Nov 6-8, 2015
Calgary Shooting Center
Instructor: Lovie Malespin
Facilitator: Edward Osborne –TV PressPass
Zahal: Yoav Dotan
Prologue, Friday Evening.

Participants met at the Calgary Shooting Center and were welcomed warmly by the CSC staff. We were led to the member’s only area and eventually to the Cinema range where tables were set up for the students. Timmie’s and donuts were supplied (not to worry about calories, they would be worked off).
A brief introduction by Edward Osborne, course facilitator was made with a little history of the Tavor being presented. Mr. Osborne has a very detailed knowledge of the Tavor platform.

Introductions by the students were made and the shooting instructor Lovie introduced herself and gave a brief overview of her life while serving in the IDF (Israeli Defense Force) as an instructor. Overall there were 20 students present Friday evening, with one more to show up on Saturday.

Edward also introduced us to a firearm safety device that both plugged the full length of the bore and the chamber. This is what we used to dry practice with over the weekend. Ed also covered proper disassembly of the bolt carrier group, for both the TAR-21 and SAR-21 with proper lubrication points.

Saturday, Nov 7
Dry practice – Morning

Started the day with quick shuttle runs, interspersed with pushups. After we were out of breath, Lovie had us come to a stop and started off with explanation of the Het or the Hebrew letter that stands for the semi square of soldiers that stand around the instructor so that everyone hears instructions, commands and orders. Over the course, I found it to be very effective. Got into Het and was called out numbers for roll call, these were to be our numbers for the weekend. When Het was called, we would get into the semi square and call our numbers in order to ensure that all students, facilitator and Instructor were present. Counting stopped until the person not present was accounted for (bathroom break, etc).

With Het in order, Lovie started explaining the IDF Ready position. This is the position we would start each exercise from, basically a reset switch. Then we moved on to the IDF standing position, which for myself felt very weird at first, but got accustomed to it by course end. A thing to mention about the IDF
shooting positions, it that they are born from combat, not simulation, or thought up at a desk. The reality is, the IDF has gone to being more focused on urban fighting, and the IDF standing position is the evolution of that combat mindset, even down to the way you kick your lead foot when you place it on the ground, to kick debris out of the way. In practice, on a concrete square range, it is one item that all of us forgot about very quickly. In this regard, an outdoor range would have helped to cement that movement. The other item to mention about the IDF standing position, is that not all troops are issued armor, so the emphasis is on reducing the troops profile.

After some more dry practice doing Ready and Standing, we started movement with them. Running towards our targets, then coming to a shuffle/stutter stop. Then shuffling ahead. During all of these positions, the Tavor is always held parallel to the ground, either at just slightly higher than the hip (Ready), or at the shoulder (Standing). Lovie was very adamant about muzzle control during these exercises, muzzle down, or muzzle up was not acceptable due to range considerations.

During the explanation of the IDF standing position, the points of contact with the Tavor were discussed, in all there are 5 points of contact with the Tavor. Using the IDF standing position allows for all 5 points of contact to be made naturally.

During dry practice with our chamber and bore blockers installed, trigger reset was emphasized. This led to a discussion of the IDF way of addressing the Tavor trigger. The stock trigger with the rifle usually comes in around 11lb. considering this, and that the IDF trains both Men and Women on its use, they have a unique way of addressing the trigger. Instead of using the index finger pad, they use the index mid finger joint.
A brief introduction into stoppages / chamber checks were covered as well on Day 1.

Mag changes were covered. The IDF way of reloading the Tavor is to tilt the rifle up 60-65° and the mag well approx. 45° to the support / weak hand. The magazine is then stripped out with the support / weak hand and either dumped on the ground or stored in a dump pouch (situation dependant). Then a fresh mag is inserted into the mag well and the bolt release button is depressed with the thumb. Lovie teaches that the fresh mag is held mid mag, with the thumb in the thumbs up position, this is to help the shooter index the mag when inserting it and to feel the mag well upon insertion. Then that thumb is used to depress the bolt release.

During mag changes, Lovie was very vocal about not looking at the rifle, but keeping your head up and looking at the enemy.

Because of the sheer volume of mag changes, and not having everyone picking up spent mags everywhere, the drill progressed to (upon shooters discretion) to stripping the mag out, retaining it, touching your back with it, then reinserting it into the mag well to complete the drill. I found this to be effective as it takes the mag out of your sight, then you have to re-index to get it back in the mag well. As well, with the concrete floor, I wrecked a mag from throwing on the floor too many times.

Live Fire Day 1 – Afternoon

Earlier in the course, the group was split into 4 squads: Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta. The first group up was A & B.

