Rick Dembroski

The Soviets and the 5.45×39: Imitation is the Sincerest Form of Flattery

The lineage of the 5.45 x 39mm rifle round that is commonly found in the AK-74 rifles all around the world can in a weird way trace its lineage back to the 5.56 x 45mm that NATO and the United States Military uses. Way back in the 1950’s what was then known as the Soviet Union had a fairly extensive network of spies and moles in almost every aspect of American society. In the years since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 the full extent of the espionage rings are just coming to light. It was through one of these networks that the Soviets learned of the United States development of a new main battle rifle to replace the short-lived Springfield M-14. This new rifle which became the Armalite/Colt M-16 as we know was chambered in the newly developed 5.56 x 45mm cartridge. This apparently made the Soviet Union paranoid that they were missing out as they watched their chief rival adopt an ideology of soldiers carrying smaller, lighter rifles that shot a smaller lighter bullet. This fact also let people carry more rounds per person into combat, and the Soviets were not about to take that fact lying down.

The Process of Design

Over the next decade the Soviets built teams of engineers to try to design a Soviet designed round that would replicate the 5.56 x 45mm in terms of accuracy and ballistics yet still use the AK-47 as its weapons platform. In 1967 the Soviet Union finally came up with a test design and the first 5.45 x 39mm cartridge using the newly devised lacquer coated steel cased ammunition was approved for testing. A few years later the team led by renowned Soviet weapons designer V.M. Sabelnikov had the now infamous and banned from importation “Standard” 5.45 x 39mm cartridge known as 7n6 approved for mass production by the Kremlin.

During this process the new rifle chambered in the 5.45 x 39mm operated and looked almost identical to the standard issue AK-47 which was formally adopted in 1947. So in typical drab plain Soviet fashion for the time the new rifle adopted in 1974 would be known as the AK-74. While not overly original or complicated, the Soviet numbering system was simple and easy to follow. The engineering team behind the AK-74 and 7n6 cartridge didn’t just sit back and rest, they went to work on developing a full complement of other times of ammunition for the newly minted AK-74 rifle. In short time the various design teams had successfully developed tracer rounds (7T3), training rounds (7×4), as well as a reduced velocity rounds (7U1) and blank rounds (7×3).

Misconceptions Confusing the 5.45 and the 7.62

Many people aren’t aware of the differences between the 5.45 x 39mm and the 7.62 x 39mm aside from bullet diameter. I have heard people say that they already own an AK in 7.62 x 39mm and getting one in 5.45 x 39 would make them confuse their ammunition and magazines. As you can see from the above picture, if you have an AK74 rifle you won’t be putting 7.62 x 39mm ammunition into your magazine on accident. Even if you tried on purpose to get one in I think the rules of physics and geometry would stop you.

There is also a common misconception that you can no longer get 5.45 x 39mm ammunition in the United States since the April 7th 2014 ruling from the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco & Firearms. This is false, the ruling that confuses everyone revolves around the surplus 7n6 / 52.9 grain ammunition that was incredibly cheap and available in the United States. The free market economy has stepped up many manufacturers are producing and importing ample supplies of the round. European companies like Wolf, Tula, Silver Bear, and Barnaul continue to import several varieties and domestic production is ramping up as Hornady is continuing to develop loads in 5.45 x 39 using their V-Max projectiles up to 60 grains.

The 5.45 x 39mm is unknown by some in the firearms community, and until recently it I was aware of the cartridge but never fired any weapon chambered in it. Unfortunately this is the issue that many people have to overcome, or get past their anti-Soviet weapon bias. Over the last few decades we have been taught that any Russian designed firearm was crude and inaccurate. This myth may have truths when the guns are built in hodge podge back alley shops in the Khyber Pass, but not the case with weapons that use quality materials and are properly built.

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery

When you look at the 5.45 x 39mm and it’s ballistics it really begins to show that the old Soviet Union thought that Eugene Stoner, Earle Harvey and friends were onto something special when they began to tweek the old .222 Remington cartridge, either that or what their spies reported scared them to death. The 5.45 x 39mm generally uses a 52.9 grain bullet that travels at almost 2900 ft per second, which is slightly slower and smaller than the XM193 55 grain 5.45 x45 mm cartridge. The smaller and slower round in many cases depending on the exact bullet composition and atmospheric conditions will stay neck and neck with the 5.56 x45 mm in terms of velocity and bullet drop.

