I managed to get my mitts on one of the Sa20 clones, and we had a sit down with Wally F, a Canadian Forces infantryman to talk about the differences between this and his work rifle.

This is one of the longest videos I’ve ever done, and I’m actually super happy with how the back and forth went on camera. I’m used to running off a mental script, and then cutting later, so doing things on the fly like this was a little new.

It only took a few thousand rounds for me to start feeling proficient with mine and to really understand the firearm. That’s part of why I try to review guns I’ve had for an extended period of time. I like getting the newest, shiniest thing and posting about it, but it also bothers me when I don’t have a full range of experiences with a firearm. Definitely not the issue here.

Also fun to throw in some Cowboy Bebop jokes and watch the fans go wild. I wish I had more pop culture references in the tank for future shows.

They’ve got two announcement videos, one with lots of content and one with lots of shooting, but here’s the core concept of the setup:

Your safe is still safe, your semi is still a strictly mechanical milspec trigger pull, but your third safety position puts the trigger into digital mode. In digital mode, the grip safety must be engaged, and the trigger pull is ~1lb with no take up. You can also set the digital mode to a “shot on pull” and “shot on release” mode.

If you’re on the Push & Release mode, and don’t want to fire that second shot, holding the trigger depressed for six seconds stop that followup shot from being discharged.

So the digital system is battery powered, the the two buttons on the rear of the grip set your single shot or Push & Release mode. The grip safety also has to be engaged before the trigger in pulled in order for the gun to fire.

I’m sure the ATF is wetting their pants right now, but this isn’t all that dissimilar from the Push & Release mechanical triggers we’ve seen before.

Currently we’ve got no MSRP, and no official release date, although there is a mailing list signup open. It looks like the company made their first online appearance as recently as November 7th this year. I’d bet my month’s earnings that we’ll be hearing more about this system at Shot Show 2017.

What do you think users? This definitely strikes me as a different look at the “electronic smart gun” concept. I appreciate that the core mechanical system of a proper trigger is retained, but I can just imagine people trying to hack these apart and enable a true full auto mode. Or who knows, maybe in 2017 we’ll see a repeal of the Hughes Amendment and a firmware update pushed live to all these guns enabling full-auto fun-times. A man can dream…

Well I’ve still got it, and still shoot in on a regular basis. I’ve settled on a Meprolight optic, traded the A2 flash hider for a PWS brake, and removed the fancy Magpul ACS stock in favor of a matchy Magpul MOE stock.

I also bought my first M-Lok accessory for it, and found it to be a pain in the ass to install. I’m definitely a keymod person. The polymer-to-polymer connection of M-Lok was finicky.

Additionally with this rifle I’ve started using IMI .50 Beowulf magazines. I’ve been shooting .50 Beowulf mags for years now, and these are hands down the best I’ve used. They’re much stronger than some of the other .50 polymer magazines out there, and much better sized than the aluminum body mags I’ve used in the past. Definitely a keeper, and I’m glad I got a few.

I love this rifle because of it’s simplicity. It’s light, it’s handy, and it works. Even with the basic Meprolight red dot I can ring that 300 yard gong with consistency. I’d be curious to see how it handled a 10,000 round trial, but I’ve had no issues with it since I put it together. I feel like it works so darn well now that I’m naturally averse to any substantial changes. Firearms can be such a fluid thing for a hobbyist, always trying new concepts, new gear, or new platforms. But it’s nice to have a few guns in the safe that don’t change.

I still think that the most affordable way to get into the AR15 game is through a slow buy used gun. If you piece together the bits, you can take your time, watch for deals, and get a great gun for a great price. You don’t have to scour the internet and scrimp and save at every turn, but if you keep your eyes open and are patient, it pays off.

In this piece we look at the XCR’s origins as part of the USSOCOM SCAR contract, the super short .308 rifle, and put the drone up in Virden, Manitoba.

I’ve been shooting a lot of .308 guns this summer, and hands down the XCR has been my favorite. It’s unbelievably light to carry and surprisingly light recoiling. I wish I could shoot it a little more accurately, but it is coming out of a 9″ barrel.

This unit is using the keymod for-end, which I found a great way to put grips and other accessories on there. I’ve used M-LOK in my magpul handgaurds and found it a very finicky setup with the potential for false positives. I’m much happier using M-LOK parts going forward.

You’ll also notice a stock adapter on here that allows me to mount a buffer tube and Daniel Defense AR-15 stock to the XCR. That’s a part made by Dlask here in Canada and is definitely very handy.

