts fading to black at certain points for the commercials. The last two movies see the return of Telly Savalas, though he plays an entirely different character from the one he played in the first movie.

In the first of the sequels, “The Next Mission,” Lee Marvin’s character, Maj. John Reisman, recruits a new Dirty Dozen to infiltrate behind enemy lines disguised as Wehrmacht soldiers. They are armed with the MP40 submachine guns, one of the finest guns of the war. Maj. Reisman is actually given a special gun, an MP40 with a shorter barrel than the others. In reality, no such gun existed during WWII and is entirely movie magic made by the machine shop at Bapty, Ltd in London, England.

The MP40 was one of Germany’s best and most prolific weapons during WWII, with over one million guns made. It was light, easy to shoot, and carried a 32 round magazine. The MP 38, its precursor, was actually slightly more expensive because of the milled receiver (MP40s are stamped) but was not as well received. Both were actually designed by the same men, Berthold Geipel and Henrich Vollmer. Much of the action it saw was on the Eastern Front in Russia, with some sent to North Africa where the allies got their hands on them. The MP40 was such a great gun that it was used well after the war by Norwegian tank crews and the armies of the Netherlands, Yugoslavia, and Austria. The Soviet Union even took the countless MP40s they captured in their war with Germany and sent them to their satellite states and to numerous rebel groups around the world, including the North Vietnamese.

As mentioned before, the “Dirty Dozen” sequels are not that great. “The Next Mission” does have an interesting idea in that the dozen are being sent to assassinate a top SS Officer who is planning to kill Adolf Hitler, because the Allies are worried that someone more dangerous and “much more competent” will take his place. The plot of the “Deadly Mission” is to rescue a group of scientists from the Nazis and destroy a dangerous weapon of mass destruction. The plot of “The Fatal Mission” is to capture a group of German intellectuals who are trying to start a Fourth Reich in the Middle East. If you enjoy these movies, by all means, enjoy, but they are nothing compared to the original “The Dirty Dozen” classic.

During the cold war, the Ak-47 was found all over the world as the weapon of choice for the USSR and its Communist allies, as well as countless rebel and terrorist groups. To counter this, the US had the M16 assault rifle, but many of its allies depended on another weapon, one that had come out of Belgium. Created by the company FN Herstal, The FN FAL (or Fusil Automatique Leger, French for Light Automatic Rifle) was at one time the primary assault rifle for over ninety countries, including Israel and most of the NATO countries.

Designed by Dieudonne Saive and Ernest Vervier, the FN FAL is an excellent rifle that has stood its ground against the arguably more popular AK-47. Its usual caliber is 7.62x51mm NATO although the British tried it in .280, and has an effective range of 200 to 600 meters with open sights. It comes in many variants, including the L1A1, or SLR, which saw service in the UK and most of its Commonwealth Nations, including Canada, the first country to order the rifle in large numbers (The Commonwealth Nations used the “Inch Pattern” FALs while the others basically used the “Metric FALs”). It has been replaced in some of these countries by the SA80, the C7 Assault rifle, and the Steyr AUG, but is still used in a few areas of Law enforcement and is popular with civilians.

The FN FAL saw service in many conflicts, including the Vietnam War, the Bay of Pigs Invasion, and the Rhodesian Bush War. It was used on both sides of the Falkland War and saw service in the Israeli army throughout the Suez Crisis, the Six Day War, and the Yom Kippur War. It is even being used today with the Syrian and Libyan Civil Wars, and the Mexican Drug War.

Though it is a great rifle, the FN FAL has a few problems. One problem is the weight. It is heavier than the AK-47 by two pounds or more, and that is without the ammo, which is also heavier. The Israeli rifles tended to jam because of the sand that got into the gun. It also has a strong recoil that feels like somebody is punching you in the shoulder. Perhaps the weirdest problem is the firepower itself. The bullet tended to go through walls and enemy combatants alike.

In the film “The Wild Geese,” the FN FAL is one of the most common guns used. One of them is the FN FAL with a shortened barrel that was carried by Tosh Donaldson, portrayed by real life professional soldier Ian Yule, who served with Colonel “Mad Mike” Hoare in the Commando unit which inspired “The Wild Geese” and all over the world. He was also a stunt man on the movie Ben-Hur. In truth, this Shortened FAL is movie magic from Bapty, Ltd, for there was no FAL that had a shortened barrel at the time. The Bapty FAL is made from a British L2A1 rifle. There are a few that do have them in recent years, including the Armtech L1A1 SAS and DS Arms’ OS-58.

“The Wild Geese” is a good movie. It stars Richard Burton, Roger Moore, and Richard Harris as a group of mercenaries hired by a private mining company to rescue a political prisoner in Africa. It had a bit of a controversy because it was filmed in apartheid South Africa. Despite this, it did well in the United Kingdom and in other parts of the world, but did poorly in the USA for a number of reasons. The Wild Geese is also the name used by many of the Irish fighting units that fought for Spain and France during the sixteenth, seventeenth, and the eighteenth centuries. If you have time, look up the history of these units and, of course, the movie “The Wild Geese.”

The vz 58 is a very lightweight 7.62×39 carbine with a short-stroke piston action adopted by the Czechoslovak military in the late 1950s. The abbreviation “vz” stands for Vzor (model), the full name being Samopal Vzor 58 or Automatic Weapon Model 58. It was one of the first Czech arms to use the Soviet cartridge instead of the longer Czech 7.62x45mm round. Lighter than the AK-47 by 1.3 pounds despite a milled receiver, it used alloy magazines that weighed half as much as the steel AK-47 mags. Although similar in overall size to the AK, the slimmer pistol grip and stock make it look smaller. The rifle was exported to about 20 countries, mainly developing nations. With the 15.4-inch barrel extended to 16 inches with a shroud and semi-auto trigger group, it was imported to the US by Czechpoint USA of Knoxville, TN.

Warsaw Pact countries used the catchall term “avtomat” to describe both submachine guns and light automatic rifles. A technical term for “submachine gun” existed, but it wasn’t in common use. The doctrinal niche for the early automatic rifles was almost the same as for the pistol-caliber SMGs, so the vz 58 was designed more along the lines of an MP5 than of a SIG550. It’s handy in close quarters and accurate enough for intermediate ranges, but it had neither the accuracy nor the heat endurance of a mainline infantry rifle. Ironically, that made it better suited to civilian self-defense than the rifleman’s ideal rifle, such as the M14. Most defensive encounters happen up close, and few go beyond the first 30-round magazine.

The action design is similar to that of the Walther P38 or Beretta M9: a short-stroke piston acts on a bolt carrier, which actuates a locking block between it and the bolt. The lugs of the locking block engage with the rails machined inside the all-steel receiver. The mechanism works very well, with a very smooth and mild recoil impulse. A linear striker sleeve passes through the bolt carrier, in turn operating the firing pin. The entire receiver top opens during the ejection cycle, and empties are removed forward and slightly to the right by the fixed ejector on the receiver floor, making this rifle friendly to left-handed shooters. Nonetheless, the open nature of the receiver makes it more susceptible to the ingress of mud. The vz 58 is very suppressor friendly, despite the gas system without a manual regulator. The removable receiver cover also holds guide rods for the recoil spring and the striker spring.

The lightweight aluminum magazine, ribbed for strength, is externally similar to the AK mag. It holds 30 rounds and rocks in the same way, though with far less effort required for proper alignment with the receiver. With the action locked open after the last round or manually with the plunger near the trigger guard, the magazine may be topped off with stripper clips. While manual bolt hold-open is provided, bolt release requires the charging handle integral to the bolt carrier to be operated. An extended aftermarket part to add that functionality is available. The magazine may be safely used as a hand-hold, there’s absolutely no play in the lockup. Ten-round magazines are also available for bench shooting or use in restricted states.