The final form of imitation that the Soviets went after was the creation of higher capacity magazines. When the AK-74 first arrived on the scene it fielded a 30 round magazine like its big brother the AK-47. This was quickly upped to a 45 round magazine that was issued to troops depending on their roles and responsibilities. Keep in mind this was decades before Mag Pul decided to make a 60 round AR-15 magazine, for once the Soviets were trend setters. In 1979 the Soviet Union with its fresh supplies of AK-74’s and other weapons chambered in 5.45 x 39mm invaded Afghanistan and the real world tests of the rifle and cartridge began on a massive scale.

5.45 x 39 in the 21st Century

The 5.45 x 39mm and rifles chambered in it haven’t been around nearly as long as the venerable AK-47, but it is replacing the older rifles as they wear out. The former Soviet Bloc and Russia have fully transitioned over to the 5.45×39 cartridge, those that haven’t will most likely adopt the 5.56 x 45mm because of NATO requirements. The AK-74 rifle and the 5.45 x 39mm round continue to evolve just like the M16 and the 5.56 x 45mm. Weapons designers continue to look for materials, and ways to make bullets more environmentally friendly as well as more lethal. In this writers opinion its a very strange dance to make something more eco-friendly yet is designed to put people in the dirt, it’s a very Ying -Yang / Circle of Life type of thing.

The curiosity I had about the AK-74 and the 5.45 x 39mm is what prompted my in the name of scientific endeavors to secure a Russian Saiga project and a healthy amount of ammunition. Our testing that will begin after 1 September will be to put the two rifles and two rounds side by side and have a variety of shooters try them. The purpose of the test will be to try them at two relatively short ranges 50 & 100 meters and see what our panel of non professional shooters think. Many people report that shooting the 5.45 is more pleasant than a 5.56. It might be the slightly slower velocity will result in less felt recoil, thereby making inexperienced shooters feel more comfortable and increasing their accuracy.

The secondary goal of this testing is to get the Saiga into as many different shooters hands as I can so that we can spread the word of the 5.45 mm to the masses. It’s like a gun lovers good deed for humanity. In all seriousness I feel that as a gun owner and as a professional that its part of my responsibility to let people shoot most of the guns I own if they haven’t ever seen whatever I happen to have that day at the range. If it’s my MP5 , or a new CZ-P10C, it doesn’t matter. It’s all about letting people experience different types of firearms. (Stepping off my soapbox).

Many people think that smaller rifles shooting and intermediate sized round and primarily engaging targets 300 meters and closer is useless. In the ever-changing world of International Police Actions, small-scale limited warfare and anti terror operations these types of rounds and guns are finding new life.

All you have to do is look closely at any video from the wars in the Crimea, Syria or any other conflict zone and you can see the AK-74 is just as valuable a tool as the AK-47 that it replaced. In closing we want to know what you think of the 5.45 x 39 or the AK-74. How many of you own them or use them regularly at the range ? Tell us your stories.

Rite in the Rain notepads & targets: Defying mother nature

Anyone who has tried to make notes on a notepad standing outside during bad weather knows the agony of soggy paper. I can say that in my 20+ years of professional work experience from being a deployed USAF Civil Engineer to my current career as an Emergency Manager more than once I’ve tried to decipher wet notes that use to contain important specifications or measurements. Most of the time I was able to figure out what they use to say, but it would have been great to have paper products that didn’t get ruined with a small amount of moisture. That’s where our latest product, the Rite in the Rain Notepads would have come in very handy and saved me a great deal of a headache.

Why Should You Care?

Ultimately we find people asking this very question about the products we review, and with this one no doubt people will do that same about the Rite in the Rain Notepads. The answer is simple if you work in a profession such as law enforcement, construction, public safety or any job where lost data and notes can cost money or potentially lives you need a rock-solid way to ensure your notes and data are readable. There might be people who read this and think that their iPhones or laptops will work just fine, that is until there is no power or you are standing in the pouring rain trying to survey a job site or some other incident.

In a nutshell, simple things generally work well even under the worst conditions. Laptops break, powered goes out, cameras aren’t nearly as waterproof as we think they are. Case in point, for years the United States and NASA spent millions on making an ink pen that wrote in zero gravity conditions like in outer space. The Soviet Union, on the other hand, spend a fraction of that cost on pencils and pencil sharpeners which worked just as well as the Space Pen. Simple works.

Product Lines

Rite in the Rain makes eight complete lines of notepads to fit the specific needs of a wide array of professions. They have lines that were designed to meet the needs of public safety officers such as law enforcement and firefighters as well as general industries like construction and agriculture. All you have to do is spend a few minutes browsing on the company’s website and I have little doubt that they won’t have a product to meet the needs of your particular career field.

Field Tests DO they Work?