I thought I was all wrapped up with the XCR, and have finally returned the loaner rifle to Wolverine, but I’m getting lots of requests from TFB readers to take a look at the 5.56 version of the rifle, particularly now that they’re starting to add lightweight barrels to the mix. So we’ll see! Maybe 2017 will see some more Robinson Arms action.

With the 13″ barrel they’re super light, and super handy. 10 rounds of .308 at your disposal will get the blood pumping.

It’s been years since I’d had real range time with an XCR, and I’d forgotten all the handy function stuff they’ve done as far as ambi-mag and bolt release, ambi safety, etc. I’d forgotten that they’re actually easier to disassemble than an AR too.

You don’t want to be the poor sucker beside it tasked with taking photos or holding the shot timer. It makes some noise and pumps out some concussion with that brake & barrel combo.

But for the shooter, it’s certainly not any more punishing than a pump-gun with target load. Ms TV-PressPass has no problem shooting it either, and she shies away from the M305 etc.

Compared to other .308 rifles I’ve shot in the past, this one feels right in the controls, and feels right in the weight. Everything is right where you look for it in terms of manipulations. And if I could magically convince the CFO that I really needed this lightweight backpacking gun out in the bush, I’d be happy to carry it all day. (And I am a skinny SOB who’s had some crap days carrying heavier guns way too far into the hills)

The addition of keymod has been a real benefit to the XCR platform. My biggest issue with the guns were how front heavy they were. This thing has none of that. Also, I learned that I infinitely prefer keymod over M-Lok. None of that t-nut silliness for me thank you.

I can’t speak to accuracy yet. I’ve only been at the 50 yard range having fun with the thing and getting familiar for the first hundred rounds.

The final note though is that this is a very limited role rifle. If you want one, it’s awesome. But I’m not about to talk anyone into replacing something in their safe with one. It’s an expensive gun, expensive to feed, and still restricted. But for Heavy Metal 3-Gun, it’s a solid solution. Particularly with commonly available 10 round mags.

A flurry of announcements yesterday solidified for me the idea that’s been floating around for years: all of the coolest shotguns in this country and coming out of Turkey right now. They’re doing things that no one else is, making them at an affordable price, and exporting them.

The big reveal is that the RCMP has ruled several versions of the Uzkon BR99 to be non-restricted. Expect to see guns from Trigger Wholesale, O’Dell Engineering, and Corwin Arms all coming out in 2016.

The BR99 is a piston driven semi-auto 12 gauge shotgun that feeds from a detachable box magazine. The idea is to bring the advantages of rifle controls and manipulations to a shotgun platform. The fact that it’s a non-restricted firearm is just icing on the cake. These guns are excellent options in 3-Gun competitions. The simple reload and semi-auto speed are crucial advantages when the clock is on.

Additionally, Trigger Wholesale has confirmed that their AS46 family of pump guns are good for import too. The AS46 are a series of short barrelled box mag guns, offered with a variety of stocks. The big news is that as a manual action firearm, there’s no restriction on magazine capacity for them. Trigger Wholesale is planning on including 10 round magazines, and I’ll bet even bigger ones are a possibility.

Looking at the wide range of interesting things coming out of Turkey, I’m struck by two major questions: First, are they all using a consistently standard pattern of magazine? And two: my Akdal Mka 1919 appears to use a very similar gas system to these new guns. Is it still restricted as an AR-15 variant? I’ll have to wait to get my hands on a BS99 and see how similar they really are.

But even looking past those new guns, the Turks have been sending us cool stuff for years.

I already own an Akdal Mka 1919, the 12 gauge shotgun that is restricted as an AR-15 variant. I’ve also got a SAP-6 in the safe: a compact, modular shotgun with capacity that far outstrips anything else on the market. Yes, even the Kel Tec. With a magazine coupler and 11 round mags, you can be sitting at a full 23 rounds of 12 gauge on and in the gun.

The former Ottoman Empire is also behind the UTAS dual tube pump-gun. Regardless of whether that unusual critter is your cup of tea or not: you have to admit there’s some serious outside the box thinking coming together to make that gun come together. What’s more, it’s got the high profile looks to make it a popular choice in Hollywood. I was pleased to spot one getting eaten in Jurassic World this summer.

The diverse base of manufacturers in Turkey definitely have a grip on the tactical market. Some of their products (specifically ironsights) are a little rough, or a little over the top, but they’re definitely headed in the right direction. I find it interesting that after years of US companies like Winchester selling us Turkish guns with US names on them, that we’re starting to go direct to the source and tap into the wide range of options.

