American Rifle Company New Archimedes Action, New Xylo Chassis, and major Mausingfield revision

[chrome]

Finally got it to the range today to zero and grab some chrono data on the new barrel. Simply said, more than satisfied. Things that come to mind:

1. Grip. Nuff said. Fits my stupid big hand real well. Thumb placement naturally allows for strong positive bolt manipulation.
2. The accuracy and positive lock of the adjustments. For both the comb and cheek rest, love that nothing rattles ad well.
3. Weight/balance - works for my grip and anatomy.
4. Rifle fits perfectly in tac ops drag bag. I'm a simple man.
5. I had 3 different magazines on me today (ARC, Magpul, KRG) and they all fed without issue, and all allowed for CRF in this chassis. I also noticed they all really locked in securely to the chassis when seated.
6. Combined with the Nuke actio8n, it's just fucking fun.

 

[phlegethon]

My long action Xylo just showed up. Won't be able to go to the range til later in the week, but I think I may need a short action too. This thing is incredible.

 

[Boatninja]

Is there a way to identify the different versions of Nucleus actions to determine need for cocking piece? I have an M5 Mausingfield, ?Nucleus and Xylo chassis. I have been entertaining the thought of collecting all versions

 

[leftyk82]

Likely serial number range; maybe @hereinaz knows?

 

[Boatninja]

Likely serial number range; maybe @hereinaz knows?

Ím sure it is in the serial numbers, just what is it?

 

[Stoweit]

That is great photography Phlegethon. The more I use mine, the more I like it. The chassis is tighter than any other I've used. Any mag I've tried has worked, but the Arc mag with LRI followers works best so far. I was skeptical of the grip at first, but it is such a natural grip that squeezing the trigger or cycling the bolt just feels right. The Archimedes action is very nice as well, I prefer it to the Curtis I had before.

 

[hereinaz]

Is there a way to identify the different versions of Nucleus actions to determine need for cocking piece? I have an M5 Mausingfield, ?Nucleus and Xylo chassis. I have been entertaining the thought of collecting all versions

Not sure what the question is about a need for cocking piece on the Nucleus. I habe a spare cocking piece for my Nucleus, but never got around to grinding on it yet.

The Archimedes has different cocking pieces early on, but that was trigger dependent.

If you call Justin, he might tell you where the serial numbers are for changes.

 

[chrome]

That is great photography Phlegethon. The more I use mine, the more I like it. The chassis is tighter than any other I've used. Any mag I've tried has worked, but the Arc mag with LRI followers works best so far. I was skeptical of the grip at first, but it is such a natural grip that squeezing the trigger or cycling the bolt just feels right. The Archimedes action is very nice as well, I prefer it to the Curtis I had before.

Seconding this above, especially the mag part. Its nice to see magpul mags (cheaper) lock in tight and feed well in this chassis, especially since I didn't have to fuck with the mags or the mag catch. Can't say the same thing about my other chassis.

 

[Steel head]

Seconding this above, especially the mag part. Its nice to see magpul mags (cheaper) lock in tight and feed well in this chassis, especially since I didn't have to fuck with the mags or the mag catch. Can't say the same thing about my other chassis.

Interesting
On my nuke in a XLR ARC mags work awesomely and you can rest the rifle on the mags and it still feeds perfectly yet doesn’t rub.
Not so much with magpul mags.
Doesn’t really matter anymore as my nuke is running a short magnum now.

 

[Stoweit]

I should have mentioned that Magpul would not lock in, you could pull it right out without releasing mag latch. I didn't mention them because I don't use them. I will add I've had 3 Magpul mags, one didn't work brand new, the others needed tweaking to work at all. I think Magpul is more concerned with selling tee shirts and sun glasses these days. YMMV

 

[Steel head]

I should have mentioned that Magpul would not lock in, you could pull it right out without releasing mag latch. I didn't mention them because I don't use them. I will add I've had 3 Magpul mags, one didn't work brand new, the others needed tweaking to work at all. I think Magpul is more concerned with selling tee shirts and sun glasses these days. YMMV

Actually in my savage they work great.
I don’t think they jive well with a lot of three lug actions.

 

[chrome]

Interesting
On my nuke in a XLR ARC mags work awesomely and you can rest the rifle on the mags and it still feeds perfectly yet doesn’t rub.
Not so much with magpul mags.
Doesn’t really matter anymore as my nuke is running a short magnum now.