In the short time I’ve had these particular pads I haven’t had a chance to put them to good use. Now the yellow one that is in the featured photo, I have used that on actual damage assessments in response to a soon to be federally declared natural disaster. I was well aware of Rite in the Rain products before these arrived. I have found that the products do hold up extremely well in wet, windy and cold Alaskan Winter days while standing on the shores of Resurrection Bay. There are a few quirks with any of the pads I’ve used that you should be aware of if you are looking into them.

Paper Quality

The paper quality is amazing, but it doesn’t feel like any notebook or writing paper that you might be used to. That being said the company also goes to great lengths to ensure that they are as environmentally conscious as they can. Their dedication to the environment goes beyond surface level lip music, they use recycled materials in almost every aspect of the production of all of their products. At the end of the day, the company feels good about reducing their environmental footprint and we all get notepads and products that can withstand any weather you can dream of.

Not Just Pads and Pencils

A more recent development with Rite in the Rain Products that I was totally unaware of until this year was that they have expanded their line of waterproof targets. Yes, that’s correct, an environmentally aware company in the Pacific Northwest that loves it’s gun enthusiasts also. The company makes nine different styles of targets, many of which will look very familiar to anyone who has been in the military the last 20 years or so and qualified with a long gun.

I was pleasantly surprised when I saw that the company makes a waterproof copy of a target that I learned to shoot on, the 25 Meter M16A2 / M16 A4 target. They even have a faithful reproduction of the M16A1 target for those of you who might have served in the early days of the M16. These targets are both printed on extremely heavy paper and won’t wilt, sag, rip or disintegrate in the wind, rain or even snow. That instantly puts them on my radar, since I live in Alaska I frequently run into days when I start shooting and it’s clear that inevitably the weather turns to rain or snow.

Good Gear Doesn’t Have to be Sexy

It’s a pretty simple saying that actually works. Good gear doesn’t have to cost thousands of dollars or be made of carbon fiber and Unobtainium (that’s a fake material). What good gear needs to do is allow you to complete your task or mission and do it safely and do it well. Notepads aren’t sexy, they don’t have the same appeal as an iPhone or gizmo, but sometimes they are the simplest and easiest thing to use. Rite in the Rain Products has taken something that is still essential to many of our professional lives on a daily basis and made it almost impossible to fail.

The company has most of their products available online and through the GSA procurement system for all of you who work for governmental agencies. If you find yourself out in the elements and trying to take notes or record events and don’t want to test that insurance policy on your phone or think to yourself “How wet can this case really get?” then take a chance. Swing over to the company’s web page and see if there are a tablet-style and size that might fit your life or profession, you might just be surprised at what you find. Check back in a few weeks and we will give you the update on the targets that the company was kind enough to send us to try out in the rain and snow.

Grey Ghost Precision Glock Slide: Beyond Perfection

Grey Ghost Precision is a Lakewood, Washington based manufacturer that is most well known for making a nice selection of AR-15 rifles to fit the needs of Law Enforcement, Military Personnel and responsible armed citizens. The company makes rifles and uppers in the most common rifle cartridges used on the AR-15 platform, ranging from 6.5 Creedmoor all the way up to the full powered .308 Nato. While you may already be familiar with the company and their stellar reputation for quality, what you may not know about them is that they also produce aftermarket slides for several varieties Glock pistols.

Not long ago the team over at Grey Ghost Precision was nice enough to send us one of their G17 Glock slides that feature an insert to support the Trijicon RMR pistol optic. Since we have just started a new cheap Glock build dubbed Operation Glockenstein I was very excited when the slide was offered up to me. The timing of these events has resulted in the launch of a series of articles that will review all of the components used in this build. The first of these components is the slide we are featuring today. The market for pistol optics is red hot and it’s nice to see more manufacturers like GGP getting into the market, more manufacturers equal more competition, which of course means better deals for consumers. Let’s take a look at the Grey Ghost Precision G17 V1 RMR slide for our Generation III Glock 17, and see why our readers should take notice.

SPECIFICATIONS

Manufacturer: Grey Ghost Precision
Place of Manufacture: Lakewood, Washington
Material: 17-4 Billet Stainless Steel
Finish: Matte Black Nitride coated inside and out
Textures Available:
Waffle pattern (Version II)
Angled serrations (Version I as tested)
Available with or without RMR cut
Comes stripped without sights
RMR version includes custom G10 cover plate and screws
Available for Generation IV Glocks also
Lifetime warranty
Price: $399.00-$429.00

Initial Impressions

My initial impressions of the Grey Ghost Precision slide have been overwhelmingly positive. There are a ton of small details that the company has gotten right that add to the overall feel and effectiveness of the test slide we were fortunate enough to get. When I first opened the package the weight of the slide was the first thing I noticed, the slide felt heavier than other stock Glock slides I have handled. This might be because of the 17-4 Stainless Steel that it’s manufactured from. Stainless steel is heavier than carbon steel and has a lower strength to weight ratio. There’s a lot of science and math behind it all.