Started off with 10 rds slow fire, using AR 15 pistol mags or Beowulf mags. Cadence was introduced to the group, 1 shot, pause, 1 shot, pause, 1 shot for a slow fire rate. In discussion with Lovie, she mentioned that full auto fire for the IDF is for the light/heavy machine gunner, not the rifleman. There is slow and rapid fire only.

The group progressed to three shot slow fire strings, mag reloads, waiting on command to fire etc. We spent around 1hr 45mins on live fire and roughly around 100 rds. The pace was very quick with only 6 shooters on the line at a time. While one group was shooting, the other was reloading and watching those on the line to see mistakes in stance and to learn from them. Safety while on the live range was very good.
Lovie instructing on the finer points of the IDF shooting stance.

When we came off the line, we went for a session with Ed in the lounge.

Ed went through how to tie the knots for the slings on a Tavor. Although I missed the exact knots he used, I did pick up where he placed the knots, which worked great on my Tavor. My sling no longer catches the bolt release.

Ed also helped change over a rifle to left handed version, and helped add newly purchased accessories to student’s rifles.

Student Supper.

After a day of training we all met up at Limericks for some much needed refreshments.

November 8th Day 2
Dry Practice – Morning

Shuttle runs…. Just to warm up, with pushups…… My legs were sore from Day 1, but the fun was just starting…..

After review of the prior day’s stances, Lovie moved onto IDF kneeling, which is much like what I am used to, with the minor difference of front leg placement. I am more used to having my kneeling look like an L shape, whereas the IDF kneeling is more T shaped.

Doing the kneeling exercises, now the fun began, with doing multiple repetitions very quickly, kneeling, standing, ready, kneeling, standing, etc. Then we occasionally had Lovie jump on our backs and command us to stand. She jumped off, as soon as we started to push up. IMO, she was looking for us to make the effort, not just accept that she was on our back. This progressed further as she kept instructing us to look at the target no matter what.

During the dry practice positions, Lovie and her partner, Zahal’s Yoav, were constantly testing the stability of our positions by pushing us, moving our rifles, exerting pressure on our shoulders, etc. If we
were moved, we had to recover and get back on target. *NOTE* this was done during dry practice only, NOT during live fire.

Next up was prone position. Much like other prone positions, this one has the shooters support / weak hand come to the ground approx. 45° in front of them, whereas they kick out their legs, with the strong leg’s (strong arm) foot ending up in line with the rifle, and the other leg making a 90° with the inside of both feet on the ground. The upper body is held very high to make use of the 5 points of contact. If you are not wearing plates, or a chest rig, it’s fairly difficult to do properly. On the other hand if you are wearing a chest rig or plates, it works very well.

Dry practice again with all the positions. Ready, standing, prone, up, kneeling, all in very fast repetition.

Dry Practice – Morning

There were three stoppages discussed. Lovie mentioned that there were actually 11 stoppages that the IDF deal with.

First – Bolt fully forward
Second – Bolt partially closed
Third – Bolt fully back.

The IA for each one was as follows:

Check chamber, yell out Mabat, and identify stoppage by number, then:

First – Tap the magazine into the mag well, rack the bolt, chamber check. Do not move from position.

Second – Move to cover, or to kneeling if standing, or prone if kneeling or roll if in prone. Then rip mag out and retain, charge the action three times, reinsert mag, charge the action to load, chamber check.

Third – Move to cover, or to kneeling if standing, or prone if kneeling or roll if in prone. Remove mag and either discard or place in dump pouch, insert fresh magazine, charge the action, chamber check.

Then a lot more dry practice using everything learned to date.

Afternoon Live Fire.

Squad C & D started with live fire, while squads A & B were with Edward in the lounge. Ed gave us three choices of what we could do with our time. We could do more dry practice, we could learn about Night Vision and Thermal systems, or we could go over knots in more detail and more technical knowledge about the Tavor. Well, looks like I was the only one rooting for more dry practice.. Night Vision and Thermal were the course topics for that 1 1/2hr session. Ed has very good knowledge of these systems from his time working for Scout Base Camp. Gen 1, Gen 3 and iPhone thermal systems were discussed and demonstrated as well as a PEQ-4 unit.

When it was our time to go to the range, we came into Het and received our instructions from Lovie. All the positions (with exception of rolling) were going to be used, as well as inducing all three stoppages. Shot strings were no more than 7 rds.

