New Review: January 2002

By Chris A. Choat

“The Expedition” from J&T Distributing

One of the “Household Names” in the AR15/ M16 parts group is J&T Distributing of Winchester Kentucky. They are a regular at Knob Creek as well as many other shows, and have been shakers and movers in parts for many other military type firearms, surplus and new items.

J&T recently supplied SAR with two models of “the Expedition” complete uppers they are offering. These AR-15 upper receivers are high quality with match grade barrels. These are for post ban guns, no dreaded bayonet lug, and there is an excellent muzzle brake that is built into the muzzle so there is no threading. Bullet exit has been kept very crisp and clean for accuracy, and the muzzle brake is very effective- it delivered just enough to keep the barrel steady, not overcomping like many on the market today. Finish was even and the lines of the rifle keep a “Lightweight” look, while delivering that match grade accuracy shooters desire. These are available in either a 20” or 16” version, priced at $329.95 without bolt carrier, but at $474.95 for a complete kit without the lower receiver.

J&T Distributing
Dept SAR
Box 430
Winchester, KY 40391
Phone: (859) 745-1757
Fax: (859) 745-4638

Mark Brown Custom

Mark Brown from Mark Brown Custom out in New Mexico is what we refer to as an “End user”. He has the background with the military use of small arms, and has been an armorer involved with the Department of Energy defense forces for many years. In his experience, he has come up with some interesting M16 parts, and tools as well. The CQB-A2 was the first mount he made in the late 1980’s on a limited scale, in response to a need for flat tops in military applications. He went into full production in 1995. The CQB-A3 went into production in 1999 and they have just completed the production run on the CQB-A1. The CQB-A1 gives an A1 upper receiver an A2 style sight on MB’s CQB rail. Brown also makes 2 Precision mounts for the AR series rifles. The Precision-A1 and the Precision-A2.

These extend the scope base where proper eye relief can be obtained when using high power optics and a proper stock/ cheek weld.

The CQB sight was requested by several personnel at various agencies. They wanted a way to use the electronic dot sights but still maintain the iron backup sight. Most people realized the benefits of the dots but still wanted the durability of the original sights. These mounts provide the shooter with a co-indexing sight system. If the dot goes south the sight transition is simple. Just look through the sights. The mount will accommodate many ring sizes to fit the shooters preferences. If a shooter wants a less-cluttered sight picture the Aimpoint Rail-Grabber ring will raise the scope to place the iron sights in the lower third of the scope picture. The Aimpoint rings that come with Aimpoints will place the iron sights in the middle of the scope picture. Because of the way a human eye works you can ignore the iron sights or look slightly above them. The transition is very fast if you need to use the irons this way. All the mounts are machined from bar-stock aircraft grade aluminum and hard anodized. The CQB-A3 is approved for use by the FBI. (a limited # are currently in use in CA.)

The Carbon Scraper is made of stainless steel so it cannot damage the interior of the bolt carrier. It is used when a large amount of carbon is present in the expansion chamber between the bolt and the bolt carrier. The tool will scrape off the carbon “stalactite’s” inside the bolt carrier. For armorers who have a high volume of M16/AR15 series rifles to deal with, this is a real time saver. For the casual shooter, this tool will make a difficult task much easier. Big thumbs up on this.

The gas tube wrench is made of anodized aluminum. It is designed to grab the gas tube to remove/assemble it. It will not damage or crimp the gas tube when used properly. We have worked on thousands of M16 and clone style firearms, and the gas tube removal and replacement has always been a pain. This wrench is outstanding. We are keeping these on our bench as well.

The contacts for purchasing the Mark Brown mounts and tools are:

Brownells, Inc.
Dept SAR
200 South Front st.
Montezuma, IA 50171
(515) 623-4000

Gunsite Academy, Inc.
Dept SAR
2900 West Gunsite Road
Paulden AZ 86334
(928) 636-4565

Bushmaster
Quality Parts Co.
Dept SAR
999 Roosevelt Trail
P.O. Box 1479
Windham ME 04062

Stan’s Gunsmithing Services
SAR readers are familiar with Class 2 Gunsmith Stan Andrewski and his innovative work. Stan has recently become involved in some importing, and as one of his first offerings is this interesting Madsen LMG Anti Aircraft sight set, in original leather pouch. These were Argentine in origin, and are in excellent- like new condition. If you have a Madsen LMG, you need one of these, or if you collect militaria, they are very novel and in great shape. At $50 per set, they are a bargain.