Gun & Prepping News #86

 Some links that may be of interest:

• "Dollars Per Mile: Long Range Rifles for the Rest of Us"--Recoil. The author describes a rifle he put together for shooting out to one mile which final cost (including optic) of  $4,974.
• If you think that is expensive.... "American SA80: The British Problem Child Reborn In The USA"--Recoil. An American company is attempting to produce copies of the SA80. And it will only set you back $12,000. 
• "Taurus RPC Review: MP5 Feel Under $1,000"--Guns America. A roller delayed 9mm large format pistol:

The receiver is aluminum with a serialized steel chassis. The barrel is steel, 4.5 inches long, and threaded 1/2×28 for direct suppressor mounting. A thread protector ships standard. The gun includes a full-length Picatinny top rail, M-LOK slots on both sides and the bottom of the handguard, a flat-face single-stage trigger, and an AR-15-compatible grip, which means any standard AR grip drops straight in, a detail Taurus got right.

• "Is the VZ 58 A Good AK Alternative? Personal Experience"--The Firearm Blog. The author relates:

 VZ58 is incredibly lightweight for what it is; it is more accurate than many AKs and has a bolt hold-open mechanism. But the unfortunate reality is - in the 21st century, VZ 58 faced the same problems as AK. Mounting accessories is hard and requires serious modifications.

• "Accurized AK-103 - the 7.62x39mm AK-103 Upgrade Program to AK-203"--The Firearm Blog. 
• ".300 AAC Blackout: History, Ballistics, and Ammo Selection"--Mag Life. An excerpt:

    Both the 5.56 NATO and .300 Blackout use the same case. However, the 5.56 NATO utilizes a .224-inch diameter projectile, which is noticeably smaller than the .300 Blackout’s .308-inch bullet.

    At close ranges, .300 Blk offers superior ballistics and higher muzzle energy, whereas 5.56 produces higher velocities and less drop, as well as improved performance at distances past 300 yards. Additionally, .300 Blackout delivers retained terminal performance with short barrels (especially between 8 to 11 inches), and it offers close to a 90 percent increase in frontal area.

    The main determining factors that will affect your decision between the two will likely be your intended engagement distance and the overall cost of ammunition. .300 Blackout ammo can typically be twice as much as comparable 5.56, making volume training much more difficult. However, you may decide that the benefits of the .300 Blk easily justify the increase in cost.

    Today, the .300 Blk has excelled in hunting, defensive, and competitive shooting applications, with a wide variety of manufacturers offering ammunition tailored to specific uses. 

• "Federal's New 6.5 Creedmoor +Peak: The Peak Alloy Case Goes Mainstream"--American Rifleman. 

    In American Rifleman's 2025 coverage of the new Federal 7 mm Backcountry cartridge, much of the story wasn't as much about the new chambering as it was about the cartridge case itself, a case that Federal called its "Peak Alloy" design. The single-piece, all-steel cartridge case, in the words of Federal Managing Engineer Jake Burns, "acts as its own mini pressure-containment vessel, absorbing some of the energy without cracking or stretching. That’s part of the case’s ability to manage pressure." Now, that design has moved from a proprietary chambering to the mainstream cartridge world with the introduction of Federal's new 6.5 Creedmoor +Peak.

[snip]

     At the heart of this ammunition revolution is the one-piece Peak Alloy cartridge case design, which Federal says can safely handle chamber pressures of 80,000 psi compared with the SAAMI-MAP of 62,000 psi chamber pressures of similarly configured brass cartridge cases. ...

• "USSOCOM's HICAR Program Wants to Double the M4's Effective Range"--The Firearm Blog. The article begins:

    The Naval Surface Warfare Center Crane has quietly posted one of the more interesting small arms solicitations in recent memory. The Hypervelocity Improved Capability Assault Rifle program, HICAR for short, is USSOCOM's ask for a carbine that can do something current M4-based platforms simply cannot: reach out past 600 meters with a standard 5.56mm package, without making operators carry anything heavier or bulkier than what they're already running.

    The core problem the government seems to be trying to solve is the range gap. The current URG-I (Upper Receiver Group - Improved), which sits on most SOCOM M4A1 lowers today, is optimized for standard 5.56 NATO and tops out at a practical effective range of around 300 meters. That's fine for a lot of situations, but it leaves a hole on the modern battlefield where adversaries can engage from distances where the round simply runs out of steam. HICAR is meant to close that gap by leveraging next-generation hypervelocity 5.56x45mm ammunition, specifically M855A1+ loaded to 82,000 PSI chamber pressure, a significant step up from standard loads.

The author concludes with this question: "Do you think there is any currently available carbine platform genuinely built to handle sustained fire with ammunition loaded to 82kpsi, or will every vendor need a clean-sheet bolt and barrel design to compete?" Perhaps this is a program that can benefit from the Peak Alloy case. 