The rifle was originally available in three variants: with a fixed, resin-impregnated wood stock, with a folding “wire” stock and with a collapsible stock and railed forend. Out of preference, I mainly used the fixed wood stock. Because of its short length of pull and relatively light weight, the carbine can be effectively run by 10-year-old kids. Felt recoil is very mild, below that of the heavier AK-47. The rotary safety is easy to reach, and left-handed shooters can activate it with thumbs.

As the rifle gained moderate popularity in the US, it became clear that it had shortcomings as well as advantages. The railed forend on the “tactical” version proved too unsteady for the red dot, and the variant overall was not a success. The rifle runs extremely cleanly and the receiver contains minimal carbon residue, even after several hundred rounds. However, the lightweight barrel and the operating system do impose tactical limitations, the most obvious being accuracy and heat endurance. The rifle can fire about 60 rounds in a row before the forend gets uncomfortably hot. For military use, that can be an issue, but it is an unlikely scenario in personal defense. With the stock iron sights, I and other shooters got groups around 5MOA with Comblock military surplus and Russian commercial ammunition, and about 4MOA with premium US and European brands, like Federal and Fiocchi. The constraint is almost certainly the sighting. The rear sight leaf may feature 100–800-meter markings as an exercise in optimism for single shots, but reflects the old military doctrine of creating beaten zones at long range using small arms.

With this in mind, Dan Brown started developing more Americanized variants of the vz 58. The 5.56mm model could use either flap-released Czech magazines made of tough transparent polymer or, with a pinned mag well adapter, button-released AR-15-compatible magazines. After comparing both options in use, I went with the rock and lock Czech design. While the 5.56mm version is slightly heavier than the 7.62mm, it is much more accurate at around 2MOA using a red dot on a side mount. The heavier barrel also stays cool much longer, offering heat endurance over 100 rounds. The barrel length is 16 inches, so threaded muzzle devices are available instead of the pinned parts required by the shorter barrel of the original. The vz 58 Classic model in 7.62mm was updated with the 16-inch Walther-made barrel also, improving its accuracy to the same 2MOA, although it’s difficult to achieve such a result with relatively short base open sights. The wooden furniture has been replaced with plastic of the same shape.

The ultimate development for today is the Elite model, a vz 58 with Magpul Zhukov furniture adapted from the AK-47. Adjustable and possessed of long heat-shielded forends, it makes the vz 58 into more of a rifle and less of a neutered semi-auto “avtomat.” On the newer models, the charging handle is moved to the left side for manipulation with the weak hand. The machined heat shields and the longer barrel with a flash hider raise the weight of this model to about even with an AK clone. Run with side-mounted quick-detachable optics, it makes 2MOA consistently viable in the field with hunting soft points or good-quality FMJ ammunition. In my use, Federal, Corbon and G2 defensive loads showed the best results.

My friend David Esche, an enthusiast of all things related to vz 58, discovered that the rifle can safely use hard cast bullets without shaving material into the gas port. With just a red dot sight, he achieved 2.5 to 3 MOA with the original milsurp barrel. Serious accuracy testing is limited by the scope mounting options: even the low side mount requires a raised cheekpiece, while a high mount permitting the use of iron sights puts even the small red dots too high for comfort. With a low scope mount and a compact optic, such as the Leupold 1.5-4x20mm, the vz 58 Elite can get down to 1.5MOA when fired from a rest, an impressive achievement considering the automatic origins of the design. Larger magnified scopes have too much offset from the boreline and from the cheek rest, so they are not very practical for field use. Running iron sights, the Elite model is better than the original thanks to the addition of a point-blank 50-meter setting, adding to the 100–800-meter markings. All vz 58s benefit from a fiber optic front sight insert from HiViz: the AK-marked part fits fine.

Another model made for California, New York and other such oppressed states is the ironically named vz 58 Liberty. Made with a fixed 10-round box magazine, it runs similarly to the SKS by using top loading from stripper clips. Unlike the SKS, it has very low felt recoil. The fixed magazine permits legal use of an adjustable stock and a flash hider. Stripper clip reloading, by the way, works with the regular detachable magazines as well. The bolt stays back on the last shot, which is another Czech advantage over the AK platform. The detachable magazine model can be converted to fixed magazine and back in about 10 minutes with simple tools.

The rifles feed soft point and hollow point ammunition reliably. So far, the best defensive loads I have found are the Corbon DPX, G2 Trident Ripout and Federal Powershock. All give substantial expansion–up to 0.9 inches with Trident–and 16 to 20 inches of gel penetration. The vz 58 Classic had no flash hider and still produced minimal illumination with these loads. The Elite models come with very effective birdcage flash hiders that cut visible muzzle signature almost to zero.

The vz 58 Elite excels where the Ruger Mini-30 failed, becoming an accurate and handy .30 caliber carbine for short-range use. My subjective judgement is that it handles better than the 805 Bren, which replaced the vz 58 in Czech military service. It’s one of the most pleasant intermediate cartridge rifles for range use, and I recommend it for self-defense or short-range hunting.

Welcome to the future

This is not just another story about the latest and greatest pistol ammo—this one begins with a shootout on April 11, 1986 that changed the worlds of law enforcement and pistol combat. On that day in Miami, Florida, a walking dead man murdered two FBI agents after being shot with a 9mm Luger bullet before finally succumbing to his “non-survivable wound.” The incident prompted the FBI to abandon the 9mm cartridge.

A very long story shortened to one sentence, the FBI’s search for a suitable replacement for the 9mm Luger culminated in the introduction of the .40 S&W cartridge, subsequently adopted almost universally by LE agencies all over the U.S. and by many citizens who choose to carry a handgun for self-defense.

So why, after all that effort and the passage of three decades, is the FBI putting the 9mm back into agents’ holsters? Because advancements in bullet and cartridge technology have made the 9mm viable once again. Two striking advancements that you may not know of have fundamentally changed bullet and case performance, and together they are the first to move ammunition out of the 20th Century and into the 21st.

A +P Hole Saw?

L-Tech, an ammunition manufacturer and ballistic test facility in Eubank, KY, has been quietly providing its services to the U.S. military and to LE, as well as manufacturing Sig Sauer’s ammo products since 2013. After following FBI penetration test protocols, L-Tech has now released its unusual-looking, but high-performance, 9mm Full-Stop ammunition to the public.

Full-Stop is not simply an expanding bullet launched at +P velocity—it is an entirely new 9mm Luger cartridge created from mating a remarkable, two-piece case with a bullet that behaves pretty much like a flying hole saw or blades from a food blender. And here’s the kicker: the maker says the cartridge produces, with apparent disregard of physics, +P velocity without producing +P pressures.

Mostly Hollow

The Full-Stop 124-grain bullet doesn’t expand in the traditional sense of forming a “mushroom” pushed by a solid base. Instead, after about 1.5 inches of penetration into a soft target the Full-Stop bullet nose opens up into a three-bladed “propeller,” as the maker calls it, that chews its way through tissue at high velocity to create maximum trauma.

“The Full-Stop creates a wound channel about two and a half times that of a standard hollow point ‘mushrooming’ bullet,” said L-Tech president Larry Henderson.

The bullet has no core. It is instead a homogeneous copper alloy, like a premium lead-free expanding hunting bullet. Disassembly at the loading bench showed that half of the Full-Stop bullet’s length is essentially a hollow point, and its three expanding sections, which are joined at the apex, are clearly evident. A long ogive and small hollow point opening lend the bullet the appearance of a long, tapering nose. The bullet base has a typical slight bevel to facilitate seating.