Owners of expensive Italian shotguns often decry Turkish manufacturers as being “low-grade” and compare them to Chinese guns in terms of fit and finish. But I think that’s a massively unfair characterization, and that the range of options and affordable price vastly outweighs most issues of final polish. If I were suggesting a shotgun to a new shooter, I don’t think the old standard of “Mossberg or Remington” applies anymore. Not when you can get twice the gun for half the price.

I’ve got a few in the safe already. But I’m excited to add a few more and see what these new offerings out of Istanbul are like.

Stage 1 was a zig-zag pattern. Shooters begin on the left side of the field with an array of IDPA and no shoot targets. On the buzzer, they clear the paper with their pistol, ditch it into a dump box, retrieve their rifle and run diagonally across the field to a desk barrier.

There are targets on the way to the barrier, a cluster of 3 targets about 60 yards downrange, and a pair of shielded targets right at the barrier. It’s not often that you’re shooting rifle paper under 5 yards, so I had a good time compensating for the height over bore of the Tavor. Once that’s clear the rifle is ditched, and the shooter cuts back across the field again to where their shotgun is waiting with some steel poppers and clays.

Stage 2 took place on the range behind the Quonset, and had a fun shotgun-focus. After breaching through the door, shooters find themselves in a snow-fence hallway and have to move up to a table clearing poppers and clays on both the left and right. Strategically placed barrels put some tricky clays behind cover, and counting targets during the walk through definitely paid off. I watched a few people zip through the course only to realize one clay had survived in hiding.

Once the hall was cleared, shooters would dump the shotgun, take their rifle off a range table, and ring 3 steel targets down-range. Simple, clean. Pick up the rifle, fire 3 rounds from a standing position (no resting) and put it down again.

Of course my rifle jammed. Having just experienced a serious malfunction with the shotgun at last month’s shoot, I wasn’t feeling mean enough to mortar my Tavor and force it to behave. I took a Failure to Engage penalty on this stage and moved on to the handgun port. The last segment of the stage was a wall with an array of 5 paper targets and two no-shoots fanned out in front of the window. It was a fun and fast section of working left to right hitting close targets in swift succession.

Stage 3 used the wide yard range, and had the distinction of featuring the first steel no-shoots I’ve ever seen. It went like this: shooters begin by ringing steel through ports on a VTAC barrier, run diagonally across the range two a goal post of barrels framing a range of paper IDPA targets.

Once the paper’s been thoroughly punched, the shooter dumps their rifle and returns to the center of the stage where their shotgun is waiting on a table between a set of ported walls. The texas star is set up directly downrange from the table, but with two steel poppers sitting in front that are listed as no-shoots. As you knock plates off the star, remaining targets start to spin behind the no-shoots. Hit them fast! Because it is possible for two plates of the star to come to rest behind the poppers, and then you’re out of luck!

After returning your shotgun to the table you clear the remaining IPSC targets with your handgun through the ports in the walls. I was lucky here, if you do everything right you can clear the shotgun portion with only 5 rounds.

Stage 4 & 5 took place on the same range, and had the same set of commands, but each used a single firearm. Stage 4 was the pistol horse shoe, while 5 was the shotgun horseshoe. There were two starting boxes, and a symmetrical array of targets on each side, with a single solid wall in the middle. The idea was that the shooter could choose either box, and clear the course however they wished, but sooner or later you were going to have to come back up the opposite side.

It was great to see different shooters try to game particular portions of this stage. Do you try to shoot around the wall from your start position, and clear the closest two targets on either side? Do you try simultaneous slow movement and slow shooting to bring each close target into view at the right time? Do you chase speed or accuracy? Despite being only a single-gun stage, it was still challenging and fun to think through.

Doing the whole thing again with a shotgun and clays instead of pistol and paper was great. This is exactly the kind of thing where I expect the Mka 1919 to shine, and it did. After a year of shooting this shotgun in competitions, I think I’m about ready to put together a proper review. Expect that to appear here shortly!

I had an interesting shoot with my MKA 1919 suffering a critical failure after two trigger pulls. (Critical, not catastrophic, more on that later.)

There were some nice “shooters choice” opportunities at this event. Nothing bugs me like a 3-Gun stage that’s written like a theater director reading a script. Here there was some looseness in the stages that boiled down to “These are your targets, where your feet can be, and what gun you need to shoot them with. How you get from A to B is up to you.”

Here’s a rough stage rundown from memory:

Stage 1: A graduated bay with 25, 50, and 100 yard targets. Shooter starts with their rifle, engages close paper targets, then mid-range paper targets along the way to a VTAC barrier and shoots far steel flashers. Cut back towards the 50 yard berm, dump the last rounds into a close paper target, then dump the rifle. Grab your shotty, nail a pair of clays, clear a forest of steel poppers, and then put one slug on a close paper target. Transition to handgun, where there are four small coffin-shaped steels, and a “hostage” setup. This was a swinger with a no-shoot attached, where hitting the steel “leg” would cause the no-shoot to swing out of position exposing a paper target behind it. Lots of fun. If you were smart, you knocked the leg out then tagged the steel while the no-shoot slowed down. For the record: I wasn’t smart.

