My new 5.45x39 Piston AR-15 (Huldra Mark IV with AXTS ambi lower)

[Garys4598 1,065]

Since acquiring my custom Saiga IZ-240 Rifle, I developed an "itch" for a piston driven AR-15 chambered for 5.45x39.  After performing some rather extensive internet searches and research. . . I ultimately decided to go with a Huldra Mark IV complete upper (which is essentially a re-badged Adams Arms upper). . . and personally never being satisfied with the 'status quo', I decided to order a fully ambidextrous AR lower; the AXTS Weapons AX556.  I purchased a Geissele Automatics SDE trigger assembly, completed the rifle with an AXTS Raptor ambi charging handle, Magpul furniture and a Trijicon AccuPoint TR24G optic with triangle reticle.  I also replaced the flash hider with a Daniel Defense Muzzle Climb Mitigator, and mounted LWRC Skirmish backup iron sights on her.  (I think that about covers all the rifle's details.)

 

The Magpul carbine fixed stock is suppose to color match with the rest of the rifle's ODG furniture, but no one has had the ODG in stock for at least a year. . . so for the time being she is wearing black.

 

I'm pretty stoked about how she turned out.  Whadda think?

 

(I haven't fired her yet though; took her to the firing range last week only to discover that Geissele Automatics' advertisement that their hammer spring works just fine with Russian surplus 5.45 ammunition is completely bogus.  I couldn't get a round to fire; all light firing pin strikes, although the ammo ignited just fine when re-inserted into my Saiga IZ-240.  The Huldra Mark IV complete upper comes with a stout hammer spring which I have since installed in the rifle.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

~Gary

Edited November 23, 2013 by Gary

[Ronin38 2,117]

Cute lil' bugger. 

 

The flat trigger looks a little odd, but how it shoots is what counts. Let us know how it runs with the new spring now.

 

Is there really much recoil with a 5.45, or is the muzzle brake there for looks?

[Garys4598 1,065]

Cute lil' bugger. 

 

The flat trigger looks a little odd, but how it shoots is what counts. Let us know how it runs with the new spring now.

 

Is there really much recoil with a 5.45, or is the muzzle brake there for looks?

Great question.  As previously conveyed, generally I don't go for the status quo. . . which I also typically apply to my firearms' muzzle devices.

Since I have not yet fired the rifle, my reply will be based solely off of my experiences with my Saiga IZ-240 rifle, which has a PWS FSC556 muzzle device mounted on the muzzle.  I would surmise there is little recoil when shooting 5.45x39mm ammunition. . . but the FSC556 muzzle device on my Saiga rifle absolutely facilitates keeping the barrel in line for quick follow-up shots.  As with pretty-much all muzzle brake devices the FSC556 makes my Saiga louder than hades when standing to its left or right.

 

I went with the DD Muzzle Climb Mitigator with the desire to have the barrel stay inline for rapid follow-up shots.  I don't know yet with this rifle whether that was a pipe dream or not.

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[Nailbomb 10,221]

Great looking rifle Gary. You've got a few very nice pieces I've seen now.

 

I love the looks of the muzzle break. appears 74ish and gives a well respected nod to the russian rounds heritage IMHO. If I had have known about that I may have reconsidered my choice of the Nordic tactical .223 compensator on my .223 build.

 

would love to see some holes in the paper it makes when you get around to it.

[Garys4598 1,065]

Thank you Nailbomb!

 

Yes. . . I'm rather anxious to discover how she shoots as well.  I'm crossing my fingers that she'll shoot at least as well as my IZ-240 (which I have been greatly pleased with). . . but if I'm being completely honest, I'm desiring that she will be capable of even a slightly tighter shot group.  I've no idea how her Voodoo 1:8 twist chrome-moly-vanadium 4150 barrel will perform.

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Edited November 16, 2013 by Gary

[YOT 3,743]

VERY nice rifle. Hey, I'm interested to see if the AR throws the 5.45 casing as far as the bullet like an AK does.... when you shoot it, that is.

[Shandlanos 1,470]

Recoil on a 5.45 AR is insanely low. That buffer spring kills what little kick the round had to begin with.

