Gun Digest 2011. Dan ShidelerЧитать онлайн книгу.
collapsible stock. The K7 is similar but comes with a fixed A2 stock. The K4B also has A2 everything, but comes with a 20-inch barrel. This model is also available in 6.8 Remington SPC. The Model K74 in 5.45x39 Russian features the collapsible stock. The LT series has ACE FX skeleton stocks, ERGO grips, and free-floating four-rail aluminum handguards that surround 16-inch barrels. The GI-16 is a military look-alike with a collapsible stock. The K3B-CAR has an 11.5-inch barrel, but has a permanently-attached A1 flash suppressor so it’s legal for civilians.
To my way of thinking, the K16 is the most practical AR around. With a crowned 16-inch match stainless bull barrel, 1:9-inch twist, A2 stock, flat tops, and free-floated handguard, it’s a gem. It’s also available in 6.8 SPC (as the model K1668).
Lovers of pistol cartridges in ARs are not forgotten, with the K9, K10, K40, and K45 models. in 9mm Parabellum, 10mm, .40 S&W and .45 ACP, respectively. They have 16-inch barrels, collapsible stocks and a specially designed pistol-caliber flash suppressor. There are even 6.5- inch barreled “pistols” in 5.56m (the OA-93 and K23P models).
For those of us on a budget, Olympic makes what they call their “Plinker Plus” models in 5.56. Of standard configuration, the MSRP on the 16-inch barreled model is only $713.70 and $843.70 for one with a 20-inch barrel. ARs don’t get any less expensive than that, folks.
For big game, the K8-MAG is available in .223, .243, and .25 WSSM calibers. These models are available with 24-inch, 1:10-inch twist barrels, and flat-top everything, so they’re optics ready from the get-go.
For those who think a big game caliber ought to start with (at least) a “3,” there is the brand new Gamestalker rifle in the equally new .300 Olympic Super Short Magnum (OSSM). Accordingly to company literature, this little gem propels a 150-gr. bullet at about 3,000 fps and is ballistically superior to the .30-06. The Gamestalker has a 22-inch barrel with a 12-inch twist. Hunter Shack Munitions (HSM) makes loaded ammunition, but the case is easily formed from .25 WSSM brass. Hornady makes the dies, and Hodgdon has load data in the works, so handloaders will have a field day with this one. For those who already have a complete AR, an upper in .300 OSSM is also available; I have one on order and can’t wait to try it.
The versatile ARs are now well accepted as legitimate hunting arms, after years of opposition from those who resisted hunting with what they viewed as “military arms.”
At a SHOT Show a few years back, I decided that I would concentrate on ARs, and (if possible) pick one that, as Goldilocks said, was not too hot, not too cold, but just right. I didn’t know what I was in for. ARs were everywhere: long ones, short ones, fat-barrelled and skinny ones, odd-looking sights, and various appliances hanging off of the multitudinous rails that decorated the receivers and handguards. I was in a serious funk.
One of the (many) beauties of the AR platform is the almost endless variety of configurations that are possible. For example, a 5.56mm plinker or target model can quickly and inexpensively be converted to a great hunting gun by simply swapping out the uppers, producing a Rifle similar to this K8-MAG in .25 WSSM.
Olympic Arms makes a comprehensive array of ARs in many calibers that are suitable for hunting, target shooting, home defense, and law enforcement. Here are, at top, a 16-inch barreled model K16 in 5.56mm. and, below, the “Target-Match” model K8 with a 20-inch barrel. Both models feature stainless steel barrels with a 1:9-inch twist.
Then, as if by divine guidance, I happened upon the Olympic Arms exhibit. Affable Tom Spithaler thrust out his hand and said, “Hi, what can I help you with?” Tom is Olympic’s Sales Director, and as such is a veritable walking encyclopedia on their ARs. I gave him my by now well-rehearsed spiel: no sights, target-type barrel, 9-inch twist, nice trigger, and a cost that didn’t break the bank. I explained that I was a merely recreational shooter (that’s gun writer code for “clod-busting plinker”).
I figured he’d start off with the same tired litany I’d heard a dozen times, like “Well, we usually go with a XRM-Q laser sight, a water-cooled, belt-fed action with a collapsible flash-and-dash thing-a-ma-bob on the barrel, and a gross of 45-round teflon-coated camo magazines for back-up, just in case.” Instead, Tom just said, “No problem. Would you like that with a 16- or 20-inch barrel?” At last, someone who offered what I wanted!
Tom showed me their K16 and K8 models in 5.56mm – both appeared (to me, at least) exactly the same except for barrel length. When I fondled the K8, it was lust at first glance: a 416 stainless steel “Ultra Match” barrel with a 9-inch twist, flat top everything, no sights, and a very nice trigger. It reeked of quality, and the price was quite reasonable (MSRP $908.70). I ordered one, and it has exceeded my expectations. (I later bought a K16 in 5.56, too. It also sports a 416 stainless match barrel.)
In about 2007, the then-new 6.8mm Remington SPC was introduced at the behest of the U.S. military. (Its military
(left) This ragged hole was made with the K8 and the 50-gr. Hornady V-MAX over 25.8 grains of IMR-8208XBR. Velocity was 3,052 fps. (middle) My favorite Olympic AR is the K16 in 6.8 SPC, as it delivers accuracy and power in a compact package. The 85-gr. Barnes Triple Shock-X and 31.0 grains of AA-2230 produced this great group. Velocity was a peppy 2,711 fps. (right) The .25 WSSM AR doted on a diet of the 110-gr. Hornady InterBond spiced up by 46.3 grains of Reloder 19 at 2,891 fps.
When I learned that the Olympic Model K16 was available in 6.8, I ordered one. It also has a stainless steel barrel and is undoubtedly the pick of the AR litter. The 6.8 cartridge is a terrific performer. It is really just a “short” .270, as the bullet diameter is the uber-popular .277 inch. Let’s face it, the 6.8 is what the .223 would be if it could. It shoots heavier bullets and packs more downrange punch. And it’s accurate.
A recent assignment brought to my door yet another Olympic AR, this one a Model K8-MAG in .25 WSSM. It has a portly 24-inch barrel, and consequently it’s a little heavy, but does it shoot! And the .25 WSSM rivals the lovely old .25-06 ballistically. What’s not to like?
In the past 30 years or so, I have tested and written-up literally dozens of bolt-action rifles and have come to the realization that big game rifles that shoot 1-inch groups are the exception, not the rule. After shooting the Olympic ARs and other makes, and from observing friends’ ARs in action, I have come to the sobering conclusion, shared by multitudes of AR shooters, that almost any box-stock AR will shoot rings around the average factory bolt gun.
Trijicon has sold over one-half million Advanced Combat Gun Sights (ACOG), and this one makes a perfect sight for a K16 in 5.56mm for either law enforcement or home defense. The ACOG’s reticle is specially calibrated for the 5.56mm’s trajectory.
A K16 in 6.8 SPC Remington dressed for success: A Leupold 6x scope, high rings for a proper cheek-weld, and a C Products 17-round magazine stuffed with handloads featuring the new 110-gr. Nosler AccuBond bullet.
I have shot all three of my ARs and the .25 WSSM loaner with a variety of factory and handloads, and have experienced exactly zero problems – nary a malfunction, save the occasional too-light starting handload common to any gas-banger, and accuracy with all of them has been very good to excellent. I have tried most of the new varmint .22 bullets and .223 factory fodder with excellent results. Here are a few of (the many) shooting highlights.
SHOOTING IMPRESSIONS
I got the K8 first, so let’s start with it. With its heavy 20-inch barrel,