Now that we briefly touched on the metallurgy and perceived weight of the slide lets take a look at the feel and details of it. There are angled serrations that go completely through the slide at both the 3 and 9 o’clock positions. These are to assist the user in weapons manipulation drills and lighten the slide a tiny bit. The cuts themselves are functional and add to the ascetics of the slide without going overboard or compromising it’s structural integrity. There are an additional six serrations on the top of the slide just behind the front sight post. These differ from the other ones in that they do not go all the way through the slide and are cut horizontally instead of at an angle like all of the other serrations on the slide.

Assembly and Sight Selection

After looking over the fit and finish of the slide and the previously described details I set out to finding the necessary components to complete the slide. Grey Ghost Precision sends the slides stripped so that the user can add their favorite components to finish it off. Since I like simple and affordable I contacted my local gun shop Eagle River Gun Cache and Chugach Custom Gunworks LLC to hook me up with the parts I lacked. A little conversation and a 1/2 hour later a Lone Wolf Distributors completion kit and a set of Trijicon night sights were installed on the slide. The slide was complete and ready for testing.

This is where the only snag in the entire operation happened, I was unable to mount the Trijicon RMR red dot optic to the GGP slide because the screws I have were too long. Once I realized this was an issue I quickly sent an email to the customer service department of Grey Ghost Precision to request a set of screws that were the appropriate length. The issues with the screws only mean that I can’t test this slide with the RMR attached, it doesn’t stop the evaluation of the slide while using the Trijicon hard sights in any way.

Moving past the RMR issue, once the slide was assembled and fixed on the pistol I began to run some drills with it and see how the gun felt with the new heavier slide in place. The angled serrations at the rear of the slide are cut deep into the slide and really dig into your fingers even while wearing gloves. This isn’t a negative feature or comment at all, in fact, it should be taken as a positive note. The groves are deep and aggressive but not obnoxiously so, they allow the user to grasp the slide firmly even while wearing gloves or while your hands are wet or slippery for whatever reason.

Overall the Grey Ghost Precision is a well-built slide that combines solid engineering, good aesthetics, and functionality all in one package. While the price of the slide may set some people off, for shooters looking for a slide that allows you to run a Trijicon RMR red dot optic and retain your stock sights, this might be the perfect slide. When you stop to compare the Grey Ghost Precision Version 1 RMR with other manufacturers on the market you see that their pricing is pretty much in line with their competition.

The market for red dot optics of all types for pistols is expanding more each week, that being said the market will continue to fluctuate in both price and available options. This will mean it will continue to be a buyers market for the foreseeable future, so there is plenty of time to research companies and options. I would like to take a moment to thanks the team at Grey Ghost Precision for sending us this slide to demo, I’ve looked at a few other RMR slides on pistols in local shops and I will say that the GGP slide has a much higher quality build and design than ones I have seen. If you are in the market for a new slide for your Glock 17 or Glock 19 and want one that is cut to support the Trijicon RMR red dot, then Grey Ghost Precision is the first place I would stop.

If you are a competition shooter or running an optic on your pistol, we want to hear from you. What brand of optic are you running and what slide combo works best for you? What combo hasn’t worked? I personally am just starting on this journey of shooting pistols with optics so I am personally and professionally curious as to what setups others are using. Check back in the near future while I document the planned 1400 round test of the Grey Ghost Precision upper and Trijicon combo and learn the ins and outs of shooting pistols with optics. Drop your comments in the box below.

The Timepiece of Cosmonauts: Fortis B42 Cosmonaut

To many, a watch is more than just something that tells you the time or the date. In many career fields having a watch on your wrist is almost a requirement more than it is a fashion accessory for men. Pilots, Doctors, Nurses, and a host of other professions rely on accurate timekeeping on a daily basis. Many times those watches receive a great deal of abuse in the form of knocks, bangs, scrapes, and in some instances, they are exposed to great torque and extreme temperatures. There is one profession where all of the hazards and conditions I listed above could be encountered by a single timepiece, and that profession is that of a Cosmonaut or Astronaut as our own National Aeronautics and Space Administration refers to the personnel lucky enough to be selected for manned space flight.