Good info, thx for sharing. Same here, XYLO and Nuke (SA) setup. Both magpul and ARC mags have worked w/out issue.

 

[chrome]

I should have mentioned that Magpul would not lock in, you could pull it right out without releasing mag latch. I didn't mention them because I don't use them. I will add I've had 3 Magpul mags, one didn't work brand new, the others needed tweaking to work at all. I think Magpul is more concerned with selling tee shirts and sun glasses these days. YMMV

Oh damn, sorry man, that does suck. I'll offer I am basing my experience on the magpul mags based only on a n=2 sample.

 

[Stoweit]

No problem, I was using MDT, AICS, and ARC without problem. Through the Magpul I had in and I couldn't make it latch. I hadn't mentioned it because I don't use them, and threw that one out instead of back in the safe. In a Curtis it worked, but had to shave the feed lips down, and you couldn't rest the rifle on the mag or it would rub. Archimedes seems like you can't over insert, mag seems to fit up against the bottom of the action unless I'm not seeing something. Chad at LRI told me ARC mags were made to a different shape on the feed lips to fit ARC actions. Probably why ARC mags didn't function well in my Curtis. Couldn't be happier with my all ARC chassis, action, and mags. I'm kind of a gear whore, but I don't see myself selling this set up any time soon. It will be interesting to see what people come up with for after market grips. Overall finish seems tough, I've thrown it on a lot of objects shooting and dry firing, and the bottom doesn't have a scratch on it yet.

 

[Boatninja]

Not sure what the question is about a need for cocking piece on the Nucleus. I habe a spare cocking piece for my Nucleus, but never got around to grinding on it yet.

The Archimedes has different cocking pieces early on, but that was trigger dependent.

If you call Justin, he might tell you where the serial numbers are for changes.

They are selling one for Gen I nucleus actions on their website, hence my curiosity. My Nucleus, pretty smooth, doesn't cycle as smooth as my Mausingfield which is amazing and that is all I have for comparison. Just thought some of the "experts" here would know, and if it is trigger related those details would also be nice to know.

 

[NWnewguy]

They are selling one for Gen I nucleus actions on their website, hence my curiosity. My Nucleus, pretty smooth, doesn't cycle as smooth as my Mausingfield which is amazing and that is all I have for comparison. Just thought some of the "experts" here would know, and if it is trigger related those details would also be nice to know.

If the issue with the smoothness is a cock on close issue, then it is a product of the particular trigger you are using with the cocking piece in that action. Before we all started playing adult Legos with bolt rifles, when you had a custom rifle built, the rifle smith would time the trigger with the action so that it was as near a perfect turn over with the trigger and the cocking piece as could be had. Now, since most of us are putting these together ourselves, it falls on us to make that happen. The two easy ways to do that are to fit a cocking piece of differing dimensions (like ARC makes) to the action until you get an acceptable pickup with the cocking piece and trigger, or to grind the cocking piece until the transfer is near perfect. This is something that can be measured so that it's not a complete guess and a process of continually removing a small amount of material and then putting it all back together for a test fitting. The trigger hangers from Impact accomplish the same thing in a slightly different way, but that works just as well.

It is amazing how one trigger will make an action feel terrible and another smooth as a sewing machine. It would help if there was an industry standard for trigger geometry with regards to the relationship of the pins and trigger sear. Barring that, an easily swappable cocking piece works out pretty well.

 

[Kimber.204]

With the lock down in the Pittsburgh area due to Covid-19 I haven't done anything but dryfire with this new Xylo. I had been wanting bigger grips to accommodate my big gangly hands, but after installing a Tubb T7T trigger and moving the trigger shoe way forward I think I'll stick with the factory grips for a while. I was using a Timney Calvin Elite two stage (which are great triggers for the money), but they sit really far back in the trigger opening. With the Tubb T7T I can push the trigger shoe so far forward that I almost run out of room in front of the trigger.

I'll have to play with it in rapid fire a little to see if it will be a reliable position long term, but so far I really like it the combo of the T7T and the Xylo. I can get a full grip on the stock and have my index finger in a really comfortable position.

 

[karagias]

With the lock down in the Pittsburgh area due to Covid-19 I haven't done anything but dryfire with this new Xylo. I had been wanting bigger grips to accommodate my big gangly hands, but after installing a Tubb T7T trigger and moving the trigger shoe way forward I think I'll stick with the factory grips for a while. I was using a Timney Calvin Elite two stage (which are great triggers for the money), but they sit really far back in the trigger opening. With the Tubb T7T I can push the trigger shoe so far forward that I almost run out of room in front of the trigger.

