Here is the AAR I wrote up for the EAG class. 

 

I attended the 2 day Basic Carbine Course with EAG Tactical 8/2 - 8/3 at Echo Valley Training Center.

• Gear

I used my BCM EAG HS upper with my Spikes lower. Put damn near 1000 rounds through with no issues using Federal 55 gr fmj.

We graciously received 3 Pmags, 2 Tango Down ARC mags and a BCM GI mag prior to class (along with lots of other goodies from the vendors). I traded my ARC mags and ran with 5 Pmags and 1 GI mag for both days.  Thankfully, I didn't have to use my modified mags (15 rounders due to local state law) which would have been a major pain in the ass.
I wore a TT 1 piece MAV and an ATS war belt with all the trimmings seen here.

Tip: If you plan on taking a class at EVTC do yourself a favor and wear knee and elbow pads!  They are recommended on the course list but for this venue, it is needed. 

Takeaways:  My carbine is too heavy.  The magnifier will be removed for future classes, as its just not needed for the distances we will be shooting.  I may seek to lighten up the back end as well.  I need to switch out my pistol grip to a more vertical one, K grip or BCM grip possibly.  Belt and chest rig worked well, no major issues. 

 

• TD1

TD1 started bright and early, showing no signs of the stormy weather forecasted earlier.  Range was more than adequate and gave us plenty of room to make the class happen. Class was started by a few quick intros and some outlining about how and why we would need to employ the carbine.  We got out on the range soon enough to confirm zero.  Drills started giving us a good baseline as to what response you would need to counter a threat (single shot, hammer pair, NSR, etc)  Also showing us the importance of trigger control and offset. Class continued quickly and smoothly into several firing positions and basics of dynamic movement.  There were several breaks to rehydrate and stuff mags.  This not only gave the students a chance to get out of the hot sun, but to discuss and learn from Pat with a little more insight.

 

Takeaways:  Dont forget the offset.  YOU are responsible for managing your ammo, there is no reason to run your gun dry.  

 

• TD2

TD2 started much like TD1.  Blue skies with occasional clouds but never really a threat of the T-storms that were supposedly in the area.  It was a bit more humid and less breezy leading to yeasty goodness for us bigger guys. After a quick confirm zero, we were back out on the line to prepare for the qual courses we'd run later in the day.  We moved into speed reloads, shooting on the move and timed marksmanship from the 50 using multiple positions.   We ended TD2 with several relay runs and then a scored runs on 2 different quals before calling it a day. 

 

Takeaways: Don't chase the dot, your first good sight picture is probably your best.  Need to have a consistent trigger pull to put shots on target a longer range.   

 

Overall takeaways:  This was my first EAG class and I'll admit I was a bit apprehensive coming into class.  Pat was very personable and seemed to settle the class down very quickly  and we all got into a good groove.  Don't get me wrong, he had no issues telling me I sucked, several times. 

 

Shoot less and train more. I didn't shoot as well as I expected myself to, and it's probably because my personal practice regimen sucks. I can't expect to get better by taking a couple carbine classes a year.  This will change.  I need to pay attention to my stance.  I'm not a small guy but if I dont lean into the gun an NSR can still push me back. The next shot is always the most important, don't feel sorry for yourself because you pulled the last one.

Don't Fugg Up.   

 

• Thank you's 

I said it before but I'll say it again.  Thanks Pat for a great class and learning opportunity.  I will be back.  Thank you to Martina for her camelcrack and helping out with range duties.(I still owe you)  To EVTC for an excellent venue that is within driving distance for me. To all of the supporting vendors for letting us use their stuff on their dime.  To the other students for staying safe and keeping class running smoothly.  It was good to meet all of you.  And to Donna who puts in more leg work than I'm sure I have any idea.

 

I will be looking forward to the next EAG class I'm attending. 

Nice AAR, sounds like learning occurred. EAG classes are awesome. I regret not being able to go to more of them..and earn a moosecock lol. Classes like what Uncle Pat puts on is a great way to shake out your gear and figure out what works for you and what doesn't. I've taken more gear off my guns in or post class than I've added.

Glad you had a great time at the class. A few questions I was wondering if Pat covered at all...

 

1. I've read that Pat is not a fan of running an X300 type WML at the 12:00 position. Did he happen to mention why that is?

 

2. Did he get into the different rail options there are today (such as the full quad rails like the ones from DD, the BCM KMR, etc)?

Glad you had a great time at the class. A few questions I was wondering if Pat covered at all...

 

1. I've read that Pat is not a fan of running an X300 type WML at the 12:00 position. Did he happen to mention why that is?

 

2. Did he get into the different rail options there are today (such as the full quad rails like the ones from DD, the BCM KMR, etc)?

1. Sorry he did not. From talking to him about the Fury line is that he seems to prefer the spill of the fury's over anything else.

 

2. We bullshitted about some of the rails at dinner last night and he is a big fan of the BCM kmr 13. He's a fan of the key mod and the magnesium rails are significantly lighter. I know he seems like he's a "BCM guy" but he's giving honest feedback on any and every piece of gear we asked about. It just seems like BCM had their shit together compared to some other companies.

Nice AAR, sounds like learning occurred. EAG classes are awesome. I regret not being able to go to more of them..and earn a moosecock lol. Classes like what Uncle Pat puts on is a great way to shake out your gear and figure out what works for you and what doesn't. I've taken more gear off my guns in or post class than I've added.

Definitely did. A little humble pie was served as well. I can't believe I didn't get a moosecock but I was anal about push, pull and ammo management. Prior classes with 15 round mags taught me the latter.

Sounds like a fun weekend! Thanks for the write-up.