• "Concealed Carry Corner: Does Size Really Matter?"--The Firearm Blog.  The author argues that it is weight not size that is the issue:

When it comes to being comfortable long-term while carrying a handgun, the real culprit is how much your handgun weighs. Having an all-steel or metal-framed firearm can speed up how fast you become fatigued, rather than the overall size of your handgun. Looking at the Glock 43X versus the longer Glock 48 variant, both feel almost identical to carry, with the Glock 48 having a longer barrel than the smaller Glock 43X. Everyone likes to stress about overall size, but the weight of a handgun will make you fatigue and become uncomfortable faster than anything else.  

I can guarantee that if the something the same weight as the 43X or 48 was a foot long, size would matter. 

• "OSD 373: Guns suck, drone edition"--Open Source Defense. Drones are the next generation of defensive tools. 
• "FGC-9 bedroom factory discovered"--Impro Guns.  
• "No Gunpowder, No Recoil: Electromagnetic Guns Are Here!"--Guns America. Covering some recent developments and products in civilian rail guns, but there is also this:

    According to the report, China has already moved beyond prototypes and into early deployment of a handheld electromagnetic small arm, with adjustable power levels that can range from non-lethal applications up to armor-penetrating capability, including the ability to punch through 10mm steel at 50 meters in high-power mode.

    Performance-wise, it’s pushing 1,000–2,000 rounds per minute, minimal recoil, low noise (around 65 decibels), and no visible muzzle signature, features that would clearly matter in specialized operations. 

• "Front Line Friday #20: In-Car First Aid and Trauma Kit Configuration"--The Firearm Blog. Aimed at law enforcement, but of obvious interest to preppers, the article describes going beyond the IFAK to something that can be used to treat a number of people, such as victims of a mass shooting or a multiple casualties from auto accidents. As the article explains:

    The issued IFAK solves a specific problem: one officer, one patient, one acute hemorrhage or airway event, immediate intervention. It is sized and configured to be carried on the body, which means the contents list is constrained by what fits on a belt or a vest panel and what an officer can access one-handed under stress. Those constraints are correct for the problem the IFAK is designed to solve. They are the wrong constraints for what a patrol vehicle medical kit needs to do.

    The vehicle kit operates in a different scenario envelope. It is not a backup IFAK. It is a second-tier capability that extends the officer's ability to manage trauma before EMS arrives, support multiple patients, supply arriving officers or bystanders rendering aid, and hand off organized resources to EMS so they can move faster upon arrival on scene. A vehicle kit that is just a larger IFAK is missing the point. A vehicle kit that is organized around that handoff function, stocked for multi-patient scenarios, and configured so items can be located and retrieved in low light and under stress is doing what it is supposed to do.

• "Geiger Counter CPM Readings: Safe vs Dangerous Radiation Levels"--Modern Survival Blog. From the article:

    CPM stands for counts per minute, but CPM alone is not a universal “safe” or “dangerous” number. It depends on the detector, tube size, calibration, radiation type, distance from the source, and exposure time.

    Still, if your meter uses the example conversion used in this article, 120 CPM ≈ 1 µSv/hr, then 500 CPM ≈ 4.2 µSv/hr, 1000 CPM ≈ 8.3 µSv/hr, 4000 CPM ≈ 33 µSv/hr, and 10000 CPM ≈ 83 µSv/hr. Those readings are elevated compared with typical background dose rates and should be taken seriously, especially if sustained.

The author presents a chart addressing different CPM levels and when it becomes worrisome or dangerous. He also goes into more detail on how radiation exposure is measured, health risks, shielding for different types of radioactive radiation and more. 

• "How to Maintain and Care for Your Field Jacket So It Lasts for Years"--Propper. Specific instructions for caring for, cleaning, and proper storage of the M65 field jacket. For instance, for storage, the article says to avoid "[p]lastic vacuum bags that crease fabric Damp basements or unventilated closets." Best practice for storage: "For long-term storage in garages or sheds, use a sealed metal container with red cedar shavings. This will keep the insects and rodents away."
• "VHF vs. UHF Handheld Radios: Which Is Better?"--Modern Survival Blog.  Short answer:

    VHF handheld radios generally have an advantage for longer-distance communication across open outdoor terrain, especially in rural areas and over water. UHF handheld radios generally work better around buildings, inside structures, and in urban environments because their shorter wavelengths are better suited to passing through or around many common obstructions.

    In the woods, there is no universal winner. Forest density, hills, antenna quality, radio height, and line of sight can matter more than the frequency band alone.

    For hiking, hunting, or property communications, the best approach is to understand the general tradeoffs and test both bands in your actual environment.