Rifle Gunpowder: Ball vs. Stick

When it comes to reloading rifle ammunition, the first choice to be made is whether to use stick or ball gunpowder. (Handgun ammunition is nearly always ball powder as we generally don't reload for long range pistol accuracy.) What follows is my own opinion, based on my decades of reloading rifle ammunition.

Why Two Kinds?

There are actually more than two kinds of gunpowder shapes, but stick and ball are the most common and effective for reloading. These powders have different burn characteristics due to varying compositions and grain sizes. 

• Stick powder, aka extruded powder, has larger rodlike grains. Think of how a spaghetti noodle is made, but chopped very short. Because of its surface to volume ratio, it needs fewer burn retardants to produce a smooth pressure curve. 
• Ball powder is made up of small, roundish grains whose volume are easily measured. Ball powder has more surface area that stick powder, so to mitigate its faster rate of combustion, powder manufacturers vary the amount of burn retardants to make the powder's pressure curve suit its final application. For an AR-15 this includes a maximum chamber pressure and a maximum and minimum gas port pressure. 

Image found on Reddit

Cost

When I started reloading decades ago, the cost difference between stick and ball powders for use in rifles was fairly close. However, current market conditions have made ball powders the “economy” option. For instance, an 8 lb jug of Winchester StaBall 6.5 Precision Rifle Smokeless Powder is currently $323 at Powder Valley Outdoors, while stick powder costs hundreds of dollars more: Shooter’s World 4350 costs $510 and IMR 4350 costs $462. This is primarily because of exchange rates and import costs. Ball powders are manufactured in the United States by the St. Marks factory in Florida, as well as around the world, such as Ramshot TAC from Belgium. 

However, stick powders aren’t manufactured in the United States at this time. The IMR line of powders comes from Valleyfield in Canada, and Shooter’s World Powders comes from Lovex in Europe. Other European powder companies include Norma, Vihtavuori, and more, and the Hodgdon Extreme line comes from ADI in Australia. 

This means that prices on stick powders will always fluctuate quite a bit with exchange rates between the Dollar and the Euro or the Australian Dollar, but only some ball powders will feel the impact of exchange rates. Exchange rates aside, the cost increases due to “supply and demand” seems to hit all powders equally. 

Accuracy

While ball powders are generally more cost-effective, stick powders tend to be slightly more accurate. The accuracy improvement isn’t  enough to matter for hunting, but may be just enough to score a few more points at shooting competitions.

For hunting, you want a rifle that will consistently place five shots under two inches at 100, and ball powders can easily achieve this with a standard workup. I know that a two Minutes Of Accuracy rifle and ammo combination sounds pretty lousy here in these days of “Sub-MOA Guarantee!” written right on the box holding your new rifle, but hunting bullets are designed for controlled expansion to provide good terminal performance, whereas match bullets are designed to make nice round holes in paper. In other words, they’re just built differently, so it’s useless to compare their performance. If your rifle can hit two MOA all day long with your hunting load, then you can make a “boiler room shot” on a deer out to 300 yards with confidence. 

Temperature Stability

Stick powders will generally be more temperature stable, meaning they exhibit less velocity shift with ambient temperature changes than ball powders. 6.5 StaBall is advertised as temperature stable, but in testing I found that it had significantly more velocity shift than Hodgdon’s H4350. However, 6.5 StaBall is more temperature stable than Reloader 15, a stick powder used in match ammunition, including M118LR sniper ammunition for the Department of Defense.

Final Recommendations

If you’re just starting in reloading, I recommend beginning with an economical ball powder as it’s easier to use with powder measures to get consistent charges. I’d be very surprised if you didn’t end up with a load that can consistently put five shots under 1.5 MOA after a normal load workup.

The time to spend the money on a premium stick powder is when you start winning competitions and still want to get better, or you’re going on that “hunt of a lifetime” in Africa or Alaska where you want your ammunition to perform more consistently across wild temperature swings.

Product Review: GOAT-15 Helium .22LR Rifle

In previous posts I've talked about gun safety and properly introducing children to firearms. Both topics are intertwined with using the right tools: firearms that are not only functionally safe, but also of appropriate size and weight for smaller shooters.

While attending the GOA GOALS Expo last year, I got to meet Caelinn, Alex, and Braxton of Mountain Billy Gun Labs. They were more than willing to spend some time talking about their product with me. In the short time I was able to handle this firearm, I was quite intrigued.

Following the expo I reached out to them about getting one of their .22 long rifle GOAT-15 Helium mini AR-15s for testing and evaluation. After the usual communications and assurances, they sent one to my local FFL.

