The Firearm Blog

The AR-7 was designed by Eugene Stoner for the US Airforce in 1958, a couple of years after he designed the AR-10 (which went on to evolve into the AR-15). This Henry AR-7 Survival Rifle, I am sure, would have put a smile on Stoner's face.

"bronco" developed a conversion kit which allows a standard AR-15 pistol grip and stock to be attached to the AR-7 receiver. A forum posting over at the Predator Wild forum seems to suggest he may be willing to sell these kits.

The stock / pistol grip kit.

Next Chapter has written a review of the Henry AR-7.

Many thanks to Heath for sending me the link.

Henry Repeating Arms has put together a beautiful special edition of their Golden Boy lever action. A portion of the proceeds from the sale will be given to the The American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Wounded Warrior Project and the Fisher House for military families.

Gold Plating on reciver.

The seals of the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and Coast Guard

I am not sure what the retail price will be.

SaysUncle reports:

Heckler and Koch is suing German Sports Guns and American Tactical Imports over trade dress infringements. Seems they don’t like GSG making a 22LR version of their MP5.

These cases, like when Colt sued H&K over the 416, are counter productive to the industry in general. It seems bizarre that a firm, which is a subsidiary of a German company, is suing the importers of a German made gun. They must not be able to sue for it in Germany court.

I know nothing about "trade dress infringement", but I do know that those fanciful concepts of "common sense" and "justice" have long been forgotten in intellectual property court, thanks to the efforts of Disney Corp's hard working lawyers and lobbyists.

I recently reported that H&K has licensed the production of .22 rifles patterned after the MP5, MP7 and other H&K firearms to Umarex. No doubt this is the reason they have taken legal action against ATI.

UPDATE: H&K and ATI settled. GSG-5 sales will cease.

UPDATE:

How long till the Wii MP5 controller gets banned! (Thanks David for the link)

Some years ago Ruger was not giving customers what they wanted but they have really turned things around. Following on from the recently launched tacti-cool Ruger SR-22, the newest in the 10/22 line is the Ruger 10/22 VLEH Target Tactical Carbine. It is essentially a new version of the Ruger 10/22T (Target) styled after the Ruger M77 Hawkeye Tactical, which was also launched this year.

Ruger 10/22 VLEH Target Tactical Rifle

The 10/22 VLEH¹ features a Hogue OverMolded stock, in my opinion the best for the Ruger 10/22. The barrel is 16" heavy .920" profile match-grade barrel with target crown. It has the same trigger group as the Ruger 10/22T, which is much superior to the standard factory trigger. To top it all off, a bipod is included.

The VLEH configuration is almost identical to my favorite 10/22 configuration. It makes perfect sense for hunting and general plinking. My only complaint would be the lack of iron sights, although few people will miss them.

Hat Tip: Down Range TV

The Chiappa 1911-22 is a .22 pistol patterned after the M1911. The action is not that of a 1911, but a fixed-barrel recoil system and is manufactured from steel and "Chiappalloy" (presumably a pot metal).

The market for this pistol, and its not-yet-on-sale competitors the GSG 1911, are 1911 shooters who want to practice with cheap ammunition but would rather have a dedicated gun than purchasing a .22 conversion kit and having to swap it in and out of their .45 1911.

I was incredibly surprised to open an email a few days ago and see photos of the mythical Australian F88T Austeyr. Quite a long time ago I had scoured the internet searching in vain for photos of this gun.

The F88T Austeyr

Note the subcaliber magazine insert - the only giveaway that it is chambered in .22 LR

Almost no information about this rifle is available online. This is very surprising because the rifle is currently in service with a major defense force.

The F88T Austeyr was developed by ADI Limited (now known as Thales Australia). It is, as far as I know, the only variant of the Steyr AUG chambered in .22 Long rifle. A page on the, now offline, ADI website described the weapon as:

ADI has developed a .22 calibre training rifle for use by the Australian Army. The weapon provides an economical training alternative, with very low ammunition cost, which can be used in environmentally sensitive training areas and indoor areas for special force training with reduced risk to trainees and instructors.

This paragraph sums up just about all the information available online! Because of the lack of information I was convinced that very few of these had ever been built, but I stumbled across the minutes of a meeting from an Australian Air Force conference where they discussed an order of 200 F88T's which were going to be used for cadet training. Presumably there are more than 200 in existence.

Australian cadets also train with .22 single shot bolt actions rifles.

I do not have any technical information about the gun. Most .22 semi-automatics share similar features. The gas system will be non-functional because a .22 LR cannot generate enough case to cycle an action. The action will be a standard blowback system. The barrel is probably the same as the regular Austeyr. While this is not optimal for accuracy I can't imagine it would have been worth the cost of producing dedicated .22 Long Rifle barrels.