[Garys4598 1,065]

Recoil on a 5.45 AR is insanely low. That buffer spring kills what little kick the round had to begin with.

Oh, your statement reminded me that: I have a JP Enterprises "Silent Captured Recoil Buffer Spring" installed in this piston AR.

[ChileRelleno 7,071]

Looking good, as do most things you post up.

[gunfun 3,931]

Well, I haven't seen you post up an ugly gun yet. If you do, I'll be happy to shoot it for you. 

 

That is a slick looking machine. Usually when people start naming off a list of fancy bits, the gun looks busy. 

 

Are you using special magazines or just normal AR mags?

 

Also, I've wanted a 5.45x39 with a comp on it for just the same reasons as you stated. After shooting a nice bulgy 74, it was soooo close to keeping the scope on target to watch hits and stack projectiles, but not quite. well that sort of thing always makes me want to tweak the design to get that last little bit. Your build looks like a good candidate to acheive that ability to keep hammering away at a target without having to reacquire aim between shots. A 5.45 that shoots like a noisy 22lr with a flatter trajectory-- Mmm. And a pallett of ammo so you never run short.

[Garys4598 1,065]

Well, I haven't seen you post up an ugly gun yet. If you do, I'll be happy to shoot it for you. 

 

That is a slick looking machine. Usually when people start naming off a list of fancy bits, the gun looks busy. 

 

Are you using special magazines or just normal AR mags?

 

I purchased a dozen steel ASC 5.45x39 magazines for the rifle.

 

On a completely separate note:  One of the most interesting component parts (IMO anyway) to the rifle is the AXTS AX556 Lower.  The shooter can operate all the standard controls without ever removing their firing hand, whether right handed or left handed.  For rightees like myself, the magazine release button serves a dual purpose, as mag release and also as a manual bolt catch.  The lever directly located above the mag release (receiver's right side view), is the bolt release.  If anyone is interested, check out the AXTS Weapons website which contains a video of the A-DAC lower's operational controls in action, although I found the following youtube video to be the most descriptive:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEnaq_M9sNY

 

I'm not implying that the AXTS lower is completely unique or one of a kind (or the best); I believe there are a handful of AR lower manufacturers that have developed their own proprietary ambidextrous designs.  I simply found the AXTS design most to my personal liking.

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Edited November 17, 2013 by Gary

[Sim_Player 1,939]

Looks great! A very sharp looking rifle!

 

It makes my new Bulgy AK build look like a club.

 

Let us know how it handles steel cases. I'm curious. I'm guessing the upper was designed with milsurp taken into consideration.

Edited November 17, 2013 by Sim_Player

[Garys4598 1,065]

Looks great! A very sharp looking rifle!

 

It makes my new Bulgy AK build look like a club.

 

Let us know how it handles steel cases. I'm curious. I'm guessing the upper was designed with milsurp taken into consideration.

 

That's precisely the case regarding the upper and its components. 

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Edited November 17, 2013 by Gary

[gunfun 3,931]

Re #11, supra.

 

The ambi release is intersting. LWRC does that cleverly too, but the mag release is not fully ambi. 

[EthanM 514]

That lower receiver is awesome! Nice build, but you could of probably used some higher quality parts. That cheap stuff don't hold up haha jk

Edited November 17, 2013 by Ethan M

[Garys4598 1,065]

Would love to see some holes in the paper it makes when you get around to it.

Shooting Russian Military Surplus 7N6 ammunition, the rifle grouped similarly to my Saiga IZ-240. . . which in all honesty, I find a wee-bit disappointing.  With the 4x Trijicon scope, I was hoping the rifle's groupings would be somewhat better.  Other than a few fliers, it grouped all 300 rounds that I fired through it this morning within 5 inches.  Perhaps my expectations are too high?  After all, it has a 16" M4 profiled barrel with 1:8 twist; nothing extraordinary or special about that.

 

 

VERY nice rifle. Hey, I'm interested to see if the AR throws the 5.45 casing as far as the bullet like an AK does.... when you shoot it, that is.

It doesn't (throw the brass as far as an AK).  In fact, with the standard shell deflector on its lower, it threw the brass just like a typical AR.

