This past weekend (April 18-19) Iraqgunz came to St. Mary’s, GA to teach his two day Semper Paratus Arms AR Armorer course on his way to Atlanta, and I had the opportunity to attend. Iraqgunz is one of the moderators here and has years of experience maintaining, troubleshooting, repairing, and building AR rifles and carbines. His experience has made him a wealth of knowledge on the subject. For those who have never met or talked with him, Gunz is good people and is great to talk to. He doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to telling who makes good stuff and who doesn’t, and why.
For those who may be unfamiliar with the class, it’s two days long and is a combination of PowerPoint/lecture with hands-on demonstrations and activities. The lectures are very interactive and IG asks questions and wants student interaction and participation. Unlike most other courses out there, this one is open to the general public, so anyone can attend. The class covers DI ARs, as the system was designed, and is specific to 5.56 ARs. On paper it’s 16 hours, but I think this class ran closer to 17 or 18 hours, and IMO could be extended to three full days without any problem. This class is not dedicated to any one brand, but rather covers the full spectrum of the AR platform, in all its various configurations. There is a list of tools students are recommended to bring, and you will be doing yourself a favor by bringing them.
Day one is mostly PowerPoint and lecture and you are encouraged to take notes. IG covers the history and evolution of the design and theory of operation. This includes the evolution of the rifle/carbine in general as well as some of the less common configurations, such as the dissipator. He talks about the importance and role of the mil-spec and TDP. He talks about the importance of building to a spec and explains the benefits of it, as well as the drawbacks of not adhering to it. He goes over the cycle of operation and troubleshooting steps. He explains how the various aspects of the rifle, such as barrel length, gas system, port size, buffer weight, ammo, etc. work together to make the rifle run properly. Later in the day we began some hands-on activities which included disassembly and reassembly of the lower receiver group. IG demonstrates how the use of proper tools coupled with the proper techniques makes disassembly and reassembly a breeze.
Day two includes more PowerPoint and lecture, but also includes more hands-on activities. He has plenty of visual aids to show, including various complete rifles, BCGs and carriers, a stripped lower, an upper, several different barrels, magazines, and fire control components. That’s not to mention all the spare small parts such as roll pins, springs, detents, etc. Hands-on activities on day two include installation of a trigger guard, bolt catch/release, ejection port door, forward assist, and barreling an upper. Hands-on activities always cover the use of the proper tools for the job and the best/easiest techniques. Day two ends with a 25 question open-note multiple choice test. If you were paying attention and taking notes, the test is a piece of cake. Students receive a certificate upon completion of the class.
This is only a very brief overview of the course, and does not do it justice. I highly encourage anyone to take this course if at all possible, even if you already have a working knowledge of the AR. Internet videos do not compare to actual hands-on training from a competent instructor. I used some in the past to do some of my own work and only now do I realize how lucky I am that I never FUBAR’d anything as a result (I did FUBAR something once, but not because of internet videos).
If there are no classes coming to your area I encourage you to take the bull by the horns and do some legwork on your own to see if you can find a venue to host the class.
More information about Semper Paratus Arms and the course can be found here:
Semper Paratus Arms