Fleeting Survival's Strike Industries AK Rail review

Nice review here.  They too found it a solid, lightweight solution.  One issue they did come across that didn't surprise me but I didn't have was that the gas tube lever couldn't be thrown.  I think on the Draco carbine that I reviewed it on had a looser lever and I was able to get it thrown.  I really hope SI comes out with a optic specific one.

Strike Industries AK Rail Range Report

I finally was able to get out to the range with the Strike Industries AK Rail.  It performed great!  While sighting it in, I wasn't really understanding the distances from the bullseye that my spotter was calling.  I was just happily firing away and he finally says "I don't know what more you want to accomplish, that looks great" followed by "for an AK" (he's a bullpup guy). Throwing out called flyers, I had about a 10 round 3 inch group at 40 yards off not the world's best rest.  I'm sure I could tighten things up some with a better rest and smaller strings, but it was evident that the mount was not limiting the accuracy at all.  In snap shooting, the Primary Arms Micro Dot was quick and not too high.  The mount itself is rock solid.  The only way I could see this mount having issues is if the set screws started to work out but that didn't and shouldn't happen with the Locite.

I think the steadiness of this mount compared to the Midwest Industries and even LaRue rear sight mounts is that it has two points of contact on the rear sight block that are on either side of the connection point.  This makes more of a bridge effect that reduces the chances of the mount shifting vertically.  Both of those other mounts do not have a true point of contact forward of the rear sight pin holes.  Like a loose plank flipping up as you walk on one end of it, only having that single point of contact gives a fulcrum point of the rear sight pinholes and the other mounts tend to bounce up under recoil.  I now have a Midwest Industries rear sight mount that I hope to directly compare to if Strike Industries do produce one for the Micro Dots as they have eluded.  While normally Midwest makes some great stuff, their rear sight mount has undergone one redesign and some people still have issues.  If Strike Industries keeps the same basic design of having 2 contact points forwards and aft of the sight pin holes, I believe future optic specific mounts will be winners.

One of the other interesting things this mount features is the backup rear sight channel.  It was effective enough for backup use, although it definitely had a limited FOV with the optic on. Still, it would work in a pinch of the red dot going down.  I did find that removing the optic changed the point of impact vertically even though the mount did not shift at all.  This was due to without the Micro Dot on the rail you can see more of the front sight in the rear channel and you basically end up using two different points of aim.

At $45, it is a great low profile way to mount that won't break the bank.  The Strike Industries AK Rail is a perfect fit for my Draco carbine that doesn't have a side rail or a factory Ultimak option, both of which would be more expensive options if available.  It's closest competitor price-wise would be a side mount like the BP-02, which requires a side rail, doesn't have the option of still being able to use irons with it, and actually sits at about the same height.  If you require the QD feature like a side rail, you can always get a QD base on your optic.  The height of the Strike Industries rail is still lower than most side mounts/optics like the MTK-03, Kobra, and the PSO/POSP.  To go lower you would need to go for something like an Ultimak gas tube, Midwest Industries railed handguard, or RS Regulate side mount.  While all of these are great options, they will set you back more than the Strike Industries'.  That's also not mentioning the two other similar competitors of the Scoutscope and Samson mounts that seem overpriced now compared to this new mount.    Overall, this is a excellent entry into the AK market for Strike Industries and I look forward to their new product line!

See part one of this review- First Impressions

Disclaimer:  This mount was provided free of charge from Strike Industries for this review.  I hope to keep working with them to give more information about their new products.

Strike Industries AK Rail First Impressions

A couple weeks ago I did a post in reply to The Firearms Blog's announcement of the Strike Industries AK Rail.  After getting in contact with them, Strike Industries was gracious enough to send one to review.

Despite seeing it and other similar mounts pictured before, when it arrived I was a little surprised by how lightweight and compact it was.  My first thought that it was something that would in fit well on a minimalistic AK. The package includes the rail, 3 set screws, one cross screw with nut, and installation guide.  The rail seems to be of high quality aluminum and good black anodizing.  The guide is in a small booklet and well done for the part of the getting the rail on.  However, it is a little lacking on how to get the AK rear off and if you should remove the rear sight leaf spring. Other similar mounts differ on if to keep this spring in or not, and according to Strike Industries, this mount works best if you remove the leaf spring. 

To remove an AK rear you should use some object like a screwdriver to push down on the leaf spring in the gap between the sight and the muzzle end of the rear sight block.  Setting the elevation of the sight all the way forward can help with the removal.  As enough pressure is applied you can pull the sight out with your other hand or even pop it out with the right pressure/tool.  Then pull the leaf out towards the muzzle.  On this particular rifle my spring was a little tough to pull out, I needed to get it high enough to clear the bevels inside the rear sight block.