This is when Lovie took the time to correct my chamber checks. Up to that particular point of intervention, I had been chamber checking like I was checking a 1911, only looking at the end of the brass then letting the bolt go forward. But because I was not pulling it back far enough, there was not enough spring tension to fully go into battery. She bluntly told me that she had been watching me screw it up all weekend and it was time to stop it. She told me to pull it back farther and let go of the bolt. After a few times to get it right, it worked like a charm. I later asked her if in her instructional career with the IDF if she had seen troops fully rack the action while doing a chamber check due to adrenaline dump, she said flat out that, No she had not.

Final Ex.

Consisted of three magazines, two with 6rds each, one with 6 rds, but an induced malfunction. Basically on the command Attack and progress through the exercise. There would be at least a number 2 and 3 malfunction during the course of fire.

After that, we were told we had 10mins to clean up our gear and meet up in the lounge for certificate handouts and course close outs.

Equipment Used

Of course I used a Tavor. My Tavor is equipped with a Trijicon 4×32 ACOG and Surefire scout light. The trijicon has stadia for out to 600yds. Usually I use 75gr Hornady steel match zeroed at 100m. To my delight, using 55gr Norinco, without changing elevation, zeros out at 50/200m, 25/400m, 12/600m. This was verified using the Valleyview range. I only had to adjust my windage 3clicks to the right for the 55gr bullet. The system worked flawlessly. Thanks to Ed instructing me how to properly lubricate my Tavor, no “real” stoppages were encountered. The sling used was a Magpul MS3, which after adjustments and retying my knots worked great. Steel magazines, thrown constantly on a concrete floor, will deform…

Manticore buttpads were for sale during the course as well. With a great price to course participants how could I lose? The buttpad is a great replacement for the stock Tavor buttpad, throwing the rifle to my shoulder just felt better, and stayed in place better than the stock one. In discussion with Ed, he mentioned that the thick stock buttpad is for use with a 40mm GL. The other accessory I saw a lot of was the Podium. This slick little piece of kit attaches to the bottom of the hand guard and allows the rifle to
be at rest vertically. A button at the back releases two prongs that make a triangle with the third point being the rear of the handguard.

Course observations.

This was a course of IDF shooting position fundamentals featuring the use of the Tavor. Over the course, as I observed Bravo squad during live fire, I noticed that those who really bought into the IDF shooting positions, were making very consistent groups at the 12m mark. Lovie did not critique the groups or shot placement on target with any of the students (to my knowledge anyway), she critiqued our shooting positions, manipulations and malfunction clearances. This was not a “shoot little groups on paper course”, it was about building the platform to do so. As was explained to us, she took a week long course, often 20hrs a day, and condensed it into 2hrs on Friday, 8hrs on Saturday and 7hrs on Sunday.

All the students I had the good fortune to meet, were great to talk to, easy to work with and fun to hang around with. Great group of guys for a great introductory course from Zahal.

Summary

The course that Zahal put on was very professionally done. The quality of instruction, in my opinion, was top notch. Lovie, in her charming way, made sure each student’s cup of knowledge was filled. Could we have done more? Sure, with more hours, extra days, outdoor range for longer shots, but what was compressed into 17hrs was enough to keep me analyzing and practicing it for weeks to come, and leave with a taste of wanting more.

It was great that Yoav brought goodies from Israel with him. He knew that Lovie was going to be teaching kneeling, he had the foresight to grab kneepads with him before he left Israel.

One thing that really stood out in my mind about Lovie and Yoav was the lack of ego from them. Easy and relaxed when not engaged in business, they did not bring baggage with them to prove that they were the best or otherwise. Lovie stated it up front that the IDF is one of the best armies on the planet, something that to me is true.

Ed Osborne, TV PressPass, was fantastic to getting all the admin and behind the scenes work done. A very down to earth gentleman, he helped to make the course flow smoothly. Without him, a lot of good Tavor knowledge would not have been passed on.

We had two CSC range officers present during the course, Brett and Carl, they helped to facilitate the range, were students, and RSO’s during live fire. To my knowledge, they did not have to take action once with a student, Lovie took care of any issues that were in contravention of her range commands or that may have compromised safety.

Over the span of the course, Carl and Brett were great in helping the students with range related issues, hall passes, showing me all the cool new Sig toys – ok, just the MCX, but DAMN that is one nice rifle!! They helped set up tables, sweep brass, just everything you would expect from a top notch facility.
Thank you to everyone that was there, it was a great weekend.

– Michael
Dude in G.P.

But it was a hell of a lot of fun, and I’m going to write about it anyways. This course was a long time coming, and it was immensely rewarding to finally see it come together.

This course was a cooperative effort between myself, the Calgary Shooting Centre, Zahal.org, and IDF Instructor Lovie Malespin. We took 22 shooters, introduced them to the rifle, established the basic manipulations, and gave them a taste of IDF training.

