JonF

I put patches of the heavy duty Velcro on the back of the tecklok's to fix that problem. Frankly Bladetech should include an optional patch of velcro with every techlock sold since that is the most typical use case out there. But this is the precise (and only) reason the Safariland ALS is a step above BT. Of course, teh QD nature of the techlok is advantageous in its own right. Someone needs to come up with a belt that has built in KeyMod with holsters and pouches that attach with that. Then everything is inherently QD, completely adjustable and free from "velcro retainment issues".

The CmC Power Mag PLUS is the top of the line from his action shooting offerings. Extremely reliable and the magic is in the follower. Its highly resistant to fouling and dirt contamination so for those of us who drop mags in dirt and sand during a CoF, if you dont get ever last little bit out (ask any 2011 shooter), that can be a problem. the CmC PM+ will cope with that a little better by design.

Nice work! How is the point of impact though? Seems like it would hit a little high without the corresponding higher TruGlo front sight.

Post a pic of the ELS setup when its done. Curious to see how those pouches mate up to the plate.

IT seems both frustrating and wasteful. I needed some TMMS and techlok's to set up my belt for multigun and i'm not seeing where the extra outer/belt plates are useful. Seems like a waste not to sell them 1:1 and now i have all these extra backers that i'm sure just drive the cost up. Anyone want to trade some small tmms inners for some outers? I would wager not since we're all sitting on a pile of spare inner plates.

Glad to hear its working out for you guys. How is the retention on the Tendemkross pouches? Are they far enough apart to facilitate reloading on the fly without grabbing too many mags?

Yep. That's pretty much all there is to "shimming".

shimming the barrel extension is a means of accurizing and removing slop from the extension to receiver interface in the same vein as bedding. Precision action. Take the slop out of parts that should not have such tolerance and the whole thing will be more integrally solid and secure and hopefully better in its function. In this case it involves a metal shim the length of the circumference of the barrel extension that is wrapped around it prior to inserting into the receiver. The shim should be sized to take up any dimensional difference between the ID of the receiver and OD of the barrel extension. In my case, there was about .0015" between the two so I picked up the same sized shim stock and used it to bed the action there. Its an old trick and you can see more examples if you google it.

Good job man on your loading port man.... diggin your avatar!! Thanks! My lady is a graphic artist so she whipped that up from a range shot. People bust my chops for tucking my head in too much so it seemed fitting. All in god fun.

I took this rifle completely apart to address a few issues. First, i added a .001 shim around the barrel extension to make it fit tighter in the receiver. I also procured the proper wolff reduced power carbine spring. Lastly, i picked up some different 55gr ammo to try out since my main source (PMC) was having issues in this gun. First, going over the function testing, with the new spring and Wolf gold ammo, i was able to get the gun to cycle effortlessly and reliably on setting 8 from closed. Same went for other M193 i had on hand and my Varget/SMK handloads. Seems the Wolf gold is really nice shooting ammo; very consistent and puts up M193 velocities. Wolf Gold and M193 both put up 3000fps velocity numbers through the chrono, whereas the wimpy PMC Bronze 223 barely but up 2550 fps. no wonder it barely cycles in this rifle. the short dwell time is rather sensitive it seems. Lock back isn't consistent with Wolf gold, but it does happen on occasion. Not even over-gassing it by turning up the gas block seems to help there. Physically it locks back easily, but not always in live fire. Next, during group shooting and accuracy testing, i noticed the reticle was starting to cant on my vortex 1-4. This may have been affecting my groups and general accuracy all along. Shimming the barrel may have helped, but if the reticle is canted a few degrees, i wonder if it is moving around in other ways internally thus making it impossible to get any consistency. I managed to shoot some decent groups, but consistency was terrible likely due to the scope. It would shoot a nice 3-5 rd group of some ammo, then proceed to print in a different spot on the same target with the same ammo. Frustrating. Wolf gold 55gr 223 seemed to run pretty good. My old PMC load shot like shit and didn't operate the gun very well either. This gun is light... like right at 6lb with the optic and it does waver rather easily, even on teh bipod and rear bag if you arent totally still. But But even when pulling off still, well timed shots, the consistency was awful. I sent this scope back to vortex for repair. Lets hope they replace it with one that isn't busted. A quick cursory web search shows other folks with the same issue, i hope it isn't chronic.