Caelin, Alex, and Braxton at GOA GOALS

Description and Specifications

The GOAT-15 is 28 inches long with the stock collapsed and 31 inches long with the stock fully extended. 

Size comparison

The buffer tube has seven positions, enabling it to fit a variety of shooters.

Smaller, but traditional AR-style stock adjustments

The 16" barrel is rifled 1 turn in 16 with a right hand twist. The muzzle is threaded with standard 1/2-28 threads and comes with a thread protector for when another muzzle attachment isn't in use.

The rifle weighs a featherlight 2.75 pounds unloaded. Adding a Swampfox Liberator green dot optic increases that weight to only 3.2 pounds.

Weight with and without optic

Mountain Billy Gun labs contracted with MagPul on the one piece upper receiver and hand guard. The fore end has standard M-Lok slots for accessory attachment on the sides and bottom, and a full length Picatinny rail on top.

M-Lok handguard with Picatinny rail

The GOAT-15 comes with two magazines, one that holds a single round for training purposes and another that holds five. Ten round magazines are now available as well. If the GOAT-15 product line takes off like I hope it does, maybe Pro-Mag will make a drum for it.

Five round and single round magazines

Other than the M-Lok slots, Picatinny rail, and muzzle threads, no parts on the GOAT-15 are interchangeable with standard AR-pattern rifles or accessories. All other parts are proprietary.

In accordance with BATFE regulations, the serial number is located on a metal plate inset into the right side of the magazine well.

The full Billy

Handling and Shooting

The GOAT-15 Helium is on the compact side for me, but it's a good fit for smaller-statured shooters. My 5'2" tall wife and a 5' tall friend were both comfortable shouldering the rifle with the stock fully extended. Two taller friends and I found that it required a somewhat cramped hold, but we were able to manage with no real issues.

All controls are of the standard and familiar AR pattern, with one exception:  the safety lock, a unique feature of this rifle.

From their website:

Safety was so important, we developed and patented a new tamper resistant safety switch that requires strength and dexterity to release, adding a level of safety found on no other firearm, of any size.

The safety lock is a knurled knob on the right side of the receiver where the boss of the safety lever cross pin is located. In normal use, it can be completely ignored and doesn't interfere with operation of the safety lever in any way. To activate, the knob is pulled out slightly and rotated 180 degrees. This locks the safety in the safe position, rendering the rifle inoperative until the knob is rotated back. If desired, the safety lock can be removed. 

GOAT-15 Lower Receiver

When I talked with Caelinn, Alex, and Braxton at the GOALS Expo, they mentioned the future possibility of a safety lever that could be put in place of the safety lock. This would allow for full ambidextrous operation of the safety. However, that's not a priority at the moment. 

If I were to describe my experience shooting the GOAT-15, the first word that comes to mind is fun. 22s are nearly always fun to shoot, and the GOAT-15 takes that to the next level. It's small and light, while still maintaining the negligible recoil of a 22. It's also quite accurate: shooting from ten yards freehand, anything other than one-hole five-shot groups were the exception.

Shell casings ejected in the four o'clock direction and landed about 10 feet away in a relatively contained area. When the last round is fired, the bolt locks open as with any standard AR platform firearm.

The only issue encountered was on the second day of shooting. We were several hundred rounds in, and the rifle suffered a series of failures to feed. As many people know, 22 rimfire is pretty dirty ammo, and firearm function being affected by a build-up from the externally lubricated bullets and combustion residue is not uncommon. An examination of the rifle revealed a ridge of gunk had accumulated on the feed ramp; a quick scrub with a nylon bristle brush through the ejection port cleared this up and we were back in business.

The rifle was tested with Federal and Winchester 36 grain copper plated hollow points, as well as a mix-and-match of other brands from my leftovers bin. Other than the fouling issue I just mentioned, the GOAT-15 handled them all without a hiccup.

For amusement value, a few of the testers tried shooting it like a pistol, with a one- or two-hand grip. Although a bit muzzle-heavy when shot in this manner, it was manageable, but group size suffered as would be expected.

A passable but unwieldy handgun

Internals

Disassembling the GOAT-15 for cleaning or maintenance is only slightly different from standard AR-patter rifles. While the upper and lower are still connected by takedown and pivot pins, they're not retained by detents. They're also not pushout, instead having a hex socket on one side and a flat slot on the other, which necessitates two tools to unscrew one end of the pin from the other. This process takes a little getting used to, but it isn't complicated. I do recommend securing the rifle before attempting disassembly.

After the pins are removed and the receiver halves separated, remaining teardown is consistent with most ARs. The bolt and charging handle slide out the back of the upper receiver, and that's it. The rifle is field stripped.

Bolt and Charging Handle

When I looked down into the fire control pocket, I would have believed I was seeing a standard AR if I didn't have a sense of scale.