Once you get it out the install becomes very straight forward and as described by the booklet.  The cross screw goes horizontally through the mount and the holes in the rear sight block.  Use a 2mm hex wrench for this screw and 1.5mm for the set screws. One nice touch is that the cross screw's hole is threaded which will allow the sight to be adjusted for windage.  However, adjust this screw first, once the set screws are tightened the mount is solidly in place.  Sometimes mounts like these can have problems with tilting forward or back, but since the set screws are on both sides of the fulcrum (the cross screw), this seems to make it much more stable.

  

By adjusting the set screws you also have some ability to change elevation, but they should be adjusted on both sides so that the mount does not freely move up or down.  As always, don't overtighten and use threadlocker, there are many mounts that have been trashed by overtighting! 

 I plan on using a Primary Arms detachable base Micro Red Dot Aimpoint clone with this mount.  While it definitely is not as good as the Aimpoint, it does have a solid reputation that should allow me to give this mount an honest test out at the range. Also, Strike Industries has eluded to adding other similar optic specific mounts to their product line.  I'm hoping they will come out with an Aimpoint Micro speicifc one that should let me use this optic as well.

Some of the comments on this rail have been that results in a high mount.  Honestly, many AK mounts have this problem, especially most of the imported side rail mounts.  Through my dry practice and measurements, the rail actually has a quite usable cheek weld and still sits lower than many side rail/mount combos. Yes, it is still higher than an Ultimak railed gas tube or a TWS Dogleg, but the Strike Industries rail is less than half their prices and debatably requires less changes to the rifle than the other two.

For my measurements, I used the line between the receiver and the front trunnion.  I found that this gives a nice solid line that allows for easy and consistent measurements.  The standard AK rear sight at Battlefield Zero sits at about 1.7", while the Strike Industries mount only sits just .2" higher at 1.9".  Mounting the Primary Arms Micro put the bottom of the rear lens at about 2.2" high.  When compared to my Romanian M10-545 side rail with one of the lowest Eastern European mounts out there, the BP-02 side mount, the Strike Industries rail is actually a slightly lower height.  It has another advantage over the BP-02 as well in that the iron sights can still be used.

Strike Industries put a channel through the rail and added two dots that can be painted in to give a basic rear sight picture.  Although the channel is wider than standard rear sights and has a limited field of view with the optic mounted, it seems to be usable and I feel it will serve well in the backup sights role.  I'll definitely be doing some tests of the rear sight both with and without the optic at the range.

For the price, the Strike Industries AK Rail looks to be a simple yet effective method to mount a small red dot.  It is also an interesting entry into the AK market for the company.  I look forward to getting some range time in with the rail and Strike Industries new AK line of products as well!  Part 2 to follow as soon as I can get out to the range. (Here it is!)

Disclaimer:  This mount was provided free of charge from Strike Industries for this review.  I hope to keep working with them to give more information about their new products.

Rear Sight Rails

Steve at The Firearm Blog has a post up about Strike Industries's rear sight rail.  These are similar to the Iron Dot style mounts that Midwest Industries and Attero Arms currently produce, but they differ in that they have a more universal Weaver/Picatinny rail and do not co-witness.  If you are interested, Strike Industries looks to be the most affordable.  However, Samson makes one with an under rail tunnel for the rear sight that usable with the optic on but it is pricey.  The Scout Scopes mount is lower and also offers a rear sight for use when the optic is removed.  Polytech also makes/made one that is available at a few places but I'm not sure of it's current production status due to the Chinese import ban here.  It looks not to have a rear sight option.

Midwest Industries Mini Dot Mount seems to have its bugs worked out.

Surprisingly for MI's normal level of quality, they had a few tilting problems with their new Iron Dot style rear sight mount. They claim to have now fixed it. You can get an upgraded version if you already have one and if you are now interested in buying an improved one they are in stock.

Hat tip to Shooter521 at INGO.

They also have an interesting new flash hider that has TGI BART style spikes and they claim it reduces recoil.

Another Attero Arms Statement

I post this because this blog is one of the places that has most of the Attero Arms saga posted. Form your own opinions. However, I still will not be buying from them.

"Hello,
A brief statement regarding the ‘Twisterx44/Nate’ controversy:
This will be posted on all the ‘Twisterx44’ threads that we can locate.
Nate from Attero has been reprimanded for his blatant disregard for our honesty policy at Attero, as well as a lack of respect for the online firearms community. All of you deserve nothing but the truth. Subsequently, and effective immediately, he will no longer be speaking on behalf of the company on any internet forums. Additionally, he will be overseas shortly and will not have much involvement with the company during his yearlong absence.
We at Attero will be working hard to regain the trust and respect of the firearms community, particularly the online firearms community. We understand that a member of our team made an extremely poor decision, and we can assure you that it will not happen again, period. We do not expect an immediate withdrawal of the animosity that was generated from this incident. Just know that we will be dedicated to creating innovative and affordable products while delivering top-notch customer service. Additionally, we will be nothing but 100% honest.
On another note, it appears there is a general belief that the Attero AK SBR is overpriced. Our sales team and production team will be looking into the budgeting process to tighten up the MSRP to somewhere closer to what has been estimated to be a ‘fair price’. We value our customers’/potential customers’ feedback, and will adjust accordingly. Just keep in mind we have labor and some machining to figure in.
Thank you for your time. Rather than just apologizing repeatedly, let us show you why we deserve your business, even if it takes 15, 20, or 100 positive reviews from other satisfied customers.