If you’d like the opinion of someone who actually took the course, you can read a student’s AAR here: IDF Course AAR on CGN

One of the hardest parts of this course for me was trying to balance between IDF doctrine and civilian shooters. To a certain extent: the IDF flavor is part of the appeal. But civilian shooters build and use their rifles differently than soldiers. I think we were a little heavy on the IDF component on this course, which made for some tired shooters!

The other challenge was the sheer number of people. We started out hoping for 10 or 12, but wanted to try for more. By the time we put our foot down and capped the registration we were at 22 shooters! Having that many people leads to it’s own challenges, but also made the group exercises in dry fire that much better. On the ride to the airport Lovie said to me “I like it when they echo my commands back in unison. If you’ve only got six people in front of you they’re not going to shout like that.” But limited space in the range meant that our afternoon live-fire exercises had to be perfectly timed and executed.

It was fantastic to have Lovie and Yoav from Israel come and visit us here in Canada. That alone was a huge effort on their part: an exhausting marathon of plane rides and jet lag to bring them to the base of the Rocky Mountains. Seems to me that I ought to return the favor and take a trip out there next year.

Zahal and I are currently planning to run more of these courses in 2016, likely divided into a Level I and Level II course. Level I will be very close to what we ran this past weekend (with some tweaking and refinement of course) while Level II will cover more advanced techniques, more civilian focused skill-sets, and possibly add an element of competition.

This course really highlighted for me how Canadian the Tavor rifle is. We’re a small community of shooters compared to places like the USA, but we more than make up for it in raw enthusiasm and unwavering support of each other. I know lots of gun owners are worrying about the future of the sport now that we have a Liberal majority in this country. But we’re a stronger community than many think, and there’s lots of smart, passionate people committed to making things better. It’s great to have the chance at a course like this to meet them face to face.

My first impressions…

This thing is tiny. Like if you’ve ever handled a full sized Tavor, then a CTAR, it feels like a big jump. This feels like the same kind of jump from a CTAR to even smaller. If the TAR-21 is a rifle length barrel in a carbine length package, this is a carbine length barrel in a PDW package.

I’m not sure why IWI decided to demo this rifle to the public with an AAC flash hider on the end of it. It seemed to produce more jump than was really necessary for a .223 rifle. However a big brake would be an obvious mistake, as the short 13″ barrel and bullpup format means your nose is unusually close to the muzzle.

The mag release is way lighter than I thought. There’s a decent amount of travel to it, so you’re not going to bump it and drop a mag, but its easy to press with an index finger. Easier than most AR mag releases I’ve used.

The bolt release sticks out less than a regular Tavor, but is similarly sized. So now you’re less likely to accidentally hit your own bolt release (say with a sling. I’ve watched it happen!)

The trigger guard is small now! I kind of liked being able to grab on the vertical section of my Tavor as a carry-hold, even if IWI says I shouldn’t. The front bar on this is not something you would grab onto.

Looking at some of the internals of this setup, the conversion process to semi-only should be straight forward. Of course there’s NFA laws for US sales of short barreled rifles, so IWI is probably trying to figure out how to deal with that, either by including the tax stamp in the purchase or extending the barrel.

Would I replace my personal Tavor with one? Honestly, no. Non Restricted status in Canada is important to me.

Would I add one to my safe? In a heartbeat. I’d be really excited to get a 9mm kit for this too. It seems better suited to pistol calibers that the larger Tavor chassis.

Of course no one can guess when a civilian version of the X95 will actually appear. I’d hazard at least a year for IWI US to continue their SAR-21 program and launch the Galil Ace stateside. But whether its 2016 or later, I’ll have my name on a list for one of these great guns.

The Pistol:

The Shotgun:

Confession time. I’ve never cleaned my Akdal Mka 1919. I put it through the break in, tinkered with the mags to make them run reliably, and sprayed lube inside the beast. That’s it. This gun runs so well I am loathe to change anything. I shudder just at the thought of popping the Razor red dot off and losing my slug-zero. My initial instinct when I was thinking about the Crimson Trace match was “lasers on everything.” But as I look at the stages, and think about trying to put a laser on a clay target, I feel a light and a red dot is a better option for the “close-enough” shotgun.

I’ve busted out a piece of equipment from my very first gun: the barrel clamp light mount. It’s not pretty, but it lets me put a light on the end of the 1919 without needing any picatinny (which would require a firebird precision replacement fore-end) For lights I’m using a Klarus MODEL that I won off the Gun Owners of Canada Forum back in April.

