Spikes AR Pistol Range Report

[IDPA4U]

Until recently, the usefulness of an AR pistol was questionable to me. What changed my mind was the better understanding of how they are fired...Namely, by cheeking the buffer tube, using sling tension, or both... Trying these methods (with a rifle using a collapsed stock), I was amazed how steady you could be with one of these techniques and never have the gun touch your shoulder.
So after checking out a few different types of AR pistols at a local shop, I was bit by the bug and was on the hunt for a 7.5" pistol.

Spikes has built me a gun in the past and I'm incredibly confident in their work so when I read the description of the Concussion upper, I knew I was getting another spikes. It had all the features I was looking for in a well build upper and they customized the lower to my specifications.
Concussion Upper Specs

After I picked up my Pistol from my FFL, I threw on a set of front and rear MBUSes, a Bushnell Holosight, a Magpul MS2 sling, BAD lever, and headed to the range.




The Holo sight was previously zeroed on an AR so it only took a few adjustment to get the groups on paper at 100 yards and I was blown away. The first three shot group , fired with XM193, was about 1.5" which is about as good as I can shoot with a zero magnification optic. Then, while fine tuning the zero, I had a group right at an inch. I'm very tempted to throw a magnified optic on the pistol to see just what it is capable of with good ammo...Anyone ever try an ACOG on their pistol?

Once zeroed I tried some drills on an 8 inch plate at 100 yards. I had no problem coming up from low ready and putting a quick shot on the plate, then a double, then a triple. As I got used to the gun I was just amazed how well it performed. I then started pushing the distance and had no trouble ringing the 12 inch plates at 200 yards, than 300 yards. This thing is bad as$! Tried punching out to 500 yards but had difficulty calling my shots (another reason this thing may be getting some magnification).

Shooting the pistol is quite an attention getter at the range, but thanks to the Lavang Comp, the sound and concussion from the gun is directed down range (I had a guy one bench away who didn't seem to mind at all when I shot). For the shooter, its just pure adrenaline. The XM193 would generate some wicked muzzle flashes every 4th or 5th shot which would be blinding a night, I'm sure. However, for me it just made the plinking session that much more exhilarating. However, when firing some .223 reloads, there was very little if any flash form the Levang.



The concussion shook the camera creating the blurred image. I'll try again with the camera at a safer distance away.

The recoil when using the Levang is straight back and takes some getting used to, but quick follow up shots are definatley possible. In 150 rounds I experienced no malfunctions of any kind and the gun ran incredibly smooth. Also, when I broke it down for cleaning, I was surprised how clean the action was. We'll see how it does on a more extended range session.
Overall I'm very happy with the purchase and look forward to seeing what the Spikes Concussion Pistol is capable of.

Link To Video I was just screwing around with a still camera's video function and ended up framing it terribly, but it gives you an idea about the recoil impulse

[tomd1584]

great looking pistol!

thanks for the review.

[Gio]

Nice review and nice vid, I think it was posted up on calguns before right? Spike's Tactical is a good company to work with, just watch out for their 9mm uppers

-Gio

[gemini1]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but is'nt it that ARs with barrel cut down to less than 13" (?) much less an AR pistol would greatly affect bullet fragmenting?
So like in the case of a BG or varmint getting hit by an AR pistol, the wound would just be comparable to a .22?

[IDPA4U]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but is'nt it that ARs with barrel cut down to less than 13" (?) much less an AR pistol would greatly affect bullet fragmenting?
So like in the case of a BG or varmint getting hit by an AR pistol, the wound would just be comparable to a .22?

This is primarily a range toy/plinker so I'm not too concerned with fragmentation.
XM193 is only going to reach about 2450 fps from a 7.5" barrel so you will be well below the fragmentation threshold of around 2700fps. That being said, it will punch right through both doors of the average car at 50 yards and is accurate enough for center mass hits past 300 yards...


For defensive use people recommend a good expanding bullet like the 62 gr Barnes TSX. It also makes a great hunting round and has been used in similar pistols to 200 yards on Javelinas with excellent results. Others recommend 40 gr or lighter bullets to create ballistics similar to a 5.7x28 on steroids.

Personally, I want to try some 75gr Hornady Tap to see what kind of expansion an penetration it is capable of for coyotes. Tests show velocity from 7.5 in barrel to be around 2100 fps so my guess is it would make a pretty decent defensive load. However, I think using an AR pistol for defensive purposes is probably a bad idea for several reasons, but in a SHTF situation it could be the ultimate bug-out bag pistol.

For some great info on 7.5" AR pistol ballistics check out this link:

http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=3&f=122&t=486625

Thanks for the great comments.

[gemini1]

Oh I see, thanks for the info.

Nice pistol by the way.

[Swift Justice]

I now have a very bad case of pistol-envy.

[Hans Gruber]

Sexy

I want one, it's on my to-do list.

[Lex]

Nice report and thank you. What is the price you paid for the pistol?

[IDPA4U]

Nice report and thank you. What is the price you paid for the pistol?

PM Sent

For those interested you can go on the Spikes site and price out all the options including the CA bullet button:

http://www.spikestactical.com/z/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=104_114&products_id=310