|
|
AFTER ACTION REPORT
DESIGNATED MARKSMAN RIFLE - 2025
|
|
The truck is unloaded, the targets and barricades have been put away, and the rifles are clean. Time to review the 2025 Designated Marksman Rifle Class! As I have previously mentioned, I think it's valuable to write up after action reports on these classes, and I encourage those who attend classes like these to write their own, if even for their own notes, but certainly posting them on forums, social media, or sharing them with friends can help me out as well.
|
|
|
STUDENTS: All students in this class were ADC alumni, and all had recently taken our Defensive Carbine Elements class. I regard repeat students as a compliment. Our defensive carbine class is beneficial for the DMR class, as it teaches manipulations specific to AR-15 style rifles. Some of the shooters had also participated in our precision rifle class last year. This also helps with accurate shooting at distance.
|
GEAR: Rifles in this class were sensibly configured and all ran very well. 75% of the class was running Adaptive Defense Armory rifles or uppers. Barrel lengths varied from 16" to 18". Optics were either 1-8X or 2-10X. Rifles were equipped with various triggers including Geissele, Hiperfire, and Triggertech. Triggertech makes good triggers - I use them exclusively in my bolt-action rifles, but I personally find them a bit sensitive for semi-autos. Rifles all seemed to function well. It's amazing what a few classes can do to pressure test equipment.
|
AMMO: Most shooters were using 69 grain sierras loaded by Norma, with some Barnes and other heavy (75gr) open-tip match rounds mixed in. At least one person brought some green tip (which I always advise against), as evidenced by the damage to one of my steel targets - more on that later.
|
ACCURACY STANDARD: For a Designated Marksman Rifle class, I like a standard of accuracy of at least 2 minutes-of-angle or better. For practical purposes, 2 MOA puts the shooter on target reliably out to 600 yards if they know their drop charts and can read the wind correctly. For the "know your limits" drill in this class, the smallest target was 1.5" wide and 1.25" tall. Half the class put all 3 rounds on the small target. However, for "dot torture" I used 1" square pasters and people had a lot more difficulty with these, averaging 1-2 hits for 5 targets.
|
|
POSITION SHOOTING: This class builds on clean position shooting covered in scoped rifle elements and defensive carbine elements and adds improvised supports like shooting sticks, paracord, bags, and "buddy support." These positions were reinforced with barricade drills really and a demonstration of setting up "hides" in both field and urban environments.
|
|
|
|
Rifle manipulation around barricades - particularly those with suppressors or longer barrels - can be tricky. This is something that everyone seemed to remember very well from carbine class and the manipulations and movement in and around barricades was very clean in this class.
|
|
|
The barricades I built this year are devious - and versatile, but they seem to be very popular because they are so challenging.
|
|
This class built on the success of our first DMR class last year, and added some new elements as well as upping the accuracy standard. It was a full day with great weather, including a little bit of mirage and wind to manage while shooting tiny targets at distance.
|
|
|
|
|
OHIO 1-DAY PRECISION RIFLE
|
|
|
|
ADC Instructor Jeremy asked me to let everyone know he will be putting on a 1-day precision rifle class in Northwest Ohio at Sandusky County Sportsman's Club in Gibsonburg on Friday, June 27. There are still a few details to be ironed out, but the plan is 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, 100 rounds, shooting from 100 to 500 yards with data collection, precision rifle basics, position shooting, etc...
|
|
|
|
|
If you are interested in this class or have questions, CONTACT US, or send an email to jeremy@adc-training.com. It's a bit short notice, so don't dilly-dally.
|
|
|
NEXT IDAHO CLASS
DEFENSIVE PISTOL ELEMENTS
|
|
|
|
Saturday, June 28, at Fremont County Sportsman's Club in Saint Anthony, Idaho, we will be holding our Defensive Pistol Elements class. Class will be from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Shooters will need 500 rounds of practice-grade ammunition, a handgun in a common defensive caliber (.38, 9mm, .45, etc... no magnums please). at least 4 magazines, and a good concealment holster (inside the waistband is recommended).