All the internal components look like what we expect to see, just smaller.

Fire Control Group, Hammer up and Down

Packing and Accessories

The GOAT-15 Helium comes packed with foam spacers in a sturdy cardboard box. In addition to the rifle, it also contains two magazines (one-round, and five-round), the federally mandated lock, a manual, and a sticker.

The GOAT-15 in its pen

The MSRP of the GOAT-15 Helium is $470 for the rifle and $23 for the 10-round magazines. In my opinion, this is a remarkably good price.

Mountain Billy has also recently released the ATOM pistol and H2 SBR versions of the GOAT-15, at MSRPs of $480 and $490 respectively. The SBR price does not include the $200 National Firearms Act tax stamp fee.

Summary

At the end of the T&E period, I was so impressed with the GOAT-15 Helium that I talked to Mountain Billy Gun Labs about purchasing their test rifle. They agreed, so I'm now the keeper of this lovely firearm. I foresee it getting plenty of use, both by me and by every friend whose hands I can get it into.

Whether for training new shooters, outfitting a smaller statured shooter, or just as a fun plinker, I highly recommend any of the GOAT-15 variants.

As you might guess, I give it a ten out of ten.

Have fun, and safe shooting.

Snap Caps & Dummy Rounds for Dry Fire & Malfunction Practice

Modern firearms are “dry fire safe” in that they don’t need a round or snap cap in the chamber to safely work the trigger mechanism through the full range of operation. However, snap caps are a useful tool for deliberately inducing a “failure to fire” event during live training to help perfect the “clear a malfunction” sequence into muscle memory. 

Snap caps are commercially available from a number of manufacturers, often in sets of five for handguns and sets of two for rifles and shotguns. However, it’s often cheaper to make your own dummy rounds using commercial ammunition components.

https://amzn.to/40f7fth

In my military service, a dummy round was an inert training aid that can be easily distinguished from live ammunition by having indentations on the sides of the brass, being a different color entirely, or a combination of both feel and appearance. These dummy rounds were used in training personnel to use weapons in a safe manner, often in classroom locations. Lessons on how to load, arm, and troubleshoot a failure to fire could all be done as slowly as needed before going to a range and doing it live. If you’re helping to introduce new people to the shooting sports, then dummy rounds are a great tool for teaching basic firearm manipulation, how to load, unload, and so forth.

Making Your Own

I like to make my dummy rounds with a drill press by drilling holes through the sides of the cartridge case for an easy visual indicator that they aren’t live ammunition. Since I’m a handloader, I can omit the steps of priming and charging a round before crimping in the bullet. This leaves me with a dummy round that has holes in the side for visual identification, but weighs very close to what a live round would weigh. I find this to be useful for properly weighting a handgun magazine, as 15 rounds of 115gr 9mm ammunition is about 3.5 ounces of additional mass if you’re practicing “draw from concealment” drills at home.

The author's handmade dummy rounds

Some of you may be wondering “Why not just take a live round and drill through it?” I’ve done this when no other option was available to me, and it works because brass doesn’t spark. I don’t recommend it, though, because there’s still a lot of steel-cased ammunition on the market and I don’t think the risk justifies the potential reward. 

Additionally, if you drill a live round and then pour the powder out the holes, you still have to deal with the primer. You can’t use your firearm to do that, either, because the chamber would be directly exposed to the hot primer gas and you might dislodge the bullet into the barrel.

For dummy shotgun rounds:

1. Take a spent hull and fill it with BBs and epoxy just below the crimp line. Because the vast amount of mass in a shotgun shell is in the lead shot, you really have to add a filler material back in to get the right weight/feel.
   
   
   
   
   
2. Wait for the epoxy to harden, then cut the crimp away at the crimp line.
   
   
   
   
   
3. Drill the visual indicators in the metal part of the hull and drill out the spent primer. 
   
   
   
   
   

This is a tad more expensive than pistol or rifle dummies, but still quite a bit cheaper than commercial snap caps or dummy rounds. 

Concerns

“Is there a risk of having a bullet from a homemade dummy round come loose into your firearm?” Yes, but I've not yet encountered that in reality. I’ve experienced an AK-style rifle (Saiga .308) slam uncrimped match ammo so hard into the chamber that it unseated the bullet spilling powder everywhere, so it’s entirely possible that this “inertial bullet puller effect” could happen with a dummy round. If you’re worried about that, then don’t use homemade dummy rounds mixed with live ammo for live training.  However, I haven’t experienced this with dummy pistol ammo, and the dummy shotgun ammo is epoxied in place.