Step 2 is going to be scalloping the edge of the trigger guard housing to get shells to flow in smoother from the back side. I can already feel the rims hitting the metal and the marks on the metal show it since it sits so proud above the lane of the loading port in the profile shot.

I wrapped up my loading port modifications on the 930. I tried to open up the mouth area as much as possible by flaring it, creating a funnel and all that. I did leave a little material in front of the follower on each side since it looks like it acts as a stop and i dont want to find out the hard way if you remove too much. I think i could have made the short leg of the overall "V" cut a little steeper which would allow the entire thumb to get closer to the follower. Its more of a "J" rather and the curvature means you still only use the tip of the thumb to seat the shells, although you dont have to push your thumb all the way inside like it was stock. Also, with the slot on the right for the shell catch, you can't cut as deep otherwise you start getting into all that stuff inside (pin, clip, etc). I tried contouring the handguard with a rasp but it seems there is a bit of a gap between it and that plastic part in the piston assembly. looks like you would need to fill that with epoxy or something, then you can contour it more. The sharp edge sometimes grabs my hand when loading.

I started doing the loading port work on my 930 JM and have some questions before i finish it up. I've gun in a gradual slope on the receiver walls from the TG towards the follower, no problem there. When opening up the "mouth" of the port near the follower, i've got a nice semi-circular cut that exposed a crescent shaped piece of the follower. Then i went to adding an inner "ramp" to the cut at the mouth where the follower is exposed thinking it will help with funneling the top of the shells in. As i was hogging out material on the inside of this area where the inside of the mag tube meets the receiver, i go thinking, is there a mechanism that keeps the follower from pushing through? Looking at the receiver material, it seems like there may or may not be a general lip cast into the aluminum receiver that basically acts as a stop for both installing the mag tube and for retaining the follower. This lip basically has an ID slightly smaller than the ID of the mag tube and the follower so they dont just pass through. What i can't see is if this lip is 360 degrees or just a small portion on the lower half near where we remove material as it seems to be thicker there. Is it important to NOT remove all that inner material on the lower half and leave something to act as a follower stop or is there something else that prevents it from popping out? I want to make the most effective funnel shape, but I dont want to take too much off and ruin the receiver.

According to this recent class summary, http://www.uspsa.info/cgi-bin/db_class_summary.cgi CA 2128 CT 191 CO 744 DC 1 HI 241 MD 302 MA 384 NJ 436 NY 720 so that's 5147 members in restricted mag states. That means 21.4% of the total 24,071 USPSA membership have restricted magazine ownership.

I have one of those Competition Specialties pouches. Its good for storage/transport but its not a belt mounted mag pouch solution.

I have used a few options for buckmark mags over the years. First option was a dedicated single stack 22lr, double mag pouch paddle from fobus. Holds the mags nice with retention, but has 2 drawbacks. Can't carry an empty mag since there is no "channel" in the pouch for the follower button to clear. Second, its a paddle which i don't prefer. You could graft on a techlok with minimal butchering if so inclined im sure. http://www.amazon.com/Fobus-Double-Pouch-Single-6922P/dp/B0018BLYSM Next option is to use HSGI pistol mag TACO's. These will stretch to fit ANY pistol mag from a 22lr to .50 desert eagle. Retention is adjustable, pouches can be had single or doubles. The main drawback is they are mainly intended for MOLLE with MALICE clips, but i have used bladetech QD malice clips screwed to small Techlok's to make them QD on my belt. You can also use the bladetech QD malice clips with ELS if needed too. Tactical Tailor makes a sleeve that works with the included rubber malice clip to make it a simple belt loop but its not adjustable. Last option is a new 22lr pouch that is linkable to others (not sure why thats needed. This overcome's the drawbacks of the Fobus not being able to carry an empty mag, but the belt rentention seems somewhat lacking. I suppose the linking feature will help stabilize them on the belt, but they are then in rather close proximity. Of course for steel challenge you're not reloading on the clock so merely having them handy might be enough. http://www.tandemkross.com/Quick-Grip-22-Magazine-Pouches_p_117.html?avad=152411_c6f1f14f&utm_source=AvantLink OF all the options above, the TACO's are the best holster, but its a little on the expensive side when adding a techlock or els attachment in lieu of a simple malice clip. IT can double to be spare holster for *anything* so it does earn points for versatility. I also use it for a barney mag holder.

