Click pictures for a larger version.
Red Jacket flash suppressor is threaded to accept Red Jacket sound suppressor without removal.
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Those who have watched “Sons
of Guns” on the Discovery Channel are familiar with Red
Jacket Firearms of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I have seen parts of
the show over the past year or so, but hardly ever have time to
watch much television. From what I did get to see, the Red
Jacket folks get to play with and build some pretty interesting
firearms. The one episode that I do remember, they were mounting
a weapon on a riverboat, and seemed to be having a lot of fun in
the process. Red Jacket is a custom shop, building weapons to
suit the individual customer, but they also are producing their
own line of AR-15 rifles. The rifle shown here is their KMP-DI,
a direct gas impingement system with an M-4 profile barrel and
Magpul furniture and rear sight. The magazine is also a Magpul
unit, which I have found to be one of the best available. The
Magpul MOE hand guard is very comfortable to use, as is the MOE
pistol grip. The six-position Magpul buttstock is also very easy
to adjust and comfortable to shoot, and it does not pull the
hair out of my face as do some telescoping butt stock designs.
The Magpul furniture is available in four color options, with
the sample shown here being basic black, which never goes out
off style, and is perfect for those more-formal occasions.
The sixteen inch chrome-lined barrel is
rifled one turn in seven inches (1-7), to fully stabilize even
the long match-grade bullets available for the 5.56x45 or 223
Remington cartridges. The muzzle wears the Red Jacket flash
suppressor, which is threaded to accept a Red Jacket sound
suppressor without removing the flash suppressor. The bolt
carrier is phosphate-coated black, wears the Red Jacket logo,
and is of M-16 style. The bolt is also black, and has a
heavy-duty extractor and spring.
The upper receiver wears a Picatinny rail for
mounting of optical sights, and the weapon also comes with the
excellent Magpul back-up folding rear sight. The front sight is
standard AR style integral with the gas block. The upper also
has an integral case deflector and forward assist. The lower
receiver houses the fire control parts, with a mil-spec AR
trigger and hammer. The trigger pull measured an average of six
pounds, one ounce on my Lyman digital scale. The selector
(safety) is standard AR style, with the receiver uniquely marked
for safe, semi, and automatic fire. The sample carbine is
semi-auto only, so the selector is blocked from moving into the
fun position.
The Red Jacket AR weighed in at six pounds,
thirteen ounces with an empty Magpul thirty-round magazine in
place. The overall length measured from thirty-three to
thirty-six and one-quarter inches, depending upon the position
of the buttstock.
For accuracy testing, I mounted my mule; a
Leupold Mark 4 8.5 to 25 power target scope using an ArmaLite
one-piece mount. Accuracy testing was done at 100 yards, with
the results shown in the chart below. Group sizes are the
average of three-shot groups at that 100 yard distance. Group
sizes are listed in inches. Velocity testing was done with the
chronograph twelve feet from the muzzle at an elevation of 541
feet above sea level, approximately. Temperatures hovered around
the fifty-two degree Fahrenheit mark during all testing.
Velocity readings are the average of several shots fired, and
the results are listed in the chart below. Velocity readings are
listed in feet-per-second (fps). Bullet weights are listed in
grains. FMJ is a full metal jacket bullet. HP is hollowpoint.
TSX is a Barnes Triple Shock homogenous copper hollowpoint
bullet. The handload listed uses the TSX bullet with 24.5 grains
of Ramshot TAC powder, a Remington small rifle primer, and
Winchester commercial .223 Remington cases.
Ammunition |
Bullet Weight |
Velocity |
Hand Load TSX |
62 |
2761 |
Winchester USA FMJ |
62 |
2836 |
Buffalo Bore HP |
77 |
2640 |
Buffalo Bore HP |
69 |
2753 |
Black Hills HP |
69 |
2539 |
Wolf Gold HP |
75 |
2513 |
Lake City FMJ |
62 |
2945 |
Stryker V-Max |
55 |
2818 |
Cor-Bon Tipped |
55 |
2986 |
Accuracy Results At 100 Yards
Ammunition |
Bullet Weight |
Group Size |
Hand Load TSX |
62 |
1.38" |
Winchester USA FMJ |
62 |
1.31" |
Buffalo Bore HP |
77 |
1.13" |
Buffalo Bore HP |
69 |
0.625" |
Black Hills HP |
69 |
1.10" |
Wolf Gold HP |
75 |
1.21" |
Accuracy was very good with every load
tested, and excellent with most loads. The Buffalo Bore 69 grain
Sniper ammo turned in a stellar performance, consistently
grouping under three-quarters of an inch at one hundred yards.
The accuracy testing was done with the aid of a Target
Shooting, Inc. Model 500 rifle rest, which works very well
for testing rifles with extended magazines. Also, the Magpul
buttstock did not try to collapse itself on the shooting rest,
as sometimes does a standard CAR telescoping buttstock.
The Red Jacket KMP-DI proved to be one
hundred percent reliable, even when dirty and hot. It fed,
fired, and ejected every round offered to it. Offhand shooting
was done using the supplied Magpul thirty-round magazine. Bench
shooting was done using a vintage Colt twenty-round magazine.
The Red Jacket carbine handles well, points naturally, and is
very comfortable to shoot. Red Jacket Firearms sells these on
their website, but there is a backlog on ordering. However, the
KMP-DI is also sold and stocked by Academy
Sports Outdoors, so buying through them might be the
quickest way to get one. The KMP-DI is shipped in a hard case
with instruction manual and one Magpul PMAG magazine. The Red
Jacket AR is built to last, has a lifetime warranty, and is
built in the USA.
For more information on ordering an AR-15
type rifle built by those Sons of Guns in Louisiana, go to www.redjacketfirearms.com.
For a look at the extensive line of quality
Leupold optics, go to www.leupold.com.
To order high quality shooting rests directly
from the manufacturer, go to www.targetshooting.com.
To order quality 5.56x45mm and 223 Remington
ammunition, go to www.buffalobore.com,
www.luckygunner.com,
and www.theamericanmarksman.com.
Jeff Quinn
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Click pictures for a larger version.
Magpul six-position buttstock.
Magpul folding rear sight.
Accuracy testing was done with the aid of a
Target Shooting, Inc. Model 500 rest and a Leupold Mark 4 scope.
Buffalo Bore Sniper ammunition proved to be exceptionally accurate in the Red Jacket carbine.
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