When you stop to think about the hazards, testing requirements and extreme climates that anyone involved with manned spaceflight has to endure it’s staggering. Any failure of equipment in an environment like space or in the international space station could have grave consequences. Every piece of equipment that is loaded into a rocket or shuttle to space is examined, prodded, beaten and tested to its limits, including a wristwatch. It’s a high standard to pass, so when I had a chance to pick up a Fortis B42 Cosmonaut Watch, the official watch of the Russian Space Federation ROSCOSMOS, I jumped at the chance.

WHY?

Am I a Cosmonaut ?, Nope, Am I ever going to experience the temperatures or conditions of outer space? Most likely not. I do however live in Alaska so I can promise being exposed to stupidly cold temperatures at times, that’s as close as I can get. If I am lucky I will won’t experience anything near the G-Forces that military pilots will experience either. So why would I want a timepiece that was designed to handle those conditions if I never expect to be in those conditions? We will get to that in a little bit, but first, let’s look at some of the specifics of this watch and the history of the Fortis Brand. We will also take a quick look at how this line of watches became the official timepiece of people lucky enough to earn the title Cosmonaut.

The Brand

Fortis was like many other fine watch manufacturers founded in Switzerland where it still resides today as one of the last privately owned watch companies. The company was founded in 1912 by Walter Vogt in the Swiss village of Grenchen and has over the last 100 plus years been an innovator in technology and style. In 1926 it was Fortis who released the Harwood Automatic, the first self-winding wristwatch to be made commercially available. In terms of horology, the release of that design turned the watch world on its ear. In 1943 Fortis again set the standard in technology when they released the Fortissimo, the worlds first line of waterproof watches.

After years of testing and design work with NASA and other agencies, Fortis was ready to step to the big stage and beat out several larger manufactures in a competition for the next generation of timepieces to be used in not only manned space flight but in orbit on the International Space Station. When the trials had ended Fortis, beat out the big names of the industry like Rolex and Omega and was deemed worthy to wear the title “Official Cosmonaut Watch”.

Emblem of Russian Space Federation ROSCOSMOS shown on watch back

Specifications:

Manufacturer: Fortis

Country of Manufacture: Switzerland

Movement Type: Swiss ETA 2836-2 Automatic

Case Diameter: 42mm

Water Resistance: 20 BAR (669 Feet)

Lug Width: 20 mm

Case Thickness: 15.5 mm

Strap Types:

Stainless Steel
Leather
Rubber

MSRP: $840 – $980 depending on band choice at www.watchbuys.com

Weight: 6.7 Oz with Stainless Steel band

Pros:

Stainless Steel Case
Automatic movement means no batteries
Can withstand the most severe elements
Classic look with
Affordable compared to its competition

Cons:

Price for some people
Lack of chronograph function
Large, thick heavy stainless steel case
Metal bracelet can be problematic to size and small easy to loose screws

Fortis logo seen on the stem. Lots of small details in this watch for sure

30 Days of Wearing, Thoughts and Impressions

I have been wearing this watch for just over 30 days on my wrist and I can tell you there are somethings I have come to like, and some I have come to dislike. The overall watch is a beast, it presents a large clear no-nonsense face to the wearer. This is nice but at the same time just sort of bland at times to be honest. I understand the target audience on this watch is not a guy who works in a government office so I take that into account. At almost 7 ounces of weight, the stainless steel case at times is nice and other times feels like you are wearing a wrist weight all day.

The 42mm case easily protects the Swiss-built ETA 2836-2 movement that is also found in many other watches made not only by Fortis but other makers such as Hamilton, Rado, Sinn, Ball & Tissot. The stainless steel comes it handy because you will most likely knock this watch into things on a daily basis. The case also features uses Fortis specific strap bars that are 20mm wide instead of the more universal and generic spring bars common on most wristwatches today.

The watch I have been wearing has the stainless steel bracelet style strap on it which adds to the overall weight. One thing to note on this is the, however, Fortis designed the bracelet they did it in a way that it doesn’t pull out wrist hairs. This is something to mention because to date I have only owned one watch that had a metal strap that didn’t constantly pull out my wrist hairs, and that was the Doxa Sub 1200, which costs nearly twice what the Fortis B-42 does.

Shortcomings

Any watch that gets close to the $1000 price range I tend to be more critical of the fit, finish, and presentation of the product. The Fortis B-42 left me with a sense that the company could have done better in some areas. The first area I think needs to be addressed is the previously mentioned stainless steel bracelet. While the strap is great at not pulling out hairs, the screws that hold the link together are prone to breakage and easily getting lost. It’s a shame Fortis doesn’t offer this watch with more strap options. I like the strap now that it’s sized but I will not be happy if I ever have to adjust it again.