I had tried shooting for groups with some PMC 223, PRVI M192 and 69gr SMK handloads that print .5 moa from a rock river varmint. None of these grouped under 2-3 moa but i suspect i had an issue with barrel to receiver fitment. I have shimmed the barrel extension with a 360* .001" shim but haven't had a chance to test it out yet. I hope that helps since others seem to get better results. I think the biggest issue with this barrel will be heat stringing due to its thin profile.

I bought a pair of vertx pants because they (and other brands of tactical/shooting clothing) allow for flex and articulation that wearing a pair of ordinary jeans just doesn't seem to provide. I even saw a dude split a pair of cheapo cargo's on a stage without all that much movement so the strength built into quality clothing is desirable too. I don't use the pockets too much since we have our belt rigs for all that we generally need to carry but i can see that being handy on occasion.

I went and mic'd the gas port on both the VDI barrel and the SLR .750 gas block and there is a bit of a difference that would account for some fudge factor. The barrel port is .098" and the block is about .125 (hard to get the calipers in there so I used a machinist drill index). If the gas block port is completely centered over the barrel gas port with it standing off the shoulder .010 - .020., that .025" of wiggle room port size differential means you're still lined up over the hole even if you're off kilter. Basically, whether flush or backed off a few thou, you're GTG and not blocking the port. That said, when mine was mounted flush, I was still able to get it to cycle with a reduced power spring and the block at setting 11 (I think ~16 is max open) so I still had gas to spare. I just couldn't lock back because it was too long a spring.

Well, I took the whole thing apart to see what was going on here. First i looked at the gas block situation and it seems that for 100% alignment of the SLR block to the VDI barrel, it cannot be flush against the shoulder. Spaced off .010-.020 is probably the necessary amount just eyeballing the gap once aligned. Also discovered that there is some slop in the tolerance between the receiver extension and the Balios Lite upper receiver im using. Receiver ext mic's about .999 and the receiver bore about .101. When inserted (But not fastened), thats .004 of play and there is definitely perceptable "wobble" in the fit. Checked a BCM M4 upper and the fit is TIGHT, no wobble. Not sure if this is contributing to the accuracy issue, but may need to shim or bed that for optimal interface. Though for the cost of this receiver, i'm none to pleased at the loose tolerance there. Lastly, I measured the coil bind length of the WOLFF reduced power spring compared to a JP carbine spring and found that it was and it was nearly was an A2 RIFLE length spring. :facepalm: Coil bind length was about 1 inch longer than the JP so thats definitely not gonna work. I bought this off Brownell's and thier description was vague, only mentioning .223 cal ar-15 application and assuming that meant carbine length. PArt number for that was 16505 and confirmed on Wolff site that was A2 length. P/N 16502 is for CARBINE length and not available from Brownells. Guess i'll have to get a proper spec spring to try out. Perhaps that will solve my lockback dilemma.

All good suggestions. Gonna re-align the gas block tonight with a home made version of this. http://hbindustries.net/products/hbi-22-cal-pins/ Should tell me if mounting straight to the shoulder is off axis or not. The Optic is torqued down in an AD mount to specs. Double checked that and ran it on another carbine with much better success so thats good.

i may try to take a little material off the delrin buffer. Also see if i can screw the buffer tube out one rotation and still retain the plunger. But will clipping a coil or two be detrimental to the spring weight? Only one way to find out i guess.

