Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided it would be fun to briefly touch on firearm finishes (specifically bluing this time) and how the process works at a glance. Personally, this is something I thoroughly enjoyed while going to school for gunsmithing. There is something about turning a pretty boring chunk of steel into a polished and beautifully blued work of art. There is definitely more than just bluing out there. Allow me to narrow it down and hopefully elaborate! 

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to take a look at the Wheeler Precision Micro Screwdriver Set. I’ve been holding off doing one of our closer looks at this particular product because it was not one I had previously owned or worked with. After a decent amount of time and usage, I feel I am better equipped to talk it over now. That all being said, let’s dive right into this closer look at the Wheeler Precision Micro Screwdriver Set!

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to heat things up and work with some liquid metal! Today I am going to briefly cover chamber casting. I tend to work with a lot of older firearms since it is kind of in my wheelhouse and interests so this can sometimes leave me questioning the chambering of a particular firearm. Unfortunately, I do not have any pictures of a recent chamber cast but what I do have are some photos of the process of casting a revolver cylinder in order to determine what cartridge it is made for. Let’s dive right into Chamber Casting!

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to take a closer look at the Wheeler AR Maintenance Mat since it is in the negatives outside here in MN and I am sure I would freeze solid in my little workshop so bear with me. Let’s dive right into the Wheeler AR Maintenance Mat!

XS Sights has expanded their lineup of night sights, armorer’s tools, and lever action scope mounts for 2022. The “Armorers Block for AR Platforms Gen 2” adds several improvements to the original armorer’s block. It works with both AR-15 and AR-10 upper and lower receivers, allowing them to be secured to a vise without damage. XS states that their block works with many varieties of .308 ARs, including AR-10, SR-25 and DMPS GII patterns. Pins to secure uppers to the block are included, along with a fitting screw for the AR-15 lower. The block is made from 6061 T-6 aluminum, and retails for $83.

80% lowers need not apply: In this episode of TFBTV, James Reeves speaks with Cody Wilson about the NEW upgrade to the Ghost Gunner 3 that allows GG3 owners to turn “0% receivers” – regular blocks of aluminum – into AR-15 receivers, and possibly pistol frames and other components. Yes: this means that if you own a Ghost Gunner 3, a software update and a new set of fixtures will allow you to start making your own lowers at home. Cody gives you the details personally on today’s TFBTV ep.

XS Sights took a break from their namesake to bring a new tool to assist shooters that like to work on their AR-15 and AR-308 pattern rifles and pistols. XS Sights’ new AR Armorer’s Block is designed to work with both upper and lower receivers, compared to their previous block that works with upper receivers only. The new AR Armorer’s Block can be placed in a vise for securing the receivers while working on them, XS Sights’ full press release can be read below.

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to take a closer look at the Frankford Arsenal DS 750 Scale. It is wintertime and people tend to slow down and do some reloading so since it is approaching negative 18 outside here in MN, I wanted to look at one of Frankford Arsenal’s Scales rather than freeze solid in my little workshop. Let’s dive right into the Frankford Arsenal DS 750 Scale!

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to take a closer look at the Wheeler Professional Gunsmithing File Set. I have had and worked with this gunsmithing file set for a while now but have heard of doing a closer look since I wanted to gain a better idea of their worth. All of that being said let’s jump right into it!

Good morning fellow suppressor enthusiasts and welcome back to TFB’s Silencer Saturday brought to you by Yankee Hill Machine, manufacturers of the YHM Turbo K. Last week we got a Christmas morning peek at the new LMT-AT ION 30 rifle suppressor and I had hoped to bring you a more in-depth look at it’s performance and features on New Years Day. However, we need to postpone the ION 30 until next weekend and talk about the ATF warning letter myself and hundreds, maybe thousands, of other American shooters received this week. Let’s take a look at the letter.