Because much of the bullet is hollow and it is mid-weight for the caliber, without any (weighty) lead, it must be made longer to achieve 124 grains. Therefore, a good portion of it nestles into the case. An inertia bullet puller required no undue force to remove bullets, indicating a normal crimp, and subsequent examination of the bullet surface showed that factory crimping of the stainless-steel case does not unduly deform the copper bullet.

Wait—did I say, “Stainless steel?”

A Case for Stainless

The cartridge case is the new NAS3 (Nickel Alloy Steel) developed and marketed by Shell Shock Technologies (SST) in Westport, CT, made by mechanically bonding a nickel alloy case head to a stainless-steel cylinder. SST says its NAS3 case is superior to brass, as it is cheaper, stronger and lighter, and as it possesses a greater internal volume, as well as a beveled and enlarged flash hole. The case head can be color anodized for instant ID and you can pick up your fired cases with a magnet. The empty cases are available to handloaders and can be reloaded 40 or more times without trimming, though they require special proprietary dies from SST. Reloading using standard shell holders will weaken the NAS3 case body-to-head bond, possibly resulting in case separation upon firing or extraction. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO RELOAD NAS3 CASES USING STANDARD DIES.

FBI Protocol

Full-Stop’s performance is almost identical to that of the FBI’s benchmark Speer 124-grain Gold Dot load. The FBI testing protocol is to shoot through real life barriers at real life distances that law enforcement may encounter, into ballistic gelatin. Bullets are then examined for penetration and expansion. Barriers include clothing, wood, dry wall and sheet steel (simulating a car door).

SAAMI standard maximum pressure for the 9mm Luger is 35,000 psi; for 9mm +P, it’s 38,500 psi, or a 10 percent increase over standard. A perusal of various factory load data shows that, with 124-grain bullets, the velocity for 9mm +P begins at about 1,200 feet per second. Full-Stop gel penetration after passing through some barriers exceeds that of the +P Speer ammo, and yet the L-Tech is not loaded to Speer’s +P pressures, according to company literature. Newton says that less pressure equates to less recoil and, at least theoretically, that implies a faster on-target double-tap. SST, incidentally, has tested its NAS3 cases beyond 65,000 psi, so the upper limits of safety regarding pressures rest with the handgun and not the cartridge case.

At the Bench

Dismantling a few cases for examination revealed bullets weighing about 124.5 grains, seated over a 4.8-grain charge of spherical powder that resembles W231 or Titegroup. The inertia bullet puller caused a slight but visible separation of the case body from the case head. Another note to handloaders: don’t reload NAS3 cases after pulling bullets, discard them.

Frankly, any ballistic testing I might have done to check L-Tech’s claims for Full-Stop’s bullet expansion and penetration would, at best, only be duplicating the FBI protocol testing, and there’s no sense in reinventing that wheel. However, we can objectively test for accuracy, velocity and functioning, and we can form a subjective opinion of recoil. So, let’s take a couple of 9s to the range and see what we get.

Range Test

Since the L-Tech is defensive ammo, it seemed appropriate to shoot it in both full-size and compact carry pistols, the former a Ruger American with a 4-inch barrel and the latter a 3.5-inch barreled S&W M&P Shield. Checking accuracy at handgun combat distance—21 feet—is being realistic, too.

In both handguns, L-tech’s ammo shot essentially to point-of-aim, a six o’clock hold on a black bullseye target, with 10-shot groups hovering just under two inches when utilizing a steadying forearms-on-the-shooting-bench hold. Groups from the Ruger were only an inch wide but tended to string vertically a bit. The S&W made a more amenable match with the ammo, generally grouping shots into a single ragged hole without a propensity for stringing. Most importantly, those long, tapered bullet noses fed reliably, and both guns functioned flawlessly with the L-Tech ammo—an absolute, no compromise “must” in a defensive handgun.

Velocities 10 feet from the muzzle of the Ruger averaged 1,090 feet per second with a low of 1059 feet per second and a high of 1,111 feet per second. As expected from a shorter barrel, velocities in the S&W dropped a bit: the slowest at 973 feet per second and the fastest at 1,031 feet per second, for an average of 1,010 feet per second. Subjectively, recoil seemed ordinary, and of course a bit sharp in the compact Shield with a shortened grip that I could only hold with two fingers.

Because the NAS3 cases weigh half as much as brass cases, a full high-capacity magazine also weighs less, on the belt and in the handgun. I didn’t detect any discernible difference in weight when gun handling, though it is obvious when you hold a few of the NAS3 cases in your hand. Roughly, empty brass 9mm cases weigh 60 grains and NAS3 cases, 30 grains. Multiply that by 15 rounds in a mag and we find one stuffed with the L-tech cartridge weighs 450 grains—about one ounce—less than a mag holding regular brass.

Back from the Grave

So, what’s the takeaway? For handloaders who shoot a lot of 9mm, the new case represents significant cost savings. Forty reloadings are anywhere from three to five times—or more—than what we’d get from brass, especially with maximum loads, and we can add to that a lower initial cost than new brass. The cost of the specialty dies ($100) is amortized over time and the number of reloadings.

For competitors and those of us who practice a lot, picking up cases with a long-handled magnet is a convenience, as is color coding our own cases. Achieving +P velocity without +P pressure means we get the highest performance without sending handguns into early retirement from the battering. And we lighten our range bags when ammo weighs less.

For serious defensive work, we’ve seen a lot of new self-defense pistol bullets hit the market in the past few years, a trend that continues as bullet technology advances. Technology, in fact, has brought the 9mm Luger back from law enforcement’s common grave that it shared with the .38 Special. “A couple of law enforcement agencies here in Kentucky have adopted Full-Stop as their duty ammo,” Henderson said.

Even the .380 ACP has improved beyond a better-than-a-sharp-stick choice. The Holy Grail, of course, is the immediate incapacitation of the One Shot Stop, but like the Arthurian Holy Grail, it is elusive and not attainable via technology alone. There is no substitute for proper bullet placement, and then the bullet has to perform optimally when it gets there. The first step is up to you; if you succeed, it appears L-Tech’s Full-Stop bullet will do the rest.

Art Merrill graduated from the FBI Firearms Instructor Development Course to teach U.S. Navy security force personnel pistol and shotgun combat tactics.

There is a fairly new magazine-fed, semi-automatic, gas-operated tactical shotgun available for scattergun enthusiasts. The weapon is the FosTecH Outdoors LLC Origin 12 shotgun. The Origin 12 is made in the USA and has been available for a year or so, yet it is relatively unknown.

The Origin 12 has a few unique features that set it apart from many other semi-automatic 12-gauge shotguns. One of those features is a long-stroke gas system, which will function with low-power shells that are normally reserved for pump or break-open shotguns. The weapon’s reliability is enhanced by a rotating bolt with two large extractors. Felt recoil is reduced by the stock, which is located above the centerline of the bore. Control is aided by a pistol grip. The magazine release and safety lever are ambidextrous, while the non-reciprocating charging handle is located on the left-hand side of the receiver. The telescoping AR-style stock folds to the side to decrease the overall length of the shotgun for storage or carry. A large ejection port cover keeps debris out of the action when the weapon is not in use. Front and rear polymer folding sights are standard. There is plenty of rail space to mount just about any accessory—from optics to flashlights. The shotgun is a two-part modular construction consisting of the receiver and stock, and the barrel, gas tube and handguard assembly. Origin 12 shotguns are all restricted to 2.75-inch shells.