The Rifle:

Being my perpetual favourite, I opted to bring the Tavor with me rather than borrow a stage gun. I’ve done some big changes here to make it “more 3-Gun” and less combat rifle. I noticed everyone in my squad at the MGM Ironman used Seekins Precision rails on their AR-15s. The wide flat-bottom hand guards locked in tight when it came to stabilizing against barriers. There were definitely 9-hole walls where I was resting the barrel of the Tavor on the obstacle. Not ideal. So I dropped cash on a Midwest Industries XL hand guard, and added a single section of key mod rail to put a light on the fore-end.

The same debate as the pistol: I’m unsure whether to leave the Ares Armor compensator, or put a fancy Surefire 215 Flash Hider on there to keep the fire-balls down. Side by side comparisons of the two reveal a pretty substantial difference in flash, but I’m not certain how much it matters here. For a light on the Tavor I’m using an offset mount as close to the barrel as I can get, with a surefire defender in there to illuminate down-range.

This all sounds good, but of course there’s one major curve ball with the Midnight 3 Gun: Lots of stage guns.

I know I’ll be shooting an FN AR-15 with a thermal sight on top, a suppressed glock, and a PWS piston-gun with a suppressor as well. There’ll be a mossberg 500 and a few other surprises waiting. These aren’t hard guns to shoot, but they’re not my guns, and that’s one more unknown factor. Plus you know . . . the grenade launcher and the select-fire systems. That’s just part of the fun! To steal and turn a phrase: “F**k it. We’ll do it live. And in the dark!“

I start shooting Wednesday the 13th, and I’ll be writing about it here and on The Firearm Blog.

]]> http://tv-presspass.com/gear-for-the-midnight-3-gun-invitational/feed/ 0 http://tv-presspass.com/mgm-ironman-2014-aar-i-didnt-die/ http://tv-presspass.com/mgm-ironman-2014-aar-i-didnt-die/#comments Wed, 25 Jun 2014 15:37:21 +0000 http://tv-presspass.com/?p=888 Continue reading MGM Ironman 2014 AAR: I Didn’t Die! →]]> I’m back! And finally decompressing from the amazing 3 Gun shoot that is the MGM Ironman. This was my first year at Ironman, and my second officiated 3 Gun shoot.

The short of it:

I’ve never run my guns so hard, experienced so much shooting stress, or had so much fun.

I find first person clips of entire stages are pretty boring if you’re not the guy who shot them, but here’s a highlight reel of some of the best moments from MGM Ironman 2014!

If you think my taste in music sucks there is a naked version here: https://vimeo.com/98954587 

Driving from Calgary to Parma took me nearly 18 hours with the border hassle of travelling with guns. Arriving at camp at 9pm and getting up to shoot at 6am the next morning was a poor choice. I had a pretty miserable first day, and learned my lessons about sunscreen, shooting first, and planning a stage properly.

Planning was a big component of the game that differs from my Canadian events. American’s shoot more, shoot farther, and shoot faster than the Canadian matches I’ve seen. Previously, my idea of planning was to look at the stage description and make sure I knew my zero at the furthest target. But the Ironman requires so much more. You need to have a mental map of what order you’ll shoot each target in, and know where in the stage you will be reloading. Will you go left to right, or right to left? Shoot the spinner first, or save it for the last? I learned the hard way that these things make a difference. The ROs and your squad can coach, but they’re not there to plan for you. Stage briefing at the Ironman goes like this:
“This is your rifle dump box, this is your shotgun dump box. Start here, and engage targets as they become visible.” 

Things got better after that first day. I owe a ton of thanks to my squad preparing me before the start signal and coaching me after the timer started rolling.

The Ironman was exactly what I’d hoped for, with ridiculous challenges like towers, slides, carts, and the zipline. Probably the hardest part for my bullpup rifle and me was a forced weak-hand stage that involved shooting underneath a vehicle. I had to deal with the unusual malfunction of hot brass bouncing off my face and back into the chamber!

My favourite stage by far was the trench, which involved ditching the rifle after close quarters engagements and sprinting across the entire parking lot to get to the shotgun portion. That stage also involved a pair of the deadly MGM Spinners that must be rotated completely to score. These ones were shielded behind hard cover, and I had a lot of fun working the angles to get into a shooting position.

Here’s an example of one of the stage layouts. You shoot all your 80 yard and over targets from the top of a 30ft tower (A), slide down to ground level, and do it all again from inside a massive tire (B) then move down the centre line to wrap up your pistol and rifle targets. That solid triangle is a cluster of 14 steel targets. Lots of guys timed out on this stage, and I was lucky to be able to watch and learn from their mistakes.

 

I even enjoyed the “spool-stage” that required shooters to position themselves in a small enclosed space before engaging. Many of the heavier guys cursed up and down about wedging themselves under a chunk of wood.

