For those of you that have not seen these, they are a great tool for working on malfunction and transition drills.
They come 5 to a pack and are a worthwhile investment IMHO.
C4
I would like to see a color that would distinctly identify them as inert. Orange, red, bright greeen, etc.
Grant are these polymer?
Yes they are.
C4
Good point. Bright colors are better because it makes them easier to find after they have been ejected from the gun during a malfunction drill. I predict that Magpul will soon have them in such a color.
Yes, blaze orange is needed. The plastic ones that we currently use are crap. The extractors are ripping apart the rims, inducing some rather annoying F/T extract problems. Good for reinforcing transitions, but it slows down the line when you’re trying to run a drill.
We run the dummy rounds in the same mold as some of out other all black products. The dummy rounds are a bi product of sort of these molds. I spray painted mine bright blue, worked fine.
Ick. No spraypaint in my chamber or bolt/extractor thanks!
Foliage green wouldn’t be as bad if they have to be in something that’s already made-
followers used to be available in orange, how about that?
I’ve seen hard plastic blaze orange dummies in various calibers at Gander Mountain.
Has not been an issue for me. I just did a quick fog over the nose of the rounds. In order to make the dummy rounds in the follower mold (talked about it) we’d have to change the entire mold.
Any feedback or experience from trainers or facilities where they’re in sustained use?
I’m wary of the plastic rim. Others of such a type have not done well except in light use.
I also maintain that the lowest common denominator needs such a widget to be unmistakeable as a safety/inert/training item.
Painting another inert cartridge (previously reviewed here) didn’t cut the mustard. A light dusting wore too quickly for anything but light, minimal personal use. It can be reapplied, but was a nuisance. A more substantial application did flake/chip/melt.
Like so much else, some issues won’t matter to some, but these are the things I (and some others in similar context) contemplate with such a widget.
Hope I’m not pooping in the pool, fellows.
Jeff Gonzalas of Trident concepts uses them. His only complaint is that they are black. No durability issues from his end. Again, the DR’s are a bi product.
Thanks for the info.
I found the description on the website. It’ll be interesting to see how the glass-filled polymer does in the longer term.
Sorry to sound ignorant, but can someone please explain these procedures just a bit more? Since many malfunctions are evident after a round is fired, how do these come into play?
Grant, If my stuff hasn’t shipped, add three packs.
What is the difference between these and snap caps?
An AR is sometimes prone to malfunctions. These typically happen at the WRONG TIME. To be able to handle these issues, you need to practice clearing the malfunction and or transitioning to your handgun (if within 25yds of the target).
So what you do is have someone else load a mag for you. Tell them to load a couple good rounds and then a dummy. Couple good rounds and then a dummy. Then you shoot your AR and when you get the God awful “CLICK” sound, you either transition to your HG or practice clearing the malfunction.
C4
Will do.
C4
I have found snap caps to not work all that well in AR’s. They seem to work much better. They are also cheaper.
C4
At a $1 a round the magpuls are untested and expensive IMO. I’ll stick with my ST-Action Pro training rounds. I’ve run them for several years in multiple calibers and have never had a problem.