The numbers and markings on the dial show up wonderfully clear in the daytime but at night the markings are hard to see even considering that Fortis touts its “Superluminova” technology. I noticed after a few days I could pick the markings up in a dark car but it’s still a chore to see them clearly and that is unfortunate. I have other analog watches that are at a much lower price point where the hands and numbers are easier to see in low light. Again Fortis missed the mark here.

Closing Thoughts

The Fortis B-42 Cosmonaut Watch is a large, well built and accurate timepiece that will take a beating for years and is able to withstand more abuse than it’s wearer. The company continues a tradition of handmade Swiss watches that goes back over a hundred years in the Grenchen region of Switzerland. That being said the Fortis B-42 is not a watch for everyone, and honestly, I was a bit let down by it after 30 days. I plan to keep the watch and put it into my watch rotation and use it when the mood hits, but to me this is not an everyday watch. The size and lack of features aren’t a problem for me personally, what bothers me is the thickness and weight of the case. When you add that to the sub-par lume on the dial it just sours the overall feeling of the watch.

The company also has in recent months suffered a financial setback and has asked the Swiss Government for bankruptcy protection for a specified time period. This is interesting because it’s an independent company and would most likely be primed for a buy out by the SWATCH group or another Swiss watchmaker. In a nutshell, the slight slip in attention to detail and quality control (the poor illuminating quality of the dial) coupled with the shaky financial status of the company, unfortunately, makes me not recommend this Fortis B-42 or any Fortis currently to our readers.

We sometimes get accused of being paid shills for the manufacturers of the gear we review, this has not and will not be the case here at Hurricane Group. This test watch was not provided by Fortis or one of their authorized retail outlets, it was purchased with my own money from an Authorized Distributor. One who I would like to add sent me replacement screws for the stainless steel bracelet when a set snapped off. That was a nice touch of customer service and the substandard review of this watch in no way reflects on the treatment I received from the Authorized Distributor.

We hope you enjoyed this honest look at the Fortis B-42 watch if you have a watch that has served you well over the years we would love to hear about it. Horology and higher end watches aren’t for everyone, just like a custom 1911 isn’t for everyone. But for those of us who enjoy, collect and choose to wear higher-end timepieces, I think it’s safe to say we enjoy hearing about other peoples watches and why we tend to gravitate towards one brand or another.

Hypothermia, Photography, & the Iron Dog

Hypothermia, Photography and Iron Dog Snowmobile Race

The title of this piece only touches on the overall story, a tale of the mixing of motorsports, photography, and Alaska that almost lead to devastating results for me on a cold February day. The event in question was the Iron Dog snowmobile race, a grueling 2031-mile journey from Big Lake, Alaska to Nome.

I love photography and I love almost any motorsport that isn’t NASCAR (sorry everyone, I just hate NASCAR). Previous to the Iron Dog, I had experience shooting photos of other snowmobile events—mainly snowcross and freestyle events. The winter weather in Alaska was something I thought I had always accommodated given my gear loadout and trip planning. Not the case this time. I made a series of mistakes that almost ended very badly. Because I got overconfident in myself and underestimated the effect the wind and cold temperatures would have on me, I nearly suffered an icy fate.

I remember when I left that morning it was in the mid ’20s outside, with clear blue skies. I briefly thought about taking extra clothes and water. My clothing loadout that day was a classic rookie mistake: I wore a generic Carhartt-imitation jacket, Sorel Caribou boots with plain white cotton socks underneath, Carhartt blue jeans, no hat, gloves, layers, or long sleeves, just a simple cotton t-shirt to cover my core. I know my mother would have disapproved; you never go out in the winter without a hat and gloves on.

The start of the Iron Dog race is held on a frozen lake, aptly named Big Lake. Growing up in suburban Cleveland, Ohio, I never once ice fished or spent time on a frozen lake. Even after spending 20 years in Alaska, I still believe ice is for drinks and for hockey. Since this was the case, I had zero idea what standing in the middle of a frozen ice rink of almost 2,500 acres would do to my body in short order. Honestly, I never even calculated it into my thought process.

I arrived well before the scheduled start time so I could go through the pit areas in the hopes of snapping some behind-the-scenes pictures and maybe get a few words from the drivers so I could get some freelance photography credit. The first hour of walking around, I didn’t think it was too bad. I kept ducking between trailers and tents, using them as a windbreak. But by the second hour, even stopping in the warming tents wasn’t helping much.