The Origin 12 shotgun is available in 18.5- (non-NFA) or 10.67-inch barrel lengths. The 10.67-inch barrel model is a short-barreled shotgun, which is subject to NFA regulations and the $200 federal transfer tax. The barrel module is available in different lengths and can be swapped out in seconds by the removal of a single pin. The barrel’s muzzle is externally threaded with the same M22x75 threads as the Saiga and Vepr shotguns to accommodate flash hiders, muzzle brakes or sound suppressors. The barrels come fitted with thread protectors. The short-barreled model weighs 7 pounds, 3 ounces; the 18.5-inch barrel shotgun weighs 9 pounds, 3 ounces.

The patented gas system of the Origin 12 allows it to pick up the gas as soon as it leaves the chamber, making it very efficient. The system is designed so that a shotgun shell can be used as a tool to adjust the large gas plug located above the barrel. With lighter loads, such as target or small game loads, the port should be closed or slightly open. For heavy loads, such as high brass or slugs, the port should be open to allow excess gas to be vented from the weapon to prevent damage. When adjusting the system, ensure that the hole in the gas plug is facing upward, this allows the escaping gas to assist in controlling muzzle rise. This is a great advantage on the Origin 12 and helps to place more rounds on target. If the Origin 12 fails to cycle or eject a spent cartridge, it is likely that there is not enough gas pressure, and the gas system will need to be adjusted so that less gas escapes. Thread the gas plug inward two full revolutions and repeat the test. When properly adjusted, the shells should be ejecting 5 to 8 feet away from the weapon.

The Origin 12 is easily field stripped for cleaning or maintenance by the removal of a few pins. Upon disassembly, one can readily see the resemblance to the AK’s bolt carrier-recoil spring assembly, albeit substantially larger in size.

As well as offering different barrel lengths, the Origin 12 is available in various guises. The basic Origin 12 shotgun is designated as the Hard Black model, with a black receiver, barrel and internals. Another model imparts the Hard Black barrel and receiver with nickel internal parts. A third option is the Hard Nickel Shotgun, which features a nickel receiver, barrel and internal parts. Available accessories include a recoil pad, extended charging handle, choke tube adapter, cheek riser, barrels, extra magazines and a Trijicon MRO reflex sight. The Origin 12 is shipped in a plastic hard case with a manual and one five-round magazine.

The Origin 12 magazines are made of polymer with steel feed lips; they are available with capacities of five, eight and ten rounds. No fumbling or rocking of the magazine, insertion is straight up into the receiver. A little extra effort is required if the bolt is closed; the action locks open after the last round is fired. Drum magazines with 20- and 30-round capacities are also available.

The FosTecH Origin 12 SBV

For those that like the look and handiness of a short barrel—but want to avoid the ATF paperwork and $200 transfer tax—FosTecH offers the SBV model. The Origin 12 SBV shotgun has an overall length of 27.5 inches when fitted with a 10.67-inch barrel, but it is not classified as an NFA firearm. In place of a buttstock, the SBV has a side-folding arm stabilizing brace installed. Technically, the brace cannot be shouldered, as the ATF’s position is that: The pistol stabilizing brace was neither “designed” nor approved to be used as a shoulder stock. Except for its lack of a conventional buttstock, the SBV model has the same features as the Origin 12 short-barreled shotgun. The SBV has an M22x75 metric threaded muzzle and uses the same five-, eight- and 10-round magazines or 20- and 30-round drums as the other Origin 12 models. The SBV weighs 9 pounds, 9 ounces and is available in Hard Black, Hard Black with nickel internal parts or Hard Nickel, the receiver and internal parts of which are nickel. Ownership of the SBV shotgun is subject to local or state laws.

Field Stripping

1. Remove the magazine.
2. Verify the firearm is unloaded and the safety lever is in the safe position.
3. Remove the quick-change pin and separate the barrel module from the receiver.
4. Fold the stock.
5. Remove the two front dust cover pins and rear dust cover pin then remove the dust cover.
6. Remove the carrier spring and carrier spring locator.
7. Remove the buffer spring locator.
8. Slide the bolt carrier assembly rearward until it clears the receiver rails and remove the carrier assembly.
9. Remove the bolt from the carrier assembly.
10. Remove the adjustable gas plug.

The Origin 12 shotgun is now field stripped for cleaning or maintenance, and it can be reassembled by reversing the field stripping process.

The SilencerCo Salvo 12 Shotgun Suppressor

A popular accessory for the Origin 12 shotgun is the Salvo 12 suppressor.

Sound suppressors, aka “silencers”, have become increasingly popular in the last few years. Previously, suppressors were only available for pistols and rifles in the US. Now, shotgun enthusiasts can also enjoy the benefits of firearm sound suppression, preventing hearing loss and shooting without disturbing game or the neighbors.

Like SilencerCo’s popular pistol suppressor, the Osprey, the Salvo 12 is polygonal. The reason for its unconventional shape is that it provides a larger internal volume, and it keeps the suppressor out of the line of sight so that no special raised sights are needed. In most cases, the original factory sights can be used. This applies to the Origin 12, because the gas system is located approximately 1.5 inches above the barrel. Indeed, many owners attach their Salvo suppressors to the Origin 12 in an inverted position.

The Salvo 12’s design is essentially composed of two basic components: a nine-rod internal rail system to guide the wad column and a modular baffle stack that can be adjusted from 12 to 6 inches in length. The Salvo is constructed of a squared, multipart baffle and spacer system made from 17-4 stainless steel and 7075 aluminum.

Baffles can be removed or added in 2-inch increments, the Salvo can be adjusted by stacking baffles and replacing the rods to the owner’s personal choice of length, weight and decibel level. On shotguns with short barrels, like the Origin 12 or the Origin SBV, the full-length Salvo is ideal. On more conventional shotguns with longer barrels, reducing the Salvo to its 6-, 8- or 10-inch length may be desirable. Another advantage of a shorter suppressor is the reduction in weight, though this comes at the expense of a louder report.

The Salvo 12 is designed to operate with pump action, gas-operated semi-automatic and inertia-driven semi-automatic shotguns. The suppressor is compatible with 2.75- or 3-inch wadded shot shells and rifled slugs (the Origin 12 shotguns are limited to 2.75-inch shells.) At its full length of 12 inches, the Salvo 12 brings the sound down to a reported 136.8 dB at the muzzle with a weight of 34.5 ounces. Some shooters may benefit from a nose-heavy swing and reduction of muzzle rise in addition to the reduced recoil. The suppressor’s modular design allows the user to shorten the silencer to balance size, weight, and sound requirements for sporting clay, waterfowl, turkey hunting, home defense and many other applications. The suppressor can be shortened to 8 inches and remain hearing safe. In its 6-inch configuration, the Salvo weighs only 21 ounces, but it still delivers a reported suppressed volume of 140.5 dB to the ear. The Salvo 12 attaches to the barrel by an adapter that connects to the internal threads cut for choke tubes or, in the cases of the Origin 12, Saiga or Vepr shotguns, with external threads. SilencerCo produces mounting adapters for several popular shotgun brands. Adapters and rod kits are sold separately. For military and law enforcement customers, SilencerCo offers a muzzle extension for breaching.

A New Shotgun Suppressor?

Previously, SilencerCo’s Salvo 12 was the sole shotgun suppressor available on the U.S. market. Now, however, those in the market for a shotgun suppressor may have another option from Turkey-based shotgun maker UTAS. Claiming to be short in length and light in weight, the new UTAS-USA Octave is a carbon fiber-wrapped 12-gauge sound suppressor. The manufacturer claims that the Octave can reduce a 12-gauge shotgun’s report down to 135 decibels.