 

Soooo…if this was in WV (quick google search), did you get to use some 30rders for the class?

Sounds like a fun weekend! Thanks for the write-up.

 

Soooo…if this was in WV (quick google search), did you get to use some 30rders for the class?

 

Yeah. It was annoying to have to load 28 rounds into a mag haha.

 

BTW Ty you have 6 mags incoming.

checko can u pls elaborate on the issue of the weight of ur rifle ( how are u gonna make it lighter ? ) and the grip (angle? Thickness? Length? what is wrong with one u have? )

btw what is the weight now ? and what is the goal?

checko can u pls elaborate on the issue of the weight of ur rifle ( how are u gonna make it lighter ? ) and the grip (angle? Thickness? Length? what is wrong with one u have? )

btw what is the weight now ? and what is the goal?

My rifle was a little over 9lbs, which I feel is too much for a LW barrel and moe handguards. I'm gonna take the 3x mag off unless its a situation out past 100yds. Aside from that I can change out the stock, which I don't want to do really. Aside from that I'm not really sure what I can do. I'm happy with my sight and want to keep my flashlight. I don't know how much weight I can save with another set of hg's

 

As for the grip, it is currently at a bad angle since I like my stock very short. It tilts my wrist forward and ends up being sore after a day of shooting. Hopefully a steeper grip will remedy this

Chris maybe the paint added some weight. Lol

Lol I hope not. It was 9+ before the paint job

 

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I cant imagine shaving too much more weight. The light is a must. I wouldnt get rid of that.

Well why the hell is it so heavy? I see other guys with 7lb rifles and stuff and I wonder what I'm doing wrong.

 

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I dont have numbers in front of me but you could chage out the gas block go with a light weight FF rail. That may save some weight.

http://www.ak47.net/archive/topic.html?b=3&f=118&t=564379

 

Heres a good topic. A2 FSB comes in at 4.5-5.2 oz.

Magpul Mid length MOE HG 8.72oz.

https://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pwswheghNQsFnUZMkZNF2DQ&output=html

 

Chart for ya.

Well I didn't want to get that in depth with it. I guess I could cut down the FSB but no rail is lighter really. Maybe a bcm kmr

 

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Glad you had a great time at the class. A few questions I was wondering if Pat covered at all...

1. I've read that Pat is not a fan of running an X300 type WML at the 12:00 position. Did he happen to mention why that is?

2. Did he get into the different rail options there are today (such as the full quad rails like the ones from DD, the BCM KMR, etc)?

1) Pat's biggest thing against the X300u at 12 is it simply doesn't solve any problems - there is still a shadow, it costs 1.5-3x that of a Fury and doesn't have the throw or aura of the P2X or P3X. It also works best with his "switchology" including his DBAL.

 

2) Pat prefers the BCM KMR at this time and has chosen this to be on the rifle bearing his companies name.

 

 

Also Checko,

 

Aimpont T1 - 3oz

EOTurd - 8oz

 

Just sayin'

 

Like Pat says, "your mission drives the gear train". Get rid of what you don't need but don't go crazy bro.

 

 

Seriously, at some point you reach a diminishing return with weight savings. The lighter the gun the easier to carry but the more fatiguing to shoot, the sharper the recoil, the slower to recover your sight picture. Don't overthink it. The more you shoot/dry fire the easier it will be to shoot - reliable and simple is more important that light.

 

 

Also Checko,

 

Aimpont T1 - 3oz

EOTurd - 8oz

 

Just sayin'

 

Like Pat says, "your mission drives the gear train". Get rid of what you don't need but don't go crazy bro.

 

 

Seriously, at some point you reach a diminishing return with weight savings. The lighter the gun the easier to carry but the more fatiguing to shoot, the sharper the recoil, the slower to recover your sight picture. Don't overthink it. The more you shoot/dry fire the easier it will be to shoot - reliable and simple is more important that light.

Understood. My rifle just seems oddly heavy compared to others. I think the magnifier is off unless needed and I may look into a diff stock. The H-1 will be my next red dot purchase BTW.

1) Pat's biggest thing against the X300u at 12 is it simply doesn't solve any problems - there is still a shadow, it costs 1.5-3x that of a Fury and doesn't have the throw or aura of the P2X or P3X. It also works best with his "switchology" including his DBAL.

 

Thanks for the info. Interesting on the P2X vs the X300U. Does the Fury really throw much more than the X300U?

 

I see his point about the X300 at the 12:00 position not solving many problems though. A shadow is going to be inevitable unless you position the light so it is flush or extends beyond the muzzle. I just liked the ambi-positioning of at 12:00. I just wanted to get Pat's take on whether there are any downfalls to consider though. Sounds like there isn't unless you are going to be running a DBAL too.

I just took a 2 day all low-light class with Pat & EAG in mid-July. It was an indoor facility so dark was It was eye opening to say the least. I am still working on an AAR but yes, there is a significant difference at 50 yards between the Fury and the X300U.

 

We covered light placement on the carbine thoroughly and broke it down as such:

 

Pat puts the most emphasis on what he refers to as "Switchology". He believes that a light with a "clicky" tailcap at the 10:00-11:00 position (right handed shooter) is optimal for his shooting style and equipment needs. After trying a number of different options myself, I agree.... Although I am toying with putting a WMLX at 12 on one of my rifles.

 

Like you said, no matter where you put the light you will get a shadow. Murphy's Law states that that shadow will be exactly where you don't want it to be when you need to see the most. The answer, move/roll the rifle until you can see what you need to see.

With a light at 10:00-11:00, is there an ideal technique to activate the light if shooting lefty?

Looking forward to that AAR.

Aggressive C clamp hold will get your the over to the switch if you are shooting support side.