I recently posted about a morale patch from Battle Arms Development. That patch has since been discontinued in favor of a new patch. The previous patch featured the image of an M14 which, while very cool, doesn’t represent the newer AR-15 products that Battle Arms Development now manufactures. The new version of the patch is 3″ diameter circle and features a waving American Flag in the center.
The A-DAC lower receiver for the AR-15 family of weapons is a new and interesting concept from AXTS Weapons Systems. A-DAC stands for Ambidextrous Dual Action Catch. The A-DAC lower’s unique feature is that by fully depressing the magazine release button, you also activate the bolt catch. This allows right handed shooters to activate the bolt catch with their strong hand trigger finger while also releasing the magazine.
This functionality removes several steps from the process that is necessary to clear a double feed malfunction. Normally, the shooter would lock the bolt to the rear using the bolt catch, then release the magazine using the magazine release button, and so on. The A-DACs lower allows the the shooter to lock the bolt to the rear and drop the magazine using only the magazine release button which should save time.
The QFSS is a new offset optic mounting system from STAT International and LMT.
Many rifles, like the AR-15, are capable of both tremendous accuracy and tremendous speed. However, the optics that are mounted on these rifles are usually optimized for either speed at shorter distances or long distance accuracy. This disparity between the versatile nature of the rifle and the specialized nature of the optic is very apparent when you try to use a magnified optic at shorter distances. The magnification can slow the shooter in acquiring the target enough that they are unable to achieve the full extent of the speed that the rifle is capable of.
Optics like those from Trijicon that reticles designed to utilize the Bindon Aiming Concept and optics with low power magnification settings are certainly very usable at shorter distances, but they will still never match the speed of a red dot sight (RDS). In order to deal with the short comings of magnified optics, many competition shooters began to find ways to mount a mini RDS and a magnified optic. This allowed the precision at longer distance that they required and the speed up close when they are going against the clock. It worked well enough that the concept quickly found its way to the battle field.
Originally, the RDS was mounted on top of the magnified optic which required the shooter to adjust their cheek weld in order to acquire the RDS – if a cheek weld was even possible. Lately, there are have been mounts that allow the RDS to be mounted offset from the magnified optic so that the shooter needs only to slightly rotate the rifle while maintaining their cheek weld to acquire the RDS. Since the shooter is able to maintain their cheek weld, it takes less time to acquire the mini RDS. This brings us to the QFSS from STAT International and LMT.
QFSS stands for Quick Fire Sight System. The QFSS is a mount that allows you to mount a mini RDS at a 45 degree offset to your magnified optic. It is called a system for good reason. It isn’t just a single mount. The QFSS actually contains everything needed to mount several of the most popular mini red dot sights:
Doctor Reflex
Burris Fastfire II
Aimpoint Micro T-1 and H-1
Insight MRDS
Trijicon RMR
Leupold Delta Point
I would think that this modular, all in one approach would make the QFSS very attractive to any group that might have a variety of different optics at their disposal. STAT International tells me that eventually the mount will be offered with the specific mount needed for your specific mini RDS for those who don’t need to capability to mount several different types of mini RDS.
Even though the QFSS offsets the mini RDS, it is still inline with the bore and the adapters are made to compensate for the height differences of each different mini RDS. Zeroing a mini RDS that is mounted on top of a magnified optic can be tricky due to the extreme height over bore. The QFSS will not suffer from these issues.
So, if there are other offset mounts on the market, what makes the QFSS unique? Well, the modular design is pretty unique but what is most unique is the process by which the QFSS came into existence. STAT International conducted 100 surveys, poured over the data, and tweaked the design until it worked exactly the way it should. This lead to details like the use of slotted screws which can be removed with any number of field improvised items. This 8 month R&D period produced a mount that STAT International claims will repeat zero within 1/16 to 1/8 MOA.
MapTools.com is my go to source for map tools. It seems like every time I browse their site I turn up something new to try. I am also a big fan of the Delorme Atlas & Gazetteer (A&G) map booklets but I have always wished that I had the tools needed to really make the A&G maps work well with my GPS.
The UTM Coordinate System makes syncing maps and a GPS very easy but the A&G maps are not labeled for use with UTM so I needed to find an alternate way. I found that way with the latitude longitude coordinate system and the extensive selection of map rulers at MapTools.com. Delorme makes the A&G in a variety of different scales (15 in all) and MapTools.com makes a map ruler for each one of those scales.
These rulers allow you to, with some basic knowledge of the latitude longitude coordinate system and some practice, transfer points between your map and GPS unit with precision. The rulers also have distance scales in meter and mile scales. They are available individually or as a set of all 15 different scales used in the A&G series. These are some very handy tools to have in your navigation kit.
Nick Allen is the man behind NWA knives. His knives are known for their extremely unique and recognizable organic lines, functional designs, extreme durability, and bullet proof sheaths. Until recently, knife making was his part time job but now Nick is hanging out his shingle as a full time knife maker.
The NWA Sierra Scout is purpose built to thrive in the wilderness.
Not only does Nick make phenomenal knives, he backs those knives with great customer service.
One of the missions of Jerking the Trigger is to shine a spotlight on real American entrepreneurs, small business people, and craftsman. Nick certainly fits all three of those categories. Next time you are ready to buy a knife, consider supporting a skilled craftsman like Nick at NWA knives.