Conclusion

Dummy rounds are useful for teaching new shooters the manual of arms with a firearm and for working misfire drills and dryfire practice for more skilled shooters. I cannot recommend strongly enough that every prepper incorporate dummy round-enhanced training drills at home, as they are incredibly valuable to skill building and skill retention and don't require range fees or expending live ammunition.

Dummy rounds are also cheap to purchase and easy to make if you have reloading tools, and I encourage you to buy or make them at your next opportunity. You don't need a whole lot of them, but you should have a few on hand for practice and education. 

Product Review: Laser Ammo's Recoil Enabled Glock G19 Training Pistol

Not actually Erin.

Picture by KJ Photography.

Used with permission.

David has talked about the importance of dry fire for marksmanship, and I agree with that position. If you carry a firearm as a self-defense prep, then you must  ensure that all of your shots go where you need them to go if you ever shoot in defense of yourself or another. Unless you're law enforcement, you aren't protected under qualified immunity if you miss your target and hit an innocent person; regular folks like you and I are legally responsible for every bullet that leaves our gun. 

David also reviewed the Mantis X3 dry fire system, which has the benefit of enabling the user to practice with their own firearm. However, as he observed, any gun which uses a striker rather than an external hammer will require either working the slide between shots or the purchase of specialty dry fire magazines, which are both expensive and only fit a limited selection of firearm models (Glock seems to be universal, followed by Sig Sauer and S&W M&P). 

Another solution to this dilemma is to purchase a recoil-enabled training pistol from Laser Ammo. I have the Gen 5 Glock 19 version with infrared laser, so my review will focus on that, although I assume that the other Laser Ammo guns (Glock 17, 1911 and Sig Sauer M17, M18, P320) function similarly. 

https://amzn.to/4gEtEpF

Comparisons With Reality

Built on the chassis of an Umarex airsoft Glock 19, these training pistols function exactly like a Glock 19 with the sole exception of being unable to fire bullets: the trigger safety functions the same way, the slide reciprocates and can be locked back, magazines are loaded and ejected identically, and it can even be field-stripped in exactly the same manner as its real counterpart. 

https://amzn.to/4gEtEpF

It's also worth noting that a proper Glock magazine will not seat inside this trainer. I have several, and they all encounter friction resistance about halfway in. It's possible to force the magazine in further, but it stops well before the slide can engage the ammunition. Only airsoft magazines will fully seat inside this trainer.

As a point of curiosity, an unfilled Umarex magazine for the airsoft Glock 19 weighs about as much as a real and loaded Glock 17 magazine, and more than a real and loaded Glock 19 magazine. I'm not sure why this is, but it does mean that magazines on this laser trainer drop free cleanly.

https://amzn.to/4gEtEpF

Speaking of weight, the Laser Ammo G19 weighs less than an unloaded Glock 26. This will become somewhat relevant later. 

Operation

Because this laser trainer is so similar to the Glock 19, the manual of arms is almost exactly the same. The two exceptions are that the slide doesn't need to be racked for it to function (although I find myself doing that anyway), and the magazine is filled with green gas from a pressurized can. 

I specifically chose a green gas (essentially propane without the smell and with silicone oil added for lubrication) trainer over CO2 because of price. According to this source, green gas is more cost-efficient and is easier on the gun because it has reduced recoil. This allows the user to practice more often without worrying about hand fatigue from recoil, although there's enough recoil that it's easy to lose your sight picture without sufficient control and practice.

As an indication of its recoil and the amount of noise it makes -- best described as a sharp snapping sound, akin to a stapler gun -- I asked my 85-year-old mother to give it a try. Despite the arthritis in her hands, the recoil wasn't too much for her, nor was the noise harmful to her ears. 

To my mind that makes this product ideal for teaching firearm safety to children and hesitant adults:

• The light weight makes it easier to lift and use.
• The similar manual of arms makes it possible to teach safe firearm handling without using a real gun, and with more function than a dummy gun. 
• The mild noise means it can be used indoors. (I would suggest a well-ventilated area, as after a magazine's worth of shots are fired the smell of the green gas is noticeable. I don't find it objectionable, although some might.)
• The gentle recoil means that children, the elderly, and anyone with an injury can use this product without discomfort. 

In fact, using this as an instruction tool is the main reason I bought it. The fact that it helps me with my shooting is a welcome secondary benefit. 

Red vs. Infrared

Laser Ammo offers two types of lasers on its trainers: visible red lasers and invisible infrared. They both have benefits and drawbacks. The red laser is less expensive, and you get immediate feedback about where you hit. On the other hand, many shooters end up "chasing the dot" rather than focusing on their technique. The infrared is the reverse, being more expensive (but only by about $20) and lacking the immediate feedback, but allowing the user to concentrate on sight picture rather than "I saw the dot go down and left, so I need to aim up and right to fix that."

