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 break from AR15 disassembly since I am on vacation and far away from my bench as I write this. Today I wanted to talk about gunsmith/armorer liquids. One of the more mundane day-to-day things that a gunsmith has to deal with is cleaning guns. This could be one gun from a single range session or even grandpa’s old 22 that was left in the barn for the last 30 years. Regardless, at its core, it is job security because cleaning a gun as a service is valid. I figured I should go over a loose list of “gunsmithing liquids” and my recommendations for said cleaning supplies. Let’s dive right into the liquids that are straight from my 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, we’ll show how to completely disassemble an AR15 lower 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. I asked for a very simple and frequented offering to demonstrate common upgrades and general assembly when we get to that point but for now, let’s rundown a complete AR15 disassembly!

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 trigger gauges that Wheeler Engineering currently offers. Wheeler is one of a few companies out there that offer affordable examples of gunsmith technology. One example is a trigger gauge which measures the number of pounds it takes to bring a trigger to the breaking point. Let’s jump into the Wheeler Trigger Gauges!

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 wanted to go over the importance of polishing hammer faces for the at-home armorer/gunsmith. Part of working with tools in order to accomplish a task involves doing the proper maintenance on the tools themselves in hopes of better doing said task. Let’s jump into the importance of polishing hammer faces!

More than five years ago, I published a review on the MicroMOA Govnah, a tool-less adjustable gas block with a three-setting push plate. Today, even though the Govnah is no longer available, I still believe that gas regulation is an important part of shooting a suppressed direct impingement AR-15 rifle. And I’m always on the hunt for innovative gas block designs. RIFLESPEED offers a gas block that can be opened up or closed down with a simple twist of the wrist. Don’t worry, if you have a longer barrel or a longer handguard, RIFLESPEED has models with varying lengths of adjustment rings to get a solid grip. The only possible downside I’ve noticed so far is the need for a proprietary straight gas tube.

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 list off my picks for the 10 essential tools for the at-home armorer/gunsmith. Let’s dive right in!

Welcome, all to the very first article of the new series TFB Armorer’s Bench! As mentioned in the little blurb below this series will focus on a lot of home armorer and gunsmith activities. In this first article of the series sponsored by Wheeler, Tipton, Caldwell, and Frankford Arsenal, I decided to introduce myself and some of my gunsmithing background. Aside from introductions, I also wanted to list off some preparation sort of steps before even considering taking on tasks similar to what I will go over in the future. Let’s dive right in!

If you’re a DIY type in the firearms space, odds are strong that you’re already familiar with Real Avid. These Minnesota-based toolsmiths have been putting out helpful gun cleaning and gunsmithing products for years. Their offerings are relied upon by a vast number of firearms tinkerers, of both the professional and home-based amateur varieties. Now there are yet more of these tools you may want to consider adding to your workbench. Real Avid has just announced a new line of torque wrench kits, dubbed the MASTER-FIT series.

When we think of the Heckler & Koch G36, we might immediately think of the issues with heat dissipation which saw the Bundeswehr launch its (still) ongoing search for a new service rifle. For some time there have been murmurings that Steyr were working on an improved version of the G36 – it turns out the rumours were true. Steyr Arms, in conjunction with Wilcox and US-based Corax Defence, have announced the development of the G62 – an upgrade kit for the G36. In fact, Steyr’s key claim is that they’re “turning a good rifle into the best rifle on the market”. The G62 is not a new rifle, instead, it replaces key architecture.

It’s not often that you have to open up the bolt of your Remington 700 rifle to clean it but when you do you’ll want to make sure you’re not marring it up in the process. Fix-It Sticks is well known for making some very handy and compact tools that can be packed up and stowed away in any range pack for quick access either at home, on the gun bench or in the field when they’re needed. Fix-It Sticks just dropped their new Remington 700 Bolt Opener Tool that makes opening/disassembling a Remington 700 bolt quick and easy giving you quick access to the bolt body and firing pin.

I was first turned onto Langdon Tactical back when I purchased my Beretta M9A3 pistol and wanted to start shooting in competitions with it. Langdon Tactical Technology has just introduced their new LTT Match Hammer for the Beretta 92/96/M9 and PX4 pistols. The hammer is intended to reduce the pre-travel of the trigger which is a feature many shooters including myself have been looking to improve on the 92 series pistols.