I'll have to play with it in rapid fire a little to see if it will be a reliable position long term, but so far I really like it the combo of the T7T and the Xylo. I can get a full grip on the stock and have my index finger in a really comfortable position.

Medium and large size grips are coming right up. We've been running standard size (small) grips for a couple of weeks now but yesterday an encoder belt within the machine failed which shut down grip machining until tomorrow or Friday. If reassembly goes well, and I think it will since it's an easy fix, we will have medium and large size grips available for purchase on the website next week.

Ted

 

[ForgeValley]

Medium and large size grips are coming right up. We've been running standard size (small) grips for a couple of weeks now but yesterday an encoder belt within the machine failed which shut down grip machining until tomorrow or Friday. If reassembly goes well, and I think it will since it's an easy fix, we will have medium and large size grips available for purchase on the website next week.

Ted

Ted, what size is coming standard on the Xylo? Mine fits me great.

 

[chrome]

Medium and large size grips are coming right up. We've been running standard size (small) grips for a couple of weeks now but yesterday an encoder belt within the machine failed which shut down grip machining until tomorrow or Friday. If reassembly goes well, and I think it will since it's an easy fix, we will have medium and large size grips available for purchase on the website next week.

Ted

Yaaaahhhhsss! Thanks for the update.

Any chance they can come with a less dark finish/stain? Yes, im being picky, sorry.

 

[Cascade Hemi]

Medium and large size grips are coming right up. We've been running standard size (small) grips for a couple of weeks now but yesterday an encoder belt within the machine failed which shut down grip machining until tomorrow or Friday. If reassembly goes well, and I think it will since it's an easy fix, we will have medium and large size grips available for purchase on the website next week.

Ted

Raw / In the white please! G10 or Micarta would be even better!

FWIW, the Xylos and Archimedes are two of the coolest projects I've seen in a long time.

 

[Boatninja]

A friend of mine made me a "key" the same thickness as the ARC spanner that will fit under the scope. I can use it, if needed, to measure the gap in the Barloc when changing barrels in the field without removing the scope. Kinda crude but it works.

 

[karagias]

 

[NWnewguy]

Sweet video Ted. I'm always surprised when I'm reminded that your not left handed.

I'm still a huge fan of the MF, but I have to admit that the Arch is continuing to earn favor each time I take it out.

 

[Jcaplinger199]

anyone have a mausingfield in a krg bravo?

 

[phlegethon]

Love the wrench flats on the barrel. I’m going to insist on that going forward. The prefit vendors really need to get on this.

 

[Boatninja]

anyone have a mausingfield in a krg bravo?

I did for awhile and can't really complain. I am still not sure about why or what the screw behind the tang was for. Any specific questions? I have a Nucleus in it now. My MF is now in Xylo and haven't had much time, I should say place to shoot more than a few (30) rounds with it but think it is going to be great.

 

[Jcaplinger199]

I did for awhile and can't really complain. I am still not sure about why or what the screw behind the tang was for. Any specific questions? I have a Nucleus in it now. My MF is now in Xylo and haven't had much time, I should say place to shoot more than a few (30) rounds with it but think it is going to be great.

I have a mausingfield on order for a 6.5cm build. Im going to get Foundation stock at some point but was thinking putting it in bravo until that time and then just selling or shelving the bravo. Any issues with feeding. I use ARC mags with LRI followers already. Any issue with the recoil lug fitting? I remembered seeing something from krg about the lug slot in the back one of the bravo being smaller then the W3? Thx

 

[Boatninja]

I have a mausingfield on order for a 6.5cm build. Im going to get Foundation stock at some point but was thinking putting it in bravo until that time and then just selling or shelving the bravo. Any issues with feeding. I use ARC mags with LRI followers already. Any issue with the recoil lug fitting? I remembered seeing something from krg about the lug slot in the back one of the bravo being smaller then the W3? Thx

I didn’t have any problems with AI mags, all I used.

 

[Sanderson]

To the people running the xylo chassis, what are you running for barricade stops or are you just pushing the front of the mag into your bag?