Stage 2: Out the back of a quonset, start with rifle. Shooter sprints to a mat, goes prone and rings steel. Then rings the steel again off a VTAC barrier. Ditch the rifle, retrieve shotgun, and clear a field of 8 close clays and 4 dropping steel targets. I really liked the opportunity to go prone on this stage. Shooting in Alberta in March is likely to have some pretty soupy ground conditions, so adding the mat was a good call all round. More comfortable, less messy, well defined shooting box.

Stage 3: Stages 3 & 4 shared the wide central field, where WRAS used the diagonal angle to maximize their rifle distance. Start in one corner, and engage paper targets in the opposite corner (approx 80 yards?) Ditch the rifle, retrieve your shotgun, then run the length of the range to a charge line where there were a handful of clay stands and clay-thrower poppers. If you haven’t shot these, it’s a large coffin shaped steel target that when shot, falls onto a lever and launches a clay pigeon into the air. Lots of fun. Ditch the shotgun, and clear a close-range plate rack with pistol.

Stage 4: Same start position as stage 3, but shooting straight ahead instead of the diagonal. Engage 3 partially covered paper targets with the rifle, then grab your shotgun and haul up to a snow fence barricade. Two ports, two target arrays, and you were required to transition between them. 3 steel poppers from one, and a pair of slug targets from the other.

Stage 5: Inspired by Larry Vicker’s recent Collateral video, the opening of this stage required the shooter to start in a surrender position, engage a single IDPA target, then neutralize a second IDPA on the side followed by an alpha “eye-box only” target. This was all fast, fun, and close range. The stage description encouraged qualified shooters to engage the first target from retention. After your Tom Cruise moment is complete, ditch the handgun, and run back to retrieve your shotgun and go through the breaching door. Through the door was a snow fence hallway with barrel barricades, a selection of 7 clays and 3 slug targets straight ahead. This was one of those nice “shooter’s choice” moments where you could start on the clays, then switch to slugs, or start sending slugs down-range as soon as you were through the door. I opted for the latter, and that’s where my problems started…

My Shoot:

My shotgun is in a bad way. Starting on Stage 5, I breached the door with my Mka 1919, sent the first slug flying, and then got a dead trigger. The action was stuck forward, and I smacked it pretty hard to get the chamber open and the empty hull removed. After some inspection, it looked like the roll pin from the extractor had worked its way out of the BCG and seized up solid. That gun was done for the day.

This sucked: I’d never cleaned that shotgun all last season, and found its performance excellent aside from a few magazine issues. I’d had several range sessions with the gun over the winter and never had any problems. This was the first failure, and it was a major one. Fortunately, I was able to borrow an LAK12 Puma, which proved an interesting experiment.

I’ve been watching the Puma since it was released. Being a Tavor shooter, the idea of a magazine-fed bullpup shotgun is appealing. Add in NR status, adjustable gas system, built in flat-top rail, and a last round bolt hold open: it seems like a winner.

I encountered two major drawbacks with the Puma, which fortunately share a simple solution.

Problem 1: It wouldn’t always cycle target load. I was assured it was on the correct gas setting, but at least once a stage it would fail to pickup the next round and I’d have to rack the action manually after a click with no bang.
Problem 2: It wouldn’t always knock down steel. The puma doesn’t have thread in chokes, and it’s just a cylinder bore. There were several times where I could see shot splashing off the steel targets, but not putting them down.

Solution: To add more oomph and improve reliability, I’d be shooting heavier loads through this gun for any and all 3 gun shoots. #4 or #6 shot at least. I think at least one industrious Canadian has already removed the Chinese flash hider and threaded their barrel for Remington chokes. Not a bad idea either.

The other upgrade that would help make the Puma more competitive is an enhanced magazine release. It should be fairly straight forward to fit some kind of an extended paddle onto the left side release, and it would definitely speed up reloads.

On a personal note I feel like my winter dry-firing has really improved my pistol shooting this season. 10 minutes daily. There wasn’t a lot of handgun in these 5 stages, but I enjoyed what there was. In 2014, I was fairly sure my handgun game was my weakest component in 3-Gun, and am glad to see that turning around.

Now I just have to revive my Mka 1919 and see if I can trust it again, or whether it’s time to get a Puma of my own…