Matt, after you got yours all set, do you get lock back with the Wolff spring and taccom buffer (And if so, what ammo are you using)? What setting did you end up on the SLR block? I'm running mine at 11 clicks from closed and it will cycle my PMC, PRVI and handloads, but none lock back no matter how much i turn up the gas. But again, i think its a spring/buffer stack height issue for me.

So i just put together a rifle with the 16.5" barrel (free floated), a voodoo LTW bolt, SLR gas block, JP extra power polished carbine spring and Taccom delrin buffer. First test outing at the range, i'm having every problem you can possibly have. Cycling, lock back and accuracy are all terrible. My first goal was to get the gas system dialed in. With only PMC 55gr 223 and some PRVI m193, i could not get the thing to stop short stroking. Opened the gas block all the way up and it would eject empties, but not feed. I tried putting in a standard carbine buffer but still chronic short cycling. I had a Wolff reduced power spring on hand so i put that in there with the Taccom buffer and now it will actually cycle and feed ammo on setting 11 from closed. The wolff is something like 10% reduced and the JP is like 7% increased so thats about 17% spring rate reduction if that adds up like that. I guess that was enough resistance removed to let the bolt slide back far enough to strip new rounds from the mag. Still though, i cannot get it to lock back but i think its for a different reason. The Wolff spring is a bit longer, specifically in full coil bind, so basically with the thick spring seats of the TACCOM buffer and the Wolff spring all stacked up and bottomed out in the buffer tube, there is virtually no room to let the bolt catch rise up. In contrast, when i put the JP enhanced spring back in, i can hand cycle it and there is physically plenty of room for lockback (though it doesn't happen) so the Wolff spring is definitely longer. I double chekced the gas block alignment and it seemed fine, i guess this system is on the ragged edge of low rifle length gas pressure and shorter dwell but the lighter reiprocating mass should be helpful, no? So "Fine" i say and accept the fact that i may not be able to get lock back as long as cycling is reliable. Now i want to zero my scope and shoot some groups. I get the scope (vortex PST 1-4) on paper and shoot a few groups of the PMC, M193 and some handloads (69gr SMK over 25gr Varget) at 50 and 100 yards from the bench on a bipod and rear sandbag. None of this grouped well at any range. The PMC 223 shoots a bit softer than the rest but groups pretty big. M193 hits harder but no improvement. 69SMK load feels like M193 but is a bit tighter in grouping. All of them are stringing wildly and there is some semblance of a shot group center, but the barrel is acting so hinky its not reliable. In general, the groups were about 3-4 MOA with so many fliers in various directions, it just cant be me. I have shot sub moa groups with good rifles in heavier calibers before, i can't imagine i'm pulling shots that bad. No matter what i do, shoot it repeately hot, let it cool for several minutes between shots, its still all over the place. Wish i would have saved some targets but they were such crap, i pitched them. Looking at the barrel and how thin it is, i also noticed that it will physically deflect with just mere fingertip pressure up, down, left, right, ect. I checked my BCM 16" .625 LTW barrel and it does NOT budge at all. The Voodoo barrel will deflect up to 3/16" in any direction just lightly pushing on the muzzle. I know its thin, but is that right? I double checked the barrel nut at home and its at least 30+ ft/lbs per my torque wrench. If the barrel can tweak that easily, then it could certainly be deflecting substantially from heat soak and other factors. Anyone else notice the overly flimsy nature of this barrel?

I dont do this every time, but once in a while i put the tumbler outside and turn it on without the lid. I put a fan in front of it (or if its windy, no fan) and let the agitation cast the dust up and out of the tumbler and into the air. The breeze takes it out into the field and leaves less in the mix otherwise the dust just accumulates more and more every time you tumble as the media breaks down.