Once the starting order of the racers had been picked and the teams lined up, I went to work—looking for angles, checking the settings on my Nikon D200, and trying to process the scenes mentally while shooting them. In my drive to capture a picture that would allow me to get published for the first time ever, I mentally checked out when it came to my own wellbeing. This is one of the many mistakes I made that day. I can’t tell you exactly when it happened, but I began to notice I couldn’t figure out what I was doing with my camera, and the letters on the LCD screen were suddenly looking odd.

I thought it had to be a mechanical issue. But when I looked up from my camera, everything looked out of focus. The guy next to me asked, “Hey, have you been drinking any water today?” I said aloud, “Oh, I might have fucked up.” He laughed and handed me a bottle of water, suggesting that maybe I should head over to the warming tent and get something warmer to drink.

I spent a few minutes in the warming tent and noticed on the walk over that my feet didn’t seem to be cooperating with the rest of my body. I’m sure to the people I passed, I looked like I was a staggering town drunk. The farther I got down this path of hypothermia, the more aware I was that I was in danger, but pride and stupidity kept my mouth shut.

In hindsight, any number of items we have reviewed would have helped me greatly that day and on other days shooting pictures in the snow and cold. Something as simple as the GatorSkins or Massif System gear would have helped maintain my core temperature. The Sealskinz gloves or the Outdoor Research Stormsensors would have allowed me to operate my Nikon and still stay warm.

I’m not sure how long I spent in the warming tent, but I can promise you it wasn’t long enough. Pride and stupidity reared it’s ugly head again as I began the long walk to my Jeep. The race began in the middle of this 2500-acre lake, which would have been ideal if I weren’t trying to walk out of it in a near-panic.

If I had a manual transmission in my Jeep, I know there would have been no way I would have gotten home safely from the Iron Dog. I wouldn’t have had the dexterity to operate both the clutch and the gas. When I arrived back at my Jeep, I remembered I had two Hot Hands in my glove box. I quickly opened them, got them active, and stuck them under my arms. The thinking was try to warm my core—not the best plan, but I was pretty scared, to be honest. The drive home was not the smartest thing I’ve done, either, but I stopped at the first gas station I saw for a bottle of Powerade and a large coffee.

Thirty miles can be a harrowing drive some days, and on this day, it was. I remember shivering the whole drive home, even after stopping for a second cup of coffee, and with the heater of the Jeep on full blast. Luckily, I made it home in one piece, and when I began to relay the story to my wife, she was furious. Hours after the event, it hit me how lucky I was.

Remember, no matter how smart, brave, or experienced you are, Mother Nature doesn’t care. She will kill you just like she will the novice explorer. Plan and prepare like your life depends on it, because someday, it might.

(Note: Not all pictures are from the 2013 Iron Dog, but they are all taken by the author.)

Tract Optics: Toric Ultra HD Scope 4-20×50

The market for rifle optics is particularly crowded when it comes to red dot style optics and scopes that offer 1-6X magnification. The other end of the market, the long range hunters and sport shooters are less crowded and ripe for an upstart company like Tract Optics to come in and shake up the market. As I have previously mentioned I am in the middle of setting up a new hunting rifle for both moose and caribou in either .308 Winchester or .7mm Remington Magnum. An optic with a little more length on the end of the magnification range would be helpful since often times kill shots are made over much longer distances than lower 48 deer hunters have to deal with. Let’s see how this new heavy-duty optic stacks up by a complete breakdown of the specifications and the features.

cleanly marked locking turrets and good texturing on all controls shown Photo: Rick Dembroski

Specifications

Manufacturer: Tract Optics

Country of Manufacture: Japan

Model Number: Toric Ultra HD

Magnification: 4x-20X

Objective Lens: 50mm

Reticle Style: Minute of Angle with 11 illumination settings

Field of View:

Low Power: 24.5′ @ 100 yards
High Power: 4.9′ @ 100 yards

Eye Relief: 3.9″

Tube Diameter: 30mm

Eyepiece Outside Diameter: 1.73″

Objective Lens Outside Diameter: 2.28″

Overall Length: 13.7″

Weight: 34 oz

Warranty: Lifetime

MSRP: $1100.00 Estimated

magnification controls clearly marked 4-20 X Photo:Rick Dembroski

Handling & First Impressions

First impressions on any product can tell the owner or user a lot about the company who built the item they are reviewing. In this case, I can tell you that Tract Optics builds their optics to be used and maybe abused by the shooter in the field, more just from the shooting rest. When the box arrived from Tract Optics it was huge and relatively heavy, which is always a good thing as long as it doesn’t jingle like broken parts do. When I opened the box I was stunned at the dimensions of the optic at just over 13 1/2″ long with the large 2+” diameter objective lens It makes a commanding entrance.