|
|
|
|
|
This is the class most people should take. The primary defensive firearm for the armed citizen and law enforcement is the handgun due to their concealability and portability. Shooting handguns well takes a little bit more attention to detail. This class is designed around practical defensive handgun use from draw and presentation, to keeping the gun functioning and loaded, and engaging targets from muzzle-contact to 100 yards.
|
|
|
GREEN TIP
|
|
M855 ammunition, also known as "green tip" (due to the green paint on the tip that identifies this round) and "SS109," was developed in the late 1970's by FN Herstal in Belgium. It was adopted in 1980 as a response to NATO's need for a standardized, small-caliber, high-velocity round to replace 7.62X51mm - primarily for light machine guns. It was intended to improve the penetration capabilities of the round by adding a little bit of steel to the bullet core in front of the lead.
|
|
|
|
|
It isn't truly "armor piercing" ammunition, but the harder metal composition means it can chew through lightly-armored vehicles and fortifications. It is less accurate and slower than the standard 55-grain M193 ammunition, and it's terminal performance (traumatic effect on targets) is also generally less effective. It is commonly available at sporting goods stores and gun shops. It doesn't always have green tips, but if you are shooting 62 grain "ball" ammunition, there's a 99% chance it is steel cored.
|
|
|
|
|
I am not a fan of steel core ammunition. The steel slug in the tip sparks when it hits rocks or steel targets, which is a fire hazard in western states (like Idaho and New Mexico) during fire season. It is usually illegal for hunting. I don't like it because it does this to steel targets:
|
|
|
|
|
|
On this AR500 steel target, we see the effect of a relatively close-range impact (~50 yards) from an open-tip match projectile. The impact takes off the paint and shines up the surface, but leaves only the faintest permanent indentation,
|
|
|
|
On the same AR500 steel target, we see the effects of a "green tip" impact. The surface is deeply pock-marked and the steel core of the bullet has welded itself to the plate. That officially ends the life of this target for pistol shooting. Deep indentations like this can deflect bullet fragments back toward the shooter, which can be a real hazard at pistol distances.
|
|
|
|
|
Any targets for rifle use can be expected to take a certain amount of damage over time, but green tip accelerates the wear prematurely. If you have green tip ammunition in your stockpile, I recommend segregating it for paper target use only where you have a safe backstop free of rocks and easily-ignitable materials.
|
|
|
HEARING PROTECTION ACT
|
|
If you have been keeping up with politics, you know there is a proposal to remove suppressors from the National Firearms Act. With suppressors being more popular than ever, and noise complaints being a more frequent issue as the urban sprawl continues to invade areas adjacent to shooting ranges, and the health effects of exposure to muzzle blast, I have to say I strongly support this legislation. That said, I think it will be very difficult to get it passed, and it will face state-level problems if it does pass. Suppressors, (like all NFA weapons) are rarely used in crimes and don't attract a lot of attention from the media who is more focused on the bogeyman of "assault weapons." If passed, however, it is inevitable that suppressors will be a lightning rod issue for the anti-gun organizations. It would be a good thing for suppressors to be de-regulated in my opinion. It will only happen if enough pressure is put on the politicians to force it through. Please keep supporting pro-gun organizations like the American Suppressor Association, (and the usual others).
|
|
|
ARMORY
|
|
The assembled uppers are selling slowly but surely. If you have a custom caliber you would like to try on one of our uppers, let me know. I am currently experimenting with the 6mm ARC with a rifle-length handguard and gasblock. I have also built up some .224 Valkyries that were great shooters. If there is something special you are looking for, let me know. If you haven't checked out our shop in a while, take a peek here: THE ARMORY. Grip modules, carbon scrapers, ADC T-shirts and patches, handguards and more are available there.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