ARCALOCK Fixed Barricade Block

– Developed for use on our flat ARCALOCK rails such as the 12″ Universal, M-LOK, Keymod, and MPA that do not have a built in stop – Slides on from the end of the rail, does not clamp “over” and can be locked in any position on the rail – 1-1/8″ tall from bottom of [...]

www.area419.com

 

[karagias]

It's worth mentioning that while testing, we used the front of the magazine as a barricade stop. I think this will usually work, unless someone happens to run a mag that is significantly shorter than 3.055" as measured externally from front to back. The Xylo chassis can do this because the mag latch has a hump that prevents that back surface of the mag from moving back and up into the chassis. The top front corners of the mag bear against the underside of the chassis and serve as a fulcrum. Prevent rotation about said fulcrum and you prevent the feed lips from being forced into the path of the bolt. All that said, the mags, while quite strong, are made from sheet steel and if enough force is applied, well then you will get bolt drag. But I think that forces resulting from typical barricade stop activity are probably OK.

 

[Ledzep]

I've been using the mag as a stop in my Xylo for the last several outings and haven't seen any detriment on a game changer, wood, or steel. In the case of my Mausingfield I can even rest the rifle on the magazine and don't experience any over-travel related issues (magazine pushing up into the bolt). Pretty robust system.

 

[karagias]

I've been using the mag as a stop in my Xylo for the last several outings and haven't seen any detriment on a game changer, wood, or steel. In the case of my Mausingfield I can even rest the rifle on the magazine and don't experience any over-travel related issues (magazine pushing up into the bolt). Pretty robust system.

Thanks for sharing that. It's nice when it comes from customers.
Ted

 

[Stoweit]

I've been using the magazine as a stop, and seems to work great. I did purchaser an Area 419 stop before i shot the chassis, fit is great, but I'm going to wait, and use the chassis as it came. Love this chassis.

 

[Boatninja]

Has anyone developed a magazine preference for the Zylo or more specifically Zylo-Masingfield-AI combo? My rounds seem to sometimes jump ahead when exiting the magazine and miss the bolt picking them up even when operating the bolt aggressively and then the extractor won't snap over the round.

 

[karagias]

Has anyone developed a magazine preference for the Zylo or more specifically Zylo-Masingfield-AI combo? My rounds seem to sometimes jump ahead when exiting the magazine and miss the bolt picking them up even when operating the bolt aggressively and then the extractor won't snap over the round.

The extractor in your Mausingfield action should be able to snap over the rim of the cartridge. If it doesn't we can easily fix that for you if you send your action to us.

As for the case jumping forward and away from the bolt face upon release from the magazine, that's solely a function of the shape of the case and the length of the magazine feed lips. There's nothing magic about this stuff. The bolt does not attract the case to ensure that the case rim comes up the bolt face and underneath the extractor claw. What's causing the case to jump forward on its way of of the magazine is contact with the shoulder of the case below it. The Mausingfield and other CRF actions will generally function better if the case is released earlier, before the angled shoulder of the case below can engage the head of the case being fed. I like the AICS mags, they are well made, but I have never hesitated to shorten their feed lips to improve the cooperation between mag and action. ARC mags have shorter feed lips than AI mags and copies, such as the Accurate mags. AI actions are not controlled round feed (CRF), they're push feeds, and releasing the cartridge a bit later is a good thing for most push-feed actions.

Controlled-round-feed is a bit of a misnomer. The bolt can only take control of the cartridge if presented (released) correctly. The faster you run the bolt, the less of an issue this becomes so I'm surprised by your claim of experiencing the issue at high bolt speeds. Are you running a 223?

Remember, when Mauser first figured this stuff out in the 1890's, he shaped the actions mag well surfaces to release the cartridges at the right time. Maybe early cartridge engagement (ECE) would be a more accurate name for CRF actions. Let's see if that sticks.

Ted

 

[Stoweit]

Arc mags are flawless with Archimedes action. AI feed lips quite a bit longer.

 

[Stoweit]

Should mention using Xylo chassis.

 

[Steel head]

I definitely like ARC mags better than others for my Nucleus.

 

[NWnewguy]

I hadn't heard anything about this combo to this point so I thought I would post up about it.

I put the Vudoo in the Xylo today and it worked out very well. Point of impact didn't change noticeably (100yd targets and 10-12 mph wind) from the KRG X-Ray that it was in before. The magazine fit up was perfect and I would say, it was the best function of any stock or chassis that I have tried the Vudoo in yet. Feeding was the best that I can remember in the many stocks I've tried.

I had a bit of a struggle getting it to fit with the wedge lock, so I just took it out. It may have fit with a little more patience, but I was trying to get zero verified for some night ops tonight and ran out of patience. I haven't had any issues with the wedge lock and the Archimedes action.