Pick whichever one best suits your needs. I went with infrared because I already have a visible red laser trainer from LaserLyte (reviewed here, available from Amazon for $141). 

Targets

Regardless of which you choose, you'll need some kind of target to register your shots. I use the LaserLyte Score Tyme ($214 from Amazon, reviewed here) which I acquired 10 years ago; it still works great, and I'm happy to report that it registers hits from infrared lasers just as well as from red.  

https://amzn.to/3BQ1EQO

Another option is the LaserPET (Personal Electronic Target), also from Laser Ammo. At $70 it's much less expensive than the Score Tyme, and it's also a lot more portable (2.25" x 5.25" x 0.75", takes 2 AAA batteries). 

In terms of functionality, the LaserPET is a mixed bag. On the one hand, it doesn't show you where you hit like the Score Tyme does, only if you hit or not. If you're like me and you get validation from seeing tight groups, that's a drawback. On the other hand, the LaserPET has more modes (hit counter, shot timer, timed burst shooting, and double tap) and also comes with inserts which restrict the shot window. For example, you can shoot a 1" or 1/2" aperture if you like punishing yourself want a challenge. 

The 1/2" aperture insert

The B-27 aperture insert

I contacted Laser Ammo to ask about the size ratio of this target and was told that 1 foot away from the PET equals 3 feet away from a full size target. This is likely only of use when shooting at the B-27 silhouette target, but I thought it was an interesting fact. 

My feeling is that the Score Tyme is better for new shooters and the LaserPET is better for experienced shooters, especially those who want to dry fire while away from home. 

The Price: $$$

Unfortunately, there's just no getting around the biggest drawback, which is its price. At over $400, these laser trainers cost as much as a good used gun and are approaching new gun prices, and that's before you add the cost of a laser-sensing target. Some people may balk at these prices, and I can't blame them. I bought mine specifically for my work with Operation Blazing Sword, and as a combination instruction tool and dry fire trainer it's fantastic. This is a good tool for anyone who teaches people how to handle firearms; for everyone else, it's likely too expensive and you should get a Mantis X3 instead. (Although, fun fact: the Laser Ammo G19 has an accessory rail on it just like a proper Glock 19, so you could also mount a Mantis on it for maximum training efficiency.)

There's also the drawback that, much like the dry fire magazines, Laser Ammo only has a small amount of brands available. If you don't shoot a 1911, a Glock 17 or 19, or a Sig P320, you aren't practicing with your carry pistol. I chose a Glock because it's still the most popular and prevalent pistol in the world, and because I have familiarity with the platform because I own a G26. 

My Rating: Well, It Depends

Are you someone who dry fires a lot, either because you need to shoot professionally or because you want to shoot really well? If you shoot one of the guns that Laser Ammo makes trainers for, then this product is definitely for you because of the feedback and the identical manual of arms. 10/10

Do you want more realism in your dry fire practice? This will give you that, but perhaps it's not the best use of your funds, especially if you don't have a lot of money to throw around. On the other hand, it's cheaper than ammunition, range fees, and gas to the shooting range and back. I'll say 8/10, because it's not for everyone, mainly due to the initial cost. That said, once you get it set up you're liable to really like it, so I don't think there will be much buyer's remorse. 

Are you just really annoyed by having to rack the side while dry firing and want a better way to do it? Don't get this. Instead, get a LaserLyte emitter and the LaserPET target. This will give you all the benefits of dry fire practice for half the price (about $211 total). 

Do you teach people how to safely operate firearms? 10/10 due to its functionality and its ability to teach at someone's home rather than going to a range. 

Dear FTC: I bought these products. Go away.

Product Review: Mantis X3

On this bog we've talked about the importance of shooting practice, particularly dry fire practice for improving skills, accuracy, and confidence. Erin has reviewed several dry fire systems on her blog. Such as the LaserLyte targets and emitters.

(As an aside, the product I'm reviewing here is another fruit from the Gun Owners of America GOALS event I attended earlier this year. I highly recommend it to any of our readers who can attend next year.)

Overview

The Mantis X3 is a small rechargeable unit that can be attached to any handgun or rifle that has a Picatinny accessory rail. For firearms without a Picatinny rail, Mantis also makes adaptors that attach to the bottom of a pistol magazine. 

The X3 works by detecting the amount and direction of movement during trigger pull. In conjunction with a downloadable app, it enables dry and live fire practice whenever and wherever the owner desires. The Mantis X app is available from the Apple, Samsung, and Google play stores and will work on any mobile device that has Bluetooth capability.