All the side-stages were a blast. I of course enjoyed the zipline, but also had fun using a suppressed .22 with no hearing protection to pop shots at a moving thermal target using FLIR’s infrared sight.

I’ll be doing lots of things different next year, but overall I’m pleased with my performance. Two shooters who I know and respect got disqualified this year, and I heard DQ horror stories from several veterans who didn’t make it through their first Ironman. My coach finished 34th out of 48 in the Open Division, and I took the 39th position not far behind him.

Looking at my summer schedule, I’ll be doing some smaller matches at the Peace River and Edmonton Area clubs, but the next big thing will be the Crimson Trace Midnight Invitational in August.

I said it before when I signed up for the Ironman, but I’ll say it again:

Huge Thanks To: The MGM Ironman is a big event for me, and I have lots of people to thank for getting me to a place where its within my grasp. Special thanks to Angelo Brewer from FLIR, who emailed me all through the event last year telling me I should shoot it. Also thanks to Dwight, Werner, Ken, Paul, Steve, and all the staff at Vortex Canada who’ve had me on their Field-Staff team for the past 2 years. I also owe a thanks to Zahal.org for keeping me stocked with all kinds of Czech and Israeli gear while supporting my various projects over the past year. Similar thanks to Adam Bekar at A3 sports, who’s encouraged me to haul Tasmanian Tiger packs and load-bearing equipment into the Rockies on a regular basis. A big thanks to all the people at ITM Instruments and Scout Basecamp who keep me busy during the week. Thanks to the talented people at IWI US and IWI Israel who have helped me with every question about the Tavor platform as my knowledge and skills grew alongside the rifle. Another thanks to James Bachynsky and Norm Hamilton from the Calgary Shooting Centre, who call me first when cool things show up on their doorstep. I should certainly thank Nathan Cook and the National Firearms Association for creating the Gun Owners of Canada Forum. My girlfriend Jessica deserves lots of thanks and praise for putting up with rifle parts strewn across the living-room and reload drills during movie nights. Finally, and most importantly I owe a huge thanks to the shooting community around me: everyone who says hi at the range, reads the blog, comments on youtube, or posts in the forums. You guys are cool cats, and I’m honoured to have you as an audience.

]]> http://tv-presspass.com/mgm-ironman-2014-aar-i-didnt-die/feed/ 1 http://tv-presspass.com/tavor-trex-rail-review/ http://tv-presspass.com/tavor-trex-rail-review/#comments Wed, 16 Apr 2014 22:13:19 +0000 http://tv-presspass.com/?p=817 Continue reading Tavor TREx Rail Review →]]> Through my years shooting the Tavor, many different people have suggested a six o’clock rail to be a great upgrade for the rifle. I like the factory hand-guard quite a bit. An integrated hand-stop, solid texturing, and natural angle are all good things as far as I’m concerned. But I can see the appeal in more rail space, especially when you start looking at bipods and wanting to plant yourself down on the ground.

As of writing, there are 3 primary options to add a rail onto a Tavor factory hand-guard. Swapping the entire hand-guard  is possible too, but that’s another article.

1. The Fab Defense aluminum rail. Created long before the Tavor was available in the United States, the Israeli company Fab Defense produced an aluminum rail designed for the TAR-21. However, every person I’ve ever met with a civilian rifle has had to drill, file, or otherwise modify their hand-guard to fit the Fab Defense rail. Permanent modification is not my cup of tea. 2. The IWI US polymer rail. These factory rails fit flush to the hand-guard with a single screw, and are quite prominent in lots of IWI’s marketing. That being said: I have never seen one on the shelf of any of the US or Canadian gun shops I visit. They seem to be available on a few select sites online. While I have no issues with polymer (I mean, I’m a Tavor owner after all!) these rails have always felt a bit rough when I’ve handled the prototypes at past Shot Shows. At $25 they are certainly affordable, but not something I’d personally use.

3. The TREx rail. Produced in the US, and designed specifically for civilian rifles, this rail has really impressed me. I like when I can see and understand how to install something without needing to read the instructions. The TREx aluminum rail mates to the Tavor fore-grip in 3 places with a single screw, and can be installed without removing or modifying the hand-guard whatsoever.

Like any foregrip rail, this system allows you to mount a bipod or a vertical grip onto the hand guard of the rifle. I’ve never been a big fan of the vertical grip hold that shows up in various marketing materials from IWI, but having tried it for the first time this month I can see why it might be desirable in some cases.

I like to think I spend a fair bit of time discussing how to hold, carry, and shoot the Tavor, and when you get into the compact SBR-style setups I could certainly see the added control from a vertical grip being desirable for some shooters.

