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Pat_Rogers
08-19-07, 12:33
EAG conducted a Carbine Operators Course at the Memphis PD Range, 15-17 August 2007.
After the heat and humidity of the previous StJoMo class, the 107 degrees of Memphis was similar to a cold snap. The range is open, a breeze was relatively constant, and air conditioned classrooms were nearby for chow and poorly feeling students
This was an open enrollment class and like all of our open classes was populated by cops, military, contractors and earth people.
Most of the students were prepared for the WX, but not everyone can afford the time away from real jobs to get acclimated. However, being in decent shape is never a bad thing, and being in poor shape is always a bad thing. This is especially true in hot WX- the better your physical condition, the better you can tolerate heat.
If you are out of shape, smoke, carry a large food blister around and spend too much time sitting on a likewise large butt in front of a computer screen, you will be less likely to function in this environment.
You have to hydrate regardless of the WX. You need to drink a combination of water and electrolyte replacement, and you need to eat.
Ignoring either will make you a casualty.
If you aren’t properly hydrated you will be a poor performer. Without concern over what that means to you, it means you will be a distraction to others at the low end of the scale, eat up time and resources while you are tended to, and at the high end you will become a safety hazard to others.
You must bring fluid up to the liner with you. To not do so is stupid. There is no other way to say it.

Memphis PD is another one of my fav ranges. The attitude of the department- especially the FTU- is exceptional, and the quality of their program makes every other department/ agency/ office I have seen pale by comparison. Beyond all of that, they have a spectacular physical plant, and it comfortably exceeds expectations.
Jason Redding was once more the host, but in service training prevented both he and Brad Manning from attending this class- which bummed me out.
This year the staff ensured that we all had several Black Widows each at both the 50 yard line as well as at the targets.
Very Cool!

In spite of the WX, we exceeded the curriculum and did some additional pistol work. This was in no small part due to the skill sets that the shooters brought with them, as well as the degree of cooperation extended. The quality of the shooting and gun handling was better then average.

Weapon and Related Issues.
One shooter was using the made in israel, low quality Q3131A. It lived up to its shoddy reputation by popping primers at the rate of 2 or more per magazine. Heat was an aggravating factor, but the 5.56 marked chamber was in fact much smaller then that, and required a pass with the excellent Ned Christiansen Reamer.
This same gun had extraction problems as well. We replaced the extractor, put in a 5 coil extractor spring and black insert. It still had problems, and then Mike Hueser noticed that the charging handle was bent. We replaced that with a real charging handle and real ammunition and the gun ran well.
Hobby guns are great for guys who don’t shoot a lot, but serious jobs require serious guns.
One shooter had a 2 stage RRA trigger which was a horrible performer. He used one of my loaners, and then eventually switched the bad lower for one with a stock trigger.
It is interesting that we had a High Power and 3 Gun Competitor in the class. He had a RRA 2 stage trigger in his carbine and it ran like a sewing machine. This shooter was a great students and wanted very much to absorb all of the knowledge possible to make him a more rounded shooter. His gun/ equipment may not have been a tad off the tactical mark , but it suited his requirements well and he did a great job (see Search…)
From a doctrinal perspective, I cannot see any need for a “match” type trigger in a working carbine. While they may offer some use in an SPR, the downside is a reduced service life. They are (some of them anyway) getting better, but still have no use in a fighting gun.
I sometimes think of these as GTU’s- Gunsmith Transfer Units. They transfer your money into someone else’s pockets, sometimes several times over as you have to get them repaired/ replaced.
One very good shooter showed up with a fixed stock, fixed carry handle carbine with a goosenecked arms mount for his carbine.
This is a legacy gun, and while still valid, is overtaken by events. Certainly the fixed A2 stock is too long for 95% of the people, but he was informed at a previous school that collapsible stocks and tactical slings are useless (apparently the guy who told him this has never actually carried a carbine). The gooseneck mount sucks. There was one other shooter there with one as well, and both mounts were coming loose on a regular basis. The real problem wasn’t with any of the above, but what turned out to be maybe the strangest failure I have ever seen on a carbine.
In the middle of a string, the bolt failed to go into battery. He did his IA drill, and still not going into battery.
We pulled him off the line and Mike took a look. Sure enough there was a piece of metal in the lugs at the barrel extension. He removed it, and to his (and our) surprise, it was a hex head machine screw. There was a bit of head scratching and then he noticed that a screw was missing from the arms mount. He took the one out of the locking lug, and it fit in that hole in the mount…
I am having great difficulty in figuring out how this happened.
I am having greater difficulty in figuring out how another screw, of the same thread/ pitch/ length could have come from someplace else and wound up inside the gun.

We had a few magazine issues (of course). Sometimes even good magazine take a dump in the middle of the class. Bring good mags with you, but bring several extra.
I have not had but one problem with my 16 PMAG’s, and that was a smoke one that broke a feed lip (no surprise with the smoke one). The rest have a lot of rounds downrange without problems.
Paul at BCM gave me a box of his D&H mags for student use, and we have been passing them out as a loan to those poor souls whose personal/ issue mags have bit the dust. These are exceptional magazines, and we haven’t seen any issues with them>
Thanks Paul!
On another note, one student buggered up his grip screw to a fair thee well. It was beyond local help, but a telcon with Wes Grant of MSTN brought him relief. Wes brought out the big guns for this job, and now all is well.
Note to others. Do not blue Loctite the pistol grip screw….
One shooter had a POF gun that was problematic. He kept on switching BCG’s without success and borrowed one of my loaner guns. He eventually found popped primers in both BCG’s, and finished with his own gun.
There was a Noveske N4 Lite Carbine in the class, which ran like a sewing machine. Gee, what a surprise!!
I have been bringing three M&P15’s to class in order to get rounds downrange for a SWAT article. My goal is 5k rounds per gun, and two shooters- both MPD FTU instructors stepped up and did that deed, and the third was a shooter whose POF had problems.
I also had the opportunity to get some hard use rounds downrange in my M&P .45.
I like this gun. There are some issues with it that I would like to see changed, but it exceeds my expectations by a bunch.

At every open class we see just about the same things. There are few surprises, but I try to keep an open mind as to what is good and what sucks. We have seen 480,502 rounds of carbine ammo go downrange this year. I am confident in my observations as to what works, and what doesn’t.

Many thanks to Mike Hueser for keeping things rocking, as well as being Mr. Med Guy and preventing heat casualties.
Thanks as well to Jason Redding and the staff at MPD FTU for their continued hospitality and support. We are looking forward to two shoot house classes their in 08.
And of course kudos to TangoDown, Viking Tactics, Slip 2000, BlueForce Gear, Larue Tactical, Crye Associates, BCM, Tactical Springs and CSM for their continued support.