What You Get

The Mantis X3 comes well-packaged in a foam lined zippered hard pouch, and includes the unit, a charging cable (USB A to Micro-B), and a printed quick start guide. More detailed instructions and information are available through the app or downloadable from the website.

Mantis X3 Package Contents

 

Weighing in at just under half an ounce (or 13 grams), and measuring 1.3 inches long, one inch wide, and 0.75 inches high, the Mantis X3 is unlikely to affect the handling characteristics of any firearm (with a possible exception being if the user wants to use it in conjunction with holster draw drills).

The Mantis X3 unit

Setup of the Mantis X3 is extremely simple.

1. Download the App
2. Attach the unit to the firearm
3. Connect the device to the app via Bluetooth
4. Start practicing

The unit I received is occasionally a little finicky synching to my phone. I don't know which side of the connection string is causing this, but I haven't run into that issue with other Bluetooth items or when connecting the Mantis to my tablet.

Mantis X App Settings Screen

Once the app is installed and connected, a variety of options for firearm type, shooting hand, mount location, unit orientation, and even live or dry fire modes can be selected.

Mantis X App User Options

There are a number of Training Drills built into the app, including a rotating series of Daily Challenges. Some of these options are timed, while others are not.

Mantis X App Drills

The Mantis X app also has a weekly shot goal. When reached, it will play a fanfare and display confetti drifting down the screen to mark the shooter's achievement. I found this to be a nice, fun feature.

Dry Fire

To use the Mantis X for dry fire practice:

1. Go through the setup steps I mentioned earlier
2. Select a convenient target, or prop the tablet or smartphone up at an appropriate distance.* 
3. Double check to make sure the firearm is unloaded
4. Start the selected drill.

* Since the Mantis doesn't rely on a laser or something similar, any aiming point will do, but I like using the provided on-screen target for dry fire drills. 

Mantis X App Drill Screen

I installed the app on both my smartphone and a tablet. I use the former when practicing at shorter ranges, and the latter when I have more space to work with. There are plenty of stands available through retail sources to hold either the phone or tablet in good positions for practice, and all sorts of phone stand 3D print files can be found on sites such as Thingiverse. In a pinch, a plate stand works as well.

Once the practice session is done, the Mantis X app provides the user with a variety of feedback details to review. Accuracy is obviously measured, but also elapsed time between trigger pulls, overall time, muzzle movement, and even firearm cant. In addition, it has the ability to compare multiple sessions over time, giving a clear metric of improvement and noting any areas which need attention.

Mantis X App Results Screen

Live Fire

I've utilized the live fire drills less frequently, mostly the Shot Timer. When activated, there will be a two to five second delay then a buzzer will sound. At this point, I can fire any number of shots at any pace. Settings can be changed to fit the shooter's preference for delay and number of shots per string.

Mantis X App Live Fire Drill Results

 

I've run this drill with both slow, considered fire, as well as rapid fire. It's certainly more fun than dry fire drills, but it's limited to when I have time and access for live fire. It also consumes ammunition, which can get expensive quickly.

Mantis X3 During Live Fire Drill

 

My Experience

As already mentioned, there are a bunch of practice options included with the app. I've mainly focused on the basic marksmanship Open Training drill. This is untimed accuracy practice, with any number of shots at any pace. Unfortunately, the only pistols in my collection with rails are both striker fired, which currently makes the timed dry fire drills less useful for me.

I've also found if I rack the slide too sharply to reset the pistol, the Mantis unit occasionally registers the slide returning to battery as another shot. This obviously doesn't do my accuracy scores any favors.

Yet even with all that, I've found after only a few training sessions, my sight picture was steadier and my trigger pull was smoother. I just need to make sure I put aside regular blocks of time for additional practice.

Pros and Cons

As far as dry fire training systems go, the Mantis X3 has a number of major benefits. It's small, lightweight, and rechargeable. Installation and use are very simple, and the app is quite versatile and user friendly. Even better, it allows us to practice with our own firearms, so there's no need to adapt to new weight, balance, or trigger pull.

The primary negative element is one common to nearly all dry fire training solutions, and it is not the fault of the unit: since the Mantis X3 reacts to a hammer or striker releasing, it requires re-cocking the action after each shot. Unless you are shooting a double action firearm, this will slow down practice and add some amount of frustration. Even a single action pistol with an exposed hammer will add extra steps to the training process. Again, this isn't the fault of the Mantis unit, but simply a technological reality. Fortunately, there are products on the market to help address this issue, such as those offered by DryFireMag, and I hope to get one of these for testing and evaluation in the future.

Another aspect of the product some people may object to is the necessity for a smartphone or tablet. Considering the vast majority of people are likely to already own one or both, this is probably not a deal breaker for most potential users.