 

 

My  'baptismal' shooting session with this rifle was a little disappointing this morning.  Of more than 300 rounds fed to her, more than twenty-five rounds failed to fire.  I believe the firing pin strikes were not hard enough; I attempted to re-fire the rounds, but only two ignited the second go around.  So, the following is what I think the issue is:  I don't believe the Geissele hammer has enough "mass" to reliably ignite Military Surplus 7N6 ammunition, with their hard primers.

 

Before heading out to the firing range this morning, I swapped the Geissele OEM hammer spring (which Geissele advertises as being strong enough for 5.45x39 ammunition; what a crock!) with the Huldra Arms hammer spring that came with my complete 5.45 upper.  Upon physical inspection of the Huldra Arms spring, it's obvious that it's manufactured from much stouter wire.  I've no idea whether the Huldra spring is almost identical to the Wolff AR-15 extra-power hammer spring (hell, for all I know it could be a Wolff extra-power spring which they package with the Huldra uppers).  Additionally, last week I received a Black Rifle Arms "Enhanced 5.45x39 Firing Pin", which has a slightly longer primer striking end than a standard AR firing pin (the firing pin protrudes further than normal from the bolt face).  I swapped the firing pin as well, before heading out to the firing range.

 

3/4's through my shooting session, for shits & giggles I swapped the firing pin in the bolt assembly for the Huldra OEM firing pin to see if there would be any difference.  Yep. . . I tried firing five rounds and none ignited (although the pin strike on the ammo primers looked reasonable enough).  So I swapped back to the enhanced firing pin.

 

Anyway, when examining the spent casing's primers, its clear to me that the enhanced firing pin, even with its longer end, is not penetrating into the primers as far as it could or should.  So. . . providing the stronger AR hammer spring is doing everything that it should, I'm left with the conclusion that the Geissele hammer simply doesn't have enough mass to provide the "umph!" when striking the firing pin.  When taking into consideration the size and mass of a standard AK hammer, let alone a standard AR-15 hammer, the Geissele hammer significantly pales by comparison.  That shouldn't be surprising though, since the Geissele Automatics trigger assemblies were designed around the AR platform, shooting Western manufactured ammunition.

 

Hey, I'd appreciate hearing anyone's thoughts about this?  Does anyone have first-hand experience using Geissele Automatics triggers in ARs that shoot Russian caliber ammunition?  I'm all ears brothers!

 

I'm considering adding mass to my Geissele hammer by epoxying/bolting two identical pieces of steel to the sides of the hammer, towards the top.  I don't think by doing so, the performance of the trigger system will be degraded.  Hmmmm. . . .

 

~Gary

 

 

[nlacy 692]

You always come up with some pretty cool shit, Gary. 

[Garys4598 1,065]

I started a thread over on another forum (one more geared towards AR-15 rifle enthusiasts) to learn whether any forum members there had similar inadequate firing pin strike experiences with Geissele Automatics triggers shooting 5.45x39 Russian ammunition, and if so, what their fix for the situation was?  I also made mention of Geissele's claim that their hammer spring was strong enough to ignite 5.45 Russian ammo.  Wouldn't you know it?  A forum moderator over there essentially jumped down my throat regarding my allegation against Geissele.

 

So, I posted the following weblink within a reply post; straight from Bill Geissele's own lips (begin watching around the 10:58 mark):  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9nfsa7Q5cg  Now the asshat moderator is stating that I am being overdramatic.

 

Regardless, my way forward to fix my situation with the Geissele SD-E hammer is. . . I'm going to add a slim panel of lead to each side of the hammer to increase its weight and mass.  I believe that shall provide the requisite "umph" to appropriately allow the firing pin to ignite the hard primers found in Russian 7N6 ammunition.   

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Edited December 2, 2013 by Gary

[YOT 3,743]

I started a thread over on another forum (one more geared towards AR-15 rifle enthusiasts) to learn whether any forum members there had similar inadequate firing pin strike experiences with Geissele Automatics triggers shooting 5.45x39 Russian ammunition, and if so, what their fix for the situation was?  I also made mention of Geissele's claim that their hammer spring was strong enough to ignite 5.45 Russian ammo.  Wouldn't you know it?  A forum moderator over there essentially jumped down my throat regarding my allegation against Geissele.

 

That really isn't surprising.

