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Black Aces Tactical
Pro Series 5 Standard Pro Review
Pro Series 5 Standard Pro Review
I was in the market for a quad rail. More specifically, a full length rail for my Mossberg 500. I stumbled across the RB7M rail by Black Aces Tactical on Youtube, and started to do a bit more research. The more I looked, the more intrigued I was by the products BAT had to offer. Shotguns, accessories, and high cap magazines?? They were unlike anything else I had seen.
As July rolled around, they began a deal that would land their products in Canada. I pulled the trigger and bought a Pro Series 5 Standard Pro, along with a Magpul forend, their RB7M rail, and flip up sights. I wasn't in the market for a hunting shotgun, nor a backpacker.. this was an eye catcher.. watermelons and pumpkins new worst enemy.
It's late October, leaves have already changed colours and began to fall. Orange faces sit at everyone's front doors, except for mine. At my door sits a rather large package. The BAT shotgun has finally arrived.
The Build
The Standard Pro comes exactly as pictured - 18.5” security barrel, basic forend, pistol grip (shoulder stock comes separately packaged), and of course.. the mag fed receiver. 
The Receiver – The receiver came professionally milled, nearly identical spec to the Mossberg series – while sporting triple aces engraved below the ejection port. It features a Type 3 Anodized black finish. It's compatible with your Mossberg stocks, forends, and trigger groups. The latch and latch bridge are permanently affixed, but otherwise your breakdown is the same. The take-down pin is very snug, and will require a punch and hammer to release it. Another noticeable difference is two minuscule threaded holes, one on either side just ahead of the take-down pin. These threaded holes would allow you to mount your RB7M rail directly to the receiver, while standard Mossbergs would need to replace their take-down pin with a supplied pin.
The Bolt Assembly – While similar to that of a Mossberg, it is noticeably larger. The slide assembly is one of a kind, specifically formed to accept BAT magazines. Upon arrival, the assembly required lubrication, but after doing so I've found it to be much smoother of an action by comparison.
The Magazines – The eye candy. The magazines are converted from Saiga's 10 round design to feed the BAT shotguns. While they look great, upon arrival they haven't met their full potential. Obvious machine marks appear on the front catch, as well as inside the magazine. At first, I was unable to load more than 9 shells into the magazine. I was advised the spring may need re-seating. Upon doing so, I was able to load a full 10 shells with a bit of force. On the bright side, proprietary magazines are on the horizon and should be released shortly.
The RB7M Rail – If you're looking for a full length quad rail for your BAT or Mossberg shotgun, I highly recommend this unit. Professional machining and quality, lightweight for it's size – but durable and functional. Equipping this on your BAT shotgun will allow you to strip your receiver without ever having to remove it. It clamps directly to the barrel and disabled magazine tube, and reaches back to proprietary threaded holes on the receiver. For Mossberg users, a pin is provided to replace your take-down pin.
The Accessories – To personalize the Standard Pro, I purchased a Magpul forend, and added a few parts I had laying around in the collection. The Magpul forend requires minor modification to complete an action when the RB7M rail is installed. As the Standard Pro's forend was a basic model, you may be required to purchase a slide tube assembly to swap forends. Luckily, I already had one on hand. The modification is minor and simple, as the material Magpul uses is extremely easy to work with. Creating a small notch with a sanding bit on a dremel will allow you to complete you action and cycle properly.
As stated before, you may also install your own Mossberg stocks. I used an ATI adjustable stock I had sitting around for this build. To attach the stock may require some force. The rear of the receiver is minutely out of spec, leaving about a 1/16th of an inch gap between the mounting plate and receiver.
Last, but not least – the barrel. The barrel is a standard smooth bore 18.5” security barrel. A general purpose barrel with a cylinder choke. I had an old Roadblocker sitting around gathering dust, so I swapped out the barrels. The barrel install is business as usual for a Mossberg user, but if you wish to combine the RB7M rail with a Roadblocker, you will need to slide the barrel through the quad rail before installing as the rails wont fit over the muzzle brake. Breacher barrel users will require a different set of RB7M barrel clamps altogether.
The Range Day
A crisp morning in Northern Alberta, the sun was just beginning to rise and light up the orange faces we placed along the fence line. It's the second of November, and we offered a pumpkin disposal service to our neighbors. The beast that was once the Standard Pro sits on the tailgate of my Ford, magazines loaded with birdshot, buckshot, and of course – rifled hollow point slugs. To get a feel for the magazines, we started with birdshot.
The magazines were tight, and difficult to field at first with a standard pump action. Higher round counts in the magazines lead to the action seizing, and double feeding occasionally. Once at six rounds and less, it was as smooth as butter. Within the first 30 shells, we were able to start bumping up the count in the mags, reaching for 7 – onto 8 – and finally 9 rounds functioning properly in the magazine.
After about 50 rounds, the shotgun was functioning exactly how I had hoped. Buttery smooth, with the minor drawback of it not accepting a 10th round – yet. We ended up shooting 125 birdshot shells, 25 buckshot, and 20 slugs that day, with very little pumpkin left over for the wildlife.
Summary
At the end of the day, Black Aces Tactical met my requirements for a mag fed shotgun. The Pro Series 5 Standard Pro, once broken in, functions beautifully and catches looks. I could see a lot of potential for builds with this platform; from short barreled self defense weapons for the bush, to long barreled hunting applications. If you're looking for a new 12 gauge that suits you, look into purchasing a receiver or complete build from Black Aces Tactical.
My apologies, this was originally supposed to be a video review, but I've been having issues with my GoPro. A video review may be submitted in the near future.
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