Bushmaster ACR Multi-Caliber Rifle

[SamM]

I respect Glocks but they never did anything for me. No aesthetic appeal. I know form follows function and all that but the look and feel of the Glock always felt very industrial to me.

That's exactly why I like the Glocks so much. It's simply a tool. There is nothing extra there. It's like a shovel to me. Again, meaning it's a tool. If I need to dig a hole, I grab a shovel. Something needs shot, I grab a Glock. Another reason that I like them is because there is no external safety. An external safety on a pistol is: the answer to a problem that doesn't exist. If you follow the basic gun safety laws, you will never need a safety. I mostly carry my Glocks in Condition 3. Much like the Israelis. Full mag, no bullet in the chamber. I can draw it with my right hand, load it at my chest with my left hand as I push it forward to the target. I train that way! It works! Just don't leave them laying around with a bullet in the chamber.

Many years ago, I carried 1911s exclusively. They are heavy, clumsy to manipulate and really rather odd to me. I don't like safeties, so there you go. I like lots of fast little bullets going downrange. The 1911 just doesn't carry enough ammo for me to be comfortable with. I've had a good bit of weapons training and the Glock just runs and runs! It shoots underwater, so I know that it will take a beating and keep going. My 1911s were never that reliable. I've never had a jam with a Glock. Glocks are cheap to buy and replace, if needed. I rotate mine out every so often. The new Gen 4s were enough to make me sell my Gen 3s to buy a new Gen 4 G17. It will probably be my last one for awhile. The FiveseveN is simply brillant and I like it a great deal. It's wicked at both close and long range.

SamM

Taken at 40 yards with one shot to the heart.


The 5.56x45mm NATO compared to the FN 5.7x28mm cartridge.

[FastDoc]

I really dig the 5.7

I have a couple hundered rounds shooting one. Accurate reliable unit and interesting. I like interesting. Nice compact cartridge. Kina like a .22 Magnum on steroids. I like that chambering too, BTW. :wink:

I don't know but it seems to me the 5.57 would be tough to reload, although it appears to headspace on the rim.

I like my 1911's but I carry a KelTec. Very small, very reliable, and very simple. DAO, no external safety. Powerful and accurate enough to protect me and those who entrust their safety to me.

I feel like you about safeties. I'd NEVER trust one to replace safe gun handling anyway. Cocked and locked gives me the shivers.

[SamM]

The 5.7x28 is a blowback weapon. It does not lock and unlock with a Browning designed or updated link, like many pistols from that era and many more modern pistols. Because of this, FN does not recommend reloading this round. Shooting reloads voids the warranty and is a good way to lose a hand. It has happened! My warranty is long gone but I would never shoot reloads in this weapon. A box of 50 is around $22. A little pricey but not bad. I keep 600 to 700 rounds in my safe and on hand all the time. My goal is to have 1200 in surplus before long.

The KelTec is a great little pistol. I'm looking at a new compact Ruger. I may have to pony up for one of those too.

SamM

[FastDoc]

My buddy Roger just bought a Ruger LC-9 (IIRC).

Quite a bit bigger than my Keltec but nice and decent power form the 9mm Parabellum cartridge.

Accurate little thing. A DAO CCW unit with rudimentery sights has no right to be that accurate! :P

He only had a few hundred rounds through it but seems 100% reliable.

It has a safety that can obviously be ignored with a DAO. It also has a slide lock on last round but it is VERY hard to manipulate.

Other than that I highly recommend it, as long as it's not too big for its intended mission.

[SamM]

Here's the new Noveske N4 rifle that I am currently building as a backup to my ACR. This rifle uses Magpul furniture and will be piston operated. I have no use for DI ARs now. The Noveske will use a melonite coated 5.56 Wylde barrel from ARP with a very lightweight profile. I'd like to keep this rifle around 6lbs or less. This thing is going to be very SWEEEEET!

I'm a little further along now than the picture shows. It will have a BAD safety lever, Norgon Ambi mag release, a Magpul BAD bolt lever and a Geissele Automatics SSA-E trigger. This rifle started with a matched set of upper and lower receivers from Noveske. These are the best mil-spec receivers that I have ever seen and are worth every penny of the $275 that I paid for them. I highly recommend getting a set of these. Mine came from Rainier Arms, as do all my AR parts. I will use the new Magpul M3 windowed PMAGs in this weapon.