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to take a second to reminisce and look back on all that we have covered in our new series this year. 2021 has been a real dumpster fire so it is nice to have this break from the day-to-day and sit down at the bench and feel like progress is being made. Let us jump into all that we have covered in this 2021 TFB Armorer’s Bench Wrap Up!

Whether you have multiple upper receivers, like to transport your AR in as small a case as possible, want to add a little flair to an otherwise plain-looking black lower, or just would like it to be easier to break down your rifle/pistol for cleaning, enhanced AR-15 takedown pins can be a game-changer offering better grip and in turn the ability to release your upper without resorting to the tip of a bullet or a punch for better leverage (really only on unusually tight fit receiver sets but hey). Tyrant Designs has brought a unique-looking option to the market to help you in any of the aforementioned situations.

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to do a quick overview on AR15 gas rings and when it’s time to replace them. This was a suggested topic of a fellow TFB writer Rusty S so a big thank you to Rusty for the idea! Routine maintenance is required on AR15s just like any other firearm, especially if they have been used frequently. Let’s dive into AR15 gas rings and their maintenance!

Midwest Industries Inc. has a vast aftermarket support for the AR platform, and to assist AR-15 and AR-308 owners, Midwest Industries made the Lower Receiver Block, which has numerous features that can help in order to assemble the various parts of an AR. There are two Lower Receiver Blocks available, one for the standard-sized AR-15, and one for the larger AR-308, SR25, AR-10 patterns. The Lower Receiver Block can also be mounted to a workbench, or used in a vise and hold a lower receiver by the magazine well.

In a Facebook thread on the PSAK Owners Group page, Chad Wylie, the CEO of PSA, posted Images of a new AKM compatible top cover rail system being worked on. In the thread, he stated The Palmetto State Armory AK Top Cover Rail would be available “before Q2 2022”.

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to go over one of Wheeler Engineering’s many quality tools in the last article looking closer at the  Wheeler Armorer’s Handgun Sight Tool. I recently had a chance to swap out a coworker’s Glock sights and I felt this was an excellent opportunity to show how this tool is intended to be used. This handy compact tool can make a tough time-consuming job a breeze. Let’s dive into using the Wheeler Armorer’s Handgun Sight Tool!

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to go over one of Wheeler Engineering’s many quality tools. I recently had a chance to swap out a coworker’s Glock sights and I felt this was an excellent opportunity to break out the Wheeler Armorer’s Handgun Sight Tool. This handy compact tool can make a tough time-consuming job a breeze. Let’s dive into this closer look at the Wheeler Armorer’s Handgun Sight Tool!

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to go over general bench setup tips and tricks. There is not really a 100% necessary thing to have on an armorer’s bench besides having the bench itself. Nonetheless, I have doodled down some of my personal quick tips on a good bench setup. Let’s jump into General Bench Setup – Quick Tips!

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to go over boresighting since it seems like there are quite a few misconceptions on how exactly it works and certain expectations on reliability. So I wanted to run down both the types and techniques to hopefully convey a broader picture to anyone out there who may have questions regarding boresighting. Let’s jump into Techniques and Types – Boresighting!

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to take a closer look at the Delta Series Compact Multi-Tool that Wheeler Engineering currently offers. Wheeler is one of a few companies out there that offer affordable examples of gunsmith technology. One example is their large catalog of AR15 related tools. Let’s jump into the Wheeler Delta Series Compact Multi-Tool!

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to go over a broad spectrum article regarding AR15 Gas Blocks. I recently saw that someone reached out asking for this sort of thing and I am happy to put together a list of Tips and Tricks as well as some extra information along the way. Let’s jump into Tips and Tricks – AR15 Gas Blocks!

