I want to build a 33 Willys pro street car but, for the life of me, I am not sure for what purpose? Pick up groceries or mail? Drive to New Hampshire to the nearest NHRA track and bracket race? If it breaks, how would I get back? Do I really want to spend myself into poverty for a car of so little utility? Whose going to change the oil?

I want to get a rigid hull inflatable boat and ten H.P. motor that I can toss in the back of the clunker Ford Escape, take to one of the many very near lakes and go fishing in a spontaneous fashion. Do I get a 9′ that weighs 100 lbs for my convenience, or do I get a 12′ 170 lb boat to accommodate all the fish I will catch?

Should I go out now and clear snow? No snowfall at the moment and low percentage of probability of more throughout the day. However, there is a high probability of more snow overnight and clearing does seem to immediately trigger a blizzard and the presence of a town plow truck building a towering snow wall between me, the end of the driveway and civilization.

I guess I wouldn’t feel so bad about decisional procrastination if I hadn’t just taken two weeks to select a vacuum bag sealer for the kitchen, two days to choose bags or roll… and then another day to select method of shipping on the Wally site.

So do I go forward with the review of the S&W Volunteer now, or wait until I get shooting results together when the snow storms let up? If I don’t get busy writing, I will be stuck in an endless loop, contemplating the others…

M&P 15 Volunteer XV Pro M-Lok & the 6mm ARC

The S&W M&P 15 Volunteer is a complete firearm. It can be put to work immediately, rather than having to sit in a dark safe, devoid of ammunition, and waiting for UPS, FedEx and USPS to deliver the rest of the rifle.

Additionally, the Volunteer is enhanced with a number of premium third party accessories, that are popular with the populace, that elevate the overall shooting… experience. Some evidence in support of that statement? Sure…and in more words than necessary…

For a deceptively simple looking system, the B5 Systems SOPMOD buttstock does a lot of things. As a certified geezer, I have lived, predominately, a life of learning to adapt to rigid configuration firearms, or modify them into another form of rigid configuration. People used to learn how to shoot different firearms without human accommodation.

Times have changed. Being able to quickly change length of pull to accommodate changing shooting positions and circumstances offers a tremendous advantage. The SOPMOD (Special Operations Peculiar MODification) provides 6 positive locking positions over a 3.4″ range. Smooth adjustment, sure grip latch and no rattles.

The splayed comb is really good in terms of support. The anti rotation QD sling mounts and fixed sling mounts provide a good deal of flexibility in carry and shooting options. There are even a couple of waterproof secret compartments for stowing… secret stuff.

Gas system…

With a 16″ barrel and 15″ forend, the subject M&P 15 Volunteer has a mid length gas system. The barrel is made from 4140 chrome moly, the muzzle is threaded to a substantial 5/8″-24 and capped with a muzzle jump and recoil reducing Primary Weapons Systems muzzle device.

During preliminary live fire, the Volunteer was shot mostly with a SilencerCo’s Omega 36M silencer. My ears insist.The ASM quick attach mount allowed me to easily test with and without silencer as silencers can sometimes impact accuracy and velocity.

Nice charging handle

The ambidextrous Radian Weapons Raptor-LT charging handle is a nifty piece. It is constructed from 7075 aluminum, Type III hard anodized and overmolded with fiberglass reinforced polymer. Light, but strong and durable. Yes, OK, it does look good.

Places to mount anything and everything

The skeletal M-Lok (Modular Lock) forend floats and permits mounting a myriad of accessories; anything from additional rail segments and slings, to tactical lights and sight systems. I have no problem using the bare tube as the gripping surface, the edges of openings provide traction, but S&W provides a pile of covers that pop into M-Lok slots and form a wide area, stippled gripping surface.

Sights

The Volunteer is supplied with a  Williams Blackout Standard – AR15 & Tactical Folding Sight set. I am assuming “Blackout” refers to the black, anti glare finish. Very nice sights. Made from aluminum in the U.S., they fold flat or pop up and stay up, secured by a stout locking pawl. The selectable rear sight apertures measure 0.200″ and 0.075″ in diameter. In combination, the sight set is adjustable for windage and elevation.

Other stuff…

Everything as would be anticipated, in terms of controls and their placement. Present are forward assist and dust cover and BS Systems P-grip. The trigger guard is integral to the forged lower receiver. The flat trigger is intended to improve accuracy by providing uniform finger purchase and pressure.

 Overall

Clean AR. Nicely, uniformly finished. Good fit of parts and assemblies. Flexible configuration. Initially, the trigger has a good deal of rough creep. Could be suffering from a case of New, could need to be cleaned up and lubed. I don’t know at this point, but I will follow up after a check out and some use.

Hornady’s 6mm ARC naming  conventions

When I was a kid, and we had family dogs, my three sisters always got to name them. Unfortunately, their pet naming lacked a certain amount of… imagination. So our white mutt was whitey, our red dog was red and our black dog was blackie. Yes, a certain pattern quickly emerged.

I had four ducks. We each got one duckling one Easter, but my sisters abandoned theirs when they found that ducklings became quite aggressive ducks. So I named them Huey, Dewey, Louie, and Bob. No, not good retrievers, but they followed me around, ran a mini obstacle course I constructed, and made my sisters scatter on command.

Unfortunately, we went for a family dinner at my Aunt’s house and four “chickens” were served up. Cannibals, all. What can I say? I can vividly remembers the names, life and times with my ducks. My sisters? Not so much.

In any event, I believe that when you think of names for life forms and inorganic objects, they should be said aloud for suitability, considered for possible double entendre and examined for conflict of purpose or characterization. Not sure why a sophisticated ammunition producer would associate their product with accentuated rise and fall of an arc. No, I would not call it “Flat Line” either.

Out of therapy and back to Hornady

Three of the 6mm cartridges that have made their way into AR platforms, L-R 6mm Hornady ARC 108 Grain ELD Match, Hornady 6mm Creedmoor 108Grain ELD and PPU 243 Winchester 100 Grain Soft Point.

The ARC and Creedmoor share a common intent; shorten and increase the diameter of their respective cases to maximize capacity, while permitting the use of long, heavy for bore VLD type bullets in a short action firearm.

Predictably, I feel a table coming on.

Typically, the standard AR 15 platform maximum cartridge length is 2.260″. The AR 10 maximum cartridge length is 2.800″. There are hybrid versions that combine the AR 10 cartridge capacity with a sort of AR 15 envelop that may be chambered in AR 10 size cartridges.

The Hornady 6mm ARC was intended to increase range and lethality of an AR 15. The S&W M&P Volunteer is such a combination.

Break time

Can’t walk the range. Weird weather with back to back snow storms, more tonight and several days into the week. So I’ll cut it here and organize components for handloads. I will reserve firearm opinions until I’ve completed live fire.

*”Reelin’ and Rockin'” Chuck Berry 1957