 

You could also put a light on the TREx rail. I’m a big fan of Inforce WMLs, and mounting one on the TREx would put the switch in an easy position if you’re using the carry-grip.

If Surefire is more your thing: I’d suggest looking at one of the replacement hand guards from Gear Head Works or Manticore Arms that have dedicated space for surefire lights and tape switches. Personally I like spending less than $200 and getting a stellar weapon light.

In the same vein, I like that the TREx rail is only $60 and easy to add and remove. I wouldn’t say the TREx rail is a “must-have” upgrade for every Tavor owner, but if you’re looking for a hand-guard rail its certainly the best choice.

]]> http://tv-presspass.com/tavor-trex-rail-review/feed/ 8 http://tv-presspass.com/slings-for-bullpups-revisiting-the-tavor/ Thu, 02 Jan 2014 03:35:19 +0000 http://tv-presspass.com/?p=625 Continue reading Slings for Bullpups: Revisiting the Tavor →]]> It’s been more than a year since my last post on slings for the Tavor, and I feel a good deal smarter now than I did then.

As part of the CTAR-21 build I decided to change to a simpler, more flexible sling system.

Essentially, it is a quiet, easily adjustable 2 point sling that still allows for off-shoulder firing.

I chose the Vickers sling from Blue Force Gear because of its simplicity and quick adjustment feature. Lots of smart guys I trust have been recommending this sling for years, so I’ll keep it brief.

The quality materials and the ability to compress or extend the sling at a moment’s notice were major factors in my decision. I like the unpadded version, as this gives me the longest workable length of material and means that I can create the tightest total loop.

For the Tavor, I use a mash hook with a “silencer” cover and buckle on the front-left mount, and a paracord loop tied into the rear right mount. The mash hook fits tightly around the Israeli front mount, while the standard buckle serves as a breakaway for quick removal. My mash-hook and buckle assembly come from Urban ERT, but there are several quality manufacturers for this sort of hardware.

Directly behind that is the Vickers trademark pull that allows adjustment of sling length. This means that while walking, the rifle can be carried tight and close, but quickly and easily loosened off for shooting. Being able to fine tune the length of the sling is also handy when your body size changes between environments, like when wearing a t-shirt to the range compared to a heavy coat into the mountains or armour-plates and kit overseas.

The rear knot is a standard figure-eight for climbing, but any solid knot of reasonable size will do as a stop. Putting the sling on the right side means that you can transition shoulders without strangling yourself. I felt that the 550 paracord from Agilite Tactical was uniquely suited to this task, being made in Israel.

I have seen other Tavor owners use a full loop through the rear of the rifle, so that the sling can slide freely to either side. I am not a fan of this, as it invites unintentional activation of the bolt release.

My Israeli TAR-21 does not have any QD points, but a similar system could easily be adapted for an American SAR-21.

After years of trying many other slings, and a full 12 months with this setup: this is the best way for me to carry and shoot the Tavor.

]]> http://tv-presspass.com/vortex-razor-hd-genii-1-6x-rifle-scope-review/ http://tv-presspass.com/vortex-razor-hd-genii-1-6x-rifle-scope-review/#respond Fri, 08 Feb 2013 00:01:33 +0000 http://tv-presspass.com/?p=412 Continue reading Vortex Razor HD GenII 1-6x Rifle Scope Review →]]>

I’ve used a lot of different powered optics, and spent some serious time with different low-power tactical-focused scopes. When Vortex announced the Razor HD Gen II 1-6x rifle-scope using Jerry Miculek’s JM-1 reticle, I was very interested. Having loved the Viper PST 1-4 scope on my Tavor, I was excited by the chance to upgrade my glass and power.

]]> http://tv-presspass.com/vortex-razor-hd-genii-1-6x-rifle-scope-review/feed/ 0 http://tv-presspass.com/tar-21-sling-configurations-iwi-factory-sling-urban-e-r-t-and-single-point-slings/ http://tv-presspass.com/tar-21-sling-configurations-iwi-factory-sling-urban-e-r-t-and-single-point-slings/#comments Fri, 09 Nov 2012 22:25:32 +0000 http://tv-presspass.com/?p=283 Continue reading TAR-21 Sling Configurations: IWI Factory Sling, Urban E.R.T. and Single Point Slings →]]> The newest version of this article is about updated slings on my CTAR-21 Tavor SBR.

This video is exclusively about slings on the TAR-21 and other bull-pups. Because the Tavor is non-restricted, I like to take it places beyond the case-car-range travel plan that handguns and ARs are largely stuck with. I examine three different options for retaining a Tavor on your body . . . 