I am sure that the owners of the civilian Steyr AUG SA, which went on sale this year, would love to have a .22LR conversion kit. Realistically, a third-party American firm is much more likely to develop a conversion kit than Steyr is too either develop their own or license the design from Thales Australia.

Many thanks to Jon for the photos.

After having recently launched their first AR-15, the Ruger SR-556, Ruger have now unveiled the Ruger SR-22, a Ruger 10/22 in a tactical AR-15 configuration. For years we have been asking for it, and finally they have delivered!

Ruger SR-22

Jeff Quinn holds a tricked out SR-22

You are probably thinking that the action in the above rifle does not look much like a Ruger 10/22. This is because a standard Ruger 10/22 action and trigger group sits inside a Nordic Components designed conversion chassis / enclosure.

Nordic Components Stock Kit - very similar to the SR-22 rifle.

The chassis allows a standard AR-15 stock and pistol grip to be used on the rifle. It also allows a standard Ruger 10/22 barrel, which attaches to a v-Block, to be used with a the AR-15 style handguard. This breakdown photo illustrates how it all fits together:

The mid length handguard is drilled and tapped to allow picatinny rails to be installed on the 3,6,9 and 12 o' clock positions, if desired. These rails allow all standard AR-15 accessories to be used with the rifle.

Ruger 3" SR-22 TR 3 Picatinny Rail ($14.95)

SR-22 Full Length Picatinny Rail ($39.95)

Another benefit of the SR-22 over a standard 10/22 is that the barrel is factory threaded and a Ruger SR-556 / Mini-14 flash suppressor is installed.

The Ruger press release:

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE-RGR) announces the introduction of the Ruger® SR-22™ Rifle, an autoloading, rimfire rifle that combines the legendary reliability of the Ruger® 10/22® with the ergonomics and configurability of the new AR-style Ruger SR-556™. The new SR-22 Rifle allows shooters to use economical .22 LR ammunition, while still enjoying the look and feel of an "AR" and experiencing the reliability they have come to appreciate from Ruger.

Because it utilizes the unique rotary magazine supplied with the Ruger 10/22, the SR-22 Rifle offers the same gold standard for reliability in autoloading rimfire rifles. Like the 10/22, the AR-style SR-22 Rifle also has an extensive array of accessories available, allowing shooters to select a custom configuration that best suits their tastes and needs.

The SR-22 Rifle uses a standard 10/22 action inside a top-quality, all-aluminum chassis that faithfully replicates the AR-platform dimensions between the sighting plane, buttstock height, and grip. The SR-22 Rifle provides a Picatinny rail optic mount, and includes a six-position, telescoping M4-style buttstock (on a Mil-Spec diameter tube), plus a Hogue® Monogrip® pistol grip. Buttstocks and grips may be swapped out for any AR-style compatible option.

The SR-22 Rifle also features a round, mid-length handguard mounted on a standard-thread AR-style barrel nut. Picatinny rails, specifically designed for this handguard, are available from Ruger, allowing the handguard to be configured to accept any number of rail-mounted sights or accessories. A barrel support block is installed in the handguard, ensuring accuracy and allowing the standard 10/22 V-block barrel attachment system to be used.

The SR-22 Rifle is equipped with a precision-rifled, cold hammer-forged alloy steel barrel. The 16-1/8" barrel is capped with an SR-556/Mini-14 flash suppressor mounted with a 1/2"-28 thread.

More photos:

Ruger advertisement for SR-22:

Michael Bane has also created a video review over at the Down Range TV Blog. Michael hinted at the rifle earlier this week, but I must admit I did not imagine a tactical Ruger 10/22 was what Ruger had in store for us!

If you were wondering why Remington would recall their entire line of .17 HMR Model 597 rifles just take a look at these photos which show a magazine and cases fired from a .17 HMR Model 597. This type of damage was not uncommon!

Cracked Remington 597 magazine


Blown out case head.


Split Case

Thanks to Joe for the photos.

Remington have decided to recall and buyback all .17 HMR Model 597. They have also announced they will buyback any Remington .17 HMR that was purchased for use in any semi-auto rifle.

If you have a semi-automatic firearm chambered for 17 HMR ammunition, immediately discontinue use of Remington 17 HMR ammunition. If you have any Remington 17 HMR ammunition that you wish to return to Remington contact the Remington Consumer Service number below. Do not return the ammunition to the dealer. Remington will provide you with a $10.00 coupon for each complete box of 50 rounds of Remington branded 17 HMR ammunition you return to Remington. This coupon will be good for the purchase of any Remington ammunition at your local dealer.

