I'll try to keep this succinct, and will follow up with photos of my specific build. For now, here's a stock photo.
And if you don't know what I'm talking about, here's a link: http://www.hical.ca/apps/webstore/products/show/2203340 (Coles notes: H&K G36 style stock for Ruger 10/22)
My base ruger has an 18.5" barrel. I opted for permanently affixing the flash suppressor rather than the faux silencer, which means I could have gotten away with purchasing a 16" model instead. Had I known this in advance, I definitely would have got the shorter barrel, but all of the literature states in big red letters that you need the 18.5. Unfortunate.
The buying experience
I purchased my kit, along with a 3-pack of AA9-22 magazines, from High Caliber Services in BC.
The good:
The bad:
Summary:
I'd buy from Dave @ HiCal again. He's a nice guy and the overall experience was positive.
Assembly/build quality
First off, throw out the instructions. They're total garbage. Instead you can follow these two videos, which are excellent and complete:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=niXUwWT8cT4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrv8vhTzP78
The good:
The bad:
Summary:
More good than bad. I'd consider buying another Archangel product but would do more research and preparation the second time around.
Operation
I loaded up all 4 mags today and took it out to the local range. I only shot 100 rounds as I was also breaking in a new pistol today. Pretty standard Federal bulk ammo.
The good:
The bad:
Summary:
Undecided. My base 10/22 never had any feeding issues, so I'm bothered a bit by my experiences today. I need to run a few hundred more rounds through it, and see if I can pinpoint any specific magazines as the culprit.
Closing summary
Looks the business, a blast to shoot when it works, but potentially rage-inducing installation and possible reliability issues. I'll follow up with a mid and long term report. In the mean time, I'd love to hear other folks' experiences, particularly as regards feeding reliability and magazine break-in.
Cheers.
And if you don't know what I'm talking about, here's a link: http://www.hical.ca/apps/webstore/products/show/2203340 (Coles notes: H&K G36 style stock for Ruger 10/22)
My base ruger has an 18.5" barrel. I opted for permanently affixing the flash suppressor rather than the faux silencer, which means I could have gotten away with purchasing a 16" model instead. Had I known this in advance, I definitely would have got the shorter barrel, but all of the literature states in big red letters that you need the 18.5. Unfortunate.
The buying experience
I purchased my kit, along with a 3-pack of AA9-22 magazines, from High Caliber Services in BC.
The good:
- Pre-purchase questions answered quickly
- Product was shipped same day as order and arrived very quickly
- Reasonable prices and shipping rates
- Requests for help with troublesome assembly were answered promptly.
The bad:
- Had to explicitly email a request for a tracking number, probably because of the (FRAUD ALERT) checkout. But I got a response right away, so not really an issue.
- Sent an email post-purchase asking which tools would be useful to acquire prior to assembly, but it went unanswered.
Summary:
I'd buy from Dave @ HiCal again. He's a nice guy and the overall experience was positive.
Assembly/build quality
First off, throw out the instructions. They're total garbage. Instead you can follow these two videos, which are excellent and complete:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=niXUwWT8cT4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrv8vhTzP78
The good:
- It looks bad ass. Mostly (see The bad, below).
- Its a learning experience. Yes, you could just buy a pre-packaged SR22 or the like, but I feel way more intimate and knowledgable with my firearm now that I've seen and manipulated its innards.
- New trigger assembly (extended mag release and auto bolt release) is a breeze. I'm a scared newb and even I found it painless and fun.
- Overall fit and finish is pretty good, except for one major component (see The bad, below). There was no extra flashing, all hardware was included correctly, and the overall product seems to be well manufactured.
The bad:
- The faux fire selector is stupid. There's no other description for it. It makes an otherwise pro-feeling kit look like a toy, and is more than a little embarrassing. I'd really like to see Archangel/Promag ditch this in a future revision.
- Installing the rugger receiver into the Archangel lower frame is a f**king nightmare. Watching the videos, you'd think it slips in as easy as Arnold into a nanny, but you would be wrong. I eventually got it in there and the tolerances seem pretty good, though I'd like the magwell alignment to have been a bit more flush. The whole story can be found here.
- The backing plates for the top rail screws came raw and unpainted/uncoated instead of black. They're a pretty rough and shoddy looking grey metal. (Dave, any thoughts on this?) Likewise, the extended bolt release didn't seem to have been anodized. Looks cheap.
Summary:
More good than bad. I'd consider buying another Archangel product but would do more research and preparation the second time around.
Operation
I loaded up all 4 mags today and took it out to the local range. I only shot 100 rounds as I was also breaking in a new pistol today. Pretty standard Federal bulk ammo.
The good:
- It was incredibly fun to shoot, when it functioned correctly
- LOP felt natural, despite being a bit short, and overall ergonomics are solid. I'm a bit concerned about the overly smooth grip getting slippery after extended use, but we'll see.
- Accuracy was pretty solid, even with a fairly average set of sights. If I decide to keep this firearm long term, I'll probably put a red dot on it.
- Auto bolt release = dandy.
The bad:
- My first two magazines functioned flawlessly, but I had repeated failures to feed with my second two. Its possible that I wasn't slapping them in hard enough, a magazine break-in issue, or the crapo plastic feeding lips. I can't make a determination yet.
- Magazines don't drop out when activating the release. Again, maybe this is a break-in issue. I have gotten pretty quick at pushing the release forward while also gripping and pulling the magazine away.
- The positioning of the longer bolt release seems suboptimal. Access still seems restricted, while proximity to the mag release seems too close.
Summary:
Undecided. My base 10/22 never had any feeding issues, so I'm bothered a bit by my experiences today. I need to run a few hundred more rounds through it, and see if I can pinpoint any specific magazines as the culprit.
Closing summary
Looks the business, a blast to shoot when it works, but potentially rage-inducing installation and possible reliability issues. I'll follow up with a mid and long term report. In the mean time, I'd love to hear other folks' experiences, particularly as regards feeding reliability and magazine break-in.
Cheers.
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