I have used the Spuhr Fix It Sticks kit for years, and if I forget them I feel handicapped. It’s a small but great piece of kit for anyone who mounts and dismounts a lot of riflescopes, which you know I do for my reviews. But that kit is more or less designed and limited to scope mounts and therefore is too minimalistic if you run into other “obstacles” in your gunsmithing.

Midwest Industries Inc. recently launched a new armorer’s wrench designed to work with AR-15’s and its bigger brother, AR-10 & SR25 rifles. The new Professional Armorer’s Wrench incorporates two 1/2 inch drive sockets for attaching a torque wrench, A2 sized slots for working on muzzle devices and a “combat bottle opener” for good measure. One unique feature Midwest Industries included directly on their Armorer’s Wrench are common torque specifications for fastening barrel nuts, castle nuts and flash hiders.

If you have cannonballed into the firearm industry like most people reading this, one thing we all love to do is customize our weapons. Whether it is with laser beams, red dots, flashlights, a fresh new finish, or all of the above. I, personally, have fallen into the latter category where I took a once beat-up Glock 17 Gen4 9mm and traded out almost every part on it for something new. While some might call it a Gucci Glock, for me it serves the purpose of being an everyday carry (EDC) at my gun shop, it is my sidearm while hunting, and I carry it while ranching with cattle. It looks pretty slick now, but it was a lot more subdued for the longest time. The improved appearance is from a recent visit to Joshua Tree Custom Cerakote with paint practitioner Josh Matthews.

Photo Of The Day and we’re going to take a look at Engravings By Damir in a series of photos. Damir started working with wood carving in 1996 and worked as a maker of gunstocks and an engraver of wood until about 2003 when he started engraving metal instead. Damir then met Stanley Stoltz, a world-renowned engraver, who showed some basic methods, which Damir has since adapted and developed to his own style.

I recently received one of two of my KP-15’s and one of the first things I noticed is that the new polymer lower is far and away one of the most (if not the most) sturdy polymer lowers I’ve ever encountered. Many of you who have seen them in person will note however that the length of the fixed stock is more towards the long side (nearly identical to an A2 stock). However, if you’re looking to have your KP-15 lower shortened, Echo Nine Three Custom is the only gunsmith currently authorized by KE Arms to shorten the KP-15 buttstocks.

In which I restore a 1952 Tula SKS to her original glory. Featuring adventures in international shipping, a brief history lesson, and more than you wanted to know about the different models of SKS bayonet adapters.

Today, we will walk you through the elaborate process of installing an Apex Tactical Action Enhancement Trigger into a Springfield Armory Hellcat. This should not only improve your Hellcat’s trigger pull, but also help you become more deeply familiarized with your pistol’s internal workings. Full disclosure, I am not a gunsmith and I do not moonlight as a pretend one either. I am a lover of firearms like yourself and am a Certified Armorer (certified tinkerer) for several manufacturers – but ironically – not Springfield Armory. While upgrading and installing a new trigger is very elaborate, I assure you, it is not difficult if you take your time and ensure you follow all of the steps.

With their founding roots stretching back to Europe in the late nineteenth century, Krieghoff endeavors to carry on the spirit of old-world hand craftsmanship in the line of fine shotguns they offer today. One of the features that many of their high-end hunting and competition guns are best known for is beautiful, intricate, artistic engraving. The Krieghoff engraving catalog includes dozens of options for baroque scrollwork or elaborate wildlife scenes to adorn your K-80. If none of the catalog options suit you, you can also commission a custom one-off engraving for your fancy new firearm.

For those of you who keep your ear to the ground in regards to the development of open-source firearms technology, it should come as no surprise that Open Source Firearms has been hard at work developing the Ghost Gunner Flex. For the uninitiated, the Ghost Gunner Flex is an ongoing open-source project that has been developed as an iteration of the Defense Distributed Ghost Gunner 2 that is created using commonly available hobby components.