-Attero Arms"

And it becomes a whole new Iron Dot Market

Midwest Industries has a new Iron Dot style mount.

Interestingly it will work with Aimpoint Micro style, along with the Primary Arms and Vortex Sparc clones (Sparc won't co-witness due to the emitter location).

Update: Primary Arms should have them instock early next week.

(Hat Tip kmrtnsn)

Attero Arms and Twisterx44 Responses

-AKMatt (Me)" What is your lead time on the Draco and Saiga? Obviously the Draco buyers will have to wait for the tax stamp transfer as well.

-Attero Arms (AA): The Attero AK SBR can actually be created and ready to go in about 2 weeks. Yes, the buyer must wait for their tax stamp transfer, but the weapon can be completed far in advance. The Attero S-12 can be shipped out approximately 1.5 - 2 weeks from ordering as well.

-(Me): Are your mounts currently shipping?

-(AA): We are currently shipping the Attero AK Micro Optics Mount.

-(Me): Any plans to add protective "ears" or "roll cage" like the Burris upgraded mount or the LaRue AK Iron Dot?

-(AA): We have considered the protective ears, but it will raise the cost of the mount and detract from the no-snag profile. Right now we are trying to keep it simple.

-(Me): I'm sure your mount is going to be compared to the LaRue Iron Dot which was liked but most usually felt like it was limited by the original Fast Fire and the Fast Fire II should fix some of those problems. Do you have any thoughts on what sets your product apart from LaRue's discontinued one? It looks like it shouldn't effect take down that much, correct (the dust cover can be popped off with out removing the mount)?

-(AA): What sets our product apart from LaRue's? First, LaRue didn't have very good replacement BUIS (Back Up Iron Sights) on their mounts. Second, it forced you to use a particular optic. Ours works with the three most common micro optics which can be found on our website in the description for the mount. Our mounts are also shorter in length, so take down and cleaning is even easier.

-(Me): Does each mount support all three optics or do you have to get a new one each time?

-(AA): Each mount supports all three optics. (Burris Fast Fire II, Leupold Deltadot, Trijicon RMR)

-(Me): Do you have a lot in stock from this first run or it is a on individual demand basis?

-(AA): We have enough mounts in stock to fuel what has been the consistent demand, but order volume is increasing, so we will be increasing our production.

-(Me): Comments on the apparent Guerrilla Marketing campaign by Twisterx44 on the gunboards? What is Twisterx44's relationship to the Attero Arms?

-(AA): We have been notified of the apparent marketing attempt by that user, however we have absolutely no affiliation with 'Twisterx44'. We may take steps to contact the board administrators to notify them that this was not an Attero Arms endorsed action. The problem is locating all of the boards that were posted on - there seem to be a lot. Twisterx44 has no relation to Attero Arms other than they were one of the first customers to purchase our SBR.

Interview via email with Nate of the Attero Arms Sales Team,

According to their website, Attero Arms holds a Type 7 FFL as well as a Class 2 SOT, issued by the BATF.

Twisterx44 was accused of guerrilla marketing by several board Admins with his review of Attero Arms SBR awith their mount.

EDIT: Statement from Twisterx44: "I wanted to clear the air with everybody here because I think I have been misunderstood slightly. I know I have been on other forums.

I posted a review of an SBR I finally got on this forum. I also posted my review on many other gun forums. My main reason for doing this was to show off my new toy, but one of the products my SBR came equipped with was a replacement for the Larue AK IronDot mount that I know everybody has been looking for since Larue discontinued them. I figured just about anybody with an AK would want to see it. Unfortunately, I got mislabeled as a 'guerilla marketer' which I had never heard of before, but on this forum and a few others I was accused of having an affiliation with the company that made my SBR.

I want to clear the air with that. I have no connection to them, I was just sharing my new gun. "

Attero Arms SBR review incident

If your a member of just about any gun forums/board you've might have seen the Twisterx44 review of the Attero Arms Draco SBR which seemed to be a guerrilla marketing campaign. I'm in communication with Attero Arms and Twisterx44 and will have comments shortly.

No matter what you think of the posts, I really think the mount is interesting, obviously like the discontinued LaRue Iron Dot.