The Octave’s unconventional construction consists of a core of specially designed fibrous insulation made from volcanic rock that is heat and flame resistant. The spun fiber is encased in a steel mesh, then wrapped around a 4140 steel outer tube that’s designed not to inhibit the flight of the shotgun shell wad. Expanding gas passes from the muffler tube through stainless steel baffling screens into two separate expansion chambers filled with the special noise dampening packing material. For further sound reduction, the Octave can run wet. The Octave weighs 19.8 ounces with an overall length of 11 inches.

The Octave was introduced in 2005, but it is not listed on the company’s website, and a search to find one for sale was in vain.

I had the privilege of meeting the great gun inventor Maxwell G. Atchisson at his residence in Doraville, Georgia, back in the late 70s through Donald Thomas. Don was Atchisson’s business agent at the time and is also SAR’s archivist. Visitors to Max’s residence were received via strict invitation only, since it was also his private research, development and testing facility. His guest book (to which I had the honor of adding my name) contained the names of dignitaries and high-ranking military officials from around the world—proof of his status as one of America’s best in the 20th century. The lower section of the house had an indoor range facility where guests were allowed to shoot Max’s inventions (except guns in the prototype stages with patentable features), many of which had never been shown to the public before. Some of the guns he presented and tested were his Vietnam-era M16 rifle containing his .22 conversion kit and three .22 semi-autos he converted to select fire, namely the H&R Reising M65 “Leatherneck” rifles and Jager AK22 (just introduced to the U.S. market at the time). The biggest surprise of my visit was seeing and firing his revolutionary full-automatic shotgun with a 20-round drum magazine. I also glimpsed a prototype 40-round drum in the works but was unable to test and examine it. Although Remington did come up with a select fire conversion of their M1100 shotgun, which earned the U.S. military designation M7188, it was Atchisson who truly revolutionized the concept that inspired many of the modern combat shotguns we see on the market today.

Although Atchisson’s inventions were mostly geared toward military and police purposes, such applications proved quite elusive, including for his much-touted full-auto shotgun. His AR15/M16 .22 conversion kit, on the other hand, became a commercial success years after he sold the rights to others. It was one of the most copied devices in existence and constantly improved upon by others, primarily by CMMG, the leading producer of these types of kit, who came up with various set-ups and related accessories. Since its introduction in the early 70s by Military Armament Corporation (MAC), the Atchisson .22 conversion kits have been produced by various manufacturers, including Jonathan Arthur Ciener, Brocal Inc. (WAC), Spike Tactical, CMMG, Tactical Solutions, Tactical Industries, Stag Arms, Mega Arms and others. The kits were offered as drop-in or dedicated uppers. The drop-in type utilized a chamber adapter, while the dedicated type was normally a complete upper with a .22 rimfire barrel. For accuracy purposes, dedicated uppers normally perform better than the drop-in installed on AR15/M16 (.223 caliber) since its rifling specs are not for .22 caliber long rifle rimfire. When used in a .223 rifle, the kit will tend to clog the barrel gas port with lead after prolonged firing with rimfire rounds and can affect the operation of the gun once it is switched back to its original caliber. To minimize this problem, it is best to fire a few rounds of .223 for every hundred .22LR. This will help to keep the gas port clear of obstruction. However, the gas tube still needs to be scrubbed due to the build-up of lead particles.

In the past 40 years, various .22 conversion devices for the AR15/M16 have been offered by such companies as Colt Industries, but the Atchisson device remains the undisputed leader. What makes the Atchisson device more attractive than others is its high capacity magazine (other kits normally boast 10-shot), available for both semi-auto and select-fire models and good reliability with the right ammunition. The Atchisson kit is a well-designed unit for its intended purpose. Just like its competitors, however, its reliability varies from one maker to the next, even though the parts (in most cases) are interchangeable. My first Atchisson kit, purchased 25 years ago, was marketed by Bro-Caliber and made by WAK Inc., followed by the Colt kit designed by Henry Into, Colt’s chief engineer in the 80s. Five years ago, these two vintage kits were joined by the Spike Tactical and CMMG version for my test and target practice. It has been noted that the old and new kits still share the following same basic malfunctions:

• Empty shell getting caught uderneath the charging handle groove and bolt during recoil with the top round loaded halfway.
• Failure to feed—normally a bent cartridge preventing the bolt from moving forward.
• Hammer follow and misfire—double or triple shots/light dent on the rim of the cartridge.
• Failure to extract the empty shell.
• Failure to complete cycle.

Among the five problems noted above, it was the empty shell getting stuck between the charging handle and bolt that proved to be the most bothersome to clear. This is especially difficult when, at the same time, you have a double feed with a halfway-loaded round locked with the round just coming out of the magazine. This malfunction also happened using the Colt kit on numerous occasions. Having experienced this problem with the WAK kit firing both standard and high velocity rounds on many occasions after acquiring it in the 80s, fixing the pesky bug became a priority. After some careful analysis and tinkering, the solution to the problem came into light. A drawback of this solution, however, was that it required disassembly of the gas tube each time the gun is fired with rimfire ammo. In addition, a plug to the connection port of the gas tube was required to seal the gas pressure in the barrel. This part is easy to make using a drill rod the same size as the gas tube, 2 inches long. Ideally, it is best to build a complete dedicated upper just for shooting .22 ammo using the modified charging handle. The modified charging handle will require filling in the underside grooved section. CMMG currently sells what they call an “anti-jam” charging handle made of glass-filled nylon for dedicated .22 conversion units. The usual deep underside groove was replaced with a shallow groove, but the front-end section for gas tube clearance for kits utilizing chamber inserts was unchanged. Since there is still an open space at its critical point, it may not completely eliminate the chance of empties getting lodged between the bolt and charging handle, but it minimizes it to the point that overall reliability is greatly improved. It is definitely a great improvement to these kits. Remember, the handle does not move with the bolt when it recoils, which leaves the open section at the front of the handle still exposed for the empty to get lodged at any given time. A better solution is to cover at least three-quarters of the charging handle underside groove starting from the front, leaving no gap for empties to get caught during operation. This requires obtaining a separate charging handle for this purpose and keeping the original when switching back to .223 caliber. You need not buy an expensive spare; get the cheapest you can—even a used one will do. To make a filler for the charging handle groove, you will need a 5/16 dia. steel or aluminum rod. Mild steel material is ideal here. Aluminum being softer can still be subject to faster wear, dings and scrapes. The steel material provides smoother operation and lasts longer. The minimum length of the filler required is 4 inches, but you can cover the full groove if you wish. A grinder and file are needed here. The thickness is .200 inches, with the top of the filler approximately .050 inches below the rim of the groove to compensate for the radiused section of the recoil spring housing, allowing the bolt to cycle freely with a minimal gap. The filler is pinned into place at the front-end section of the handle by a 1/16 diameter roll pin. The pattern of the filler used here has an extended section (reduced diameter) at the front that loops with the gas tube hole of the upper for better stability. This part will only work with the gas tube removed to allow the kit to seat properly into place. The modified handle will work perfectly with other dedicated .22 uppers without a gas tube.

Failure to feed can be associated with a faulty magazine follower and spring. A malfunction of this nature normally happens when the magazine is fully loaded and the top cartridge nose-dives while being pushed forward by the bolt. A simple test is to simulate a loading sequence by pushing out the loaded rounds with a small wood dowel and see if the cartridges are moving upward unimpededly. If not, check the follower and inside the magazine body for obstruction or mold overruns and polish them with medium-grade grit until the tightness is eliminated. Check also the spring for binding and straighten it up. If no binding is experienced during this test, check the feed ramp for roughness and sharp edges. The ramp should be polished smooth and the chamber must accept the cartridge without hesitation or tightness. The cartridge should go in freely and be released from the chamber freely. Another area to check is the looseness of the magazine when inserted into the gun. Looseness in fore-and-aft movement of the magazine is also very critical during loading. When the bolt moves forward to load theAtop round from the magazine, it will exert pressure and cause the magazine to tilt slightly forward, thereby causing the bullet being chambered to point toward the bottom of the feed ramp instead of upward toward the chamber. This would normally result in a jam, with a bent cartridge loaded halfway into the chamber. A quick remedy for this is to tape the rear upper section of the magazine to minimize the loose fit. Brownells’ vinyl-coated cloth tape is ideal for this purpose and comes in black and coyote brown color. Taping should prevent the magazine from falling freely but leave it loose enough to be pulled out easily when reloading.

