Holding A Carbine & The Need For A Lighter Rifle.

NOT LIKE THIS!!!

I decided to write this post because I took a really great carbine course this weekend with Frank from Stonewall Arms. This class was only the 3rd time I'd ever fired my carbine, or any carbine for that matter, in a meaningful way.

My excellent M&P-15 Sport.

We started the class with sighting in carbines at 50 yards, this started to get frustrating for me since I had shot it at closer ranges and thought it was already sighted in, but Frank did a great job of walking me thru the sigting process and reminded me that we all see a little different. Eventually I got all my shots in the black at 50 yards and on we went.

Part of Frank's instruction during the sighting process was where to place my support hand on the front of the gun. I was going with a magwell hold since it kept my left arm close to my body and didn't stress out the injury in my shoulder very much. It feels natural and I can see why people do it. However, Frank had me reaching out on the stock of the gun. Not Chris Costa levels of reaching to the end of the carbine, but a more moderate place right in front of the magwell. It worked really well for me and also put me in a place where I can easily extend my arm out if needed, with little extra strain on my shoulder (Costa levels of extension are still too much for my shoulder to take however).

Do you even tactical beard bro?

Yesterday I came across a great post on the Jerking the Trigger blog about good physical reasons to have a light carbine and not just have people tell you to get stronger to carry a heavier rifle. This was a very timely find, considering the shoulder surgery I'll be having soon. I agree with the article and I am thinking about ways to make my carbine just a little lighter without breaking the bank. So far the easiest thing to do is to replace the furniture. 

I'm looking at getting a Battlelink Minimalist Stock. So far it's the lightest one I can find at 5.8oz, which is super light compared to the standard M4 style stock that weighs in at about 14oz.

I'm also looking the Magpul MOE SL hand guard which comes in at 6.7oz compared to the standard M4 handguard which I believe clocks in at 6.9 oz. It's not much of a drop, but anything helps and it gives me more options in the future.

As for sights, right now I'm just running plane jane irons, but I would like to get a simple red dot in the future. I'm thinking of a Bushnel TRS-25, which I've heard good things about. Seeing as how I'm just a weekend warrior when it comes to rifles and not a "TACTICAL DOOD!!! I think it will be fine. It's a little more weight but the extra 4 or so ounces is made up with with the drop in weight from the stock.