In light of the ammunition manufacturer’s notice, it is very important that you immediately stop using your Remington Model 597 17 HMR semi-automatic rifle. If you own a Remington Model 597 17 HMR semi-automatic rifle and wish to return it to Remington please contact the below Remington Consumer Service Number. In return for your Remington Model 597 17 HMR synthetic stock semi-automatic rifle, Remington will provide you a coupon valued at $200.00 good for the purchase of a replacement Remington firearm. If you have a laminate stock Remington Model 597 17 HMR semi-automatic rifle, Remington will provide you a coupon valued at $250.00 good for the purchase of a replacement Remington firearm. Remington will also reimburse you for the actual postage to return your Model 597 17 HMR semi-automatic rifle to Remington.

Please allow up to 6 weeks after Remington receives your Model 597 17 HMR semi-automatic rifle or your Remington branded 17 HMR ammunition for the appropriate coupons to arrive. Instructions for redemption of the coupons will be contained on the coupon.

For any consumer questions or instructions on how to return of your Model 597 17 HMR semi-automatic rifle or your Remington branded 17 HMR ammunition, please contact the Remington Consumer Service Department at 1-800-243-9700, Prompt #3.

Problem with the Model 597 and .17 HMR is not uncommon. Gun manufacturers seem to have a very hard time in trying to convert .22 blow back actions to the more powerful .22 Magnum and it’s child cartridge the .17 HMR.

A reader of TFB recently had the exploding-597 problem (darn … I lost he photos he emailed me) and Remington said they would refund the purchase price, instead of fixing it. I did not read too much into their response at the time, but in hindsight I can see now that they were considering this action a couple of months ago.

I think Remington have taken the right action. I hope they let this offer stand for sometime so that all potentially dangerous guns can be returned.

The crazy people at Waterloo Labs developed a system to play the computer game Half-Life, a First Person Shooter, using accelerometers, drywall and a integrally suppressed Ruger MKIII.

Looks like a lot of fun!

A parts list and computer code to build a similar system can be found at Waterloo Labs.

Many thanks to Antonio for the link.

UPDATE: Nookyon points out in the comments that the game appears to be a flash based “remake” of Half Life, not the original.

Wilson Combat have added a complete .22 Long Rifle AR-15 upper receiver to their AR-15 product line. It is in the M4 style with a quad rail, 16″ barrel, front flip up sight and a A2-style flash hider. The price will be $995.

When they release more information I will be sure to publish it on the blog.

The Target Cannon is a reusable reactive target designed to be used with .22 LR firearms or high powered air guns.

The device has three vertical “barrels” which are loaded with blackpowder. A shotgun primer is inserted into the side of the barrel. The shooter aims at a hole in the front steel plating. Through the hole is a steel plunger that ignites the primer. The result is a big bang and lots of smoke.

It looks like a lot of fun and only costs 25c per target (according to the manufactures website. I do not reload. ). That even cheaper than the poor-mans-reactive-target (pool chalk).

More info at Target Cannon.

Over the past year Winchester have been doing a major update of their .22 rimfire product offering.

The new Hyper Speed HP load is a very hot load that matches the ballistic characteristics of the CCI Velocitor round. The Hyper Speed HP, like the Velocitor, features a copper plated 40 grain hollow point bullet. The bullet has a published velocity of 1435 fps at the muzzle, which works out to be 183 ft-lbs of muzzle energy.

A significant difference between the CCI load is that is will be sold in a 100 round box, rather than the CCI 50-round box. This suggests it may be quite a lot cheaper that the Velocitor. If it is, I will defiantly consider switching to this for my hyper velocity needs.

Winchester are also introducing a 555 round bulk pack, giving it a slight edge quantity wise over the Federal 525 and 550 bulk packs.

The bulk pack features high velocity (36 grain / 1280 fps) rounds with copper plated hollow point bullets. Nothing fancy.

Overall I am quite impressed with the new offerings from Winchester. I don’t think there is much else they can do as far as rimfire ammunition is concerned.

Remington have announced a new addition to their line of Model 597 semi-automatic .22 rifles. The VTR (Varmint Target Rifle) is styled after the AR-15 and features:

Click to expand.

* 16″ target-style heavy barrels.
* A2 style stock or Pardus M4-style collapsible stock
* A2 Pistol grip
* Free float handguard
* 1913 Picatinny rail for optics.
* Black finish on all parts.

It is not clear if standard AR-15 compatible stocks and pistol grips can be attached. I will try to find out from Remington.

Two models will be available. The “Model 597 VTR 22LR with A2 Stock” model will MSRP for $445 (10 round magazine) and $479 (30 round magazine).

The “Model 597 VTR 22LR with Collapsible Stock” features a Pardus collapsible stock and had an MSRP of $445.

UPDATE: According to John, Product Development manager, different AR stocks should be compatible. AR pistol grip interchange will be limited because of the receiver design.

Thanks to Linda from Remington for her help getting me information.