SamM

[FastDoc]

Nice unit. Most of the AR's I've built have been RRA's. About $100/receiver IIRC.

[FastDoc]

My all day, every day unit.

KelTec 3AT with Crimson Trace lasergrips.

Humble but comforting and effective.

It lives in a Galco holster in my front pocket.

[SamM]

I recently sold my custom ADCO machined barrel and finished the first caliber conversion on my ACR. Here's the old barrel stripped and ready to ship to it's new owner.



And the rifle with the new FN 5.56x45mm NATO 1/7" twist barrel from Spike's Tactical. The rifle weighed in at 8.34 lbs stock but my modified ACR tips the scales at 8.08 lbs as pictured.



My next caliber conversion is the 5.45x39mm Russian round from the AK74. The ACR has a Multi-Caliber capability and a quick change barrel system. A standard .223 bolt has been modified by Arctic Arms and is on it's way back to me. I have also purchased a 7.62x39mm barrel from Ballistic Advantage and an ACR 7.62x39mm/6.5Grendel bolt from Agronauts ReInc. As soon as my barrel arrives it will be sent off to be machined for the ACR modifications. The great thing about the ACR is it's capability to use standard AR15 M4 barrels. Any caliber currently available for the AR15 will work in an ACR.

Thanks for looking. I will post pictures as I complete conversions.

SamM

[FastDoc]

Here's a sad story for you.

I have a friend who's company is in military ordinance disposal.

About 7 years ago he had maybe 20,000 rounds of 5.45x39mm I could have had for free. :P

At the time there were no easily available units that could use that caliber so I let it all go for destruction.

Now I could have an upper for my M4 that would have been great. Even I would tale years to have used up that much ammo, and there was more where that came from!

[SamM]

No big deal! 5.45x39 ammo is cheap.

For Christmas, I gave my best friend a 1000 round case of Wolf 5.45x39 ammo. For his birthday back in October, I gave him my new AK-74 and a Russian Special Forces Red/Black Dot scope. It was beatiful. I knew that I was replacing the AK with the ACR but gave him the ammo anyway.

[FastDoc]

Sam, you are a darn good friend! :P

[SamM]

Just trying to do the right thing and pay it forward. These rifles no longer had any appeal to me and I wouldn't want to sell them to just anyone. I also gave him a 7.62x39 Saiga AK-47 hunting rifle with a Russian PSO scope and his son got a project Saiga AK that I beat up a little. It was in pieces but he has big plans for it.

The ACR has replaced all of my Russian rifles. It's more accurate than than of them and I only need one scope. I just purchased a new fixed Basic stock for the ACR. This rifle will also be used to hunt deer with.

From now on, I will only purchase multi-caliber rifles. No other rifles interest me!

SamM

[FastDoc]

I certainly go through phases too.

My collection is almost all C&R military. I have about 12 countries represented and arms dating back to the Civil War .

And yes, I shoot them all. 8)

It does seem nowadays I shoot my simple stuff the most. Mauser 98's, M/N 91-30's, and my little Henry .22. Stuff like that.

Partly because I don't have to reload for them!

I have 10's of 1000's or rounds of 8mm and 7.62X54. It's Berdan primerd and non-reloadable so I just gather it, toss it, clean up the corrosive residue and call it a day. :wink:

[SamM]

Just wanted to report that my 5.45x39 Russian conversion is now finished and tested. The 7.62x39 Russian barrel arrived and has been sent to the gunsmith to be modified to fit the ACR. The new kit should arrive in a couple of weeks. Until barrel parts become available from Bushmaster, the 7.62x39 will be my main caliber. It's heavy enough to use for deer hunting so that works out great. Bushmaster has been reporting that the barrel kits will be coming to market in July. Once I get those, the 5.56x45 NATO and 5.45x39 conversions will be finished.

My next conversion project will be the 6.8SPC. My 6.8 conversion will actually use a 6.8ARP barrel from AR15 Performance. The ARP chamber is optimized to use all the different 6.8 rounds reliably. I'll purchase a 6.8 kit from Bushmaster and then just swap my barrel in place of the 6.8SPC in that kit. My 6.8ARP barrel is already here and ready to go.

[SamM]

All of mine caliber conversions have now been completed. These include the 7.62x39 Russian (pictured), the 5.56x45 NATO and the 5.45x39 Russian. The barrel parts just became available from Bushmaster. We are still waiting on a bolt and some machine work to get the 6.8 off the ground.

The rifle is awesome!