It was sweet to be able to reduce the length of pull so significantly when shooting it from the kneeling low barricade.

Only thing that sucks is that I didn't pre-order two more of these things.

.

 

[Stoweit]

I think he me made them for ARC actions, which makes sense.

 

[chrome]

I had a bit of a struggle getting it to fit with the wedge lock, so I just took it out. It may have fit with a little more patience, but I was trying to get zero verified for some night ops tonight and ran out of patience.

I initially had some "wtf" moments with the wedge lock as well when I got the XYLO and Nucleus combo. When I contacted ARC, they advised to put the screws into the lug clamp loosely and then push up on the screws so the lug clamp is not sitting on the bottom of the lug clamp.

This unfucked my situation ricky tick.

 

[Boatninja]

The extractor in your Mausingfield action should be able to snap over the rim of the cartridge. If it doesn't we can easily fix that for you if you send your action to us.

As for the case jumping forward and away from the bolt face upon release from the magazine, that's solely a function of the shape of the case and the length of the magazine feed lips. There's nothing magic about this stuff. The bolt does not attract the case to ensure that the case rim comes up the bolt face and underneath the extractor claw. What's causing the case to jump forward on its way of of the magazine is contact with the shoulder of the case below it. The Mausingfield and other CRF actions will generally function better if the case is released earlier, before the angled shoulder of the case below can engage the head of the case being fed. I like the AICS mags, they are well made, but I have never hesitated to shorten their feed lips to improve the cooperation between mag and action. ARC mags have shorter feed lips than AI mags and copies, such as the Accurate mags. AI actions are not controlled round feed (CRF), they're push feeds, and releasing the cartridge a bit later is a good thing for most push-feed actions.

Controlled-round-feed is a bit of a misnomer. The bolt can only take control of the cartridge if presented (released) correctly. The faster you run the bolt, the less of an issue this becomes so I'm surprised by your claim of experiencing the issue at high bolt speeds. Are you running a 223?

Remember, when Mauser first figured this stuff out in the 1890's, he shaped the actions mag well surfaces to release the cartridges at the right time. Maybe early cartridge engagement (ECE) would be a more accurate name for CRF actions. Let's see if that sticks.

Ted

Thank's very much for the knowledge.I was not aware that Ai mags were PRF. My aggressively running the bolt may have not been aggressive enough and I may have slowed down on operating the bolt after I had to knock a couple out with cleaning rod. I will send it to you in a few weeks shooting when it gets too hot here for much shooting as wells get a couple of your magazines. I am running a .22 Creed right now not .223. My first rifle was a FN Mauser action that I am still using fifty years later (new stock and barrel) which was the initial reason I chose Mausingfield for my first truly custom rifle. I will go for ECE it is certainly a better description.

 

[Kimber.204]

I had a bit of a struggle getting it to fit with the wedge lock, so I just took it out. It may have fit with a little more patience, but I was trying to get zero verified for some night ops tonight and ran out of patience. I haven't had any issues with the wedge lock and the Archimedes action.

If I recall correctly the recoil lug on my Vudoo is fairly short, so, while the lug may be thin enough for the Xylo chassis to accommodate, it may be too short. I pulled the wedge lock/clamp out when I dropped a Bighorn TL3 in. However, I'm just about ready to call Ted and the guys to have them send me an Archimedes!

 

[NWnewguy]

The recoil lug on the Vudoo is a short little thing, but is fairly normal thickness wise compared to other recoil lugs. I didn't play with it enough to say definitively that it won't go in there. But it could be that it's too short to properly engage the wedge lock. I didn't see any negative effect from it not being in there. It's worked on the other actions that I have tried just fine. That would be a Mausingfield, an Archimedes, a Bighorn TL2, and a Surgeon. Night ops last night were fairly successful with the Vudoo in the Xylo even with the wind blowing the little subsonic pills around.

 

[Steel head]

Just saw on Instagram that there are solid top Mausingfield’s in process!

 

[Jcaplinger199]

I saw that! Hoping one of those is mine. Can’t wait to get it.

 

[Franko]

Pardon my ignorance but what is so special about the solid top Mausingfield's?

 

[Steel head]

Pardon my ignorance but what is so special about the solid top Mausingfield's?

It goes back the the solid rail and looks a lot cleaner.

 

[Boatninja]

I think I'm gonna have to order an Archimedes. Ya know I've just got these extra barrels laying around.......