Way back in March, during the early days of quarantine and the COVID outbreak, we published the first part of Buying vs Building a 1911. At the end of my Part 1 article, I said both were running flawlessly with all ammo types and it was dead even. Fast forward 6 months and about 2,000 rounds more through each gun and they are both filthy dirty. I have done a number of tests to each gun whether it’s suppressed shooting or just running the guns until they are extremely dirty. If you haven’t read my first part about these two guns, I will leave a link to it here. Now let’s jump into these two beasts and break down what is the better value between buying or building a 1911.

Hello and welcome back to another edition of  The Rimfire Report. In this weekly series, we explore, discuss, analyze, and review the various firearms inside the rimfire world. This week we have yet another submission from a TFB Patron/SubscribeStar Stubbs. Stubbs often has some pretty odd/disgusting looking creations. This week however I was pleasantly surprised to find that this build not only looks cool, but it is nearly 100% 3D printed aside from a few key parts. So let’s take a look at Stubbs’ 22LR Ghost Gun.

A couple weeks back we talked about Ivan The Troll‘s 3D printed Walther PPK frame. That iteration was basically a proof of concept to see if he could make a durable and lasting frame using some 3D printed parts and an AR-15 fire control group. Now he has upgraded his creation to the next logical step – a Walther PDW.

When shooters hear the name Steyr Arms, most probably think of the AUG right away. The iconic Austrian bullpup’s distinctive aesthetics are hard to forget, after nearly half a century it’s still in use by a host of military and police units around the globe, and it enjoys a loyal fan base. Many people likely don’t even realize that Steyr produces a plethora of other firearms designs in addition to the AUG. From their M9-A1 and A2 MF 9mm pistols, to their Merkel line that includes models like single-shot rifles and over/under shotguns, to a menu of bolt-action rifles, there’s more to Steyr than you might think.

Boyds Gunstocks has been in the firearms industry for nearly four decades, since their founding in 1981. The South Dakota-based shop specializes in aftermarket rifle and shotgun stocks made out of a variety of hardwoods. They have amassed an impressive amount of expertise in this niche over the years, and today they can make stocks for a massive array of different firearms from a list of over two hundred supported manufacturers. From Adams Arms to Zavasta and in between, they’ve got your wood stock needs covered. They can even outfit some old-school or obscure makes and models, like JC Penney and Sears (yes, they used to sell guns – many moons ago!) with replacement wood. You can even have them outfit your modern AR-15 with wood furniture, with brands like BCM, Knight’s Armament, and Spike’s Tactical on the options list.

An opportunity arose to review the new Ghost Gunner 3 from Defense Distributed and I swooped on it like a boomer on a 1911. The Ghost Gunner 3 is a completely new machine from its predecessors. Like the Daft Punk song, the GG3 is Harder, Better, Faster. Besides completing AR-15 lowers, the Ghost Gunner can help make a bunch of other guns and with some third party support you can open up the Ghost Gunner to perform other tasks like engraving your lowers. You can also mill other lowers like a Polymer 80, AR-10 and 1911. They are working on codes and jigs for an AK but that has yet to come out.

Southern Cross Small Arms is an Australian company based in New South Wales. They specialize in manufacturing quality rifle chassis at an affordable price. We had a chance to review one such chassis offering from Southern Cross Small Arms, the  TSP X (Tactical Shooting Platform).

Real Avid, some of the firearms industry’s top tool-masters, produce a host of excellent products to help home gunsmiths. These DIY gurus offer tools like the Master Sight Pusher, the Level-Right Pro precision reticle level, a comprehensive AR-15 armorer’s kit, and many more.

FN America‘s current AR-15 lineup – dubbed the “FN-15 Series” – includes eighteen models, ranging from 5.56 and 300BLK pistols to a competition-purposed model to California-compliant versions and more. FN also provides variants of these fighting rifles to various military and law enforcement groups around the globe. Primary Arms already carries dozens of FN America products, from complete firearms to magazines and more. Now Primary Arms has announced that they are adding a collection of FN’s AR barrels to their product menu.

Viridian Weapon Technologies has been in business for a little over fourteen years. In that time, they have grown from offering a green aiming laser for pistol-mounted applications to providing a broad spectrum of weapon-mounted lasers and other accessories, as well as holsters and more. They recently made headlines here at TFB and elsewhere with their release of the first-ever laser-integrated hand stop.