Hammer follow is normally associated with using older units with a notched (Colt type) hammer, although this may vary from one make to another. This hammer will work fine in some ARs, while it won’t in others due to dimensional tolerances. For example, the old WAK kit will not depress the notched-type hammer far enough to engage the secondary sear on vintage models but will work fine with (most, if not all) newer ones. The underside of the bolt appears higher. When installed to vintage ARs, the WAK kit will not work reliably with the Black Dog magazines except the steel Ciener type. This is also the reason that this vintage kit is not compatible with a notched hammer. Hammer follow tends to create a dangerous runaway gun firing double, triple and even continuous full-auto fire (deemed illegal by definition, although unintended) followed by misfires with a very light dent on the rim. Misfires occur when the hammer hits the bottom corner of the bolt, not the back of the firing pin. If your AR has a notched hammer and is experiencing this kind of issue, the simplest remedy is to replace it with the (unnotched) MIL-SPEC type along with a reduced power spring kit (both available from Brownells). This will not only smoothen the action and lighten the trigger pull, but will also lessen the resistance to the bolt during recoil, which in turn permits the use of a stronger recoil spring for more positive bolt closure. In most cases, light recoil springs also contribute to misfires as they create a gap between the breech face and barrel chamber as the bolt tries to overcome the resistance of the extractor hook resting against the inclined barrel notch. To overcome this, some manufacturers resort to using a weaker extractor spring in conjunction with a lighter recoil spring to allow the bolt to close, which is a serious drawback that will result in extraction problems. It is best to keep everything strong and find the right ammo and magazine to work with it.

Failure to extract the empty shell normally occurs once the gun is heavily clogged up. However, if the gun fails to extract even before this stage, check the condition of the extractor itself with the following simple test. Place an empty shell in the breech face with the extractor holding it in place. With the bolt underside facing down, lightly tap the center point of the bolt on a table. If the extractor is good, the shell must not fall or come off. If it does, replace the extractor if the hook is worn out or barely engaging. You may gradually file the bottom section of the hook that rests over the bolt to increase the contact point of the extractor with the rim. The spring must also have enough power to positively activate the extractor. If everything looks fine with the extractor, focus your attention on the chamber itself. Some chambers may not be reamed or finished properly and could be tight and unpolished. It should also be checked that the notch for the extractor on the chamber adapter or barrel is cut properly. If the extractor hook is sitting high or binding when the bolt closes, it will likely miss the rim and will jam the action.

Failure to completely cycle during operation can also cause other malfunctions, such as failure to eject and feed. This can normally be attributed to weak ammunition in relation to the recoil and hammer spring resistance. This can be further improved by simply modifying the square bottom corner at the rear of the bolt to a radius and polishing it smooth to minimize hammer drag and resistance. The combination of parts and polishing on certain areas is quite critical if the gun is to be fired with various ammunition. With readily available parts for the AR, solving reliability issues such as these can be done right with minimal effort. If the procedures mentioned above are followed correctly, your .22 conversion kit should work with utmost reliability no matter what type or make it is. For parts and accessories requirements contact Brownells (www.brownells.com).

The Z-008 III of the Zbroyar company in Kiev, Ukraine, can best be described as a bolt-action rifle with AR-looks. We have seen that before. But the Z-008 is not just a fashionably dressed repeating rifle. The weapon has been specially designed in this configuration and is full of gadgets.

The Ukrainian firm Zbroyar (which translates as “weapon maker”) is a private company established in 2004. The company in Kiev focuses on guns for sports, hunting and military use. Production, assembly, finishing and surface treatment are largely done in-house, using modern CNC machines and with a quality comparable to or better than many Western European companies.

At present, Zbroyar produces three types of weapons: the Z-15 (based on the AR-15) in 5.56x45mm (.223) NATO or .300 Blackout caliber, the Z-10 (based on the AR-10) in 7.62x51mm (.308) NATO caliber and the Z-008 III. The Z-008 III is the subject of this article.

The Z-008 is not restricted to any specific caliber. The construction of the gun, with a separate barrel extension, makes it relatively easy to change the barrel (and therefore caliber), which makes it a good choice for long-range shooters.

Description

The Z-008 is a bolt-action rifle. The Roman numeral III stands for the third generation of the gun, as Zbroyar previously made several conventional Z-008 bolt-action rifles. The weapon is completely built in Kiev. Only the AR-stock and pistol grip are aftermarket parts, made by Magpul on the rifle pictured here. The magazine of the illustrated gun is also by Magpul, but of course there is a wide choice in this area.
The Z-008 is a fascinating combination of bolt-action rifle gun and AR. The weapon has the ergonomics of the latter, in terms of the position of the double-sided safety and single-sided magazine catches. The aluminum handguard with its mounting rails and the design of the construction with an upper and lower frame have also been copied from the AR. But since this is a bolt-action rifle, there is no gas block, cocking handle or forward bolt assist. The right side of the solid aluminum ‘upper’ has two elongated openings. The front one is the ejection opening (without a hinging lid), and the rear is for the bolt handle.

The height of the upper part of the receiver is almost the same as that of a semi-automatic rifle, which means it is almost seamlessly continuous with the handguard. To give the upper sufficient rigidity, the top part contains a steel cylinder, of which only the back is visible when the weapon is disassembled.

Unlike a semi-automatic, the Z-008 trigger mechanism is an integral part of the upper frame. The Z-008 comes standard with a single stage trigger mechanism designed at Zbroyar, but the construction is such that it can be exchanged for one of the main brands for an aftermarket trigger.

Extras

The Z-008 bolt has a narrowed bolt head with three locking lugs. The front of the bolt has the extractor, which has been mounted from the rear. It is a Zbroyar design, comparable to a Sako style extractor. The ejector is a spring-loaded plunger in the bolt head.

To maintain the best possible fit between the bolt and frame, Zbroyar added two extras. First, the body of the bolt has been extended to the rear, by means of a detachable end cap. A longer bolt automatically means less play. But as the bolt now travels further to the rear, the buffer and buffer spring had to be removed from the stock, which now has an empty tube with room for the rear part of the bolt. A second characteristic is a steel U-profile, put in the left lower side of the upper receiver. The axis of the bolt handle protrudes from the opposite side of the bolt. This notch runs in the U-profile and secures a tight guide. The U-profile bends upward at the point where the bolt handle is turned downward. This prevents wear to the aluminum upper and aids in primary extraction when the bolt is opened.

Operation

As far as operation is concerned, the Z-008 is simplicity itself. Insert the magazine, operate the bolt and the gun is ready to fire. The magazine housing is asymmetrical. The right wall is shorter than the left, making it easier to insert a magazine in a prone position. The magazine is a standard AR-10.

The firing pin is cocked when opening the bolt. A tooth on the bottom of the firing pin locks in the rear of the bolt body. If the bolt is completely closed, this tooth is released but is then caught by the trigger sear. This is similar to 99% of all other bolt-action rifles, comparable to the reliable operation of the mother of all modern bolt-action rifles, the K98. A small notch with a red ring protrudes from the right side of the upper receiver, giving visual and perceptible evidence that the bolt is cocked. The gun has an ambidextrous safety catch, but only the left side of the receiver is marked with “FIRE” and “SAFE.”

