Search Term Q&A: May 2008

Articles Written or Updated in response to these questions

• About 50cal Bans in California

Questions which Need Answered

• ak barrel removal with gear puller: I oughtta write something on the various AK barrel removal techniques - press, gear puller, allthread, and that really awesome hydraulic fixture the one dude imported from the eastern bloc.
• broke gear puller on ak47: Yep, that's the hazard of the approach mentioned above. If you're going to do this with a gear puller, use a well-built one.
• is a g3 carrier illegal to have in your rifle: As I understand it, the G3 design has all of the full auto, restricted parts in the lower receiver / trigger pack. But don't take that for a fact.
• ak47 side rail mount installation how to drill up diagram: One of these days, I need to cover this.
• mosin nagant detachable magazine: Theoretically, it should be possible to modify a Mosin-Nagant to accept a PSL magazine. But it'd involve extensive mill work, so it's not for the faint of heart. There are no known examples of this modification.

Brief Answers

• lee reloading press paint: Lee Precision uses powder coating on their cast housings. Most likely the person doing this search was trying to figure out how to touch up worn or cracked paint on their Lee press. I would advise sandblasting it off and then using Dura-Kote; it'll be more durable.
• arsenal definition california: So far, California does not have a "arsenal" definition, nor is there an arsenal tax. CA has talked about trying to pass laws like this a few times in the past.
• how much do ranges get for their once-fired brass: Most ranges will not sell their once-fired brass to private individuals. The tendency is to establish an exclusive relationship with a commercial reloading company, and sell it to them by the pound or ton. That having been said, some folks get lucky and are able to work out deals with their ranges. It's more common to get free brass in exchange for helping sweep up and close down for the night, than it is to actually get to buy range brass. Also, bear in mind that because ranges typically do not restrict what brass comes into the range, you have no guarantee that the brass is once-fired, or even safe to reload.
• armory report's on chamber or barrel wear from firing 30 cal. armor piercing rounds: AP rounds consist of a hardened penetrator (steel or tungsten, typically) surrounded by more traditional materials, such as copper and lead. Until the round impacts with a target, the penetrator is not exposed. Thus, you may expect that regardless of caliber, AP rounds will produce no more or less wear on a barrel than non-AP rounds.
• problems with ptr 91 magwell: It's more likely to have problems with magazines than magwells in PTR-91's. I have a five-round magazine which fits so tightly that I once thought I had magwell problems. However, when testing normal G3 magazines, there was no issue.
• chain fed ak47: Awesome, but does not exist - at least, not beyond some gunsmith's proof-of-concept piece. The PKM is sometimes thought of as a belt-fed AK, but that's just because it was fielded alongside AK's and has a fairly similar appearance.
• 6.8 bullet vs 270 bullet: 6.8mm bullets are .270 caliber bullets. Their actual diameter is slightly larger, .277". This is similar to the 223 Remington round, which typically takes a .224" diameter bullet.
• mag punch gun wiki: On second reading, I think he meant something about removing magazines with the use of the punch. But I found out about a fascinating weapon when researching this... the French-made Manurhin MR-35 Punch Gun. It's a less-lethal firearm which launches 35mm 334gr rubber balls at folks, using black powder as a propellant. However, because of the relatively low density of the projectiles, the MR-35's accuracy suffers enormously in the presence of wind. In France, the MR-35 is marketed as a home defense weapon. In this role, it is probably quite respectable, given that there is rarely significant wind indoors. Standard magazines are either 3 or 5 rounds, and have a fascinating "stair step" design. I'm not sure, but I suspect that a spent mag ejects from the weapon when the last round is fired. Judging from the picture, it looks like primarily polymer construction, with possibly an aluminum barrel.
• making ar15 buttstock counterbalance: Your best bet for counterbalancing a front-heavy AR-15, is to install one of the popular lead weights into the buttstock.
• is reloading still legal in california?: As of this writing, absolutely.
• metal grinding glove: For hand protection, I've found that leather welding gloves are ideal.
• poisoning with breakfree clp: I'm not really sure I want to know how the person came up with this question. But, as far as I know CLP is comparatively innocuous.
• california legal semi auto clip fed shotguns: This is by definition not California-legal, unless either the magazine is locked in place, or the "clip" being referred to is literally a clip, like the M1 Garand's en bloc clip. But in general, drop-mag semi-auto shotguns are illegal in CA.
• 50ae & 50 caliber beowulf are they the same cartridge?: Absolutely not. While common loadings use the same projectiles for both, the brass is entirely different.
• ar-10 california legal: Aeroprecision, Inc lowers are 100% dimensionally compatible with AR-10 lower receivers. Noveske Rifle Works is also putting out an AR-10 compatible receiver.
• will dremel attachments fit a rotary zip rz20: You mean 'roto-zip'. But, the answer is yes, for anything with a central shaft. THe more elaborate things which are designed to fit over the head (the blade sharpener comes to mind) won't.
• what is that thing that sticks out of the side of an ar-15: I can just about guarantee that you were asking about the forward assist. It's used to inch the bolt carrier farther forward until it locks into place.
• california legal aug steyr rifle: The CA-legal AUG clone is made by Microtech.

-- SeanNewton - 01 May 2008