 

How do you intend to fasten or adhere the added weight to the hammer? Will epoxy withstand the violent action?

[Garys4598 1,065]

 

I started a thread over on another forum (one more geared towards AR-15 rifle enthusiasts) to learn whether any forum members there had similar inadequate firing pin strike experiences with Geissele Automatics triggers shooting 5.45x39 Russian ammunition, and if so, what their fix for the situation was?  I also made mention of Geissele's claim that their hammer spring was strong enough to ignite 5.45 Russian ammo.  Wouldn't you know it?  A forum moderator over there essentially jumped down my throat regarding my allegation against Geissele.

 

That really isn't surprising.

 

How do you intend to fasten or adhere the added weight to the hammer? Will epoxy withstand the violent action?

 

Currently, the plan is to use two-ton epoxy, and additionally drill a small hole (perhaps two) through the hammer and use a small screw/bolt to further secure the two lead panels into position.  Yea, I'm somewhat concerned regarding the amount of stress the lead slabs will undergo during the rifle's cycling.  The lead panels will not be contacting any other surfaces (i.e., the bolt assembly or the firing pin), but if not permanently secured to the sides of the hammer. . . they absolutely would likely jar or shake loose and detach.

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Edited December 2, 2013 by Gary

[beefcakeb99 572]

This seems like a duct tape fix on a Lamborghini imo. I'm not gunsmith nor experienced with ar's other than shooting them a few times. But with such a high dollar build with high end parts I'd look for a higher end fix. But that's me talking out of my ass.

Not to say you haven't tried, I'd just search longer...

[Garys4598 1,065]

This seems like a duct tape fix on a Lamborghini imo. I'm not gunsmith nor experienced with ar's other than shooting them a few times. But with such a high dollar build with high end parts I'd look for a higher end fix. But that's me talking out of my ass.

Not to say you haven't tried, I'd just search longer...

Frankly, I completely agree with you.  Had I access to a welder, I'd spot-weld (or whatever) two pieces of steel to the sides of the hammer.  But since I don't, I figured I'd try this route first, with the lead (I am going to file and contour the lead slabs so that they look decent enough on the Geissele hammer).  If it does not work (if sometime down the road the two lead halves become loose or detach), then I will pursue finding a gunsmith that can perform the welding procedure.

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[beefcakeb99 572]

I'm sure some shop around you could add some mass and grind it smooth for a nominal fee

[YOT 3,743]

Perhaps a different drop-in trigger? You could sell the Geissele, if unaltered, and recoup much of the cost. *Only a suggestion.*

[Garys4598 1,065]

Perhaps a different drop-in trigger? You could sell the Geissele, if unaltered, and recoup much of the cost. *Only a suggestion.*

Reasonable suggestion (and I appreciate it), but I genuinely like the Geissele SD-E way too much.

[gunfun 3,931]

Rather than epoxy, why not tap into the side and run in a bolt or two for mass. the bolt could be though some sheet metal. in fact, you could just drill through the hammer and tap the threads into the sheet metal on the opposite side as a nut. You ought to be able to put in grade 8 #8 bolts which won't fail with the violence.

[YOT 3,743]

My only concern with drilling an tapping though the width of the hammer is that it could be the creation of fracture points.

[beefcakeb99 572]

This is an AR we are talking about here!  Sorry couldn't resist.

[Garys4598 1,065]

Rather than epoxy, why not tap into the side and run in a bolt or two for mass. the bolt could be though some sheet metal. in fact, you could just drill through the hammer and tap the threads into the sheet metal on the opposite side as a nut. You ought to be able to put in grade 8 #8 bolts which won't fail with the violence.

Good idea!  Thank you for the suggestion.  Uhhhhh. . . at the moment though, it's still quite likely that I am going to attempt the lead panels.

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[gunfun 3,931]

If that is the plan, take a hunk of clay and embed the hammer in it with the face in the clay and the "claw" sticking up, making a cavity around it. heat it with some soldering flux and a torch then pour the lead into the cavity. File to shape. your lead will be bonded as well as it is going to. Perhaps a through-pin first would give the lead some "rebar" too.  Lead melts at around 700* F, so there is no real risk to harming the temper of the hammer.