Took the plunge- bought a NEW BCL 102

freedomintheskies

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When all the hubbub about gun bans and more restrictions came out, I was thinking I had better get something in .308 in case they would grandfather them. After much thought, I figured that if I bought something restricted, they could take it away at any time. So that narrowed my search considerably to the Black Creek Labs and the Stag.

Having read nothing on CGN prior to ordering I chose the made in Canada option and went with BCL. After placin the order, I started researching them. WOW! Was I ever blown away by all the bad comments. I've seen this sort of thing before when a company rushes to get product "X" to market before anyone else. Sometimes, things get missed and parts need to be modified in order to achieve the desired level of performance.

What did I find?
Mine was a gun shop demo and the last one in stock. I would have liked to get one that had not been fondled, but due to the current buying craze, they are getting scarce.

Everything checked out when I got it home and checked it out/ cleaned it. There was a lot of powder residue in the barrel, but most manufacturers don't clean them after proof firing, so no biggie.

Fit and finish was as good or better than some of my other firearms from Savage, Remington etc. It would have been great to have an anodized receiver group, but the factory finish is durable and seems impervious to chemicals.

Modifications
Being one of those people who cannot leave well enough alone, I upgraded the trigger to a TriggerTech adjustable that breaks very nicely right at the 2 pound mark. A light, crisp trigger is one of the best upgrades a person can make to their firearms and will shrink those groups dramatically.

Other than that, I have not done anything else (yet) except order a Luth-AR adjustable stock.
I put a Leupold VX3i LRP 6.5-20 scope on it and managed to fit it perfectly with a set of high MDT tactical rings.

Ammo
I hand load for everything in my collection, so I set about making some ammo for this rifle which performed well in other gas guns, both for function and accuracy.

Bullets were (pulled Winchester Match Ammo)168gr HPBT, over N-150 powder and contained in Federal GMM brass which was F/L sized and fully prepped including annealing, trimming and the like. Primers were CCI match.


Range report
It took 3 shots to zero the rifle at 100 yds. It was cleaned after this and every 15 shots thereafter, for 50 shots.
The day was perfect for shooting groups with little to no wind. It was 26C and sunny.

I was using a Silver Mountain Targets SOLO electronic target marking system which scores your shots and shows them on the screen of a tablet or smart phone, so it was easy to see what the rifle was capable of.

I shot a number of groups and the accuracy of 5 round groups ranged from just over 1/2 inch to just over 1 inch (shooter induced), which was very impressive for a new semi auto rifle shooting an untuned load.

There were no stoppages, extraction issues or double feeds and much to my relief, the gun ran perfectly the entire 50 rounds that I fired.

All groups were shot from the prone position with bipod and improvised rear support.

I know many people got rifles that have been problematic, but I think that BCL has gotten their poop in a group to address any of the previous shortcomings.
 
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Not many people got problematic rifles, you are just hearing the armchair experts autistic screaming...

They are great rifles. Glad to see you are enjoying yours!
 
If down the road you start getting hit in the face with the charging handle, email or call BCL and they'll make good on their warranty. That's what I did, and I am the second owner. Not every rifle will experience this.
 
Congrats on the new rifle, I like mine too. It had some hiccups with stove pipes with 147 grain but was fine with heavier grain loads. Swapped out the bolt parts and only had it out once and shot good, now to do some load tuning when I have some time for it. I like the rifle, and am happy I went with it. However the little issue I had didn't make the sky start to fall in my world so it's not the end of the world :)
 
I changed my trigger to a trigger tech also. Only mod other than that is the ejector. Put an armalite ejector and spring in as it was marking up brass with the bcl one. Cost under $10. My gun preferred 178gr so far with the factory trigger and I expect groups to be better with the trigger tech. Just need to get back to the range.
 
In my conservative opinion, this is a solid and accurately machined rifle capable of 1/2MOA accuracy, with only a trigger replacement and shooting from a bipod. Further tuning of the hand loads should also ensure that the groups stay tiny.
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In addition to the stock, I may look at replacing the flash suppressor with a 2 gill brake, just to aid in watching for bullet splash downrange. It is a .308 after all and while certainly not a magnum cartridge, you shoot 50 or 75 rounds from the prone position and your collar bone will start reminding you that rubber is a better pain mitigation compound than hard plastic.
 

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Super happy with my BCL. Slapped a Primary Arms HUD DMR 4-14 on it, ditched the "captain hook" for a Magpul stock, and swapped out that ungodly heavy handguard for something lighter. It makes for an awesome black rifle hunting rig. Next up is the trigger....

https://s350.photobucket.com/user/joebell03/media/6531E16D-1253-43F8-84DC-5BEE37674174_zpsul25mfss.jpg.html?o=0

6531E16D-1253-43F8-84DC-5BEE37674174_zpsul25mfss.jpg.html


In all her glory....
 
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Welcome to the Dark Side!! (102 Owners)
I put a (new to me) Geissele SSA-E 2 Stage trigger and I am a very happy camper.

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I'm still getting the occasional stovepipe still on my bcl. I ran 60 hirtenberger and 40 ppu with 4 stove pipes the other day. That's not aweful. Not worthy of match ammo. But my mhr still sucks just as bad and it cost 4x as much. Out of spec bolts and extensions is my assumption. Pretty much forces you to look into adjustable gas blocks or replacement buffers, springs and bcg which is pretty pathetic. They look great on the wall though

Have you asked for and received the BCL replacement extractor (and gas rings)?
 
I have a gen1 thats still running strong. Although i forgot to put my break cover on while predator hunting the other day and i still cant hear out of my left ear but thats operator error lol.
 
I may install a cantilever mount if I find the handguard has any movement, however, on this rifle, the handguard is solid as a rock, and a major PITA to remove.
 
Has anyone got a hold of BCL warranty lately? I tried to contact them about FTEs but no reply. Just bought the gas rings and extractor spring myself from TNA, wasn’t worth the wait for free parts. Gun runs good now.
 
Has anyone got a hold of BCL warranty lately? I tried to contact them about FTEs but no reply. Just bought the gas rings and extractor spring myself from TNA, wasn’t worth the wait for free parts. Gun runs good now.

I've got two BCL 102's (One Black, One ODG). BCL sent me the extractor kit with rings for both rifles. All you have to do is fill out the warranty form on their website and they will answer within one or two days. So far I can't complain about their customer service It's been really good. I'd like to pick up another 102 in FDE but I'm on the fence about getting a Stag 10 instead. oh well, decisions, decisions...
 
Have you asked for and received the BCL replacement extractor (and gas rings)?

Because the handguard and upper are not one piece. If it were a monolithic upper it might not be a huge problem however. Any flexation or movement between the two will put undue stress on your scope tube, rings, and rails. It is not recommended(even recommended against) by any optic manufacturer I know of and is just not a good idea in general. A cantilever mount was designed to solve this issue.
 
Has anyone got a hold of BCL warranty lately? I tried to contact them about FTEs but no reply. Just bought the gas rings and extractor spring myself from TNA, wasn’t worth the wait for free parts. Gun runs good now.

I've had replies, but it's been a run-around for months, with promises made but never followed through on.

Early G2 rifle that has never run right, has been sent in once for not running right (and for having barn door accuracy). Came back running even worse.

Either their warranty dept is swamped, or it's simply not a priority.

If I've gotten 50 rounds out of it in total, I'd be surprised
 
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