Gunsmithing is one of those professions that has kind of fallen to the wayside but is still very essential in this country. Your average gun owner probably doesn’t know much about their firearm beyond its basic operating principles and to a certain extent, you really don’t need to know every single tiny detail about your firearm in order to use it effectively. However, sometimes when things go wrong or you’re looking for a certain level of polish or customization, gunsmiths can swoop in to save your bacon with their knowledge and experience. Today I’ve brought on fellow TFB writers Rusty S and Sam S (no relation) to talk all about their gunsmithing experiences, tips, and stories for all of you to enjoy. For more gunsmithing content, be sure to check out Sam S’s ongoing series the TFB Armorer’s Bench.

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to take a closer look at the Scope Mounting Kit Combo, 1″ & 30mm that Wheeler Engineering currently offers. Wheeler is one of a few companies out there that offer affordable examples of gunsmith technology. One example is their wide range of scope mounting kits and accessories. Let’s jump into the Wheeler Scope Mounting Kit Combo, 1″ & 30mm!

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I happened to do a little maintenance on my  Chiappa 1887 Lever Action shotgun and while disassembling and reassembling, I thought to myself that it may be beneficial if I did an Armorer’s Bench on diagnosing a light primer strike problem. That is what I did for the previous article but I made sure to mention my willingness to roll out a disassembly/reassembly article. I saw a comment that gave me the go-ahead so to speak so here we are! All that being said, let’s dive right into Chiappa 1887 Disassembly/Reassembly!

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I happened to do a little maintenance on my Chiappa 1887 Lever Action shotgun and while disassembling and reassembling, I thought to myself that it may be beneficial if I did an Armorer’s Bench on diagnosing a light primer strike problem and its many causes and fixes. All that being said, let’s dive right into Diagnosing Light Primer Strikes!

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I happened to do a little maintenance on an old Browning Auto-5 that I own and while disassembling and reassembling, I thought to myself that it may be beneficial if I did an Armorer’s Bench on how the friction rings work and the proper way of setting them up in accordance with whatever load you intend to use. When I say “friction rings” I may be referring to the recoil assembly as a whole purely for simplification. All that being said, let’s dive right into proper Auto-5 friction ring orientation!

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to give Tipton some love and take a closer look at their Best Gun Vise that they currently offer. Tipton is a well-known namesake when it comes to gun vises. To those who may be unfamiliar, a gun vise is a firearm holding device that aids in the maintenance of said firearm. Let’s jump into a closer look at Tipton’s Best Gun Vise!

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, I decided to take a closer look at the two Bench Blocks that Wheeler Engineering currently offers. Wheeler is one of a few companies out there that offer affordable examples of gunsmith technology. An example would be these bench blocks which not only support a workpiece while pins are driven into or out of them but also have cutouts specific to firearms to make life easier. Let’s jump into the Wheeler Bench Blocks!

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, we’ll show how to completely disassemble an AR15 upper receiver. I am well aware that most of the folks who pass through these parts are into the new, cool, and tacticool. I personally love older and obsolete stuff but I also like to take things apart and put them back together. That being said we here at TFB thought it would be nice to have a resource available for disassembling and assembling an AR15. Smith & Wesson was gracious and kind enough to help us out and sent us one of their Sport II models. Now that we have taken apart our Lower Receiver and Bolt Carrier Group we can jump into the  AR15 upper receiver disassembly. Let’s dive right in!

Welcome everyone to the TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb, this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this article sponsored by  Wheeler,  Tipton,  Caldwell, and  Frankford Arsenal, we’ll show how to completely disassemble an AR15 bolt carrier group. I am well aware that most of the folks who pass through these parts are into the new, cool, and tacticool. I personally love older and obsolete stuff but I also like to take things apart and put them back together. That being said we here at TFB thought it would be nice to have a resource available for disassembling and assembling an AR15. Smith & Wesson was gracious and kind enough to help us out and sent us one of their Sport II models. Now we are back to it folks! Took a nice little break over Labor Day weekend and now we can jump back into our disassembly articles on the AR15. This one is sort of a special intermediate article focusing on the BCG (bolt carrier group) and charging handle that would be removed from an AR15 upper during cleaning or disassembly. Let’s dive right in!