Disassembly

Like the AR, the upper and lower receiver are connected with two cross-pins. When the rear pin is pushed out to the right (it won’t fall out), the lower receiver pivots open. For normal maintenance, that is enough. A special pin now blocks the mechanism to ensure that the weapon cannot be fired.

With the stock out of the way, the bolt can simply be pulled out to the rear of the receiver. To dismantle the bolt, one must first remove the end cap, which is fastened with a bayonet catch. If the cap is turned clockwise, it can be pulled from the bolt body. Next, the firing pin case and firing pin can be pulled rearward out of the bolt. The bolt head is attached to the bolt with a solid crossbolt, in turn fixed by a pin. If this little pin is removed, the crossbolt can be taken out and the bolt head separated from the bolt. The front part of the bolt has a smaller diameter than the rear and the bolt head. It is fitted with a synthetic sleeve, which reduces friction when operating the bolt.

Shooting

We fired the Z-008 III, equipped with a Tier-One Spartan III silencer and a Kahles K 624i 6-24×56 scope, at a 100-meter range, with Lithuanian GGG Ammunition. That distance is almost an insult for the rifle, with a group of roughly half an inch. The bolt runs very smooth, cartridges fed without any problems, and the trigger is excellent. The European importer, the Dutch company PIROSPORT, also specializes in custom-made barrels. It prepared a first run in 6.5x47mm Lapua, but the Zbroyar ZB-008 III can be made in any caliber of the .308 (short action) family, like .243 Win., 6mm BR, 6.5 Creedmoor, .260 and the 7mm-08. The gun is being used as a military sniper rifle as well.

In the trenches along the frontlines of World War I, any look over the parapet could be the last one. On both sides snipers were waiting for their next victim. But how should one observe a target without exposing himself to this danger? The supposed solution came in the form of periscopes.

Thanks to these devices it was possible for the soldier to aim with the standard rifle sight, but without raising his head above the safe cover of the trench. Probably every participating nation tried to develop such devices, and some of the better designs were then manufactured industrially in (small) series.

When the United States of America entered the war, two inventors were just about to market such a device: James L. Cameron and Lawrence E. Yaggi, both from Cleveland in the northeast of Ohio, were well informed about the circumstances and dangers at the European theatre of war. Their idea consisted of a metal frame, resting on the shooter’s shoulder and raising the rifle over his head. Bolt and trigger could be manually operated by means of a lever mechanism. A simple periscope was attached to the rear of the device to aim over rear and fore sights of the rifle.

Cameron and Yaggi were able to complete a working prototype before America’s entry into the war. They travelled to Europe and visited British and French troops at the front. Although both nations experimented with such devices themselves, the American device left a very good impression. Yaggi reported that the German soldiers were searching for sunlight reflections from enemy trench periscopes and then waited for a careless soldier to expose his head. The “Cameron-Yaggi,” as the device was called in the absence of a model designation, would help to remedy this situation.

With many suggestions for improvements and their heads filled with ideas, both gentlemen returned to America. They immediately began to rework their invention. But shortly after their arrival at home, the United States entered the war in April 1917. Cameron and Yaggi realized that the U.S. Army would soon need such an aiming device. In order to convince the military decision-makers, an adaptation to the then-standard rifle M1903 (.30 caliber) was indispensable. A first, contact with the Ordnance Department led to the realization that there was no interest in military accessories, which would require a permanent modification of the weapons. This specification, however, played into the hands of Cameron and Yaggi, as their design required only the removal of the stock screws for attaching the mount of the periscope to the left side of the rifle stock. This conversion could be reversed quickly and left no lasting traces on the rifles.

The Cameron-Yaggi is a relatively simple design made of metal tubing, similar to the frame of a bicycle. Over the months several more or less different variations were produced, and no two of the today existing devices are actually identical. The rifle is placed into the framework from above, so that the butt stock is supported at its rear by a suitably shaped piece of sheet metal. A screw clamp around the neck of the stock holds the gun firmly in its position. Some parts of the framework were wrapped with leather padding. The shooter had to grasp the device firmly with both hands. A standing position with no support was possible, but using the parapet of the trench as a support increased the hit probability considerably. The left hand of the shooter held the fixed front grip. The trigger of the device, which was connected to the trigger of the rifle by means of a rod assembly, was operated with the right hand.

One major difficulty of rifle periscope devices was the procedure of feeding the next round. The cocking handle of a bolt-action rifle had to be operated manually from cover in order to extract the empty case and to feed a new round into the chamber. There were no self-loading rifles in active front-line service at that time. And it would not have been practical to retract the bulky periscope device into the trench after each shot to reload the rifle and then push the device back into position. Cameron and Yaggi, therefore, designed a side-mounted frame that could slide back and forth. The cocking handle of the rifle was clamped into a mount at the top of this frame. Below, the framework had its own cocking handle, and both were connected with a rod to transfer the movements. In order to increase the weapon’s sustained fire capability, the special 25-round extension box magazine of the Air Service M1903 could be attached to the weapon. However, this was a fixed magazine, and it remained permanently on the weapon.

On the left side of the rifle a dovetail mount was attached. The periscope, inserted into this mount, could be easily removed for transport at any time. This optical device was named “Sightascope” by its inventors and proved surprisingly precise: during a demonstration of the device in front of Ordnance Department representatives, 10 rounds were fired at a target at 200 yards (180 meters) distance. The dispersion was only 1.3 inches (33cm). Windage and elevation could be adjusted by two rotary-type knobs. The still-existing devices show marks from 1X to 4X, suggesting experiments with different magnifications. However, all have the same cross-hair reticules. The lens is recessed in the housing to reduce sunlight reflections, which notoriously attracted the attention of enemy snipers.

At first glance, the bulky Cameron-Yaggi device looks very heavy, but it actually weighs only about 6 pounds (2.8kg). The total weight together with a Springfield M1903 was 14.7 pounds (6.7kg). And it was not meant for movement during combat or longer marches. Rather, it should be used in static positions in the front line trenches.

After a few changes to the design, Yaggi was able to demonstrate the periscope device at the Marine Corps Rifle Range in Winthrop/Maryland in summer of 1917. One of the spectators, Colonel C.B. Winter, tried the device by himself and wrote a small report. He was expecting a hard recoil because of the powerful cartridge. But he was mistaken—the recoil was much less than firing a round with the standard rifle. The framework of the device absorbed most of the recoil force.

After the successful demonstration, Cameron and Yaggi were at that time confident that their invention would soon be accepted by the Ordnance Department. They even designed variants for the M1917 rifle and the air-cooled Lewis light machine gun. But unfortunately nothing happened. The department let the matter rest, until the war finally ended in November 1918.

But other similar devices were still far less successful and did not even get shortlisted. Like the invention of Mr. Guiberson from California. He did not design a bulky frame for holding a rifle, but integrated the periscope device into the weapon itself. The cost of the conversion was enormous and was completely in contradiction with the specifications of the Ordnance Department. But the result was a very well thought-out design. When collapsed, the “Guiberson Rifle” hardly differed from the standard M1903 rifle. If necessary, the rear half of the specially modified stock could be unlocked and folded down. This part is connected to the system by means of a robust support which rests in the hollow stock when not in use. The support is pulled out automatically during the unfolding and thus stabilizes the weapon in the combat-ready condition. In addition, a small mirror is attached to its base. The soldier can look through an elongated opening within the support at a second mirror at the top of the support and thus on the rear and fore sights. For firing, the trigger of the rifle is used, but nevertheless the hand of the shooter still remains below the parapet of the trench. Apart from the M1903, Guiberson also converted a few M1917 rifles. He also experimented with hollowed-out wooden stocks as well as in combination with stock sections made of sheet metal. At least one converted M1917 was made with a small folding support and got a separate periscope attached to its left side.