When I initially opened the box and removed the optic I thought it was black, but in fact its a weird gray/black color that is actually a nice break from the common flat black coatings most optics come with. The finish on the tube, controls and case of the scope is smooth but not slippery like the old blued optics of old that companies like Leupold made famous. After a few minutes of scanning the surface of the scope, it’s easy to tell that the quality control at the factory is very tight, which is always a good thing. The letters on the controls and barrel are easily visible and is a shade of what appears to be grey/off-white. It allows users to see the numbers and lettering but not have it jump off and be eye-catching or reflect light.

Controls and Dials

Often a problem with many optics is that they look amazing but when it comes to the controls and the actual use of the optic they fall short. This is not the case with the Tract Optics Toric HD, The controls feature standard texturing but nothing crazy and over the top. I have reviewed a few optics from other manufacturers that were amazing but I was then shocked at how aggressive the texturing on the turret controls were. The folks at Tract Optics produced controls that are easy to operate with and without gloves and each click of the elevation and drift controls is very solid and consistent, a nice audible click greets you between settings so there is no doubt that you are going to move the point of impact of your net round. The other great feature on these turrets is that they slide up and down to lock the adjustments in. If you need to make an adjustment you simply pull up on the turret and make your adjustments and then push down to lock the turret in place. This greatly reduces the chances of an accidental adjustment of your rifles zero.

I would like to point out that the controls for the magnification and the combination illumination control/side focus parallax controls do not feature any loud audible clicks when adjusted. This is because of the very different nature of the controls themselves, they simply slide through their range of motions smooth and silent. This most likely isn’t a concern to anyone on a large scale but I wanted to mention it to make sure our readers understand the difference between the two styles of controls and how they are set up. Now, let’s move onto the heart of the optic, the glass.

MOA reticle shown while illuminated Photo:Rick Dembroski

Glass and Use

The heart of any optic is the glass that we actually look through if you have substandard glass you have a substandard optic. The glass that Tract Optics puts in this beast of a scope is Schott Ultra High Definition glass that is renowned for its clarity and light transmission capabilities especially in low light conditions. There’s a lot of science and technology behind the glass and all it takes is a quick search to get overwhelmed in formulas and numbers. To me testing the low light capabilities of an optic means going outside and actually glassing the hills to see how well it works.

Since I don’t have my rifle set up yet and nothing is in season here in Alaska, I decided to go hiking in the early morning hours between 4 and 5 AM and take the optic with me instead of binoculars. The sun is up at around 5:30 AM here now so if I’m going to test this out I have to get up at ridiculous hours to see if it performs like Tract Optics says it does. A few miles and a good deal of cussing later I can report that yes this optic has amazing low light capabilities. The optic grabs the early morning light and produced clean, clear and amazing images that were free from fog or distortion. It almost made me not angry to be up wondering around before 5 AM, I would be a lot less irritated if I was on an actual hunt but the season doesn’t open until the fall and I wanted to get a review done long before hunting season.

Closing Thoughts & Comments

The Tract Optics 4-20×50 is a beast of an optic that features an illuminated reticle with 11 settings coupled to a set of easy to use controls and a lifetime warranty to deliver an amazing range of magnification and undoubtedly increased lethality in the hands of an experienced hunter. This optic would be perfectly suited to a wide range of shooters from precision bench shooters to the average outdoorsman who is harvesting meat for his family. The build quality and features are comparable if not superior to many of its competitors. One thing I would like to add is that the company’s website has a huge list of tutorial videos on setting up and adjusting all of their optics, so if you are a visual learner it’s a huge advantage. That’s also why they do not include any printed instructions in their packaging, instead, they give you a card with the address to the database of videos.

People may not be familiar with the Tract Optics name of their lines of optics but I’m betting in the near future they will be. The company makes lines of optics to cover most budgets and if this 4-2-x50 isn’t what you need be sure to check out the company’s web page and see if they have an offering to fit your needs. This brains behind this company aren’t a few anonymous people with no experience in the optics world, they are experienced in the world of optics development. Company Co-Founder Jon Allen put in many years at Redfield as their National Sales Manager and later helped guide Nikon into the era of modern optics at the helm of the Nikon Sports Optics Division. When he teamed up with Jon LaCorte who was also a former Nikon big wig they knew what it would take to produce an optic and market it directly to you the shooter and consumer. This allows them to make optics every bit as good as the other guys but offer it at a lower price point directly to consumers.

Let us know what you think in the comments section below. Is the Tract Optics Toric line of rifle scopes something you would consider ? or are you now going to consider them? What are you looking for in your next rifle optic? We want to know so we can better address the concerns and needs of our readers.