Michiguns/Ned Christiansen AR-15 & 1911 Armorer Class AAR

[SOTAR]

Last week was an eventful week for SOTAR & Ned Christiansen of Michiguns, as we teamed up to conduct three Armorer’s Classes:

1. School of the American Rifle 22-hour Master AR Armorer & Build Class
2. Michiguns 16-Hour AR-15 Armorer’s Class
3. Michiguns 8-Hour M1911 Armorer’s Class

Ned joined me for my AR Cass, and his participation and contributions were outstanding. We also had Obsidian Arms, DS Arms, and Jim from SOLGW.

I had the privilege of sitting in on Ned’s AR15 and 1911 Armorer’s Classes, where I learned more than expected. Ned truly captivated every student with his wealth of experience. His expertise as a gunsmith is unparalleled. I have followed Neds work for longer than I can remember. I have read his work in numerous gun publications and online articles.

Beyond his remarkable gunsmithing and teaching skills, Ned also makes excellent tools, and in my opinion makes the best AR Carrier Key Screws on the market. I own multiples of each of his tools. My favorite is the MoMOACKS, but they all have a special place in my Armorer’s Box.

It was an honor to have him at my shop, and as always, I’m grateful for the chance to continue learning!

The after effect of Neds instruction was immediate. Two days after Neds Class, I was asked to assist with a Departments AR that was suspected of having a Negligent Discharge. Some testing that Ned shows on the 1911 & AR helped me craft a new AR-15 FCG testing procedure which was successful in showing the Department AR in question could fire without the trigger being pulled. This helped clear the officer involved. I have numerous checks I do and teach but finding voids in my knowledge always makes me happy.

I won’t speak for Ned regarding what he thought of my class. I know what I do isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, and that’s ok.

If you get the chance to take a Class from Ned, don’t hesitate. It’s well worth the price of admission and more.

Ned may come back to my shop next year, so I’m looking forward to seeing him again. I consider him a friend and I just enjoy his company.

[Ned_Christiansen]

I will definitely come back any time SOTAR requests it and there is no scheduling conflict.

I don’t want to make this sound like a quid pro quo exchange of compliments because it is not that. It is simply that Chad and I see things the same way but from slightly different angles, that work well together. Chad had some testing procedures that I had wished for and wondered how to do, and some that I never imagined but were totally legit. We both look for the final 1% or 5% of safety, reliability and durability in the system. We both are not terribly tolerant of fakery, cost-cutting manufacture, and tactical badassery in place of actual engineering and solid construction.

Met some very cool people, regular Joes and some people engaged in the AR biz, in all three classes. Chad’s class is intense and rich in the deep science at levels most people don’t realize exist. Peeling the onion, sort of. I have never given a class at a better facility! I’m used to tables with chairs. At Chad’s place each student has a real-deal bench with a vise and ALL the tools. It’s a new level and I would totally recommend it, if you can get a seat.

[Ned_Christiansen]

That last picture, I was demonstrating the “old way” of doing a press check in a “don’t do it like this” context.

[SOTAR]

I forgot to mention that you have a really nice China Doll Lower looking for a home.

[Ned_Christiansen]

Haha… we had a lot of good laughs about that!

[Jim_D]

Both of you guys are pretty cool in my book.

It was my pleasure to get to meet in person finally, and have the opportunity to learn from you… even if I can’t afford that China Doll lower of yours right now.

Chad’s classroom is one of a kind, and should be experienced by all who are passionate about the inner workings of the platform.