Does Alexander Arms make that anymore? I looked on their site and all they have is the standard firing pin.
ARs in sub zero temperatures
- Thread starter 232593
- Start date
They stopped offering it years ago. Not sure why. It was meant to reduce firing pin lock time/drag inside the bolt.
Yes, I was using Slip2000 EWL in extreme cold temps, but I don’t have exact numbers in front of me.
The only reason I was able to fly with that lubricant was because it wasn’t petroleum-based.
In all your time shooting comps in the freezing temps have you seen any triggers fail due to the environment conditions? Especially the Hammer? As I understand it metal can get brittle in extreme cold.
These were high-volume, multi-day shoot courses. I never saw a hammer or small part like that fail in ARs, though there was a Bushmaster 20” rifle that had the flange on the gas tube wear out, started short-stroking.
We did have a Cz75 slide stop shaft snap in half in a brutal winter pistol high volume course.
Glocks and M&Ps ran fine. I used a borrowed G17 in that course, zero issues.
We did a lot of malfunction drills with dummy cartridges placed in magazines or set-up in pistols as part of clearance drills.
Some of the guys were big on getting as many TDP parts as possible for their AR-15s, and keeping spares.
Finland does an additional pressure test procedure on any stressed parts, so bolts gets proof-load tested again and stamped with a Finnish proof mark. That’s the last thing AR-15 bolts need.
That's actually just the standard failure mode of a CZ pistol. Everyone that competes with one keeps a spare slide stop on hand.
Mine broke while a buddy was shooting my gun. He had 3-4 malfunctions in 20 rounds and I couldn't figure out what he was doing wrong with my gun.
Interesting. My limited experiences with CZ75s up to that point had all been positive. I love the way mass is managed with those pistols and the fit/feel. It was weird seeing the slide stop shaft just break in half. I figured it was the extreme cold that made the part brittle.
They are great guns, but the slide stop issue is well documented. Some guys say that putting a mirror polish on it and the barrel interface surface can increase lifespan. I'm skeptical. Other guys say that using just a pin without the slide stop lever helps it last longer.
I think I was around 50k rounds when mine broke, I've heard of it happening way sooner and later.
Yes. I was surprised to find many of the Finns already in the 2000s owned ArmaLite Inc. AR-10Bs (mark Westrom Era rifles and carbines). These ranged from 24” Match rifles down to 16” MLGS carbines, and even one custom-built 6.5x284 that had a cold hammer-forged barrel made by SAKO installed into a spare upper.
I never saw the ArmaLite Inc. guns malfunction. These were all M14 pattern mag ArmaLites. I saw and experienced a ton more 5.56 high volume shoot courses though where .308 was rarely used.
The DPMS LR-308 I used for Häyhä Sniper competition in 2007 had a tight chamber and would malfunction with FTExtract, but that was in the summer. Its first extractor bent on me within the first 20rds. I ordered a replacement from DPMS. Had to have the chamber finish-reamed.
Then I had GA Precision build me a .308 and a .260 Rem. I used the .308 in FinnSniper 2008, where my partner and I placed 2nd. He was shooting .25-06 Rem in an AICS, so he really was the primary contributor to our points at distance. That was also summer.
I do remember the 16” ArmaLite AR-10B running high-volume in a more close quarters course in the winter, without hiccup.
I also have a GAP ar10 on the seekins upper and lower in manbun. It’s my predator gun, never any issues. George knew it was coming to Alaska and would be used year round. Unknown if anything specific was done to accommodate below zero or not. It’s taken spring black bears and winter wolves. I run the same winter balm from Cherry Balmz I have no issues.
I’ve found that lube plays a huge role in this. Something light is key to success in cold weather.
Excellent thank you. I have one already that I purchased from Arm or Aly and was thinking about getting a second one.
Cold Weather Shooting, Lubes, and Gun Preparation
Few things test a lubricant or a shooter's understanding of lubrication and weapon reliability more harshly that extreme cold weather.
www.cherrybalmz.com
The manufacturer of winter balm wrote this blog post about firearms and cold weather.
It doesn't get -40 where I live but it does get -20. 50:50 ATF and 90w gear oil works as well as anything I've ever seen. For $20 you can have a lifetime supply for your guns.
Ever have any issue with AR stocks & handguards in extreme cold. Any brands more prone to failure? Magpul PRS stocks function ok in extreme cold?
Not with stocks or handguards. There was one OD Green Bushmaster M4 waffle stock with the sling swivel removed that cracked when using it as a hammer on a wooden target stand, just that toe area. I don’t think the after-market M4 waffle stocks were Mil-Std though. I had seen and acquired Waffle Stocks already with Land Warrior in 2000-2001, which seemed a lot stronger than the flimsy after-market copies being sold in the later 2000s.
Magpul PRS is beefy and doesn’t have any thin, fragile structures that I’ve seen.
A solid, real Colt A2 grip seems the strongest of them all for PGs.
Yes I leave it on, when I shoot a higher volume I just add CLP when/where needed. And fall a good cleaning and back to all winter balm
@232593 thx for the good follow up question.
I was dreading having to acetone-off summer lube each winter to use something like Winter Balm (or whatever). Sounds like I wouldn’t have to if I just stick to Winter Balm year round.
I might try the same approach on bolt actions. I shoot those way more than ARs.
Worth giving a try and seeing if it works in your environment. Shoot it dirty and on that cleaning decide summer or winter lube. Winter is the easy button. As I start shooting minre over the next few months, as it warms up I will update.
