We’re getting into the gift giving, and more importantly, gift receiving season, so here are some of our picks for black rifle accessories. Some are old; some are new; some are expensive and others not, but all are useful additions to the modern sporting rifle.
Aimpoint Carbine Optic
I’ve always loved the red dot options from Aimpoint. For me, since I like these on a defensive rifle, the “always on” feature is fantastic. You never, ever have to worry about turning your red dot on when you go for your rifle. Just leave it on all the time and make yourself a reminder to change the battery every year.
New for 2015 is the Aimpoint Carbine Optic. Made specifically for black rifles, it has a fixed-height mount pre-measured for back up iron sight co-witness. By making the optic platform specific, Aimpoint was able to reduce the price to an entry point level. It’s got a 2 MOA dot, and if you leave it on all the time, the batteries will last for about a year.
It’s just hitting the dealer shelves now, but you can find one here. MSRP is $393.
XProducts Drum Magazine
I’ve never paid much attention to drum magazines for black rifles, at least until I checked out the X Products version. Made from steel and aluminum, these are no plastic discount catalog gimmicks. They’re getting to be a big deal on the 3-gun circuit for good reason. Sporting a 50-round capacity, the overall height is still lower than a normal 30-round magazine, do you can dive for prone position shooting and get even lower to the ground.
They’re not just for 2.23/5.56mm black rifles either. Check out the XProducts website to see options for .308 and other calibers.
You can find a 50 round standard drum for about $200 at Brownells.
Badger Ordnance Tactical Charging Handle Latch
OK, forget the “tactical” part of this product. It’s just handy if your black rifle has any type of receiver-mounted optic. The latch is enlarged and extended, so even if you have a scope that gets in the way of standard charging handle operation, it’s easy to reach. You don’t have to do digging underneath the rear of the optic to find the charging handle.
You can buy just the extended latch and mount it to your existing charging handle or you can just buy the complete charging handle with the bigger latch built in. The neat part is that Badger makes the extended latch in right-hand, left-hand and both-side configurations.
Available at Brownells. The latch only is less than $20, while the complete charging handle is about $100. You can pick up the ambidextrous model for about $120.
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