The first option out of the box for a new user is the IWI factory sling. This all black nylon sling has para-cord at either end, rather than any kind of loop or quick detach system. These para-cord loops, while simple and flexible, are the eventual downfall of this sling, as they will never have the same kind of quick change ability that more modern sling designs do.

You can see the IWI factory sling in several of my early videos, and I get a lot of questions on forums regarding sling options for bull-pups. I’m continually modifying my layouts, but what you see here is a quick break down for first time Tavor shooters on why a single point sling isn’t really worthwhile on these rifles.

Single point slings are often seen as part of the “high-speed low-drag” movement in firearms training, but the Tavor is definitely not designed for a single point sling. The balance of a bullpup does not encourage them to lie vertically with only one mounting point, and the only available spots to attach and single point sling are sub-optimal at best. Watch the video and you’ll see what I mean.

That and single point slings can cause real mobility issues for anyone looking to run or manipulate objects without keeping a hand on the rifle. A single point sling retains the weapon, but does not put the weapon “in-storage.” A friend returning from Afghanistan made the point that “single points work well for getting in and out of vehicles. But that’s about it.”

I bought my Urban E.R.T. at Shot Show 2012, and it came with a full compliment of attachment accessories. From all my experience with the Urban E.R.T. line I can say this with confidence: they have the most configurable options of any sling manufacturer that I have ever used.

The Tavor has two effective mounting positions, either of which can be switched to the left or right side. You have the spinning loop on the front hand-guard, and the hollow tube in the rear just above the bolt release. The forward mount can be unthreaded and flipped easily, and the rear hole relies on some sort of para-cord tie. (It’s worth noting though that some skilled people like PBR streetgang use a mesa tactical 870 QD sling mount inside that hole. Apparently it works great!)

When first setting up the Urban E.R.T. on the Tavor, my instinct was to build a three-point-ish system that would cradle the rifle against me, and have quick detach points across it. I wound up with something like the image below. If that looks a little elaborate to you, then you’re right. I found that this system was a lot to keep track of, would frequently catch on other gear I was wearing, and become an obstacle for reloading the rifle.

 

 After several months with this setup and struggling to overcome its limitations, I decided to wipe the slate clean and try to choose a sling based on how I wanted it to affect the rifle, rather than trying to use all the parts in my toolbox of mounts.

 

I essentially returned to two point sling system on the TAR-21, with two key differences from IWI’s included sling: First I used the Urban E.R.T. for the quick detach options and novel elasticized section. (Many slings have a length of bungee in them, but the Urban E.R.T. has a bungee-solid combination to prevent the sling from hyper-extending and bouncing the weapon back into your face!)

Secondly, I ran my paracord loop through the right side of the rifle, rather than the traditional two mounts both on the left side. This allows the loop to slide around, which makes shouldering the rifle easier. Most importantly, putting the rear mount on the opposite side also means that I can successfully transition and fire from my left shoulder without modifying the sling.

That ability overcomes one of the key “tactical complaints” about the Tavor. Many American and military shooters raised on the AR/M4 series rifles will tell you that bullpups have limited roles in combat because they “cannot be fired left-handed.” While this may be true for some bullpup rifles (SA-80) the Tavor can be configured individually for a left handed user, and also fired left handed by a right handed user. I would argue that the transition process of switching your grip is even simpler than the AR-15, although a little bit of care must be taken around the ejection port.

As of this time I am considering experimenting with the Larry Vickers Blue Force Gear slings on the Tavor as well, but I feel the Urban E.R.T. fits everything I want from this rifle.

Update: Sure enought, my thoughts on the BFG sling on a CTAR-21 Tavor SBR are here

]]> http://tv-presspass.com/tar-21-sling-configurations-iwi-factory-sling-urban-e-r-t-and-single-point-slings/feed/ 1 http://tv-presspass.com/tavor-tar-21-and-magpul-p-mag-compatibility/ http://tv-presspass.com/tavor-tar-21-and-magpul-p-mag-compatibility/#respond Fri, 09 Nov 2012 22:13:46 +0000 http://tv-presspass.com/?p=277 Continue reading Tavor TAR-21 and Magpul P-Mag compatibility →]]>

Now there’s some discussion over whether this is a real phenomenon or not. From what I could see, on my rifle, it seems quite likely that the rear profile of the polymer magpul p-mag is touching the bolt hold open device just enough to raise it and have it interact with the bolt even when the magazine has rounds in it.

I believe this to be the source of the jams and failure to feeds I experienced previously.

]]> http://tv-presspass.com/tavor-tar-21-and-magpul-p-mag-compatibility/feed/ 0