My Rating: 9/10

The Mantis X3 is an excellent unit for improving sight alignment, trigger control, and confidence. It could be especially useful for anyone who travels frequently, as they would be able to practice in their hotel room.

I give the Mantis X3 an easy rating of nine out of ten.

Practice safely, and practice often.

FTC disclaimer: I received this product from Mantis for Test and Evaluation (T&E) purposes. I was not paid for this review. All opinions are my own.

Dry Fire Practice

With winter settling in for much of the United States, outdoor range time can be limited, and not everyone has access to a nice, cozy, climate-controlled indoor range. For those people, I'd like to talk about dry fire practice. 

Dry fire uses all the elements of shooting except for live ammunition. Stance, grip, sights, trigger control, and (to a degree) follow through can all be practiced in comfort. If done properly, dry fire practice can improve trigger control, accuracy, and confidence. 

Safety

The most important things to keep in mind when engaging in dry fire practice are:

1. No ammunition in the area while practice is occurring! Check everything several times to make sure both the gun and the room are clear of all ammunition.  
2. The Four Rules of Gun Safety must still be followed. Even though it isn't loaded, it's still a real gun (or gun-shaped object, in the case of simulators).

 

By maintaining vigilance at all times, we can reduce negligent firearm incidents. The life we save may be our own -- or that of an innocent director of photography. 

Dry Firing Your Firearm

As with any skill, practice is necessary to maintain proficiency, and shooting is no different. The purpose of dry fire practice is to achieve the perfect trigger pull while keeping your sight picture. Since live ammunition isn't being used, there's no loud noise and recoil to startle you, meaning you're less likely to anticipate the recoil or flinch from the noise. 

Try to engage in dry fire practice on a regular basis. A good start is 15 minutes a day every other day, and if possible, move this up to every single day. The benefits on the range will make themselves known in short order. 

1. Practice the same way you shoot. Keep everything as identical as possible: stance, grip, sight picture, and trigger control.
2. Aim your safe and unloaded firearm at a target. For my target, I like to use something I don't use on the live fire range. This helps segregate the two environments. Dry firing on a hot range isn't an issue, but the opposite certainly would be.
3. Pull the trigger. If you've done everything correctly, you'll hear a click, not a boom.
4. Reset and go again. 

When dry firing, try to incorporate as many operational elements as possible, such as drawing from the holster, magazine changes, one handed ( both primary and off hand) and different positions.

Semi-Auto Solutions

Dry fire practice with a revolver is in many ways much easier than with a semi-auto, since the trigger can simply be pulled over and over without any additional steps throughout the process. However, with a semi-auto, the firing mechanism needs to be reset manually after each trigger pull. There are really only three options to deal with this issue, and there are pros and cons to each:

1. Manual: Rack the slide or re-cock the hammer after each shot. 
• Pros: Least expensive method, and great for a beginner or  for maintaining muscle memory.
• Cons: Only able to fire single shots, which quickly becomes frustrating.
2. Magazine Accessory: Get a dry fire magazine solution, such as the appropriately named Dry Fire Mag. 
• Pros: Resets the pistol after each shot, and keeps the feel and trigger experience of the host handgun. 
• Cons: Expensive (around $100 per magazine), limited to certain models of handgun, and many won't work with a firing pin activated laser cartridge.
3. Simulator: Buy a dedicated dry fire simulator such as the SIRT (Shot Indicating Resetting Trigger) pistol. 
• Pros: Fully simulates operating the pistol, including (depending on brand and model) magazine release, slide manipulation, and recoil. 
• Cons: Most expensive of all solutions, starting at "used pistol" prices at the low end and reaching "new pistol" prices at the high end. 

While dry firing won't damage a modern centerfire firearm, it's not recommended with rimfires. This is because the firing pin protrusion in a rim fire may impact the edge of the chamber, possibly damaging the firing pin, displacing the metal from the breech into the cartridge feed path, or both. Certain older centerfire handguns, such as the CZ 52, are also known for having weak firing pins. One way to reduce this issue is to place a fired cartridge in the chamber or chambers, in the case of a revolver. However, with a striker fired semi-auto, it'll likely get ejected each time the mechanism is reset. 

Accessories

A shot timer is a good thing to have, both for dry and live fire practice. The initiating beep can be set for a random amount of time, and some of the newer ones can detect dry fire operation.

Snap Caps are plastic or aluminum cartridges with a rubber cushion in the primer position. With most handgun calibers, they come 5 or 6 to a pack. This allows multiple rounds to be cycled through the gun during practice. 