A short report written by Captain Edward C. Crossman in April 1917 about a demonstration of the Guiberson rifle at the Ordnance Department gives us some insight: “The upper mirror is carried by a detachable but still out of the way steel bar, which slides into a slot cut in the receiver on the left side. Gazing in the bottom mirror of the rifle periscope, you see merely the two sights, the target and say 30 feet of field at 200 yards. The curious ones present at the trials, had no trouble in swatting regularly the silhouette at 200 yards, although the too-narrow service sight is still worse with this form of sighting apparatus. Queerly enough there is little kick […]. The shape of the grip portion is not quite right, and several of us got nice raised and purple spots on the forehead from contact with this. Avoiding this, the rifle seemed to kick but little; less than the direct drive of the regular arm.”

How many Cameron-Yaggis and Guibersons were produced at the time is not known. Today there are still a few surviving pieces in museums and private collections. However, they were never able to prove their suitability in the hard daily life of the trench warfare.

Thanks to curator Alex MacKenzie (Springfield Armory NHS) for his support.

Introduced around 2010, the AR57 blowback upper receiver for the AR15 uses 50-shot P90 magazines and ejects spent casings down through the magazine well for ambidextrous operation. Operating by simple blowback, this upper is available in 6-inch pistol and 16-inch rifle versions. Chambered in 5.7x28mm, this upper is less powerful than the standard 5.56mm version, but that reduction in power brings certain advantages: reduced muzzle blast, a high practical rate of fire, nonexistent recoil, lightness even when fully loaded and, thanks to the top-mounted magazine, the opportunity for the shooter to get very low to the ground for cover. The upper arrives with a custom buffer that fits any carbine AR15 lower.

The first generation came with a medium-weight fluted barrel and full Picatinny rail, which made the potentially light personal defense weapon into more of a varmint rifle. Unfortunately, the intrinsic accuracy of the cartridge yielded mediocre results for tagging small varmints. Of all available ammunition, RRWS copper hollow-point seems to offer the best combination of accuracy (2MOA) and terminal performance (2/3-inch expansion from the original 0.224-inch diameter and around 15 inches of penetration in gel after four layers of denim). Velocity was around 2680 feet per second with SD under 10, so it was no surprise that this cartridge produced more accurate results than other factory loads.

• American Eagle FMJ 40gr 2020fps 3MOA
• RRWS HP 37gr 2680fps (substantially higher than advertise 2550fps) 2MOA
• FN Vmax 40gr 2600fps 2.5MOA
• Handloads Vmax 40gr 2175fps 2MOA

The second generation cut quite a bit of weight by going to a light profile barrel and M-LOK forend with only small rail segments machined in it top and bottom of the front—ideal for a backup front sight and a bipod. Unloaded, but with a Holosun red dot sight, the 2nd Gen. AR57 on a GWACS Armory polymer lower weighs only 5.3 pounds. Fully loaded, it remains a reasonable 6.7 pounds, light enough for most shooters. Placed on an aluminum lower, it gets slightly heftier but gains length of pull adjustment and more neutral balance.

While the reduction in barrel diameter cuts heat endurance, the cartridge used makes this a mostly theoretical issue. Burning around six grains per shot, 5.7x28mm runs much cooler than 5.56mm, which burns four or more times as much. That yields much reduced muzzle blast and far greater heat endurance, though this is naturally at the cost of bullets traveling roughly 40% slower. Even the thin barrel has continuous fire endurance in excess of 150 shots, plenty for any realistic defensive fight. The real limiter of the sustained fire is the exposure of the plastic top-mounted magazine to the heat radiating from the barrel.

To load, place the baseplate of a standard FN P90 magazine into the recess on the front of the upper, then press the feed lip side down on the catch located above and slightly back of the bolt. To charge, pull on the right-side non-reciprocating handle and release. The charging handle’s placement on the right makes it accessible for operation by the strong hand. Since it only has to be operated once every 50 shots, the time penalty for moving the hand off the pistol grip isn’t too great. Empties will eject downward through the nominal magazine well. Some users put a 20- or 30-round magazine body with the feed lips, spring and follower removed to act as a brass catcher. AR15sport.com offers a sheet metal brass catcher of much greater capacity. We tested it on two AR57s at a high round count event with good results. The magazine has no provision for activating the bolt lock when empty, but the bolt can be locked open using the catch on the lower. The upper runs very cleanly and reliably, requiring no maintenance after the first 500 shots.

At $745 from 57center.com, it is less expensive than a PS90 carbine at $1,350, even after the cost of an AR15 lower is added in. 5.7x28mm ammunition costs about as much as 5.56x45mm, though the variety of available loads is definitely smaller.

The adequacy of 5.7x28mm for stopping human aggressors has been in dispute ever since its introduction. Some of the lighter bullets available for it have traditionally been tipped or leadless hollow-points prone to excessive fragmentation. Firing a 27gr lead-free hollow-point at a full, upright 12-ounce beverage can did not result in complete penetration—an excellent result for a range or a small varmint round, but not a man-stopper. Expanding ammunition with better penetration is also available from FN, along with non-fragmenting 40gr FMJ American Eagle. R&R Weapon Systems offers two 37gr all-copper loads, 37F (fragmenting) and 37X (expanding). I would recommend 37X for defensive use, relegating the fragmenting load to short-range varmint elimination.

The main limitation in using the AR57 for varmint control is the space available for optics. With the magazine lifting up for unloading, the length of the scope is sharply limited. I was able to fit 2.5x or 4x prismatic scopes, anything longer caused interference. Considering the sighting limitations, I would rate it as suitable for small rodents out to 100 yards. With defensive use being its more likely purpose, AR57 works best with a smaller red dot sight or an illuminated 1x prismatic scope like the Vortex Spitfire, since the speed of target acquisition trumps precision. Follow-up shots with the 2nd Gen. AR57 were limited only by trigger finger dexterity, as it showed no muzzle rise at all. The newer version moved a little more, as the fairly effective flash hider/compensator got replaced by a thinner, less effective variant that was also quite loud. My recommendation would be to install something like a Kaw Valley Precision linear compensator, which would leave the minimal muzzle rise uncorrected but noticeably reduce the report at the shooter’s ears. AR57 also works well with sound suppressors, producing no gas blowback and only a mild ejection port pop.

The new, lightweight AR57 is lighter than a PS90, though about 8 inches longer. The advantages of AR57 are numerous. Even a stock AR15 has a better trigger than PS90, and aftermarket options can make that difference extreme. AR lowers allow adjustable length of pull. AR ergonomics, excepting the reloading process, make more use of existing training. The height of sights over bore is significantly less, making accurate hits easier.

Compared to a 5.56 upper, AR57 is simpler to clean, generates less felt recoil and much less muzzle blast. With no protruding magazine, it allows the shooter to get into a very low prone position. A lot of ammunition can be carried, as two full 50-round P90 magazines weigh as little as one 5.56 30-rounder. The niche I see for AR57—besides it being plain fun to shoot—is for self-defense by the same slightly built individuals who would have picked an M1 carbine in the past. It requires less upper body strength to use than most long guns and gives 50 shots without reloading. A small teenager or a fragile senior can run it with ease, with the generously sized charging handle being on the side of the strong hand for most users. The rest of us enjoy shooting this upper without even looking for an excuse.