If you reload, you can also make your own snap caps by following the same process Movie Armorers used to make what are called hero rounds: 

1. Take an empty cartridge case.
2. Drill and chamfer a couple of holes through it so that it's visibly different from a live round.
3. Toss in a few BB's for weight and to add an audible difference.
4.  Seat a bullet and crimp as normal. 
5. Put a drop of silicone caulk in the primer pocket to act as a cushion for the firing pin. 

There are also systems like the MantisX, which incorporates a movement detecting sensor that connects to a smartphone app via Bluetooth. This allows us to practice and record our results for later review. I'll discuss this system next week.

Of course, there are always books on the subject. I recommend the following:

• DryFire Reloaded by Ben Stoeger
• The Dry Fire Primer by Annette Evans
• Refinement and Repetition by Steve Anderson

Have fun, and safe shooting.

Precise Shots at Close Range

Years ago I wrote an article about low power optics that I've used on the AR-15 platform. Since then, I’ve been using the Vortex Crossfire II 1-4x24 regularly on both my 20” service rifle and my 16” utility carbine. Both are mounted in the same manner, but the optic is used differently in each case. With the 20” service rifle, I manually dial in the 200, 300, and 600 yard drops for my shots. With the 16” utility carbine, however, I set it to a “maximum point blank range zero” and call it good. 

At my last “two gun” experience I was the only person using a low powered variable optic (LPVO) on top of my 16” utility carbine. I normally keep the Crossfire dialed down to 1x and use it like a red dot sight for competitions that require both speed and accuracy, but the one stage where having an LPVO gave me an incredible advantage over the competitors who were using no-magnification red dots and holosights was the 14 yard, United States Air Force Rimfire Alternate Qualification target. The targets were just far enough away that people couldn’t see their bullet holes in the target through the no-magnification optics, but I could as I cranked my LPVO to 4x. I fired my first shot, saw that my impact was low, and used the bottom stadia line of the reticle as an aiming point to place my shots carefully.

The illuminated reticle on the 1-4x24 has a 1.5 MOA center dot, 6 MOA separation between the ends of the stadia lines surrounding the center dot, and 12.5 MOA distance between the thick outside stadia lines. Using the top of the thin stadia line I was able to precisely place my shots at 14 yards, almost 3 MOA low, which is exactly as predicted by my JBM ballistic software.

Vortex Crossfire II 1-4x24 

The match director laughed when he briefed the stage, saying that everyone who shot it hated it. I think this is because the trend in the centerfire rifle community has two main communities: the “long range precision” community that shoots F-Class, PRS, and High Power; and the “action shooting” community that sets up a battlesight zero on a carbine to compete in 3 gun, 2 gun, or cosplay CQB drills. There really isn’t a “short range precision” community outside of rimfire and air rifle, which makes these types of precise, short range shots something well outside the training norm for most centerfire shooters. After all, why train to hit a 1” dot at 14 yards with a rifle capable of first round hits out to 300 meters? If I want to hunt squirrel or rabbit, I’m much more likely to choose a rimfire or air rifle to handle that chore. 

The reduced range target we shot that day had silhouettes that represented 50, 100, 150, 200, 250, and 300 meter targets, and the vast majority of competitors that day hit less than 10 out of 40 possible trigger pulls because they were impacting under the target. Most of their scored hits were on the larger silhouettes where the bullets were clustered near the bottom of the black on the larger 50 and 100 meter sized silhouettes. Any optic on an AR is about 3 to 3.5 inches above the rifle bore (meaning that you have to aim above the intended point of impact for short range targets) and having an optic with reference points in the reticle makes this much easier than a no-magnification optic, or a “fine line” cross hair optic.

I wasn’t a better marksman than anyone else on that stage; I was just the one with the better gear for the problem. Even if I’d only had a fine line reticle, the 4x magnification would have allowed me to see impact on the target and hold by guesstimate, which would have still let me win the stage, but would NOT have let me get first round impacts on an animal.

I hope you get to the range and practice this skill for yourself. If you have your rifle set up with irons, a red dot, or a holosight you can still practice short range precision, but it will be more difficult than with an LPVO. To keep your training expenses low, I recommend that instead of buying commercial targets you get some 1” round orange stickers and use them as targets to see how many shots it takes you to break the color.

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Try to see how well you do at 7, 14, and 21 yards (common pistol ranges) and see if you can’t rapidly transition between those ranges with your carbine and get first round hits in the orange.

Given the nature of the world, you never know when you might need to make short range precision shots with your rifle. It might be placing a head shot on a young feral hog about to root up your potatoes, or perhaps winning a shooting contest with your friends for bragging rights, or maybe for a more urgent situation when the SHTF. 

No matter the reason, that rimfire stage identified a skills gap I was lucky enough to adapt to on first attempt. Next time, I won't have to rely on luck, and this cultivated skill will come in handy.